Maxed out G router?

[suklee]

I just got an upgraded Internet connection tonight, and with the modem plugged into the MacBook directly via CAT5e I did a speedtest and got 150Mb/s down & 105Mb/s up.

I then tried with the modem plugged into a Buffalo HP 54G router and the same test with the MacBook via Wifi (only a foot away) yielded 15~20Mb/s up and down.

Will a new router (i.e. Wifi-N) help?

 

[saratoga172]

You might get quicker speeds with N, but I doubt you'll notice a difference in speed while browsing/downloading things online. N will help transfer speeds between computers on the network however.

The reason I went with N is for the increased range it gives. My router is on the other side of the house. With G I got maybe 1 bar and 1-2Mb and with N I get 4-5 bars with 10-20 speeds depending on my net connection at the time.

What are you doing with your internet? And what service are you using for such fast speeds?

 

[drebo]

15-20Mb/s is about the most you can expect from Wireless-G. It's 54mbps, half duplex, and with overhead, you're looking at about 20Mb/s under absolutely ideal circumstances.

Yes, N will likely give you better "raw speed", but you'll be hard pressed to notice a big difference in general browsing.

 

[suklee]

You might get quicker speeds with N, but I doubt you'll notice a difference in speed while browsing/downloading things online. N will help transfer speeds between computers on the network however.

This is for N-to-N only I'm assuming? Having better streaming video performance on the HTPC would be very nice, but it's currently got a cheapo G PCI card... (the Macbook and iMac are Wifi-N ready)

The reason I went with N is for the increased range it gives. My router is on the other side of the house. With G I got maybe 1 bar and 1-2Mb and with N I get 4-5 bars with 10-20 speeds depending on my net connection at the time.

What are you doing with your internet? And what service are you using for such fast speeds?

I live in HK in a small apartment, but if N can increase the range and go through concrete walls better I should consider an N router upgrade.

I had a "30Mbps" plan but for some reason my broadband company offered me more or less a free upgrade to "200Mbps" that comes into my apt using fibre optic cabling. The two guys that first came spent close to 2 hours just getting the cable in...

 

[spidey07]

Others are correct in 20 Mbs is about the best you can do with G. 802.11n would be hard pressed to max out your internet, especially given the concrete walls. Low density walls aren't too much of a problem, dense ones or thick ones are. Will never really know until you try.

 

[RadiclDreamer]

One other benefit you get with N (or A for that matter) is 5ghz spectrum which is less noisy, less noise = less retransmits = faster connection. BUT it will have a harder time going through solid objects. Still, its worth a try.

 

[mosco]

What happens when you connect your laptop to the router with a cat5e cable? I am guessing you aren't going to get near the mac either. Thats some serious bandwidth so I would try to get a decent-n router.

 

[VirtualLarry]

I just got an upgraded Internet connection tonight, and with the modem plugged into the MacBook directly via CAT5e I did a speedtest and got 150Mb/s down & 105Mb/s up.

I then tried with the modem plugged into a Buffalo HP 54G router and the same test with the MacBook via Wifi (only a foot away) yielded 15~20Mb/s up and down.

Will a new router (i.e. Wifi-N) help?

I'd like to know what kind of internet connection gets you 150/105. That's crazy-good!

Anyways, I'm on FIOS, and I get 30/25, and on my wired connection, I get that. I have two routers in WDS mode, N routers configured for single-channel. They show a connection speed of 130. On my desktops that are wired into the secondary WDS router, they too can hit 30Mbit/sec down on speedtests at times.

But my laptop, which shows a maximum N connection speed of 65 Mbit/sec, only gets around 20Mbit/sec down and up. Rarely, I can hit 25.

 

[suklee]

I'd like to know what kind of internet connection gets you 150/105. That's crazy-good!

I'm pretty sure I have this package: "fibre to the home", 200M - the highest offered in my area apparently. Prices shown are in HK Dollars.

Here's the test result from last night, to a local server:

I'll keep an eye out for an N-router but I suppose it's not super important at this point. I'm kind of partial to the Buffalo WZR-HP-G300NH... either that or it's Apple, but from browsing here the 2 Apple routers aren't recommended.

Ideally the modem & router could be moved from the back of the living room to the front where the TV is (more centrally located), but I was told the fiber optic cable should not be bent 90 degrees around corners or else the signal would get screwed up...

 

[suklee]

What happens when you connect your laptop to the router with a cat5e cable? I am guessing you aren't going to get near the mac either. Thats some serious bandwidth so I would try to get a decent-n router.

Just tried this with CAT 5 into the router (didn't have an extra 5e) and got 23/26 down/up.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Wow. They offer 1Gigabit service over fiber. Incredible! Why can't we get 1G broadband in the states for $200/mo. That would be insane!

 

[mosco]

Just tried this with CAT 5 into the router (didn't have an extra 5e) and got 23/26 down/up.

Yeah, thats what I was expecting. You are probably going to need a upper end router to handle that bandwith, something like WNDR3700.

check out http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/

 

[suklee]

Is that WNDR3700 the "best bang for buck" in its class? The price is a bit steep but if it's the last router I ever buy then I suppose it's a good investment!

What will I lose out on if I get the much cheaper Buffalo WZR-HP-G300NH router?

 

[suklee]

After upgrading the Buffalo WHR-HP-54G to DD-WRT, it seems my wired speeds are a lot faster while wireless speed has dropped?

Wired connection:

Wireless:

 

[ss284]

DD-WRT is actually quite terrible for fast connections. All the extra software they add introduces overhead which slows down its actual routing capabilities. On all three routers that I've ever installed dd-wrt on, it has drastically lowered throughput when testing on a 100mbit connection. Do yourself a favor and get a nice N router. The 3700 you linked earlier is a great choice.

 

[bobdole369]

15-20Mb/s is about the most you can expect from Wireless-G. It's 54mbps, half duplex, and with overhead, you're looking at about 20Mb/s under absolutely ideal circumstances.

Yes, N will likely give you better "raw speed", but you'll be hard pressed to notice a big difference in general browsing.

Seconded. I dedicate a pair of N AP's (client bridge mode) to get internet out to a server and the PS3 and TiVO in the living room. I can manage nearly 100mbits across the link transferring media files most days (that is transfer speeds from 5-9MegaBytes/second) transferring from my wired PC to a laptop on the G - maybe 1-2MegaBytes/second) or roughly 20mbits.

 

[suklee]

DD-WRT is actually quite terrible for fast connections. All the extra software they add introduces overhead which slows down its actual routing capabilities. On all three routers that I've ever installed dd-wrt on, it has drastically lowered throughput when testing on a 100mbit connection. Do yourself a favor and get a nice N router. The 3700 you linked earlier is a great choice.

I just 'discovered' Buffalo has a dual-band router: WZR-HP-AG300H but I can't seem to find many reviews on it, and it's not on Newegg. They say that it can be switched between DD-WRT and the Buffalo firmware easily.

It's half the price of the Netgear 3700..

 

[JackMDS]

http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wire...s-n-high-power-router-a-access-point-reviewed

 

[Pheran]

Ideally the modem & router could be moved from the back of the living room to the front where the TV is (more centrally located), but I was told the fiber optic cable should not be bent 90 degrees around corners or else the signal would get screwed up...

This is complete nonsense if you don't violate the minimum bend radius of the fiber. Ninety degrees is no problem at all as long as you aren't trying to make it turn like the corner of a square.

 

[VirtualLarry]

This is complete nonsense if you don't violate the minimum bend radius of the fiber. Ninety degrees is no problem at all as long as you aren't trying to make it turn like the corner of a square.

You should see how flexible the fiber is that they used to install my FIOS connection. Stuff can coil up like stranded wire. It's pretty amazing. I think Corning invented it. Google "flexible fiber".

 

[suklee]

http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wire...s-n-high-power-router-a-access-point-reviewed

But that is the WZR-HP-G300NH right?

Should I expect roughly the same unit as the above, but dual band (2.4 / 5 GHz) on the WZR-HP-AG300H? I'm slightly confused by the model numbers! Here's a comparison chart but it doesn't tell too much to be honest.

A useful link I found was this on the Buffalo Forums: Difference between WZR-HP-G300NH and WZR-HP-AG300H?

There are major differences in the 2, the G300NH uses an Atheros 9132 400Mhz CPU has 32MB flash and 64MB ram, a 3x3 MIMO antenna setup, a 2.4Ghz B/G/N radio.

The AG300H will use Atheros 7161 680Mhz CPU, 32MB flash, 256MB RAM, 2x2 MIMO setup and dual radios, 1x 2.4Ghz and 1x 5Ghz radio (dual simultaneous N)

 

[suklee]

This is complete nonsense if you don't violate the minimum bend radius of the fiber. Ninety degrees is no problem at all as long as you aren't trying to make it turn like the corner of a square.

Ideally I do want it to bend around a corner of a wall

 

[suklee]

I went down to the local computer mall today, but the Buffalo WZR-HP-AG300H is not in stock yet. :| Looks I'll have another week or so to research...

The other router I was considering was the Asus RT-N56U but its utilities are Windows-only.

 

[Mojonba]

Check out the Asus RT-N16. It is one of the few modern Tomato compatible router. Its radio is single band but its 480mhz cpu is top notch. You can also check out this chart with the latest Wan to Lan throughput speed for consumer routers. Keep in mind that the Linksys e4200 has the same cpu as the Asus Rt-n16. The performance difference is probably because of software/firmware.

 

[suklee]

I was reading through the manual for the RT-N56U and it was apparent that their Asus utilities are Windows only. That's why I didn't get it as my household is primarily Macs. I had looked at the RT-N16 before but would prefer a dual-band router...