Guys, is there anything in the settings of an RB951 router that would increase or stabilize the wireless range? My wife’s laptop (one floor above the router) works only intermittently.
Yeah, by far the best solution is adding an accesspoint.
Don’t forget that there are two radios involved, where the mobile device has to be able to send at the same level as the router.
Well, I had an older MikroTik before and that one worked flawless for 5 or 6 years. I assumed that a newer model would work at least on the same level, if not better. Doesn’t seem to be the case.
Well…that info was missing in your starting post…
Think when it comes to wireless it is always good to have a extra pair of eyes (could very well be crappy configuration):
/export file=anynameyoulike
Remove serial and any other personal information and post here in between code tags with the </> button.
Do you still have the config of the previous device?
Is the RB951 on the same location as the older accesspoint?
Calling the RB951 newer btw… 
Could you tell me how to find that file? Thanks!
Winbox / Files
Also keep in mind Mikrotik makes sure to adhere more and more to wireless regulations which for most countries also means… reducing transmission power.
Here it is:
anynameyouwish.rsc (3.28 KB)
set [ find default-name=wlan1 ] band=2ghz-b/g/n channel-width=20/40mhz-XX
country=“united states” disabled=no distance=indoors frequency=auto
installation=indoor mode=ap-bridge ssid=MikroTik-2C00AA
wireless-protocol=802.11
You might want to set band to n-only and channel-width to 20MHz.
Especially the latter is very important as 40MHz is the complete bandwidth on the 2.4GHz band (and therefor it’s the optimal way to get interference.
You can also pick a channel manually (2412, 2437 and 2462). Do a scan to get best option.
OK, channel width was set to 20MHz, I have set band to N only and picked channel 2437.
Will keep you posted if there’s a change.
Thanks for the input.
Ed
If the product was recommended by your vendor, I would return it. This model has been discontinued. MT does offer newer (current) low-cost solutions that should perform much better…
Well, it was not “recommended”, I just ordered it online not knowing that it was discontinued.
Which newer model did you have in mind?
Without knowing the speed of your internet package, any model of the hAP ax series. The ax lite is a budget model that has only one 2.4 GHz radio and might be underpowered for more than 300 Mbps, but the ax2 and ax3 are solid models for up to 1 Gbps internet service. The current wave2 drivers on those models has increased performance quite a bit compared to previous models. While other brands might have faster solutions at similar price points, only MT has ROS (a big plus for me).
Wi-Fi performance for the ax2 and ax3 is somewhere between 800-900 Mbps from user feedback. The lite will be a lot less, since it is only using 2.4 GHz.
The wired test results for 25 rules/512 byte gives a good indication of real world performance:
- ax lite 310 Mbps
- ax2 912 Mbps
- ax3 1145 Mbps
Well, as regards internet speed, it’s about 3 Mbps (Texas Hill Country), nothing to write home about.
So, just about any halfway decent router should be working fine, which the old hap lite did.
Since I am by no means a network guru, most of your abbreviations are way over my head. I’d really appreciate if you could narrow down your recommendation to one or two concrete models that I should buy.
Thanks again for all your input
Ed
Still … I can get 400Mbps with AX Lite. On 2.4GHz and when having a proper wifi6 client.
e.g. my laptop only has wifi5, it doesn’t get there. Using an external wifi6 USB adapter, then it does.
On my smartphone, it goes there as well.
Certainly when having an ISP connection around or lower then this, it is a valid option.
Even for non-network guru’s, surely one can search ? How else can you learn ?
hap = Home Access Point, name of Mikrotik series of devices used with that aimed purpose.
GHz = Giga Hertz, frequency indicator
Mbps = Mega bit per second, indicator of line speed of transmission
Gbps = Gigabit per second (1 Gbps = 1024 or 1000 times faster then 1 Mbps, depending on who’s selling it or which convention is being used)
MT = Mikrotik
ROS = Router Operating System
The 3 suggested models are valid:
AX Lite: only 2.4Ghz wifi radio, only 4 ethernet ports (personally I don’t like the greenish color on one of the sides but it is a powerful little router)
AX2: small package, very decent access point and router
AX3: BIG package and BIG antennas ! A bit more power then AX2, plus USB port which can be used for various things (external storage, LTE modem, …)
Review those 3 models on Mikrotik product pages, there are pictures there as well.
With AX2 you can not really go wrong. AX3 will give you a bit more future safety but first see if the package does not pose you problems. It is a big one.
hAP ax lite if you are on tight budget
hAP ax3 if you want wider coverage as it has good antennas to hear clients
The ax lite will be enough for the bandwidth you described and 2.4 GHz offers better signal penetration than 5 GHz. The ax2 is the best price/performance purchase, but it is almost double the price.
@holvoetn, how is the range on your ax lite unit ?
Device’s with external antennas usually give better range, but will also increase the unit’s price accordingly i.e. hAP ax3.
It’s hard for me to recommend the new L009UiGS-2HaxD-IN, because it sits in a weird price/performance bracket - it’s not a budget model, but it has budget performance.
*** Edit: incorrect info removed - Thank you @holvoetn ***
That is indeed very good. My ac clients barely get more than that on 5 GHz. I couldn’t find Wi-Fi results yesterday, other than what was posted on YT by MT.
@Moba
Wireless repeater possibility always has been available.
Station bridge mode, where the same subnet can be extended, has been away for a while.
Not sure if it was 7.12, definitely in 7.13beta, I already tested it.
Check release notes.
For budgetary reasons I was planning to order the ax lite if its wireless performance is indeed better than my current router.