I have an Airport Extreme and am considering getting a new router to increase the range. I’m looking for a router with insane range and wall-penetrating capability, and happy to pay a little more for something that actually works well in this area. It also has to be great for handling multiple Plex streams in HD (mostly MKVs). This means a router that needs to be frequently (or even occasionally) rebooted is out for me. What would be some great options to consider?
Just go to CNET or something similar and read reviews.
What is your budget here? 1 thing you need to keep in mind, no router is going to be able to cover a 3 storey house. I have 2, 1 for basement and one for 1st & 2nd floor.
If you have a generous budget, I highly recommend asus rt-ac68u
@Crzyrio said:
What is your budget here? 1 thing you need to keep in mind, no router is going to be able to cover a 3 storey house. I have 2, 1 for basement and one for 1st & 2nd floor.If you have a generous budget, I highly recommend asus rt-ac68u
I would say up to $300.
@Crzyrio said:
If you have a generous budget, I highly recommend asus rt-ac68u
How would you say the asus rt-ac68u compares to the asus rt-ac87u?
@random.server said:
Just go to CNET or something similar and read reviews.
I’ve looked at reviews on Amazon and PCMag and while they are informative, I’m seeking a more Plex-targeted opinion 
@Crzyrio said:
1 thing you need to keep in mind, no router is going to be able to cover a 3 storey house. I have 2, 1 for basement and one for 1st & 2nd floor.
I’m ok with eventually getting a second one, if needed. I have a single story house, but I’m pretty sure brick walls are causing issues, as my current router doesn’t give me what I would expect in the 5Ghz frequency, and being only a single story home.
Get a newer AirPort Extreme.
Regards
@NedtheNerd said:
Get a newer AirPort Extreme.
I’ve got the latest model with the latest firmware. I’m thinking the construction of my house is causing attenuation.
I’ve got my Airport Extreme probably about 50 feet away from my iMac, using 802.11AC, I hardly ever get transfer rates above 400Mbps to my NAS, which when directly connected I get between 800-900Mbps. I frequently see only 150Mbps over the local network.
Plex is obviously a streaming service, so the best routers for Plex would be the ones that perform better for streaming. Most of the review sites (CNet, TomsGuide, PCMag, WireCutter, etc.) evaluate routers with regard to what they’re best at, so read reviews and choose one that is rated high for streaming. Asking individuals how they think one router compares to another is only useful if you find individuals who have actually used both.
If a brick wall is attenuating the signal, replacing your current router probably won’t improve it much. A second router, placed properly and configured as an access point, is likely to get the best results for extending the signal beyond the wall.
Thank you all for the advice. Agreed that I need to find the best router for streaming. I’ll hit up those pro reviewers again and look for that specifically.
I have the Netgear R7000 “Nighthawk”. This thing is incredible. While I don’t have any brick walls, I get wireless between floors, over most my property and out to the detached garage.
Any thoughts on Amped Wireless routers? They seem to tout range and streaming as key benefits.
archer c7
There a bunch of good ones, including the nighthawk, but the airport extreme ac should be more than fine… I have signal from mine 4 houses down the street! Maybe you just need to add one to your set up, wired to try our first one
Uniquiti UAP wireless access points are what we install in big properties.
They’re awesome!
PFSense, I have it running on an old dell pc.
@C&H Cloud said:
Any thoughts on Amped Wireless routers? They seem to tout range and streaming as key benefits.
I use an amped wireless APR175P as an access point - every now and then nothing will connect to the 5Ghz channel and it needs a reboot, other than that it is pretty good. (never used it for routing)
my router is PFsense on one of these → http://www.supermicro.com.tw/products/motherboard/Atom/X10/A1SRi-2758F.cfm
How big is your house? A 5GHz signal will have far less penetrating power than 2.4GHz and most highspeed 802.11ac routers operating at the 40 Mhz bandwidth further decreases the range.
In your case, you might be better served with two wireless access point operating in mesh mode so all clients can connect via a single SSID.
If you have the money, go with Ubiquiti UniFi series; enterprise quality at almost home prices. They have more MIMO channels than the rest of the brands (needed for HD video streaming) and are constantly updating their firmware for performance & security. You just keep adding access points and they all appear as the same SSID with transparent handoffs as you move around the room. GUI admin is second to none.
Otherwise, get a Netgear {your price range}. Do not get anything Linksys / Cisco due to crappy hardware, and even worse (security hole filled) firmware.
If you are actually looking for a router instead of a wireless access point, these are the best & most recent reviews I have seen for routers: http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2016/09/the-router-rumble-ars-diy-build-faces-better-tests-tougher-competition/
TL/DR:
Cheapest: DIY Linux box
Highest Performance: DIY Linux box
Easiest / Fully Featured: Netgear Nighthawk X6
My Favorite: Ubiquiti UniFi series full stack
