Dual band router for Roku?

[vanvock]

I'm not sure if this would be better in Home Theater but since it primarily concerns a router I'll try it here. I have two new wireless additions thanks to Santa, the first being a Win7 laptop which does fine & the other is a Roku/XR for streaming netflix to a tv. It supports HDMI & wireless N. My current router is a Net Gear WGR614 v5(G). The Roku is about 12 feet from the router with 1 wall between them but only shows 2 dots (sometimes 3 for short periods) of signal quality & randomly drops out. Would updating the router firmware help? Any suggestions on a new wireless router or links to reviews would be much appreciated. Would a simultanious dual band be the best? Consumer reviews that I've read on them are mixed. We also have 2.4 cordless phones throughout the house(Vonage-VOIP). Thanks.

 

[jlazzaro]

id say the problem is your interference or the roku itself. check out the top sticky and try a site survey along with assigning channel 1, 6, 11 for best performance. steaming video and cordless phones operating in an already overloaded spectrum is less than ideal.

 

[vanvock]

steaming video and cordless phones operating in an already overloaded spectrum is less than ideal.

That's why I'm curious about the dual band, I thought I'd dedicate the 5ghz radio to the roku for separation & better throughput I'm just not sure if that's what I'll get. The trip to the crawlspace to run more cat5 gets less appealing as I get older & fatter. Thanks.

 

[ScottMac]

I've had good luck with the Linksys 610N v2 dual-band N (2.4 and 5G 802.11N a the same time. I use it with the Linksys wireless audio system (premium kit - player, director, and controller) and two Logitech Squeezeboxes (in addition to a couple laptops and netbooks). The 610Nv2 has a usb port to add media for network service as well.

I've also had goo dluck going with a straight-up Access point (two actually, one for each band) from Linksys and Netgear. Since I already have routers & firewalls set up, it's easier and less headache and struggle to just extend the wired network to the wireless domain with an access point (versus another router that includes wireless).

 

[vanvock]

"I've also had goo dluck going with a straight-up Access point (two actually, one for each band)"

Hmmm, So I could add an AP & dedicate it @ 5ghz to the Roku? That could be the way to go.
edit-
After a quick look it seems that an AP costs nearly as much as a router, sooo.......

 

[kevnich2]

Keep in mind - 5ghz doesn't penetrate as far as 2.4ghz. I myself use 5ghz and 2.4ghz N - 2.4ghz N does pretty well but again if you have a noisy wireless environment - 2.4ghz is easily crowded - where 5ghz comes into play but again - the signal doesn't go as far as 2.4ghz does