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Orbi AC3000 generally unhappy
hi, I am struggling with a few issues with wifi on my Orbis: I have six Phorus PR5 receivers (these are hard-wired to an amp which is connected to wired ceiling speakers around the house and al...
Final update: I bought the Nintendo Ethernet adapter (above) for all the PR5s and they have been rock solid since.
Given that the MBP does not always appear in the list of AirPlay devices, plus the iPad issue when connected to the Orbi satellite, plus the drop outs on signal on the Orbis, I will lay the blame on the Orbis, but it is not 100% proven.
Done messing with this, and shame i had to throw money at the issues.
Stinky_W_Teats wrote:
Will need to see if there is a setting for protocols and ports forwarded between the satellite and main Orbi. đ
There are no settings. Every protocol and port destination go across the router to satellite link.
When there are issues with the PR5s, is it always the same units which are not visible to either Air Play or the Phorus app?
Are there some that always appear?
It is inconsistent. Often they all disappear. Other times 1 or 2 of them will be visible. I often got the PR5 that streamed to outdoor speakers, but not always consistently. Lately the one showing up more often has been the ceiling speaker for the master bath.
Actually, my MacBook Pro (MBP) has been showing up in the list of AirPlay devices most or all of the time even when the PR5s vanish form the list. The main Orbi shows the MBP as connected to it, not the satellite, so it should theoretically be the same situation as the PR5s.
Wait... the MBP is connected to the main Orbi at 2.4G, whereas the PR5s are 5G to the main Orbi. I wonder if there is anything possibly amiss with the AirPlay devices connected at 5G?
The satellite Orbi uses 5G back to the main one, but I don't think that would make a difference (especially since the one AirPlay device that usually is visible is 2.4G)
The PR5s will do both 2.4G and 5G but I haven't found out how to switch them' might need to set up 2 different WiFi networks on the main Orbi and limit one to 2.4 as a test.
Also, the PR5s are supposed to support Ethernet via a USB to Ethernet adapter. might need to try that, since I have a gigabit hub in the rack the PR5s and main Orbi sit on top of.
I emailed Phorus and will report back if they have any suggestions.
Stinky_W_Teats wrote:
Wait... the MBP is connected to the main Orbi at 2.4G, whereas the PR5s are 5G to the main Orbi. I wonder if there is anything possibly amiss with the AirPlay devices connected at 5G?
The WiFi band that devices use to connect is not significant, except that the 2.4G band is often subject to more interference. There is no need to 'match'. (This is similar to the situation with typical Internet of Things (IoT) devices like smart plugs, light bulbs, garage door openers, etc. They almost always communicate at 2.4G because (a) it reaches farther than 5G, (b) their data needs are modest <almost nothing>, and (c) the 2.4G radio chiips are dirt cheap. The smartphone app may be connected at 5G, or may even be in Alaska! Everything goes through the network.)
Phorus actually "stepped up" by equipping the PR5 to use both 2.4G and 5G.
Stinky_W_Teats wrote:
Also, the PR5s are supposed to support Ethernet via a USB to Ethernet adapter. might need to try that, since I have a gigabit hub in the rack the PR5s and main Orbi sit on top of.
Funny you should mention this. I just got confirmation from Phorus that some Ethernet to USB adapters will work with the PR5:
That actually should be successful, providing itâs an adapter with the expected Ethernet chipset. We have supplied some in the past, but also those official Nintendo Ethernet adapters, usually labeled for Wii / Wii / Switch will work.
Not certain how a person would verify that products that are generally available (suck as on Amazon) are compatible.
yep, i was grasping at straws with the 2.4 and 5 question. I didn't expect it to make a difference, but you never know if there is a bug in the firmware or hardware.
I found a suggestion to do a factory reset on the Orbi satellite, which I just did, and viola all the PR5s are now visible.
The weird thing is, my iPhone and the PR5s are all still connected to the main Orbi, so I have no idea how a satellite reset would affect the main Orbi. This is the level of randomness I seem to be dealing with here...
We will see how long they stay visible.
So I took my phone and iPad upstairs, turned off their WiFi, waited a couple of minutes, turned it back on on both, and confirmed they are connected to the Orbi satellite. All the PR5s show up still.
And the MBP re-appeared after a couple of seconds too. This is significant since it always seemed to be the first one to pop up on the list when I tapped the AirPlay icon. But then again, it may just be random.
I brought both phone and iPad back downstairs and the iPad switched back to the main Orbi but the iPhone is still connected to the satellite. So far so good.
I will see if the AirPlay devices stay visible for the rest of the day...
K, so this is interesting: i was looking at the list of AirPlay devices in Pandora, and it "blipped", meaning the list refreshed and they all vanished for a split second then reappeared.
I went to the Orbi console and hit refresh and my phone had switched to the main Orbi! So it appears the Pandora app "saw" that (or more likely the loss of network?) and realized it needed to refresh the list. I may have caught it in the act.
I will interpret it as a promising sign that all the AirPlay devices are still visible as the phone moved between satellite and main. I had a suspicion that the hand-off may have been causing the problem originally, but it was not consistent.
NOPE!!! Down to only 2 devices showing, and all of them are connected to the main Orbi. Maybe this is a Phorus issue after all.
The Orbi console shows all of the PR5s (including the ones my phone can't see as AirPalys devices) connected at 2.4G now (they were at 5G earlier today).
I wonder if they lose connection to the Orbi, reconnect, and that messes up AirPlay re-finding them? I have rebooted my phone without that fixing it, so the issue may be something between the Orbi and the PR5s.
my phone is still on the main Orbi. I can't see the 2 PR5s that were there a couple of hours ago, but see a different PR5, and it is 5G. the rest are still on 2.4G.
As a test, I was going to separate 2.4 and 5 onto separate SSIDs but the Orbi software does not allow that đ
From that article:
"After creating your Orbiâs SSID (network name), your Orbi determines whether your device joins that network with 2.4GHz or 5GHz. Some of the factors that determine if your device connects in 2.4GHz or 5GHz include hardware limitations of the connected devices, the distance between devices and your router or satellite (2.4GHz has a larger broadcast range, 5GHz has a shorter broadcast range but provides faster speeds), and obstacles in your environment (walls, furniture).
SSID separation for these WiFi bands is under consideration for future implementation as we continue to add new features to our products."
All of my PR5s are under 2' from the main Orbi, with nothing between them, so I don't know why they wouldn't connect at 5.