Deco X50 added to P7+M5 system = much worse connection

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Deco X50 added to P7+M5 system = much worse connection

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Deco X50 added to P7+M5 system = much worse connection
Deco X50 added to P7+M5 system = much worse connection
2023-01-18 12:37:05
Model: Deco X50   Deco P7   Deco M5  
Hardware Version:
Firmware Version:

Hello,

 

I was not happy with my P7 (x3) and M5 (x1) system and bought a X50 set made up of three units, thinking that the tri-band design would make for a leap in internet speed and connection stability.

 

When I measured my speed with Speedtest before adding the new equipment, it showed 48 Mbps download speed. When I replaced just one of the units by an X50, the speed went down to 24 Mbps. I then tried using just the new X50 units, but since speed was low, I ended up using the old equipment alongside the new: a total of seven units. Still internet speed is much lower than I used to have without the new equipment: I just measured it in the Deco app, and it shows 3.9 Mbps download and 0.9 Mbps upload!

 

I live in a three-storey house and the units are laid out as follows:

 

- ground floor: router and a X50;

- first floor: X50 + P7 + P7 + M5 spread out maximum widely;

- attic: X50 + P7. That's also where my computers are.

 

Sometimes the Deco app shows 2.2 Mbps download speed in the main X50 (near the router) but just 90 kbps or so in the other units. Why?

Also, while I appreciate the UI of the Deco app I hate that that it often shows one of the units as offline although they are physically in front of me and glowing green.

 

I am really not happy with the performance of the supposedly advanced (and much bulkier) X50 system, and am thinking of returning it for a refund while I still can. I only hate the thought of having to reconfigure the network with the original equipment again.

 

Any tips that I could test to improve things before that? I tried scanning the network in the Deco Lab (but it only tells me my network is OK for browsing), optimising Wifi channels - not much benefit...

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#1
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Re:Deco X50 added to P7+M5 system = much worse connection
2023-01-18 14:32:39 - last edited 2023-01-18 14:34:00

  @tpgediminui 

 

Deco X50 is not tri-band. For Internet speeds under 500Mbps Deco X50s make little difference comparing with what you had before.

I would recommend returning set of X50s for a refund. 

 

Restore your Deco mesh to what it were before, and with P7 as Main Deco. If you are still unhappy with your original set, reply back here (or start new forum topic) with more details and I or someone will help with troubleshooting. 

Deco P7 supports powerline link, which makes tuning Deco mesh with P7s a bit more challenging. Still, with some time and more info from you it may be possible to get the most that Deco hardware can deliver at your house.

 

 

Three extra notes:

 

1. Deco P7 units work together much better when P7 is Main Deco and Satellite P7s are connected to same circuit breaker as Main Deco.

 

2. Deco app may report information with delay. If it shows unit as offline but you see it online, it is possible the unit just recently went offline briefly. That usually means Deco unit is too far from Main Deco or other units it needs to connect to. For P7 it might mean issues with electrical wiring or other equipment such as dimmable light interfering with Deco backhaul by generating electrical noise.

When you restore your Deco mesh the way it were before, and if Deco app keeps reporting units going offline - that issue must be dealt first. That does impact Deco mesh performance significantly.

 

3. For the health of your Deco mesh, current and old one, check "Show List" page in Deco app. It must show good signal for every Deco unit you have, otherwise your Deco mesh is not tuned properly and won't deliver fast speeds. An example of that screen from my Deco mesh, Bedroom unit is connected wirelessly and with good link quality:

 

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#2
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Re:Deco X50 added to P7+M5 system = much worse connection
2023-01-18 15:06:27

  @Alexandre. Thanks for the quick and detailed response.

 

Indeed I incorrectly thought the X50 was triband while it is not.

 

I know that for the connection to work well the wireless signal has to be strong enough, and it is not always easy when the router is at the farthest point from the main end devices. P7 worked OK for me since 2019, but sometimes there are several users needing data-intensive communication simultaneously, therefore I thought I'd try something more advanced as technology develops fast.

 

I'll try restoring the original setup with 3x P7 and 1x M5.

 

But I'm looking at something faster anyway. Do you think an XE75 system would help here a lot? (If so, is it better to use it on its own or to combine with the existing older units? And also, what's the difference between the XE75 and the XE75 Pro?)

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Re:Deco X50 added to P7+M5 system = much worse connection
2023-01-18 15:15:59

  @tpgediminui 

 

What is the speed of your Internet connection, provided by your ISP? That info should help to figure what Deco models can work for you. 

 

Also, in your house, are floors made of wood or concrete?

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#4
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Re:Deco X50 added to P7+M5 system = much worse connection
2023-01-18 15:36:28

  @Alexandre. Thanks.

 

My provider is Orange Belgium, its advertised speed for home internet is 150 Mbps download and 7,5 Mbps or 15 of upload, depending on area.

 

The house is from the 1990s, with concrete floors.

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#5
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Re:Deco X50 added to P7+M5 system = much worse connection
2023-01-18 15:57:30
BTW what does "Bandwidth" in the app (network scan feature) refer to? I just ran the scan, and it measured download speed at 11.3 Mbps, upload at 8.9 Mbps, bandwidth: 20M.
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Re:Deco X50 added to P7+M5 system = much worse connection
2023-01-18 16:48:54 - last edited 2023-01-18 21:18:21

  @tpgediminui 

 

Try Test Internet speed from Deco app, not from More/Deco Lab. It is not available when X50 is Main Deco, but when you bring P7 back as your Main Deco, you should see this option in Deco app again: How do I test speed of Deco?

If your ISP provides 150Mbps down and Ethernet link between Main Deco and ISP modem/router is good, you should see 150Mbps in Test Internet Speed in Deco app for download speed. Numbers worse than that are cause for investigation.

 

Concrete floors are WiFi signal killers. As WiFi technology evolves, WiFi protocolos become faster - but for that you pay with shorter distance and with more sensitivity to WiFi interfrence, such as concrete. You have found it already: X50 is WiFi6, and it is worse than your older WiFi5 P7/M5. Deco X75 is WiFi6e, which is newer than WiFi6. In your case, it won't be better than X50, might be actually worse.

 

For a house like yours you should stick with Deco units that support powerline, to link them through floors. I suggest you place your P7s in the following locations, and have all three stay on same circuit breaker ideally:

 

- ground floor: router and a P7 (Main Deco);

- first floor: P7;

- attic: P7

 

Set them first and check in Deco app if they talk to each other using powerline and what speeds are. The remaining Deco units can be placed on first floor to expand WiFi coverage from "primary" powerline connected P7 units. 

Deco M5 has "signal source preference" feature, use it and configure M5 on first floor to connect to P7 on first floor. By default, M5 might try to connect to Main Deco instead. How to select a preferred signal source on the Deco App

 

If this setup works OK and Deco P7 communicate through powerline, the upgrade will be to replace them by Deco PX50. Note letter "P" in model name. This is powerline capable equivalent of X50, already announced but not widely available yet in all markets. It will only make sense to upgrade to PX50 if P7s work over powerline. 

 

When comes time to upgrade, you will need to replace all three "primary" P7s with PX50s, get rid of all P7 and M5, and then add X50 or X55 on first floor if you need them for coverage, configured to connect to PX50 on first floor.

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In summary, first steps:

1. Find if your Main Deco does get 150Mbps speed from ISP and fix whatever issues are if it does not.

2. Link three "primary" P7 on each floor with powerline link from electric cable sitting on same circuit breaker. 

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Re:Deco X50 added to P7+M5 system = much worse connection
2023-01-18 18:35:16
Thank you, this is very helpful! Will try.
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#9
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Re:Deco X50 added to P7+M5 system = much worse connection
2023-01-18 21:20:20

  @tpgediminui 

 

One more thing. If you haven't seen this document, check its Q5 and Q6General Questions about the Powerline or PLC Backhaul Feature of Deco

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