Abysmal WiFi Router - Bad Connection, Even In Same Room!

[BatchTheBrit]

Hi guys. Basically, as a university student, I don't spend that much time at home. But when I do, the WiFi connection here is bloody abysmal. My parents are still on copper wire broadband (despite the fact that fibre optic has been in our area for years) and the WiFi router is still the crappy Sky Broadband one that was supplied when they got the service like 7 years ago. I believe Netgear were the manufacturer partners at the time. 

I've tried moving the router closer to the centre of the house. I've tried changing the WiFi channels (router's so old it only uses 2.4ghz) to avoid interference from neighbours (rural area, interference has never been an issue) but I still average about -75dB signal strength with it fluctuating severely. This is with the signal travelling through the floor directly up to the bedroom. It's even bad in the room next door with frequent quality drops and poor speeds. 

This isn't really affected by the number of devices either. During heavy load the family can have 4 phones, 3 tablets, 2 laptops and my desktop all connected to it at once. However, even when home alone with just my phone and my desktop connected, it makes no difference. Just for completion I'm using an i3 6100 on an Asus z170-p. The WiFi card I'm using is a TP-LINK TL-WN851ND. My operating system is Windows 10. However it's important to note that this issue affects all devices in the house, not just my PC. 

The connection speed itself isn't bad, about 10-15mbs with decent ping. Checking with a wired connection the quality of the connection is fine, so it has to be the WiFi of the router itself. The issue is most obvious when gaming over this connection. I'm always getting good ping numbers, but my character jitters around the place with severe rubber-banding. 

If this was my house the solution would be simple (get fibre optic and smash some cat6 around the house) but as this is my parent's house i can't just drill holes in walls or change the internet package and provider. I also can't run a 20m cable downstairs to the router from my PC, so I was curious if anyone had any solutions and can answer the following questions:

1. Would my signal be improved by buying an aftermarket router?

2. What would the approximate cost be for a worthwhile router upgrade?

 

3. Would I also need a modem if I upgraded? 

4. Would a powerline socket solution work well for my described situation?

5. How hard would it be to run a Cat6 cable down one wall to the router below?

 

Thanks for any help you can provide! Even posting this has been a nightmare with the connection!

[PineyCreek]

1) Possibly.  Signal strength is regulated by standards.  The 5GHz band doesn't travel as far and is more likely to have its signal impeded by certain materials.

 

2) A decent 802.11ac router will probably be more than $120 USD roughly, not sure what markups or taxes may apply where you are.

 

3) Hopefully the current router isn't so crappy that it can't be switched to bridge mode, which would basically make that the modem.

 

4) Powerline is only as good as your wiring.  If you have an old house, you might get crap quality signal.  It's worth a shot.  Keep in mind you're also exposing yourself to another method for a surge to enter your computer that way.

 

5) Depends on the house and what kind of structural members are inside the walls.  It is of course more difficult on an outside wall.  If an inside wall, it's easier, but since you're in a two story house there's likely some horizontal crossmembers that you would have to drill through with an extension unless you already had some type of pre-existing conduit.

 

 

[Monkey Dust]

An after-market Wi-Fi router would probably be the best option, not one that replaces the sky router, but plugs in to one of the RJ45 sockets. Which one depends of the size of your parents house, it's construction (I speak from experience that thick stone walls are a bugger), and your budget. I'd suggest a hour reading Amazon reviews, sat next to the router with a laptop and a cable. Powerline might work, but depends on the house's wiring.

[PineyCreek]

An extra thought...you DID say you had terrible signal even in the same room, so that really points the finger at the box providing the signal more than anything.  I'd say replacing the wireless router would benefit everyone in that house.

[SCHISCHKA]

i would upgrade based purely on the fact the router is 7 years old. prob got a shit ton of vulnerabilities. 

[burnsmorgan14]

Speak to Sky,  they’ll upgrade to their newer router. But you’ll still probably want to get an aftermarket router

[BatchTheBrit]

3 hours ago, PineyCreek said:

An extra thought...you DID say you had terrible signal even in the same room, so that really points the finger at the box providing the signal more than anything.  I'd say replacing the wireless router would benefit everyone in that house.

Okay, and then i could set the old router to a bridge mode and use it as the modem?

[BatchTheBrit]

2 hours ago, burnsmorgan14 said:

Speak to Sky,  they’ll upgrade to their newer router. But you’ll still probably want to get an aftermarket router

Do they let you do that? Considering the package we are on is incredibly old? Knowing sky they'll try to push a new package on us (but to be honest that might not be a bad thing)

[Lurick]

7 minutes ago, BatchTheBrit said:

Do they let you do that? Considering the package we are on is incredibly old? Knowing sky they'll try to push a new package on us (but to be honest that might not be a bad thing)

Could always call the ISP and see what they say. Worst thing that happens is they try to push the package and you just decline if it's not what you're looking for.

[burnsmorgan14]

30 minutes ago, BatchTheBrit said:

Do they let you do that? Considering the package we are on is incredibly old? Knowing sky they'll try to push a new package on us (but to be honest that might not be a bad thing)

If you call them and say that you're having issues with your router. They should send another one out. They did it with a family member, and then you just switch the routers over. 

 

If they try to push a new package, you can decline, but you should still be able to ask for a new router.