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Need a New Router

Nir
By Nir
in Networking
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Hey everyone!

 

So it's time to buy a new router...

My budget is about 250-300$.

I saw 2 models that I liked:

Linksys WRT AC3200

ASUS RT-AC88U

 

I'd love to hear your opinion.

 

Thx a lot

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ac3200, 2 3x3 5Ghz, good if you have many 5ghz devices in a small area and need performance.

AC88U, 1 4x4 5Ghz with mu-mimo, worth it if you have multiple devices with mu-mimo support.

Also consider the ac3100, yes the ac88u has 8 ports but you'll be better off with a 4 port router and 8 port switch with LACP, this is because 4 of the extra ports are bottlenecked by a single 1Gb/s connection to everything else whereas the onboard 4 port is part of the main cpu.

 

You should consider qualcomm ac2600 routers if you want MU-MIMO, their CPUs are far faster than broadcom's and have better implementation.

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2 minutes ago, System Error Message said:

ac3200, 2 3x3 5Ghz, good if you have many 5ghz devices in a small area and need performance.

AC88U, 1 4x4 5Ghz with mu-mimo, worth it if you have multiple devices with mu-mimo support.

Also consider the ac3100, yes the ac88u has 8 ports but you'll be better off with a 4 port router and 8 port switch with LACP, this is because 4 of the extra ports are bottlenecked by a single 1Gb/s connection to everything else whereas the onboard 4 port is part of the main cpu.

 

You should consider qualcomm ac2600 routers if you want MU-MIMO, their CPUs are far faster than broadcom's and have better implementation.

Thank you for the quick response.

I already have a switch next to my router so an 8 port router is not essential.

Almost all of my devices have 5 Ghz support.

bottom line, in my budget, which router should I buy?

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Depends on how many devices and MU-MIMO. If you have plenty and you need wifi performance, the AC3200 if you only need to cover a small area. If you want budget and dont have mu-mimo than the older single radio 3x3 5Ghz wifi routers will still work well. If you want mu-mimo i would suggest going with qualcomm ac2600 based routers.

 

It also depends on your internet speed.

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Anyone else have any suggestions?

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https://mikrotik.com/products

If you want power, performance, features, and stability.  Id suggest these guys, plus your price range is pretty high so they have alot of solutions that are nice.  RouterOS is the software they use on this and it was pretty awesome. Im looking to buy one when funds are more applicable. :) 

"45 ACP because shooting twice is silly!"

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1 minute ago, Nikolithebear said:

https://mikrotik.com/products

If you want power, performance, features, and stability.  Id suggest these guys, plus your price range is pretty high so they have alot of solutions that are nice.  RouterOS is the software they use on this and it was pretty awesome. Im looking to buy one when funds are more applicable. :) 

I prefer buying from a big company, a product that I easily assist online forum in case I need help.

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11 minutes ago, Nir said:

I prefer buying from a big company, a product that I easily assist online forum in case I need help.

Oh..... Well.... Here you go.

 

https://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-Nighthawk-Gigabit-Support-Compatible/dp/B00F0DD0I6

 

 

 

My first idea still stands at being awesome though! :D 

"45 ACP because shooting twice is silly!"

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i use the best mikrotik has to offer and i would not recommend it because of the required skill to set them up.

 

If you go with netgear be prepared to use 3rd party firmware, from my experience they make a lot of good hardware but their firmware tends to suck.

 

Mikrotik has online forums for help.

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Draytek make some great routers.  I've been using a Vigor 2860 for over a year now and it's rock solid compared to the Asus ones I had previously.

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i can confirm that draytek do make good modems and routers, but its not comparable to asus. I have asus and mine has been solid, and asus has better wifi than draytek. I use my asus as a linux box and wifi AP which is something you cant do with draytek, however if wifi isnt your concern draytek is a very good consideration.

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11 hours ago, System Error Message said:

i can confirm that draytek do make good modems and routers, but its not comparable to asus. I have asus and mine has been solid, and asus has better wifi than draytek. I use my asus as a linux box and wifi AP which is something you cant do with draytek, however if wifi isnt your concern draytek is a very good consideration.

Thx for the comment
WiFi is a very big concern for me. It looks like I'll go for the asus.
What about the RT-AC3200? Is it better than the RT-AC88U?

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1 hour ago, Nir said:

Thx for the comment
WiFi is a very big concern for me. It looks like I'll go for the asus.
What about the RT-AC3200? Is it better than the RT-AC88U?

they're both good, if you have a switch just get the AC3100, its the same but without the extra 4 ports as the AC88U has a bottleneck for the 4 ports (unacceptable when its the same device compared to just attaching a 5 port switch). So its really just a choice between MU-MIMO and 2 5Ghz radios. You should also consider netgear and linksys variants too. TP link's variant is good too but with simpler firmware and a bit slower CPU.

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2 minutes ago, System Error Message said:

they're both good, if you have a switch just get the AC3100, its the same but without the extra 4 ports as the AC88U has a bottleneck for the 4 ports (unacceptable when its the same device compared to just attaching a 5 port switch). So its really just a choice between MU-MIMO and 2 5Ghz radios. You should also consider netgear and linksys variants too. TP link's variant is good too but with simpler firmware and a bit slower CPU.

I don't think I really need the extra 5Ghz radios. But on amazon.com the AC3200 is cheaper (Why is that?)

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10 minutes ago, Nir said:

I don't think I really need the extra 5Ghz radios. But on amazon.com the AC3200 is cheaper (Why is that?)

the AC88U is newer and has a lot more press. When a device gets more media positively (like being good quality and so on), even on a forum like this the prices for it go up. If you want the MU-MIMO i suggest the AC3100, its cheaper and you dont get the bottlenecked switch.

 

If you want a router with switches in it mikrotik RB3000 is the only choice as it has 2 sets of 5 port switches, each with 2Gb/s to the CPU. No other consumer router has more than 1Gb/s back to the CPU for ethernet (wifi is done though PCIe).

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9 minutes ago, System Error Message said:

the AC88U is newer and has a lot more press. When a device gets more media positively (like being good quality and so on), even on a forum like this the prices for it go up. If you want the MU-MIMO i suggest the AC3100, its cheaper and you dont get the bottlenecked switch.

 

If you want a router with switches in it mikrotik RB3000 is the only choice as it has 2 sets of 5 port switches, each with 2Gb/s to the CPU. No other consumer router has more than 1Gb/s back to the CPU for ethernet (wifi is done though PCIe).

All right, it looks like I'll go with the RT-AC88U AC3100:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B016EWKQAQ/_encoding=UTF8?coliid=I1RWKHMOA8ORMH&colid=1JYYDL35W9CMJ

 

Thank you for the help!

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Just now, System Error Message said:

The AC3100, not AC88U, different is number of ports and price.

Can you post the product page on Amazon?

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https://www.amazon.com/Asus-Wireless-AC3100-Gigabit-RT-AC3100/dp/B01707HPKS/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1497702957&sr=8-4&keywords=asus+ac3100

 

This however will be a better choice as an example. AC2600 has better MU-MIMO and a much faster CPU

https://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-Nighthawk-X4S-R7800-100NAS-Compatible/dp/B0192911RA/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1497702957&sr=8-9&keywords=asus+ac3100

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24 minutes ago, System Error Message said:

https://www.amazon.com/Asus-Wireless-AC3100-Gigabit-RT-AC3100/dp/B01707HPKS/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1497702957&sr=8-4&keywords=asus+ac3100

 

This however will be a better choice as an example. AC2600 has better MU-MIMO and a much faster CPU

https://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-Nighthawk-X4S-R7800-100NAS-Compatible/dp/B0192911RA/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1497702957&sr=8-9&keywords=asus+ac3100

Comparing this: https://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-Nighthawk-X4S-R7800-100NAS-Compatible/dp/B0192911RA/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8

To this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KWHMR6G/ref=twister_B01MQYL797?_encoding=UTF8&th=1

Isn't the 2nd one better for the same price?

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nope, those wireless numbers are meaningless. 3200 is gotten from 2.4 Ghz N + 5Ghz ac + 5Ghz ac, 2600 is gotten from 2.4Ghz N + 5Ghz AC. 3100 is a meaningless number as it requires 1Gb/s 2.4Ghz wireless N which 99% of devices cant support.

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1 minute ago, System Error Message said:

nope, those wireless numbers are meaningless. 3200 is gotten from 2.4 Ghz N + 5Ghz ac + 5Ghz ac, 2600 is gotten from 2.4Ghz N + 5Ghz AC. 3100 is a meaningless number as it requires 1Gb/s 2.4Ghz wireless N which 99% of devices cant support.

OK I understand, because the NETGEAR AC2600 has a much faster processor I should go for that one over the 3200.

But the Linksys WRT3200ACM has an even faster processor.

This decision is very hard to make.... :S

I sincerely appreciate your patience!

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go with the one you want than. linksys uses marvel, the netgear ac2600 uses qualcomm IPQ which uses kraits i think.

 

So its just a choice between MU-MIMO or 2x 5Ghz radios.

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2 minutes ago, System Error Message said:

go with the one you want than. linksys uses marvel, the netgear ac2600 uses qualcomm IPQ which uses kraits i think.

 

So its just a choice between MU-MIMO or 2x 5Ghz radios.

Correct me if I'm wrong but the WRT3200ACM has MU-MIMO.

http://www.linksys.com/us/p/P-WRT3200ACM/

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