AX55 strong 2.4Ghz signal but dismal transfer speeds
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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).
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I'm practically in a room beside the router , both 5Ghz and 2.4Ghz coverage is practically still at 100% , the only way I solved this was to switch my 2.4Ghz channel to Channel 4 , only then does it actually work, problem is , the entire neighbouring networks are all also at Channel 4 , so it's still getting interference, but atleast it's now a "usable" 50-60Mbps for my CCTV cameras and other applicances to communicate without issue , but why is this an issue? Why is it that this super advanced and much more expensive Archer AX55 incapable of using any of the other 2.4Ghz channels? Like literally any other channel and the speed of the entire 2.4Ghz link drops to 5mbps and sometimes below 1 Mbps, this is kind of messed up if my older Tenda AC18 had zero issues and capable of reaching 100mbps on the same internet link, and as for your question about my internet package , it's a solid 500mbps downlink and 100 Mbps uplink , as confirmed from my Ethernet speed test and also from speed test on my MacBook Pro 16 on the 5Ghz network.
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Thank you very much for getting back with all the detailed information.
Theoretically, the router itself will select the best channel automatically to have good Wi-Fi performance, you may find several networks are using the same wireless channel, but please be aware that "crowded" isn’t the same as busy, even though some channel scanning apps tell you one specific channel is busy, they don’t always measure other sources of congestion and interference. Non-Wi-Fi signals (like those from microwaves, Bluetooth devices, cordless phones, garage door openers, baby monitors, etc.) can all congest a channel but may not show up in a scan. So it’s possible that a channel can appear empty, while it is, in fact, saturated with other kinds of interference. So if you are using a crowded channel but you aren’t experiencing slow speeds, or unstable connectivity, don't worry.
BTW, if you are willing to figure out if channel 4 is the best in your environment further, I would like to escalate your case to our support engineers who may help analyze further. Please let me know how you want to proceed.
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Hello @Kevin_Z ,
Thanks for your reply.
End of the story: I switched back to the 5Ghz and it's working for now.
Why I switched to the 2.4 Ghz: I am at the end of a corridor (same distance as mentioned, no obstacle but not exactly a complete open space), and in the past I experienced some anoying coverage issue with the 5Ghz, especially while using the over gourmand Microsoft Teams.
Still: even if the 2.4 Ghz is known to be more congested, the downstream rates obtained on my laptop (screenshot posted above) while connected to this band is nothing near normal. I would assume and flag a bug (and expect a fix). Then... it's on you :D
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Thank you for getting back.
As you can see that both Eric and Ryan fixed their 2.4G issue by modifying the 2.4G channel (they both chose channel 4), you can give it a go, you may try channel 4 also to check if that helps.
I understand the wireless speed is far from normal when connecting to the 2.4G network, but you would also understand that the 2.4G wireless signal is easily interference with lots of devices that work in the same band such as microwave ovens or Bluetooth, and it's also related to the negotiation speed between the AP and the client device.
If you would like to investigate this further, I'm happy to escalate the case to our support engineers, who will work with you to figure it out. Please let me know how you want to proceed.
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Hello I am having this issue as well. I have IoT devices that require the 2.4 GHz band and they dont stay connected. On my phone its difficult to connect and get slow speeds or it cant even run a speed test. Im on V1.6 and have made my 2.4Ghz on channel 4. What should I do to fix this because some devices cant use the 5GHz network. BTW the 5GHz works fine and gives full speed accros my apartment.
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As per the 2.4G dropping issue, do you mean all the IoT devices disconnect from the network? What are they? What is the distance from the router? How about the RSSI on the IoT device app for the network when they connect?
I would suggest trying different wireless channels for the 2.4G network, you may install a Wi-Fi analyzer on the phone to monitor the surrounding networks, then choose one that less congested with others.
Be sure the AX55 firmware is up-to-date.
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