Best AC router?

[ShuanW50]

So at the moment I have a Belkin Play router which is wireless N, but want a new one now and noticed the newest AC. I'm not sure what router to get though which has AC on it, does anybody recommend any?

 

Would want one with a built in modem as well.

[ShuanW50]

Also is AC huge improvement over wireless N

[LAwLz]

Also is AC huge improvement over wireless N

I haven't studied 802.11ac that much so I might be wrong, but I think there aren't really that much improvement other than new modulation, bigger channel and improved MIMO streams, and all of those features will only increase speed. If that's how it is, then the only real difference for you as a user will be increased speed (over 1Gbit in some cases) over 802.11n. Your current router supports up to 300Mbps according to the manufacturer's webpage, but according to reviews it doesn't seem all that great for being a wireless N router.

 

802.11ac is very new so you don't really have a lot of options. Each router manufacturer basically got one 802.11ac router each, and some of them are based on the 802.11ac drafts (I do not recommend that you get those, since you might run into compatibility issues later, since things might have changed between the standard being completed, and it just being a draft).

 

What's wrong with your current wireless network? You might not need to get a new router at all. You have to remember that getting a router with higher throughput will most likely not increase your Internet connection speed (as in, your phone trying to download something, or visit a website won't become faster). Also, your hosts (phone, laptop and other wireless devices) need to support it as well if you want to take advantage of 802.11ac, and there simply isn't that much on the market that does support it.

 

I suggest waiting for it to become more widely adopted, and cheaper, before getting into 802.11ac. If you really need to upgrade right now, then sure go for ac if you can afford it, but don't expect any performance difference on your current setup.

[Sheldon]

I agree with @LAwLz . Well if you do want one since they are amazing and supper fast I have the Netgear D6300 and love it, It has an amazing user interface and it looks really good! Everything you need. Even an App to manage the router from your phone. Take a look

http://www.netgear.com/home/products/wirelessrouters/ultimate-performance/D6300.aspx

[jathor]

i have an asus ac66u and i seriously love it, and i have the asus pce-ac66 to go with it. i would have preferred it to be wired but recent changes in the house has made that extremely difficult. anyways, if the distance and obstacles between ur pc and the router arent bad, yeah, id go with an ac router but if they are bad, speed/bandwidth will suffer greatly, how my setup is right now, i am getting 702 mbps (rated, havent tried actual) but it is better than any 2.4ghz when streaming movies to my xbox 360. no lag, no stutter. so if u need it and have a setup thats ideal, yeah go for ac and i really like my asus router

[aselwyn1]

I got to try the Asus one at a friends and I loved it even with N on my iPhone I saw speed improvements

[ShuanW50]

I want a AC router that has built in modem thought as well. Can't seem to find any which do.

[LAwLz]

I want a AC router that has built in modem thought as well. Can't seem to find any which do.

You mean an ADSL modem? Yeah I am pretty sure no 802.11ac router has that built in. You could set your old modem/router combo in bridge mode and then plug your new router into that. You will get the fast LAN speed, and you won't be bottlenecked when you leave your LAN either (since you are on ADSL and that won't get anywhere near gigabit speeds, or even 100Mbps for that matter).

[ShuanW50]

So if I got the Asus wireless ac router and connected it to my belkin ADSL modem wireless router by Ethernet then my Asus router can use my belkin router as a modem? So

Belkin router modem>Asus AC router?

[Akula]

ASUS RT-AC66U

 

Personally i don't recommend going down the AC path currently, you are limited to your connectivity with current devices.

I cannot justify updating my wireless to pair with AC when N is perfectly suitable.

[ShuanW50]

The router I have now is this

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B003GALT74/ref=redir_mdp_mobile

It has a built in modem, so if I needed to get a modem box do you recommend any?

[ShuanW50]

I have a AC network adaptor already for my PC, plus next gen consoles have AC. So I would like to get one now, I found this

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B009EPMYME/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?qid=1372280546&sr=8-4π=SL75

Has built in modem, but doesn't have great reviews.

I want to get this one

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B008O56HXC/ref=mp_s_a_1_5?qid=1372280546&sr=8-5π=SL75

But it doesn't have a built in modem, so not sure what to get if I get that. I have a router at the moment with a built in modem.

[LAwLz]

So if I got the Asus wireless ac router and connected it to my belkin ADSL modem wireless router by Ethernet then my Asus router can use my belkin router as a modem? So

Belkin router modem>Asus AC router?

Yes, but you have to set the Belkin modem in "bridge mode".

[LAwLz]

I have a AC network adaptor already for my PC, plus next gen consoles have AC. So I would like to get one now, I found this

Are you sure you got 802.11ac on your computer? And no, the next generation of consoles do not have 802.11ac. The PlayStation 4 does not even have 5GHz 802.11n (only 2.4GHz) if I remember correctly, and that's complete bulls**t from Sony. I can't imagine that they save many cents by gimping it like that.

[ShuanW50]

Are you sure you got 802.11ac on your computer? And no, the next generation of consoles do not have 802.11ac. The PlayStation 4 does not even have 5GHz 802.11n (only 2.4GHz) if I remember correctly, and that's complete bulls**t from Sony. I can't imagine that they save many cents by gimping it like that.

 

I have this for my PC.

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/USB-AC53-Wireless-Network-Interface-Dongle/dp/B00BTWJAAE/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1372286537&sr=8-3&keywords=Wireless+AC+adaptor+asus

 

Which is AC. So how would I go around adding belkin router has a bridge so I can use that as a modem with my AC router. Like I really would like one with just a built in modem, 

 

Like I found this 

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Netgear-D6300-802-11ac-Gigabit-Router/dp/B009EPMYME/ref=sr_1_3?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1372286621&sr=1-3&keywords=ac+router

 

But doesn't have that great reviews );

[LAwLz]

I have this for my PC.

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/USB-AC53-Wireless-Network-Interface-Dongle/dp/B00BTWJAAE/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1372286537&sr=8-3&keywords=Wireless+AC+adaptor+asus

 

Which is AC.

OK, don't get me wrong. That dongle isn't as good as you think it is. I am not saying it is bad or anything, but while it does support 802.11ac, it is only USB 2.0 so at best you will get about 280Mbps (which is the effective throughput of USB 2.0). That's still below what a lot of 802.11n access points can output.

 

 

So how would I go around adding belkin router has a bridge so I can use that as a modem with my AC router. Like I really would like one with just a built in modem, 

Go into the web GUI for the Belkin router and then look for something called bridge mode. You want that on. When that is turned on, your Belkin router will basically only be a modem, and all routing/DHCP/switching etc will be handled by the other router you got plugged in. I might be able to give you step-by-step instructions if you post your Belkin router model number (for example Belkin F7D3202). Bridge mode might also be called "modem only mode" or "transparent modem" or something along those lines as well.

Here is a guide on how to do it on a ZyXEL router. It will look completely different on your router, but I post it so that you can see what you want to look for:

 

Anyway I looked through some of the reviews and it seems like the biggest complain is that the current firmware is buggy and unreliable. That is something which might be fixed already (since there are quite a few very positive reviews) or it will most likely be fixed in the future.

[ShuanW50]

OK, don't get me wrong. That dongle isn't as good as you think it is. I am not saying it is bad or anything, but while it does support 802.11ac, it is only USB 2.0 so at best you will get about 280Mbps (which is the effective throughput of USB 2.0). That's still below what a lot of 802.11n access points can output.

 

 

Go into the web GUI for the Belkin router and then look for something called bridge mode. You want that on. When that is turned on, your Belkin router will basically only be a modem, and all routing/DHCP/switching etc will be handled by the other router you got plugged in. I might be able to give you step-by-step instructions if you post your Belkin router model number (for example Belkin F7D3202). Bridge mode might also be called "modem only mode" or "transparent modem" or something along those lines as well.

Here is a guide on how to do it on a ZyXEL router. It will look completely different on your router, but I post it so that you can see what you want to look for:

 

Anyway I looked through some of the reviews and it seems like the biggest complain is that the current firmware is buggy and unreliable. That is something which might be fixed already (since there are quite a few very positive reviews) or it will most likely be fixed in the future.

 

So model is F7D4401uk

 

Belkin wireless play Max modem router.

 

In the connection type where it says PPoE ecT there is a option for "Modem only, turns off internet sharing" I'm guessing this is what needs to be on to act as modem for the AC router.

 

So between the Belkin modem router to ac router what cable will it be, ethernet ect? Also the DSL cable from the phone line does that go into the belkin modem router like it is now or into the AC router?

[qwertywarrior]

if u want concrete benchmarks nothing beats

www.smallnetbuilder.com

 

looking at the website the best AC router

http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/lanwan/router-charts/bar/113-5-ghz-dn-c

 

is the RT-AC66U

 

dont buy one with a modem

buy a seperate mdem and change it into bridge mode

[stevv]

I'm looking to get this (to replace my Linksys E4200)

 

http://www.securifi.com/almondplus

 

b/c it's feature packed and doubles as home control =).  Not sure of performance yet. but only $99.

 

Hope Linus can review this version when it comes out (he did with the original almond router)

[LAwLz]

In the connection type where it says PPoE ecT there is a option for "Modem only, turns off internet sharing" I'm guessing this is what needs to be on to act as modem for the AC router.

 

So between the Belkin modem router to ac router what cable will it be, ethernet ect? Also the DSL cable from the phone line does that go into the belkin modem router like it is now or into the AC router?

Couldn't find any guide for that specific router but it sounds like you have found out what you need to do. Yes it sounds like "modem only, turn off Internet sharing" is right. Yes, just use a normal Ethernet cable between the AC router and the modem (modem being your old router) and then plug everything into the new AC router.