Hub 4 and MESH

[technophobetoo]

Hi, I recently upgraded to the Gig1 service (which so far is great) meaning that I swapped the Hub 3 for a 4. Previously I had the 3 running in modem mode and was using an Apple Airport Extreme and various other airport devices to deliver a signal around the house. As some of the kit is only capable of wireless n speeds I thought I'd give the 4 a go so I'm just using the 4 as a router and finding that the signal does slow down quite considerably away from it. 

My question for you is has anyone tried any Mesh systems with a 4 in modem mode and if so how have you found them, what sort of speeds are you getting?

Cheers

[rockgeek]

Nudge as I'm in the same boat - would like to know what the best solution(s) there are

[Anonymous]

One thing to keep in mind is you can speed £100's on a mesh system with Wifi 6, however if your devices aren't Wifi 6 capable you won't see the benefit.

Fair enough future proofing, but even still?

Setting a budget would be a good start.

[technophobetoo]

That's a very good question I think around £280 would buy a good AC set up but it would be closer to £500 to get an AX system.

Realistically I think it will be AC for a few years.

[Anonymous · Accepted solution]

This kit feels like a good compromise as it uses a Wifi 6 'Backbone' (The main connection between the two routers) and Wifi 5 (ac) for the device connectivity at both ends. Not the fastest (802.11n 256QAM : up to 400 Mbps, 802.11ac : up to 867 Mbps) but should give good coverage.

https://www.asus.com/uk/Networking/AiMesh-AX6100-WiFi-System-RT-AX92U-2-Pack/overview/ 

https://dongknows.com/asus-rt-ax92u-review/ 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wthkCixz1Mw

Another, cheaper, option is this

https://www.asus.com/uk/Networking/RT-AX86U/ 

https://www.techradar.com/uk/reviews/asus-rt-ax86u

Not a mesh system however the wireless speeds for Wifi 5 (ac) appear to be much healthier, and it appears to get good reviews:

• 802.11n (1024 QAM) : up to 750 Mbps
• 802.11ac (1024 QAM): up to 4333 Mbps

The second option I've been considering for some time.

[technophobetoo]

Thanks Carl, the biggest problem is finding someone who has actually got one set up and working in the real world. If I end up wifi 5 the Ubiquiti Amplifi HD seems highly rated but if I'm going to spend the best part of £300 I may be persuaded to spend £400ish and future proof for the next few years at least.

Cheers

[jaysood]

Guys can I ask a question:

Firstly where is your VM router placed? 

If it's in an area that is surrounded by cupboards and stuff like that then your WiFi coverage will be rubbish because the router isn't placed in an open space. 

Secondly. Is your cable the old white colour or black? 

If it's the old white cable then you need to get VM to swap it for the black colour cable as that's the new DSS3 cable and the connectivity more secure (less dropouts which need signals sent by VM / router restart) 

After doing the above and upgrading my contract I'm a lot happier with overall WiFi coverage as I'm averaging 60 megs per room. 

If I'm in the room where the router is then I'm getting 380 megs on WiFi. 

Have a think about getting the router moved to an open space where is able to broadcast the WiFi more around the house. 

I'm getting WiFi in the garden where before I had no WiFi. 

I hope this helps.

Jay

[gary_dexter]

---

@jaysood wrote:

Guys can I ask a question:

Firstly where is your VM router placed? 

If it's in an area that is surrounded by cupboards and stuff like that then your WiFi coverage will be rubbish because the router isn't placed in an open space. 

Secondly. Is your cable the old white colour or black? 

If it's the old white cable then you need to get VM to swap it for the black colour cable as that's the new DSS3 cable and the connectivity more secure (less dropouts which need signals sent by VM / router restart) 

After doing the above and upgrading my contract I'm a lot happier with overall WiFi coverage as I'm averaging 60 megs per room. 

If I'm in the room where the router is then I'm getting 380 megs on WiFi. 

Have a think about getting the router moved to an open space where is able to broadcast the WiFi more around the house. 

I'm getting WiFi in the garden where before I had no WiFi. 

I hope this helps.

Jay

---

60Mbps? 🤔

I use my own router and easily get 400-500Mbps+ and in the garden.

This is much better than virgins “routing” device.

[Anonymous]

Hey all,

I'm getting Gig1 next week , recently installed the XT-8 and also wondered if anyone else has this setup with the Hub 4? Impressions?

I have a few Wifi 6 devices so it was a no brainer for me.

Cheers

walshy

[mjpartyboy]

I have a SH2 in modem mode, an Asus AC86U router downstairs at the front of the house and a AC68U node upstairs at the back of the house, connected via wireless backhaul only. On the 5 GHz network, I've seen speed test results max out our 200/20 service via the router and it's not in the ideal open space setup either.

I don't really need the node upstairs, but had that router sat in its box collecting dust, so thought I would try Asus' AiMesh when the first 2020 lockdown began. It improved some devices' connections upstairs and gave us coverage in the garden.