Wireless is terrible

[Zalosath]

Hi there,

 

In the past couple of weeks I've noticed a massive decline in the wireless capabilities of my network. My ISP is BT and they report no problems in my area. Any device connected via ethernet is perfectly fine, but all wireless devices are throttled to the max, I can't even load an image with the WiFi even if I'm touching the router. 

 

Considering this is a recent thing, I can't pin it down to any computers. Plus, even with no ethernet connections the wireless is still unusable. 

 

What do I do to solve this problem? 

 

I've been looking at upgrading the basic router (the default one) that I have but if it's not an issue with the router then that would be a waste of money, additionally, would it be worth an upgrade if it would work? I only have 60Mb/s down at most, so would there be any noticeable difference in not just wireless, but ethernet connected speeds? 

 

Of course if any additional information is required feel free to ask, any help is appreciated. 

[Action_Johnson]

That's a router problem. The modems and routers that come with ISP's are always bull****, every time. 

 

Get a modem w/o wifi at Best Buy, and a strong router. Call your ISP to set up the new modem that'll have more lanes to it, and hardwire the new router too. Guaranteed you'll have faster internet. 

[Zalosath]

2 minutes ago, Action_Johnson said:

That's a router problem. The modems and routers that come with ISP's are always bull****, every time. 

 

Get a modem w/o wifi at Best Buy, and a strong router. Call your ISP to set up the new modem that'll have more lanes to it, and hardwire the new router too. Guaranteed you'll have faster internet. 

What is the importance of the upgraded modem in this case? Will my ISP support the extra lanes? 

 

Can I not just get a new router such as the Asus AX5400?

[Falcon1986]

1 hour ago, Zalosath said:

What is the importance of the upgraded modem in this case? Will my ISP support the extra lanes? 

What kind of internet connection do you get from BT? Does your ISP allow you to use your own modem?

 

Using your own modem usually applies to cable internet providers. Not sure if it's the same in the UK.

 

What is the make and model of your network device(s)? Can you run a wireless survey using WiFi Analyzer and post screenshots of the 'Analyze' and 'Networks' pages (include 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands, and highlight your SSID).

[Zalosath]

1 minute ago, Falcon1986 said:

What kind of internet connection do you get from BT? Does your ISP allow you to use your own modem?

 

Using your own modem usually applies to cable internet providers. Not sure if it's the same in the UK.

 

What is the make and model of your network device(s)? Can you run a wireless survey using WiFi Analyzer and post screenshots of the 'Analyze' and 'Networks' pages (include 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands, and highlight your SSID).

I get the Fibre 2 package, the 71Mb one. I have no idea if they allow use of my own modem.

 

Make and model of the router? Which WiFi analyzer am I looking for? App on my phone or desktop app? There's hundreds of them and the few I tested don't have an option for Analyze or Networks.

[Donut417]

6 hours ago, Zalosath said:

Of course if any additional information is required feel free to ask, any help is appreciated. 

Does this happen on 2.4 and 5Ghz or just 2.4 Ghz? 

[Action_Johnson]

5 hours ago, Zalosath said:

What is the importance of the upgraded modem in this case? Will my ISP support the extra lanes? 

 

Can I not just get a new router such as the Asus AX5400?

I don't know what BT is, but ISP's here in the states rent out the crappiest modems they can find. Comcast rents out 4 lane modems that hardware limit the bandwidth so you don't receive what you actually are billed for. 

 

I replaced the ISP's modems with my own in two of my homes, and my photo studio, and all three times had a marked improvement in stability, and in the case of my previous home, it doubled my internet speeds. 

[Donut417]

1 minute ago, Action_Johnson said:

Comcast rents out 4 lane modems that hardware limit the bandwidth so you don't receive what you actually are billed for. 

Just NO. Comcast rents out a Internet Gateways (Modem/Router). On wired your generally can get what you pay for. Also from what I have read, their newer gateways are suppose to be decent. Though Im not paying a rental fee to try one. 

 

 

[Falcon1986]

4 hours ago, Zalosath said:

Make and model of the router?

Whatever your ISP provides you with and anything else you have attached to it.

 

4 hours ago, Zalosath said:

Which WiFi analyzer am I looking for?

The first hit on Google from the Microsoft Store. Run on the computer with the speed problem connecting over WiFi.

 

4 hours ago, Zalosath said:

have no idea if they allow use of my own modem.

Fiber ISPs will provide different devices depending on how the fiber reaches your home. It's not really a "modem" in the traditional sense, and I'm yet to see an ISP that allows you to use your own ONT/gateway. So don't sorry about replacing the unit with your own; more than likely, you can't.

[Zalosath]

12 hours ago, Donut417 said:

Does this happen on 2.4 and 5Ghz or just 2.4 Ghz? 

From what I can tell, both.

 

12 hours ago, Action_Johnson said:

I don't know what BT is, but ISP's here in the states rent out the crappiest modems they can find. Comcast rents out 4 lane modems that hardware limit the bandwidth so you don't receive what you actually are billed for. 

 

I replaced the ISP's modems with my own in two of my homes, and my photo studio, and all three times had a marked improvement in stability, and in the case of my previous home, it doubled my internet speeds. 

There's no such thing as renting them out here, we buy them straight out and pay for the service instead.

 

12 hours ago, Falcon1986 said:

Whatever your ISP provides you with and anything else you have attached to it.

 

The first hit on Google from the Microsoft Store. Run on the computer with the speed problem connecting over WiFi.

 

Fiber ISPs will provide different devices depending on how the fiber reaches your home. It's not really a "modem" in the traditional sense, and I'm yet to see an ISP that allows you to use your own ONT/gateway. So don't sorry about replacing the unit with your own; more than likely, you can't.

The router is called a "BT Smart Hub" 

 

Here are some screenshots from the first one on the play store.

https://imgur.com/a/0iZhaj9

[Falcon1986]

5 hours ago, Zalosath said:

Here are some screenshots from the first one on the play store.

https://imgur.com/a/0iZhaj9

Your 2.4GHz spectrum is very crowded, so if you can, steer all of your wireless devices to 5GHz. This can be done by specifying a preference for 5GHz signals in the adapter properties (at least in Windows) or using a unique SSID for the 5GHz network and directing your devices to connect to it.

 

Unfortunately, devices that can only connect to 2.4GHz will not benefit from this. Hopefully, they are not high priority devices. You should use a channel width of 20MHz in crowded wireless zones.

 

Your 5GHz spectrum is not bad, just poorly set up. Change the channel of this network to 64 or higher. As you can see, it's completely free beyond this point. Also, you can use a wider channel width here (40/80MHz) provided it doesn't overlap with any other network.

[Zalosath]

On 10/7/2020 at 5:53 PM, Falcon1986 said:

Your 2.4GHz spectrum is very crowded, so if you can, steer all of your wireless devices to 5GHz. This can be done by specifying a preference for 5GHz signals in the adapter properties (at least in Windows) or using a unique SSID for the 5GHz network and directing your devices to connect to it.

 

Unfortunately, devices that can only connect to 2.4GHz will not benefit from this. Hopefully, they are not high priority devices. You should use a channel width of 20MHz in crowded wireless zones.

 

Your 5GHz spectrum is not bad, just poorly set up. Change the channel of this network to 64 or higher. As you can see, it's completely free beyond this point. Also, you can use a wider channel width here (40/80MHz) provided it doesn't overlap with any other network.

Okay thanks.

 

Another of your input if you don't mind, the router I have uses an ADSL connection but most better routers use a standard ethernet connection. The modem (which I presume is what is connected to my wall) only has a port for the ADSL too.

What solutions do I have here if I were to get another router? Or am I strictly limited to ADSL routers only?

 

EDIT: I ended up going for the ASUS RT-AX82U paired with a cheap Openreach Modem I found on eBay. If these aren't compatible or you think I'll run into issues, then please do let me know. Thanks.

 

EDIT2: I actually went with a DSL-AC88U instead of the previously stated RT-AX82U, mostly because it doesn't require an additional modem and has most, if not all, the same features. The price was about the same as the RT-AX82U anyway, so good deal if I do say so myself.