Networking smart people

Stalker

Stalker

I removed my teeth on purpose....if you catch my d
My wireless network is confusing the hell out of me. I have a Motorola SBG6580 wireless/modem all in one thingy-majigger. My internet speed is supposed to be speeds up to 60 mbps. Hard wired I see 55-60 all day long with low ping rates. Wirelessly, standing 5 feet from the device I see 35-40 mbps. First floor anywhere I consistently see 20 - 30. If I go upstairs, my phone, iPad 2 and 3/new/whatever the hell they called them see drastically slower speeds. Ranging from sub 1 MBPS to a max of 5. At night when local utilization is high, it's consistently sub 2 MBPS. Do I need a new router? I can turn the Wireless off of this and will gladly go buy a new one, but don't want to throw money at it and not fix the inconsistency. I wouldn't even care if I was getting 10 - 20 upstairs, but right now it's so slow I can't stream Netflix for Jayden on her TV or play a youtube video on the Xbox if I wanted to.

As a point of reference, this is new. No firmware has changed on the modem (Comcast controls firmware downloads to their modem even if you bought them apparently) and resending the signal hasn't really netted me any changes either. Since wired I see great speeds and first floor sees good speeds wirelessly it makes me think the wireless part of the Motorola device is hoobed.
 
Tin said:
Do you have any neighbors on the same channel as you? Load up WiFi Analyzer on your phone and see if you do: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.farproc.wifi.analyzer&hl=en Another possibility is the strength of the radio in your router. Typically, most consumer grade routers have transmit power of 50 to 100mW. I run OpenWRT on my D-Link DIR-825 and upped the transmit power to 500mW :).
Click to expand...

e9e7e4yd.jpg
 
For what it's worth, while the modem-only version (SB6121) is quite good, the modem/router combo version you have tends to get bad reviews with frequent complaints of poor range/slow wireless. Might be better off getting a separate router. I've used the SB6121 a few times with no complaints but have avoided trying out the SBG6580 because of the negative reviews.
 
Tin said:
5GHz has shorter range than 2.4GHz. Try moving to channel 8 or 12.
Click to expand...

The only non overlapping channels are 1, 6 and 11. Using any of the others is pointless. If, you want to stick to the 2.4 band, go to channel 11 as, its the least congested. All though, none of the other networks are strong enough to provide much, if any interference.

Id switch to the 5ghz band if, your devices can support it.

In all honesty, Id turn off the access point in that thing and, wire in a better one. I have put the EnGenius 350 into a few houses with great results (haven't had one complaint) or, you could go up to a more commercial AP that would net you even more range and reliability.
 
Last edited:
StockNotch said:
The only non overlapping channels are 1, 6 and 11. Using any of the others is pointless. If, you want to stick to the 2.4 band, go to channel 11 as, its the least congested. All though, none of the other networks are strong enough to provide much, if any interference.

Id switch to the 5ghz band if, your devices can support it.

In all honesty, Id turn off the access point in that thing and, wire in a better one. I have put the EnGenius 350 into a few houses with great results (haven't had one complaint) or, you could go up to a more commercial AP that would net you even more range and reliability.
Click to expand...


Those commercial WAP units are damned expensive. I run 2 routers+WAP, one at each end of the house so I have full coverage anywhere in the house. Works pretty damned well. Can't say house the throughput is but I never complain and neither does anyone at my house.

Can't help ya Ryan. You're one of my goto guys, and if you can't get it, I'm no help at all.
 
Dr. Teeth said:
Those commercial WAP units are damned expensive. I run 2 routers+WAP, one at each end of the house so I have full coverage anywhere in the house. Works pretty damned well. Can't say house the throughput is but I never complain and neither does anyone at my house.

Can't help ya Ryan. You're one of my goto guys, and if you can't get it, I'm no help at all.
Click to expand...

eBay can be your friend ;) I run a Cisco FAT AP at home and, need to upgrade but, I need to upgrade my switch as well.. Darn 10/100 relics.
 
A wif signal occupies five channels in the 2.4 GHz band. Any two channel numbers that differ by five or more, such as 2 and 7, do not overlap. The oft-repeated adage that channels 1, 6, and 11 are the only non-overlapping channels is not accurate. I compiled OpenWRT to enable channels 12 to 14, and run my wifi at 27dBm, or 500mW :). Been running it for 2 years and havent had the FCC at my doorstep yet, although I am on channel 7. Pretty kick ass for a $50 router. The Atheros chipset works well, lightyears ahead of the Broadcom thats in my WRT54GL. As far as I know, you can legally use channels 12 and 13, but not 14, as its reserved for use by the FCC. Most consumer grade routers and wifi cards bought in the US will not be able to use them until the firmware had been modified. You can legally run up to a 1000mW signal...problem is, most routers, youre lucky to get 100mW.
 
Last edited:
Dr. Teeth said:
Those commercial WAP units are damned expensive. I run 2 routers+WAP, one at each end of the house so I have full coverage anywhere in the house. Works pretty damned well. Can't say house the throughput is but I never complain and neither does anyone at my house.

Can't help ya Ryan. You're one of my goto guys, and if you can't get it, I'm no help at all.
Click to expand...

You can build your own WAP for a reasonable amount of money. A site I buy stuff from has motherboards with embedded RAM and CPUs, you just add your own mini PCI-E wifi transmitter. They even sell enclosures so you can put em out in the elements unharmed. Something like this can be done for less than $200. Throw an embedded firewall OS such as m0n0wall, Smoothwall, or IP Cop on it and go. You could also compile your own and add just the features you need. This will make it more efficient and lighter on resources. The best part about compiling your own kernel is you only have the kernel modules you need, perfect for an embedded system such as this. With the lighter kernel, you dont have the "one size fits all" thing going on. Itll only work with the hardware you tell it to.
 
Tin said:
A wif signal occupies five channels in the 2.4 GHz band. Any two channel numbers that differ by five or more, such as 2 and 7, do not overlap. The oft-repeated adage that channels 1, 6, and 11 are the only non-overlapping channels is not accurate. I compiled OpenWRT to enable channels 12 to 14, and run my wifi at 27dBm, or 500mW :). Been running it for 2 years and havent had the FCC at my doorstep yet, although I am on channel 7. Pretty kick ass for a $50 router. The Atheros chipset works well, lightyears ahead of the Broadcom thats in my WRT54GL. As far as I know, you can legally use channels 12 and 13, but not 14, as its reserved for use by the FCC. Most consumer grade routers and wifi cards bought in the US will not be able to use them until the firmware had been modified. You can legally run up to a 1000mW signal...problem is, most routers, youre lucky to get 100mW.
Click to expand...

Damn. Not only is this guy an audio guru, but knows a thing or two about networking. :)
 
Yes, he is wise. He broke my Linux cherry for me and I'm diggin it. This open source code stuff is fascinating.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

4Gas$
Ford: To Snitch On Drivers - Limit First Responders Speed
Replies
1
Views
16K
wikdsvt
wikdsvt
wrath
Used vehicle and discretionary vehicle pricing
Replies
3
Views
2K
WhiteHawk
WhiteHawk
beertestr
2013 Suburban 2500
Replies
0
Views
1K
beertestr
beertestr
C
Official Woodward Dream Cruise Parking Saturday August 17th, 2024
Replies
8
Views
12K
DRAG-ULA
DRAG-ULA
Siegel1719
Lincoln Squarewave 175 Welder
Replies
0
Views
311
Siegel1719
Siegel1719
Back
Top