Need to purchase a new router

By jnelsoninjax
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Grand Master

jnelsoninjax

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I'm helping a friend out who has a 2800 sqft split level home, with Comcast internet speed of ~100Mbps. He is currently using a Linksys WRT54GL Wi-Fi Wireless-G router, and has been having connectivity issues (watching Netflix via wireless buffers allot) and has had the Xfinity techs out, and the latest one who came out today told him that issue he is having is related to the fact the his router can not output the speed that is coming into it, obviously this is the case, so he wants me to find him a replacement. I found Linksys WRT AC1200 Dual-Band and Wi-Fi Wireless Router with Gigabit and USB 3.0 Ports and eSATA (WRT1200AC) for $94.25, would this work, or is there a better option?

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sc302 Veteran

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There are much better options but they come at additional cost.

Netgear r7000, r8000, r9000

Asus RT-AC5300

To name a few. You can check out their ratings.


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jnelsoninjax

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1 minute ago, sc302 said:

There are much better options but they come at additional cost.

Netgear r7000, r8000, r9000

Asus RT-AC5300

To name a few. You can check out their ratings.


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What's wrong with Linksys?

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jnelsoninjax

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OK, he's not willing to spend over $200 for a router, despite what I tell him. I have a Linksys and have had no problem with it at all, so I can not in good faith not recommend them, if I had a problem with a brand then  I would stop recommending them. Has anyone had problems with Linksys routers?

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BinaryData

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6 minutes ago, jnelsoninjax said:

What's wrong with Linksys?

They were bought by another company that ripped out Cisco's Firmware, and replaced it with their own crap.

5 minutes ago, xendrome said:

ASUS or cancel your internet...

It's junk.

ASUS can die in a fire.

3 minutes ago, Circaflex said:

They were bought out and turned to junk.

Yep.

 

@jnelsoninjaxDepending on how he wants to go, and how many computers he has connected, there are many options. I love my TP-Link, I ripped the firmware out, and put ddwrt on it because I kept crashing the router with my torrenting. 1GbE maxed out for days on end kills routers, lol. I use it now as an AC HotSpot / Network Extender.

 

I prefer Cisco for most of my networking, but your friend probably doesn't have a few servers running, or torrent services either.

 

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833704136

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sc302 Veteran

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OK, he's not willing to spend over $200 for a router, despite what I tell him. I have a Linksys and have had no problem with it at all, so I can not in good faith not recommend them, if I had a problem with a brand then  I would stop recommending them. Has anyone had problems with Linksys routers?

I sent out 2 routers that had issues with locking up after a time. It was a known issue with those routers. I cannot recommend linksys in good faith to anyone who wants ac in their home or business.


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jnelsoninjax

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8 minutes ago, BinaryData said:

They were bought by another company that ripped out Cisco's Firmware, and replaced it with their own crap.

ASUS can die in a fire.

Yep.

 

@jnelsoninjaxDepending on how he wants to go, and how many computers he has connected, there are many options. I love my TP-Link, I ripped the firmware out, and put ddwrt on it because I kept crashing the router with my torrenting. 1GbE maxed out for days on end kills routers, lol. I use it now as an AC HotSpot / Network Extender.

 

I prefer Cisco for most of my networking, but your friend probably doesn't have a few servers running, or torrent services either.

 

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833704136

I don't think he has any wired connections, I know he has 3 laptops plus cell phones, but nothing wired to the router.

1 minute ago, sc302 said:


I sent out 2 routers that had issues with locking up after a time. It was a known issue with those routers. I cannot recommend linksys in good faith to anyone who wants ac in their home or business.


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Recommend me one that will suit his needs for >$100, thank you for the feedback.

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Grand Master

jnelsoninjax

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30 minutes ago, sc302 said:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PDLRHFW/ref=asc_df_B00PDLRHFW4778552?tag=hawk-future-20&creative=395261&creativeASIN=B00PDLRHFW&linkCode=asn&ascsubtag=hawk-custom-tracking-20


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He likes the look of that one, so he most likely will go with it.

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Mando

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57 minutes ago, jnelsoninjax said:

What's wrong with Linksys?

its utter trash these days mate. they aint anywhere what they used to be.

 

 

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BinaryData

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1 hour ago, sc302 said:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PDLRHFW/ref=asc_df_B00PDLRHFW4778552?tag=hawk-future-20&creative=395261&creativeASIN=B00PDLRHFW&linkCode=asn&ascsubtag=hawk-custom-tracking-20


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I actually looked at buying this one for my mom's apartment, however her ISP threw a fit when I asked them to put the router into pass through mode, so I could control the router. =/

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+BudMan MVC

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16 hours ago, jnelsoninjax said:

He likes the look of that one

The most important factor when picking a router for sure ;) hehehehe

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jnelsoninjax

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2 hours ago, BudMan said:

The most important factor when picking a router for sure ;) hehehehe

This guy is very difficult to work with, he has very limited knowledge about technology, and believes what the Comcast techs tell him, i.e. his modem, which is  >6 months old is near the end of its life, so you need to buy another one. He also refuses to touch anything that is refurbished, because that means it's no good. So when he sees something that 'looks good' he is more than likely to jump at that. But I think I have convinced him to buy the TP Link, the difference in price being ~$20, I suggested to him that the TP Link would be a slightly better choice.

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2 minutes ago, jnelsoninjax said:

believes what the Comcast techs tell him

Why would they lie? heheheh

 

To be honest most them prob honestly believe what they are telling you.. So this "modem" he got was his own, or comcast supplied and he is renting?  What is the model number of it?  And was that suppose to be a < vs greater than? >

 

Its quite possible the model he has is dated.. depending on what he bought.. Doesn't mean it won't work - what speed tier is he paying for?  If he wants to go gig then he might need a new modem.. And that would for sure have a factor on what "router" he gets..

 

8 minutes ago, jnelsoninjax said:

This guy is very difficult to work with

If so why do you bother giving him any tech advice at all?  If you came and asked my opinion on what you should get..  I don't like really talking tech with "friends and family"  But if your going to ask my advice when clearly you don't know ###### about it.  And I do it for a living - and then your not going to take it because the device doesn't look pretty enough for you.. Then don't ask me about it again - like talking religion or politics at a family gathering.. Normally not a good idea...

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jnelsoninjax

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12 minutes ago, BudMan said:

Why would they lie? heheheh

 

To be honest most them prob honestly believe what they are telling you.. So this "modem" he got was his own, or comcast supplied and he is renting?  What is the model number of it?  And was that suppose to be a < vs greater than? >

 

Its quite possible the model he has is dated.. depending on what he bought.. Doesn't mean it won't work - what speed tier is he paying for?  If he wants to go gig then he might need a new modem.. And that would for sure have a factor on what "router" he gets..

 

If so why do you bother giving him any tech advice at all?  If you came and asked my opinion on what you should get..  I don't like really talking tech with "friends and family"  But if your going to ask my advice when clearly you don't know ###### about it.  And I do it for a living - and then your not going to take it because the device doesn't look pretty enough for you.. Then don't ask me about it again - like talking religion or politics at a family gathering.. Normally not a good idea...

The modem is one that I bought for him and was reimbursed, it is the: Arris SURFboard SB6121 DOCSIS 3.0

It was purchased in September, and the only 'problem' is the constant buffering on Netflix, etc. The router he has currently is only a G, so it is not going to give him the max speeds. He says he is paying for 100/Mbs, but since everything he is doing is wireless, he will never even come close to seeing those speeds, which was another thing he can't seem to understand!

 

Now you make an excellent point about offering him any advice. The reason was, when I first started (this was years ago) he was open and did not question the advice given to him, now after listening to other people, he suddenly thinks he knows more about the issue, and obviously doesn't want to listen to the whole story before deciding that the modem or the router is bad. This is the same guy who spends ~$1000 on a laptop for his girlfriend, buying it from Best Buy, and buying the Geek Squad protection as well. :x 

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1 hour ago, jnelsoninjax said:

He says he is paying for 100/Mbs

And he has a wrt54GL??  Yeah not going to get anything close to that, even if he used a wire.. Last version I checked with those even with a wire it could only do like 20-25mbps from lan to wan natting, etc.

 

SB6121 while not the most current of models and is only 4x2 or x3 for channels - can for sure do 100mbps connection..  But yes comcast declared it EOL

http://forums.xfinity.com/t5/Your-Home-Network/SB6121-6141-End-of-Life-Details/td-p/2708003

 

Customers who own their own SB6121 or SB6141 modems can continue using these models with their Internet services. The only versions of SB6121 and SB6141 being declared End of Life are modems being leased from Comcast.

 

So he is good for the modem - but yeah if he wants anywhere close to his 100mbps he is paying for he is going to need new router, with wifi or new router and AP.. And if he wants to see close his 100mbps over wifi then his clients are also going to have to support AC and be more than 1x1.. What is the device he is watching netflix on?  Some smart TV app with some built in ###### wifi or using a wifi dongle?  What are the specs?  He could put in a wave 2 AP with 4x4 and if his client is some G or 2.4 N 1x1 then not going to get anywhere close what he is paying for.

 

How long has he been paying for 100mbps with just some crappy G router?  Didn't he complain as soon as he started paying for 100mbps and not seeing anything close to it.. Be surprised if he saw 20mbps down on that old school wifi router.

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jnelsoninjax

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2 minutes ago, BudMan said:

And he has a wrt54GL??  Yeah not going to get anything close to that, even if he used a wire.. Last version I checked with those even with a wire it could only do like 20-25mbps from lan to wan natting, etc.

 

SB6121 while not the most current of models and is only 4x2 or x3 for channels - can for sure do 100mbps connection..  But yes comcast declared it EOL

http://forums.xfinity.com/t5/Your-Home-Network/SB6121-6141-End-of-Life-Details/td-p/2708003

 

Customers who own their own SB6121 or SB6141 modems can continue using these models with their Internet services. The only versions of SB6121 and SB6141 being declared End of Life are modems being leased from Comcast.

 

So he is good for the modem - but yeah if he wants anywhere close to his 100mbps he is paying for he is going to need new router, with wifi or new router and AP.. And if he wants to see close his 100mbps over wifi then his clients are also going to have to support AC and be more than 1x1.. What is the device he is watching netflix on?  Some smart TV app with some built in ###### wifi or using a wifi dongle?  What are the specs?  He could put in a wave 2 AP with 4x4 and if his client is some G or 2.4 N 1x1 then not going to get anywhere close what he is paying for.

 

How long has he been paying for 100mbps with just some crappy G router?  Didn't he complain as soon as he started paying for 100mbps and not seeing anything close to it.. Be surprised if he saw 20mbps down on that old school wifi router.

I do not know specifics, but I think he is watching via a laptop, and he just got internet ~2 weeks ago, (at his place) previously he was using the internet at his GF house, and at that point I do not know if he was advised about his router, but I do know he did say something about the modem.

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neufuse Veteran

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You bought a SB6121? hehe you should of bought one that was more then a 4x4 modem... Comcast wants everyone on at least 8x4 and even now they are pushing for people to get off 8x4 modems and onto 24x4 and 32x4 or now DOCSIS3.1 modems...

 

SB6121 will not get you higher speed tiers on Comcast, that's one of the main reasons they are pushing you off that modem

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Jazmac

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I recently got this one from Amazon. My house is 2400 sq ft and it handles all the wifi in my house well. Backyard and all. It is less than 100.00 bucks and it gets the job done.

TP-Link Archer C7 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router (AC1750)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BUSDVBQ/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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jnelsoninjax

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52 minutes ago, neufuse said:

You bought a SB6121? hehe you should of bought one that was more then a 4x4 modem... Comcast wants everyone on at least 8x4 and even now they are pushing for people to get off 8x4 modems and onto 24x4 and 32x4 or now DOCSIS3.1 modems...

 

SB6121 will not get you higher speed tiers on Comcast, that's one of the main reasons they are pushing you off that modem

Would this one work better?

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+BudMan MVC

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here is combo deal get a modem and router for $100

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01NBBX80R/ref=s9_acsd_newrz_hd_bw_b1C4B_c_x_w?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=merchandised-search-5&pf_rd_r=P46WHMB2A157GSFCNZ9H&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=c05fca71-8797-5525-9f38-aa0a92634ab1&pf_rd_i=284715

 

Here is better deal on the C7 archer which got great reviews when it first came out, and I know it supports 3rd party.. $140

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N0HF86W/ref=s9_acsd_newrz_hd_bw_b1C4B_c_x_w?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=merchandised-search-5&pf_rd_r=P46WHMB2A157GSFCNZ9H&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=c05fca71-8797-5525-9f38-aa0a92634ab1&pf_rd_i=284715

 

That is 8x4 modem...  Here you go for 210$ deal modem/router (gateway)

https://www.amazon.com/ARRIS-SURFboard-SB6190-DOCSIS-Cable/dp/B01KW9T39C?th=1

 

Is 32x8 which future proofs you.. Love how they say 1.4Gbps on it when its only got gig interfaces.. Stupid marketing BS - do they really think the end user is that stupid?

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