802.11 b/g/n

FoxT

hi, I am using a linksys 802.11 b/g router, connected to a cable modem. This works fine throughout the house, but not in the granny flat, about 14 metres away from the AP. I am trying to get wifi in there, but really don't want to go drilling holes etc for cables.

At the moment there is only 1 location in the granny flat where the signal is strong enough, so I have installed a wifi range extender there. It is fairly reliable, but the range extender needs the odd reboot as the signal seems to drop out sometimes. Also speed is poor, it runs at <1Mbs ( I get between 5 & 8 Mbps in the house) .

My Question is - how can I get a reliable 2-3Mbps in the Granny flat, with no need to go rebooting extenders etc ?

1 - router location is in the attic , would I be better off putting it in a lower location?

2 - Should I upgrade the AP to 802.11N & get a N-type USB dongle for the PC in the granny flat? There are 6 other devices in the house that are all limited to b/g - I know N is backwards compatible - but - if I run it in a mixed environment will the N-type AP revert to b/g mode so I lose all the creamy goodness of 11n? Or will it talk to b/g devices in b/g language & N devices in N language, giving a better connection to the granny flat?

3 - PC in granny flat uses a USB dongle today - would I be better off getting a USB transciever for it that runs just b/g but has a decent antenna?

4 - If I upgrade to 11N, it looks to me like there are multiple flavours - ie 150Mbits (single channel?), 300 MBits, 2.4GHz, 5GHz, are some better than others? I understand that I will not achieve anything like 100+mbits, I just want a reliable 3-4 mbits/sec connection.

All suggestions appreciated, thanks!

-FoxT

dub45

If you run N in a mixed environment you lose all its benefits. Have you b devices in your network too?

FoxT

dub45 wrote: »

If you run N in a mixed environment you lose all its benefits. Have you b devices in your network too?

I dont know if I have any items specifically limited to b. lots of b/g devices though , two iphones, 3 laptops, PC, etc. AFAIK all run in g mode - ie they can do either so I assume they operate in g mode automatically.

I didnt realise that this would clobber the N operation - that is pesky. Could I run 2 x routers off my Cable modem I wonder, on for b/g & the other (separate SSID ) in N, on different channels?

RogueFaye

FoxT wrote: »

hi, I am using a linksys 802.11 b/g router, connected to a cable modem. This works fine throughout the house, but not in the granny flat, about 14 metres away from the AP. I am trying to get wifi in there, but really don't want to go drilling holes etc for cables.

At the moment there is only 1 location in the granny flat where the signal is strong enough, so I have installed a wifi range extender there. It is fairly reliable, but the range extender needs the odd reboot as the signal seems to drop out sometimes. Also speed is poor, it runs at <1Mbs ( I get between 5 & 8 Mbps in the house) .

My Question is - how can I get a reliable 2-3Mbps in the Granny flat, with no need to go rebooting extenders etc ?

1 - router location is in the attic , would I be better off putting it in a lower location?

2 - Should I upgrade the AP to 802.11N & get a N-type USB dongle for the PC in the granny flat? There are 6 other devices in the house that are all limited to b/g - I know N is backwards compatible - but - if I run it in a mixed environment will the N-type AP revert to b/g mode so I lose all the creamy goodness of 11n? Or will it talk to b/g devices in b/g language & N devices in N language, giving a better connection to the granny flat?

3 - PC in granny flat uses a USB dongle today - would I be better off getting a USB transciever for it that runs just b/g but has a decent antenna?

4 - If I upgrade to 11N, it looks to me like there are multiple flavours - ie 150Mbits (single channel?), 300 MBits, 2.4GHz, 5GHz, are some better than others? I understand that I will not achieve anything like 100+mbits, I just want a reliable 3-4 mbits/sec connection.

All suggestions appreciated, thanks!

-FoxT

First of all, try putting the extender closer to the House rather than just the edge where u barely get a strong signal.
Yes putting it a bit lower Might help, typical extender use Omidirectional antenas, just imagine them broadcasting like a Ball around the router, puting it in attic means half of the upper signal is out of the house.
Wireless N are backward compat with B/G, but most times if u are to run it in B/G compat mode , its actually worst range than a pure traditional B/G router.
With regard the different wireless N out there, The latest marketing hype is 5ghz Wifi, while it is true to an extend that it will avoid the 2.4ghz interference, take note that 5ghz wifi has a shorter Range, so u get a Cleaner but shorter distance, make ur choice.
the 130/150/270/300mb speed is achieve using different freq band, for example 130/150 is achieve using N on 20mhz band, while 270/300mb is achieve using 40mhz. Not all adapter can do 40mhz, even if the adapter quoted to do 40mhz, U need to know the amount of antena used for Sending and recieve to achieve 270 or 300mb. I have used some N adapters who can only do 70mb base on 20mhz and single Antenas, obviously if it has 2 Ants it does 130/150. Put it into 40mhz and Do the maths and u get 270/300.
Take note, running in 40mhz mode is a bit flakey, it cause a lot of interference and increase dropped packets, while the throughput did increase, i might need to lower the RTS threshold to compensate, might not worth the bother especially the compatibility issue in 40mhz, running it in good 20mhz and getting 130/150 is pretty fast. Those cheapy Ebay wireless N no brand adapter running 70mb are useless, might as well stick with wireless G @54mb.

Simple rule of Thumb, each Antena in N mode can achieve circa 70mb on 20mhz mode, 40mhz mode will double that. But wouldnt those 3 antenas router be going 400mb if we multiply 70 x 3 = 210 then X2 in 40mhz ?? Answer is No, because out of those 3 Ants, 2 are use for recieving, while 1 is for sending on your adapter, and on the Router itself 2 are for Sending and 1 is for recieving, Your amount of send = his amount of recieve. Your amount of recieve = his amount of sent, make sense? So only 2 ants max contribute to your establed speed.
Of course the real technical maths doesn't work that way and i dont wanna sound long wind explaining it here, but as a rule of thumb thats pretty much it.

Antar Bolaeisk

Does the granny flat use the same power supply as the main house? If it does perhaps you could use the powerline network devices to bring the network into the granny flat.