Wireless range - G vs. N

[LuDaCriS66]

I have both a Linksys WRT54GL with Tomato firmware and a recently acquired D-Link DIR-655. The router is located on the second floor and I was having a hard time getting a strong enough signal for a laptop in the basement. Tomato indicated the quality of the signal at about 10 to 15.


The laptop does have N capabilities so I figured getting an N router would stop the laptop from disconnecting every so often.


So I purchased the DIR-655 and set it in "Mixed N and G" mode with the channel set on auto. The laptop connects in 802.11n mode but the rate at which it connects is sporadic. It changes from anywhere from 6 to 54Mbps. The signal strength is generally in the 30s.

In other words, it doesn't seem like there has been an improvement at all. So unless I'm doing something wrong, it looks like the DIR-655 will be going back to the shop soon.

Any feedback?

 

[spidey07]

Welcome to wireless.

It sounds like you are having normal wireless woes. Try changing channels to 1, 6, 11 to see what works best. If you have folks around you with WiFi devices you're results are typical.

 

[Griffinhart]

You should be seeing a dramatic difference between G and N.

Do you have other G devices connecting to the wireless network? If so that can definately slow things down. If all devices are N you should be getting noticably higher speeds.

Have you tried not using the "mixed G and N" option and just using N?

What were your speeds and connection like on the WRT54GL by comparison?