Gaming routers, How do they work?

[HummusCake]

So my router is in my living room and im upstairs and the furthest away from it. I get a weak signal strength so i was thinking of buying a gaming router (Belkin AC1900 Wireless Dual Band AC+ Gigabit Gaming Router) But i don't know how these work. Do i setup the router next to my pc by ethernet and connect the 2 routers by wps button?

[anoor9000]

Unless your two routers are mesh compatible, you won't be able to just use that other router as an extender. What I would suggest is trying to move the single router to a more central location OR purchasing another router that has a better signal range.

 

If you have one of those router/modem combos from your ISP, disable wifi on that one, connect the new router, and set it up as normal.

 

"Gaming" is just marketing nonsense and doesn't do anything. 

[HummusCake]

1 minute ago, anoor9000 said:

Unless your two routers are mesh compatible, you won't be able to just use that other router as an extender. What I would suggest is trying to move the single router to a more central location OR purchasing another router that has a better signal range.

 

If you have one of those router/modem combos from your ISP, disable wifi on that one, connect the new router, and set it up as normal.

 

"Gaming" is just marketing nonsense and doesn't do anything. 

Well in my hub settings i can choose between modem mode and router mode. If i change it to modem mode will the wifi not work for others in the house hold?

[Spotty]

2 minutes ago, linusfanboi_skrub1 said:

But i don't know how these work. Do i setup the router next to my pc by ethernet and connect the 2 routers by wps button?

You would use it instead of your existing router.

 

3 minutes ago, linusfanboi_skrub1 said:

I get a weak signal strength so i was thinking of buying a gaming router (Belkin AC1900 Wireless Dual Band AC+ Gigabit Gaming Router) 

"Gaming router" (I'm assuming one that uses 5ghz) would potentially perform worse than one operating in 2.4ghz mode in your situation. 5ghz allows for faster speeds, but the signal is more easily blocked so to get a good signal you need to be closer to the router with less interference in the way. 

[NumLock21]

Gaming routers mostly has RGB and can fake your FPS that you see on your screen.

j/k

[anoor9000]

5 minutes ago, linusfanboi_skrub1 said:

Well in my hub settings i can choose between modem mode and router mode. If i change it to modem mode will the wifi not work for others in the house hold?

If you change it to Modem mode, yes it will shut off Wifi for everyone. If you decide to get a new router, you would take an ethernet cord from the old router (set to modem mode), connect it to the (usually) blue WAN port on the new router and then set up the new router according to the instructions. Then, make sure everyone else in your house has the wifi password and help them connect to the new network. 

[NumLock21]

Take a look at wireless repeaters or extenders, some routers can be used as a wireless repeater or extender. My Linksys has that option in the router.

[HummusCake]

Yeah i'll just get a wifi repeater instead, can these be plugged anywhere if in good range of router to increase the range

[LukaH]

Not sure what your current router is but when i switched from a TL-WR1043ND (2.4ghz) to a RT-AC68U (2,4/5ghz) router the signal got worse. I live in a flat with not very thick brick walls.

[HummusCake]

1 minute ago, LukaH said:

Not sure what your current router is but when i switched from a TL-WR1043ND (2.4ghz) to a RT-AC68U (2,4/5ghz) router the signal got worse. I live in a flat with not very thick brick walls.

Yeah here in the uk the walls are thick as hell and the doors are thick hard wood. I use virgin media hub 3.0 we upgraded but virgin media actually sucks so i tried 2.4ghz and 5ghz and it can't reach that far. even with the router in eyes view

[Touch My Hamm]

Usually gaming routers are marketing nonsense. They would need to prioritize certain packets of data with a list given so it knows which are for gaming. Alot of these do not have that but they do usually prioritize any packet using specific ports as some ports are used for say "email" while others might use other things. They try to allow some packets faster but this doesnt really improve anything. (I cannot confirm this is the case with all these gaming routers as I do not do extensive testing on them and setup my own cisco router at home). Since you cannot control your connection outside your network the main issue will always be distance to the server and the route it needs to take. If something is bottlenecking the connection a gaming router will not help. I might have software that looks better and might be more user friendly if anything. Or have a specific look so you can have it in a more public space but thats usually it. 

[HummusCake]

3 minutes ago, GodSeph said:

Usually gaming routers are marketing nonsense. They would need to prioritize certain packets of data with a list given so it knows which are for gaming. Alot of these do not have that but they do usually prioritize any packet using specific ports as some ports are used for say "email" while others might use other things. They try to allow some packets faster but this doesnt really improve anything. (I cannot confirm this is the case with all these gaming routers as I do not do extensive testing on them and setup my own cisco router at home). Since you cannot control your connection outside your network the main issue will always be distance to the server and the route it needs to take. If something is bottlenecking the connection a gaming router will not help. I might have software that looks better and might be more user friendly if anything. Or have a specific look so you can have it in a more public space but thats usually it. 

thanks for the information

[Senzelian]

The best way to deal with this is a wired connection to the devices you want to connect.
If that isn't possible you got multiple options:

• Powerline adapters
  I don't reall like these tbh, but they might work depending on the electric wiring within your house.
   
• Wi-Fi extenders
  These can be a decent option, but depend heavily on good placement. They need to get a good signal from your router in the first place to deliver a good signal.
   
• Seperate wired access points 
  This would be a good option in case you aren't able to lay a wire directly to the devices, but let's say you'd be able to get half way there. The other half of the distance you can overcome with an access point.

 

(Oh yeah and gaming routers are bs)

[HummusCake]

1 minute ago, Senzelian said:

The best way to deal with this is a wired connection to the devices you want to connect.
If that isn't possible you got multiple options:

• Powerline adapters
  I don't reall like these tbh, but they might work depending on the electric wiring within your house.
   
• Wi-Fi extenders
  These can be a decent option, but depend heavily on good placement.
   
• Seperate wired access points 
  This would be a good option in case you aren't able to lay a wire directly to your PC, but let's say you'd be able to get half way there. The other half of the distance you can overcome with an access point.

 

(Oh yeah and gaming routers are bs)

I might just get a wifi extender at 600mbps as mine is 400mbps or would 300mbps be just fine?

[Senzelian]

Just now, linusfanboi_skrub1 said:

I might just get a wifi extender at 600mbps as mine is 400mbps or would 300mbps be just fine?

Speed shouldn't be your first priority.
You should make sure that the extender you're getting supports the latest wi-fi standards and has a good signal range and strength.

To find out which extenders work well and which don't you should read/watch independent reviews.

[steelo]

3 minutes ago, linusfanboi_skrub1 said:

I might just get a wifi extender at 600mbps as mine is 400mbps or would 300mbps be just fine?

I have had good results using a powerline adapter. I was having issues with wifi reaching my second floor office. The connection speed isn't as fast as 5 ghz wifi in the same room, but it is stable as long as you have fairly modern wiring in your home.

[HummusCake]

Just now, steelo said:

I have had good results using a powerline adapter. I was having issues with wifi from a second story office with my router being downstairs. The connection speed isn't as fast as wifi in the same room, but it is stable as long as you have fairly modern wiring in your home.

How does a powerline adapter work? Im honestly dumb when it comes to routers and modems and setting these up.

[steelo]

8 minutes ago, linusfanboi_skrub1 said:

How does a powerline adapter work? Im honestly dumb when it comes to routers and modems and setting these up.

Basically you have 2 adapters, one of them you plug into a power outlet next to your router and you would plug it into your routers ethernet port. The second adapter is plugged in to an outlet close to your PC. It basically uses your homes electrical grid as a network connection. It's not nearly as fast as a network wired with ethernet cable, but as long as your homes electrical system is up to par it can provide a very stable connection.