Way OT - router question

tshort · Post by **tshort** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 12:17 am

OK, it is sorta RV related, because I want it to work in the shop!

I am having the cable modem installed Friday. The "access point" - i.e. office is about 150' (max) from the shop, on the other side of the house. I need a wireless router that will enable me to use my laptop in the shop. I have done lots of reading on the internet, but the reviews between Amazon, cnet.com, pcmag.com cannot seem to come to a single conclusion. There seem to be mixed reviews about the yet to be determined "N" protocol.

Any of you techies out there have any recommendations? I have had good luck with Linksys stuff in the past, but am open to any suggestions. I just want good signal and speed in the shop. I can remember not that long ago (5 years or so) when I was a resident and lived here with 2 buddies. It was really before wireless, and we had cat5 cables running all over the house for gaming!

T.

p.s. I am on a neighbor's wireless now; no idea who or where. I can pick up about 8 networks here, 2 of which are not secured... I don't know how far away they are, though. My neighbor across the alley is closer than my office and his linksys router has a poor signal here in the shop....

Post by **Spike** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 7:58 am

Go with the linksys. Stable reliable, and they provide firewall, NAT, DMZ, DHCP, etc. Very capable little boxes for not much money.

tshort · Post by **tshort** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 8:47 am

Any suggestions for the model? Should I get one of the pre-N boxes? I just want to make sure I have the range to the shop...

T.

JohnR · Post by **JohnR** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 9:14 am

I use Linksys and my shop is about 150 feet out also. I am using an AP54G which is a couple of years old and is an access point rather than a router. I did add the long range attennas which made it so I always connect at max speed. The AP is in my office which is down stairs so it is not in an ideal place but still works well.

dons · Post by **dons** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 11:17 am

It doesn't much matter which one of the low cost boxes you use unless there is a specific feature you need that only one supports. These low cost wireless routers have become a disposable items, sad but true. The two biggest issues with wireless are good signal strength which is affected by way too many things to list, and people not turning on any kind of security. I'm surprised there are so few wide open networks in your area

. If signal strength isn't great, try moving things a few inches, sometimes that's all it takes in a home/shop environment. I ran an ethernet cable to my shop even though I have a wireless router, just wasn't working great in my house/shop and I got tired of having to move the laptop a few inches to get it work again. There are some external antennas you can get that can really help, but in my case it was more trouble than it was worth to me since I was already running power wires from one end of the house to the other where the shop was. While I was at it, I copied the idea of having a tv feed run in as well, so now I can watch NASA TV in the shop, and anything else I want while I'm working.

smithhb · Post by **smithhb** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 11:22 am

Thomas,

The N protocol is out now and Belkin makes a nice access point. I use it as well as a Linksys "G" AP. The Belkin "N" offers much more range than the "G".

However, I still had to add a repeater to make it 150ft with a strong, consistent signal.

svanarts · Post by **svanarts** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 4:15 pm

Go with an early version WRT54G and then update the firmware found here: http://www.dd-wrt.com/dd-wrtv2/downloads.php

It may seem a little geeky but it turns a $40 router into a $500 router. Or if that is too geeky, my personal favorite is the Linksys WRV200:
http://tinyurl.com/347ghd

RV7Factory · Post by **RV7Factory** » Wed Aug 01, 2007 6:47 pm

My turn.

I just purchased a new laptop for the shop, with built-in b/g support, and now I want to get new router to replace my antique b model. I have connection issues here with my current router, so I definately want something with more range.

My question is this... since I will be connecting to the router in "g" mode, is there really a point in buying a pre-N or N1 router? I've read conflicting reports; some say you get better range, some say it is worse (when connecting in g).

The other option is that I purchase an increased range g router (e.g. Netgear Rangemax), but again the information is conflicting. Some say you need a matching adapter, some say you get some benefit without.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

spikescopilot · Post by **spikescopilot** » Wed Aug 01, 2007 8:02 pm

Just an FYI:

Cisco has decided to kill off Linksys -- so get them while you still can.

svanarts · Post by **svanarts** » Wed Aug 01, 2007 8:08 pm

RV7Factory wrote:My turn.

I just purchased a new laptop for the shop, with built-in b/g support, and now I want to get new router to replace my antique b model. I have connection issues here with my current router, so I definately want something with more range.

My question is this... since I will be connecting to the router in "g" mode, is there really a point in buying a pre-N or N1 router? I've read conflicting reports; some say you get better range, some say it is worse (when connecting in g).

The other option is that I purchase an increased range g router (e.g. Netgear Rangemax), but again the information is conflicting. Some say you need a matching adapter, some say you get some benefit without.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

To get the extended range / speed with most of the routers you must purchase a matching adapter. These guys use proprietary algorithms to increase bandwidth and extend range. So if you bought a Linksys router with speedboost, you would need to purchase the corresponding Linksys adapter with speedboost. It will still work fine with other adapters but you just wont get the extended range or speed. The speed you get in either case will most likely be faster than your internet connection.

Patti,
Cisco is ditching Linksys? Interesting. Where did you get your info?

spikescopilot · Post by **spikescopilot** » Wed Aug 01, 2007 8:16 pm

svanarts wrote:
RV7Factory wrote: Patti,
Cisco is ditching Linksys? Interesting. Where did you get your info?

Doh, spoke to soon. It was in eWeek, Information Systems and a couple of other tech papers a couple of weeks ago. A search on Google News reveals that they may be making a bit of a u-turn due to public outcry.

Guess that's what I get for going on vacation, lol.

http://www.pcretailmag.com/news/28359/C ... sys-U-turn

tshort · Post by **tshort** » Wed Aug 01, 2007 8:17 pm

I am still on the fence wrt this as well. I bought a 200$ spaceship looking linksys "n" router, but it won't reach the shop. Most people have told me to buy cat 6 cable and run it the 150' or so to the shop, but that sounds like a bit of a pain. My problem is that the office / cable modem is on the front of the house, and the shop is in the back yard about 100' behind the house. Plus, it has cinder block then 2x4 / insulation / sheetrock walls.

Let me know if you figure something else out. I still have 30 days to return the router to Fry's.

Thomas

RV7Factory · Post by **RV7Factory** » Wed Aug 01, 2007 11:30 pm

So it turns out I may have spoken too soon.

I just got the laptop today, and I was surprised to find that I have "excellent" signal strength throughout the house, even in the shop. It turns out it was my old laptop and "b" adapter card that was the problem.

I still want to take advantage of the faster "g" network speeds, but now that I know the signal is good all over, I am not as concerned about the device being extended range.

I found a Buffalo Tech router that gets good reviews for having really good signal strength and range... I might give it a try.

Thanks.

RV7Factory · Post by **RV7Factory** » Thu Aug 02, 2007 10:11 am

Thomas, the router I found is a Buffalo Tech WHR-HP-G54.

Supposedly, the "HP" in the middle of the model number means "high power". I've read a lot of peer reviews on this and the consensus is that the range is very good, better than your average router. But hey, since I don't have it yet (the router) that's all just theory right now.

svanarts · Post by **svanarts** » Thu Aug 02, 2007 2:30 pm

Think it will reach LVK?

Let me know when you have it installed. I'll fly over at increasing altitudes and let you know where I lose the signal.

RV7Factory · Post by **RV7Factory** » Thu Aug 02, 2007 3:35 pm

svanarts wrote:Think it will reach LVK?

Let me know when you have it installed. I'll fly over at increasing altitudes and let you know where I lose the signal.

LOL! I hadn't thought of that... Hmmmm. Actually, I think one of the guys in our chapter has set up a WAP out there. If not, I may have to.

I've been reading more about it, I will probably flash the router with a third party firmware (e.g. Tomato Firmware) for additional features and tweaks.

BTW Scott, it was truly a pleasure to finally meet you.

svanarts · Post by **svanarts** » Fri Aug 03, 2007 12:29 am

Still funny that we had to travel over a thousand miles to meet when we only live about 48 nm from each other!

I'm going to drop in one of these days.

svanarts · Post by **svanarts** » Fri Aug 03, 2007 12:31 am

RV7Factory wrote:I've been reading more about it, I will probably flash the router with a third party firmware (e.g. Tomato Firmware) for additional features and tweaks.

That's a very cool thing to do BTW. I loaded DD-WRT into my Linksys WRT54G and it fairly rocks. You may be able to get even more transmit power out of the Tomato firmware.

RV7Factory · Post by **RV7Factory** » Fri Aug 03, 2007 1:00 am

svanarts wrote:I'm going to drop in one of these days.

Please do, just give me a little advanced warning. We can do lunch.