Poor signal strength on 2.4GHz Archer C80

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Poor signal strength on 2.4GHz Archer C80

This thread has been locked for further replies. You can start a new thread to share your ideas or ask questions.
Poor signal strength on 2.4GHz Archer C80
Poor signal strength on 2.4GHz Archer C80
2022-02-25 07:44:24
Model: Archer C80  
Hardware Version: V1
Firmware Version:

I have poor signal strength on 2.4GHz from my C80, which I've just set up, to the point where a smart light keeps "dropping out". This seems odd as the 5GHz is fine in the same room - obviously on a different device. There have never been any problems using a BT Smart Hub 2.0, which was in place until recently.

 

Is this a fault with the router? 

 

I don't know a good way to measure the signal strength, the light app has one but other than that I don't know. Such an app would be useful to check.

 

Thanks

Paul

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Re:Poor signal strength on 2.4GHz Archer C80
2022-03-01 06:24:07

@PaulM1972 

 

Hello Paul, thank you for posting on the TP-Link Community.

 

Can I know when did you purchase the C80, was it working properly before? Please confirm if you have the same issue if you connect another device to the C80 2.4G network, such as a laptop or phone, monitor the connectivity, then we will know if the issue lies in the router or actually in the smart light itself. You can also install a Wi-Fi analyzer on your phone to review the 2.4G networks around you, then choose a channel that with less interference with others to monitor if the smart light still drops.

 

If other devices still drop from the 2.4G network, there might be too much signal interference which may cause the signal drops. There are cases that the signal drops or weaken if there are lots of 2.4G signal interfering with yours. Try moving the C80 to open space if possible, you may also try to adjust the antennas on it.

 

BTW, have you ever tested to connect the smart light to another 2.4G network, will it be stable? What is the brand and model of the smart light?

Nice to Meet You in Our TP-Link Community. Check Out the Latest Posts: Connect TP-Link Archer BE550 to Germany's DS-Lite (Dual Stack Lite) Internet via WAN Archer GE550 - BE9300 Tri-Band Wi-Fi 7 Gaming Router Archer BE800 New Firmware Added Support for EasyMesh in AP Mode, DoH&DoT, and 3-Band MLO Connection Archer AX90 New Firmware Added Support for EasyMesh and Ethernet Backhaul If you found a post or response helpful, please click Helpful (arrow pointing upward icon). If you are the author of a topic, remember to mark a helpful reply as the "Recommended Solution" (star icon) so that others can benefit from it.
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Re:Poor signal strength on 2.4GHz Archer C80
2022-03-01 07:17:51
Hi Kevin Thanks for this. Since I posted this I have used "Acrylic Wifi Home" to assess the networks, and I can see that the C80 is much better than my previous BT Home Hub 2 on 5GHz but much worse on 2.4GHz, the signal is pretty weak even shorter distances from the router. Signal strength on the different devices seems to depend on the room you're in though the pattern above seems to hold true. We didn't notice any issues when using the BT Home Hub 2 but to be honest we just "plugged and played" - the C80 has taken a lot more effort to set up. The bulb is a Makion though I'm not completely sure of the make. I have connected a Smart TV to the 2.4GHz network as it doesn't have 5GHz and I think it works ok - tried loading a Netflix show but not watching for long. It seems a little slow to load Netflix etc. I'll run a speed test on the laptop this morning though I'm sure I was getting reasonable speeds (about 50Mbps) on my Iphone earlier in the week on 2.4GHz (though as I say the signal looks weak). I have tinkered with the channel, using 1 6 and 11 as advised on a chat with one of your colleagues, but that doesn't seem to affect the signal strength. Quick question, how are the speed and signal related i.e. can you get a good speed with a weak signal, and will that cause issues? Many thanks Paul.
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Re:Poor signal strength on 2.4GHz Archer C80
2022-03-01 07:45:07
Also I have had to disable Smart Switch because my son's Xbox connected to 2.4GHz and lagged a lot ie slow connection. Given the above I don't really know why it would choose 2.4GHz but that was the case. It's been fine on 5GHz
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Re:Poor signal strength on 2.4GHz Archer C80
2022-03-01 07:57:12

@PaulM1972 

 

Hello Paul, thanks for getting back. 

 

I would also suggest checking the firmware version of the C80, please be sure it's the latest official version. You can either confirm that by logging into the router web GUI or you can download and install it manually from the local official website:

https://www.tp-link.com/support/download/archer-c80/#Firmware

 

Regarding the signal and speed concern, generally, the higher your signal strength, the higher the bandwidth you'll get over the network, but the speed will be affected by many factors such as wireless interference around your network, the number of devices that are connected to the same network, the total bandwidth you paid for the network, etc. all of these will also affect the actual speed you can get even with the same signal strength. You can go through this article to see if any suggestions will help to speed up the 2.4G network:

10 Ways to Boost Your Home WiFi for a Faster Internet

 

Nice to Meet You in Our TP-Link Community. Check Out the Latest Posts: Connect TP-Link Archer BE550 to Germany's DS-Lite (Dual Stack Lite) Internet via WAN Archer GE550 - BE9300 Tri-Band Wi-Fi 7 Gaming Router Archer BE800 New Firmware Added Support for EasyMesh in AP Mode, DoH&DoT, and 3-Band MLO Connection Archer AX90 New Firmware Added Support for EasyMesh and Ethernet Backhaul If you found a post or response helpful, please click Helpful (arrow pointing upward icon). If you are the author of a topic, remember to mark a helpful reply as the "Recommended Solution" (star icon) so that others can benefit from it.
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