[Troubleshooting] Stock antennas extended - unstable connection

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[Troubleshooting] Stock antennas extended - unstable connection

This thread has been locked for further replies. You can start a new thread to share your ideas or ask questions.
[Troubleshooting] Stock antennas extended - unstable connection
[Troubleshooting] Stock antennas extended - unstable connection
2022-05-17 11:07:51 - last edited 2022-05-18 00:50:35
Model: Archer MR600  
Hardware Version: V2
Firmware Version: 1.3.0 0.9.1

Hey all, I live in a canal boat and sail in and around London. Since the boat is made of metal, it blocks data signals inside. So even though usually I am getting good connection outside, it's bad inside.

I decided to try and extend the stock antennas instead of buying expensive external ones because it didn't seem essential.

I built a rig to make sure they are high enough and stable. I was expecting the connection will be at par or superior to what my phone gets.

However it's very unstable and is always worse than what my phone 4G is able to pull. Often I have to switch to 3G to get usable connection. Is this not a good idea for some reason? Or am I doing a small mistake which can be fixed?

 

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Re:[Troubleshooting] Stock antennas extended - unstable connection
2022-05-18 02:43:48

  @DhruvOnABoat 

 

Hi, thank you very much for the feedback.

Please share with us a sreenshot of Advanced->Status page on web interface of the MR600 V2 where we could check Network Type, band and signal strength etc..

You could also monitor if the band and signal changes a lot especially when LTE connection disconnects, if the band changes a lot, you could go to Advanced->Network->Internet page to search and select Band manually:

https://www.tp-link.com/en/support/faq/3099/

 

Besides, may I know the model number of your phone? and is it using SIM card from the same carrier as that of MR600?

You mentioned that the speed of MR600 is worse than your phone 4G, please test via the same SIM card, and also check the phone is using 4G or 4G+, if possible, you could also check 4G band working on your phone with the same SIM card.

 

By the way, the firmware version of your MR600 V2 is 1.3.0, it seems to be not the latest firmware, you could also download the latest firmware from the website below and update the firmware:

https://www.tp-link.com/en/support/download/archer-mr600/v2/#Firmware

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Re:[Troubleshooting] Stock antennas extended - unstable connection
2022-05-18 23:07:23

  @Sunshine Thanks for your reply.

 

The manual band selection worked! Instant change in speed, went from 0.6Mbps to 20Mbps. As you suggested, I figured out which band my phone is using and switched to the same one. Thanks for the suggestion !

 

But why is the router picking a band which is slower? And why is the phone doing a better job of it? (I have a Pixel 6 and it's the same carrier, same plan) Since we move the location of the boat often, is this something I have to do everytime we change location?

 

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