WiFi performance of RT-AC56U slower than older RT-N56U. Why?

[Kwipper]

My ISP maxes out around 37 Mb down and 7 Mb up.

- I tested my wifi using my phone (Motorola Moto E XT1526) about a foot or so away from the router using speedtest.net.
- The phone did not move from it's position. (about 1 foot away from the router)
- All of the settings on both of the routers were at their default settings.

Here are the results....

ASUS RT-AC56U (stock firmware 3.0.0.4.378.9459)

• Test #1: 21.49 D / 6.95 U
• Test #2: 20.59 D / 6.96 U
• Test #3: 21.61 D / 7.02 U

ASUS RT-N56U (stock firmware 3.0.0.4.378.4850)>>

• Test #1: 35.78 D / 6.99 U
• Test #2: 36.07 D / 7.06 U
• Test #3: 35.92 D / 6.99 U

Why does my older router (RT-N56U) have faster downstream WiFi performance than my newer router (RT-AC56U)?

 

[Nullity]

Can you try a speedtest from a wired client?

 

[L&LD]

• Are both routers on at the time of your testing?
  • Make sure that only one is on at a time.
• Are the channels selected on auto or are you manually selecting them?
  • Use the same channel(s), but also experiment with other channels as one router may be tuned better to something else.
• Are you using the same ssid's?
  • Use different ssid's for the routers (the micro code that is being loaded for a certain connection may be causing the discrepancy you're seeing).
• What band(s) are you testing?
  • Test both bands if possible and also compare them to a wired test client too.
• Do not use a handheld mobile device to test with.
  • A mobile device's performance is limited because it wants to offer the highest battery life (not performance at all costs).
  • A laptop (preferably plugged in) is a better test client to see the abilities of your network.
• For testing, use a large file (1GB and larger) to transfer from a wired client to a wireless (or another wired, as a 'control') client. A speedtest of your ISP can also be used, but that is limited by your ISP's service to your location and may not be a proper or fair test of your equipment.
• Finally, do not test so close to your router(s). Radio waves need room to properly form (about 10' or 3 metres) and using them close to each other may even damage the router or the client too (depending on how advanced the design of the circuits are).

 

[Kwipper]

Thanks for the reply. =)

• Both of the routers were not on at the same time. I had one only plugged in and powered on at a time.
• I had both routers set to the default, which is auto. Both of them at the time were on channel 6 at the time of testing.
  
• I did have them using the same SSID's at the time.
• They were both using the 2.4ghz band. I do not have any devices using dual-band receivers. So no 5GHz to test with. Sorry.
• Next time I'll use my laptop and make sure that all of my power savings options are disabled.
• As for using a 1GB file. Can it be any file around 1GB in filesize? Also, what software would be best to use the measure the transfer speeds. I am using Windows 7. Should I use the default file copy measurement that comes default in Windows 7, or should I use a 3rd party program to measure it?
  
• I will make sure that on my next test, I'll have it as far away as I can have it in my room.

I will have to retest it tonight after everyone in my household is asleep, and not using the router / internet. I will post results afterwards. It will be kinda late since I must wait until 1-3 AM (CST) for everyone to be asleep, and the network is quiet.

 

[Kwipper]

Laptop Wireless Card: Qualcomm Atheros AR9485 Wireless Network Adapter (Driver v10.0.0.270)
Desktop Ethernet Card: Killer e2200 Gigabit Ethernet Controller (Driver v8.1.0.23)
Test File Used: MP4 Movie File - 1.13 GB (1,216,208,896 bytes)

• Only ONE router was plugged in, and powered on at a time.
• The laptop was about 10 feet away from the router at the time of testing.
• No other devices were plugged into the router except for my laptop and my cable modem.

These are screenshots of the router wireless settings before the tests were done.

RT-AC56U - Wireless - General Tab Settings
RT-AC56U - Wireless - Professional Tab Settings
RT-N56U - Wireless - General Tab Settings
RT-N56U - Wireless - Professional Tab Settings

Here are my findings....

------RT-AC56U - 2.4GHZ WiFi @ Channel 6 Test (SSID: RT-AC56U_2_4G)------

Desktop to Laptop
Transfer Time: 7:06:00 AM to 7:09:13 AM (3 minutes, 13 seconds)
Transfer Speed: 6.07 MB/second

Laptop to Desktop
Transfer Time: 7:10:00 AM to 7:14:57 AM (4 minutes, 57 seconds)
Transfer Speed: 3.91 MB/second

SpeedTest.net
Ping - 15ms
Download Speed: 22.13 Mbps
Upload Speed: 6.88 Mbps​

------RT-AC56U - Ethernet Test - Cat5E Ethernet Cable------

Desktop to Laptop
Transfer Time: 05:46:00 to 05:46:12 (12 Seconds)
Transfer Speed: 114 MB/second

Laptop to Desktop
Transfer Time: 05:47:00 - 05:47:12 (12 Seconds)
Transfer Speed: 114 MB/second

SpeedTest.net
Ping - 13ms
Download Speed: 36.07 Mbps
Upload Speed: 6.86 Mbps​

------RT-N56U - 2.4GHZ WiFi @ Channel 6 Test (SSID: RT-N56U_2_4G)------

Desktop to Laptop
Transfer Time: 6:44:00 AM to 6:47:46 AM (3 minutes, 46 seconds)
Transfer Speed: 5.17 MB/second

Laptop to Desktop
Transfer Time: 6:49:00 AM to 6:53:40 AM (4 minutes, 40 seconds)
Transfer Speed: 4.15 MB/second

SpeedTest.net
Ping - 14ms
Download Speed: 35.69 Mbps
Upload Speed: 6.91 Mbps​

------RT-N56U - Ethernet Test - Cat5E Ethernet Cable------

Desktop to Laptop
Transfer Time: 6:34:00 AM to 6:34:12 AM (12 seconds)
Transfer Speed: 115 MB/second

Laptop to Desktop
Transfer Time: 6:35:00 AM to 6:35:12 AM (12 seconds)
Transfer Speed: 115 MB/second

SpeedTest.net
Ping - 12ms
Download Speed: 36.07 Mbps
Upload Speed: 6.86 Mbps​

------Direct to ARRIS CM820A (DOCSIS 3.0) Cable Modem - Cat5E Ethernet Cable------

SpeedTest.net
Ping - 12ms
Download Speed: 36.07 Mbps
Upload Speed: 6.91 Mbps​

Note: I also tried the tests using channels 1, and 11 as well on each of the routers, but they seemed to make very little to no difference in performance.

Let me know if you need anymore information....

 

[Algimantas]

Hi,
I am also a owner of RT-AC56U
I had my router replaced 3 times by warranty due to different things but the wifi problem stayed the same.
The 2.4Ghz on this router is just terrible and there is no known way to improve it. I know atleast one more person in my vicinity who owns RT-AC56U and he has the same problems. So clearly it has nothing to do with your router. 5Ghz though on this router rocks

My best result with 2.4G using intel wifi chip were 28mbps down 45mbps upl

I think this problem may have something to do with hw revisions because as far as I know Merlin had this router (or still has) and he didn't have this problem.

Sent from my D6503 using Tapatalk

 

[Kwipper]

If the WiFi is so bad on this router. Why do they keep selling it? Nobody seems to be able to get a speed on the 2.4 GHZ above 25 - 30 MBPS to matter how fast their ISP is. Is this a problem with just this router, or does it exist with other ASUS routers as well. If so, which ones?

 

[PzASUS]

My ISP maxes out around 37 Mb down and 7 Mb up.

- I tested my wifi using my phone (Motorola Moto E XT1526) about a foot or so away from the router using speedtest.net.
- The phone did not move from it's position. (about 1 foot away from the router)
- All of the settings on both of the routers were at their default settings.

Here are the results....

ASUS RT-AC56U (stock firmware 3.0.0.4.378.9459)

• Test #1: 21.49 D / 6.95 U
• Test #2: 20.59 D / 6.96 U
• Test #3: 21.61 D / 7.02 U

ASUS RT-N56U (stock firmware 3.0.0.4.378.4850)>>

• Test #1: 35.78 D / 6.99 U
• Test #2: 36.07 D / 7.06 U
• Test #3: 35.92 D / 6.99 U

Why does my older router (RT-N56U) have faster downstream WiFi performance than my newer router (RT-AC56U)?

what is your link connection speed? For each to any device on wifi?

 

[ColinTaylor]

what is your link connection speed? For each to any device on wifi?

You are replying to a post that is over a year old.