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Forum Discussion
Does Orbi Use HT160 Larger Channel Widths?
What exactly are the capabilities of the Orbi system? I find their specs vague and misleading, but maybe that’s just me. For example, I have Spectrum Gig service, 940Mbps wired, and I am barely gettin...
Thanks for the detailed response. I’m getting 940Mbps wired from the Spectrum modem. I’m testing with nothing else connected or taking up bandwidth. I reliably had a link speed WiFi connection between my laptop (Intel 9260ac WiFi card) and the Spectrum WiFi router of 867Mbps, with actual speed tests in the 650Mbps range. I purchased the Orbi to do better and it’s doing less, link speed connections are sub 750Mbps and actual speed tests are sub 500Mbps.
Most of your suggestions do not relate to the link speed connection between the laptop and the Orbi router. If the Wifi capabilities of the Orbi will only allow a max WiFi link speed connection of 867Mbps, the rest of the equation is moot. To do better than 867Mbps the Orbi has to be able to use the higher 5Ghz channel widths, of 80+80 or 160Mhz. I see no ability in the router settings to do this, at least not manually. Currently, it’s not doing this automatically either based on the sub 750Mbps link speed connection between the laptop and the Orbi router, sitting 8 feet away.
Unless the Orbi can be configured to give higher linkspeed connections by using the higher 5Ghz channel widths, the rest doesn’t matter.
Has anyone achieved higher than 867 Mbps link speed connections between their wireless devices and the Orbi router?
Most of your suggestions do not relate to the link speed connection between the laptop and the Orbi router. If the Wifi capabilities of the Orbi will only allow a max WiFi link speed connection of 867Mbps, the rest of the equation is moot. To do better than 867Mbps the Orbi has to be able to use the higher 5Ghz channel widths, of 80+80 or 160Mhz. I see no ability in the router settings to do this, at least not manually. Currently, it’s not doing this automatically either based on the sub 750Mbps link speed connection between the laptop and the Orbi router, sitting 8 feet away.
Unless the Orbi can be configured to give higher linkspeed connections by using the higher 5Ghz channel widths, the rest doesn’t matter.
Has anyone achieved higher than 867 Mbps link speed connections between their wireless devices and the Orbi router?
Ok, as best I can tell, the Orbi does not suport HT160, since it appears there are other Netgear routers that do, and the place where I think the setting would be visible on the Orbi (Advanced > Advanced Setup > Wireless Settings) doesn't show it as an option under either
Advanced Wireless Settings (5GHz 802.11a/n/ac) or MU-MIMO (which is where it, apparently, appears on some other Netgear routers).
So, I think the short answer to your question is "no." I don't know whether this is a hardware limitation, where you would need to buy a different router, or if this is something that can either be enabled via the command line over telnet, or in future firmware updates.
ETA: I found reference to the HT160 setting on a different Netgear router here.
Orbi operates one fronthaul (client) network on the 2.4GHz band (with a 2x2 radio—two spatial streams up and two spatial streams down—offering speeds up to 400Mbps), one other fronthaul (client) network on the 5GHz band (with a 2x2 radio offering maximum speed of 866Mbps), and a second backhaul 5GHz network with a 4x4 radio offering maximum speed of 1733Mbps.
The maximum bandwidth of the used 5GHz channels in Orbi are 80 MHz (not 160 MHz as in routers supporting HT160).
Please see the table below. The -theoritically- possible fronthaul wireless speeds in Orbi are those that are in the red square (maximum of 2 spatial streams with maximum of 80 MHz bandwidth). The MCS value that your connection will get depens on how close or far you are from the router/satellite, the radio conditions among other things.
