This thread has been locked for further replies. You can start a new thread to share your ideas or ask questions.AX55 strong 2.4Ghz signal but dismal transfer speeds
This thread has been locked for further replies. You can start a new thread to share your ideas or ask questions.
EDIT: I changed the title to reflect my recent findings (see last post at the bottom).
I just got an AX55 to replace an old NetGear R6400 since I wanted the benefits of Wi-Fi 6, but almost immediately I had to return to my old trusty R6400 since the 2.4Ghz band on the TP-Link was just terrible. A lot of my IoT devices that are relatively far away from the router (motion sensors, cameras, kitchen & laundry devices) completely lost connection and walking with my cell phone around those areas confirm that they were dead spots or speeds were <1Mbps which caused intermittent disconnects.
I would have expected a brand new, more modern router with better technology to outperform or at least be equal to an AC1750 router from 2015, but alas that was not the case. Both routers were placed in exactly the same spot, using the same 2.4Ghz channels and antennas were also pointed in a similar manner. For example, the laundry room is virtually right under the router, 1 floor below and the R6400 is able to still deliver ~40Mbps whereas the AX55 has almost no reach and sometimes connects but with mere Kbps.
First thing I did was update the firmware on the AX55. One weird detail I noticed is that the one I got says: "version 1.6", but TP-Link's website only shows v1.0 and v2.6 models, so it's either a typo on their site or my unit shouldn't exist. I bought it directly from Amazon (not the marketplace).
Is there something I'm missing with this particular router or is it simply so bad when it comes to signal strength? The only good thing I can say about it is that the 5Ghz transfer speeds are very strong right next to the router but that band's range also drops way faster than in the R6400.
A visual inspection doesn't show anything damaged and wires to each antenna seem to be present (there is a small gap where you can see them).
@Kevin_Z Thanks. I reconnected the router and tested around different areas. I did have an old laptop with a wifi analyzer installed and things seem to have improved, strange since I didn't change any settings. Still same 2.4Ghz channel and all. It can't be that the previous day there was more interference since it'd have affected the Netgear as well. I had an old Asus which tended to overheat and dropped signal strength until it cooled down again. Let's hope that's not the case here. I will keep testing it.
One thing I can't find is the setting to enable/disable beamforming to check if it's enabled. Apparently it should be under Wireless -> Additional Settings, but it's not here:
@Kevin_Z So it didn't take long for the router to start acting up again on the 2.4 Ghz band. I think range is NOT the issue, but for some reason, the router's throughput drops to the point where devices lose connectivity intermittently or completely. It's not a constant issue and today it appeared after around 6 hours of uptime (since my last post when I re-connected it).
The router is on a shelf, vents not blocked by anything and it only feels warm to the touch, so it doesn't appear that overheating is an issue. Both memory and CPU usage are also non-indicative of resource overloading or overheating. There are in average 10-20 devices connected to it at the same time:
I moved to one of the problematic spots and even though signal (RSSI) remains usable (and similar to that of the Netgear), for some reason transfer speeds are close to nothing:
This is the Netgear R6400 RSSI (channel 8, green):
This is the Archer AX55 RSSI (channel 8, blue):
Even though the archer has stronger signal, the R6400 is able to deliver ~40Mbps in that same spot. The AX55 struggles to start a speed test and once it does, it never goes past 600Kbps or so. When I first connected the Archer today, it was behaving fine, so at some point in its 6 hours of uptime, something happened. I tested speeds in the same spot with both a Lenovo T430s laptop (source of screenshots above) and an iPhone 13 Pro. Both returning almost identical numbers. As soon as I move to an area with about -50 or more dBm, I regain connectivity and see good transfer speeds.
I don't know what's at fault here. System logs show nothing strange. Both routers have been set up as AP, if that's useful information. The latest firmware mentions this:
Bug Fixed:
1. Fixed the bug that the router has unstable internet connection in some cases;
So maybe it's not really fixed yet and another firmware update is in order?
@Kevin_Z Same problem here.
I work from home, and am about 7-8 meters away from the AX55 router (in central position in a 700 square feet appartment, no obstacle). I experienced WiFi dropping connected to the 5Ghz at this distance (which suprised me!), so try connecting to the 2.4Ghz cause WiFi coverage is better in general.
I have a 30Mbps connection and as you can see below, I am far from this result (3 tests: 0,93 ; 2,63 and 6,85 mbps downstream connection). I checked with my ISP, there was no issue on their end, I am always delivered the 30mbps at the modem level (Motorola SB6120 Docsis 3.0).
Had also much better experience with older router unfortunately, and share the same disapointment of having paid a premium router for better performance, and only experimenting worse ones.
Didn't try to reverse engineer the problem like Eric (thank you!), but definitely interested in a fix.
TangO.o wrote
@Kevin_Z Same problem here.
I work from home, and am about 7-8 meters away from the AX55 router (in central position in a 700 square feet appartment, no obstacle). I experienced WiFi dropping connected to the 5Ghz at this distance (which suprised me!), so try connecting to the 2.4Ghz cause WiFi coverage is better in general.
I have a 30Mbps connection and as you can see below, I am far from this result (3 tests: 0,93 ; 2,63 and 6,85 mbps downstream connection). I checked with my ISP, there was no issue on their end, I am always delivered the 30mbps at the modem level (Motorola SB6120 Docsis 3.0).
Had also much better experience with older router unfortunately, and share the same disapointment of having paid a premium router for better performance, and only experimenting worse ones.
Didn't try to reverse engineer the problem like Eric (thank you!), but definitely interested in a fix.
@TangO.o If the distance is only 7-8 meters and there are no obstacles, you should be able to connect to the 5G network of the AX55. Please try to run a Wi-Fi analyzer and review the 5G network around you, then pick up one that with less interference with others to test the connectivity again.
As replied to Ryanrocksize5 that 2.4G would be congested in most networks, you need to choose one with the least interference from others on the router. You can also check the link speed on the client devices as described here. You can read this story to understand if the actual speed is normal.