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Orbi placement concerns
Having one router / WAP near the edge and the other WAP (satelite) near the middle of the home is a poor layout for optimized coverage. Reminds me too much of single WAP systems this Orbi mesh system is trying to replace. Assuming the router puts out coverage equal to the satelite then much of that coverage could be lost past the edge of the home. How would the coverage be on the edge of the home opossite to where the obri router sits? Seems like it would be just like a home with a single WAP / router if it were positioned where the orbi satelite is? (assuming you can get a ethernet connection there)
In the pictures shown for Orbi placement the router is near the edge and the satelite is in the middle. Internet connection point ("modem") in homes is random but likely near the edge. Mesh is the future for consumer wifi. I trust Netgear more then any other mesh product I have seen but you have more placement options with eero and luma.
- 3 (luma eero) vs 2 netgear units for roughly the same price
- I beleive there are speed issues with Luma and that netgear would be better with speed
- coming from a Netgear R6300 ver. 2 to the luma we currently are testing (will return) I don't like the access being restircted to smartphones only and prefer a web browser interface (what is the interface for orbi?)
-we are trying to cover 3800 sqft home 3 floors (including basement)
like mentioned in this other netgear orbi forum post:
Re: Orbi -v- Eero
https://community.netgear.com/t5/Orbi/Orbi-v-Eero/td-p/1130319
Luma has no line of sight requirement (eero might but I don't think so)
I would like to get rid of luma and get Orbi but based on the above I think I might just by another AC1750 router (hardwire it, set to WAP only mode so no NAT issues) then run the same SSID on both routers. Pain to run the ethernet to the 2nd WAP but it would save me $300 and maybe be better?
Every home is different but this is our general guide for common house layouts: http://kb.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/31029/~/where-should-i-place-my-orbi-satellite%3F
The optimal placement does very depending on the layout of the home.
You can experiment a bit to see what works best for you, but there's a good chance you'll find the first place you put the Satellite works great.
Most internet connections have wiring that terminates at the edge of the home. Yes some of the coverage of the router would fall outside the home. Unless you are able to place the router in a more central location (due to internal wiring) there's not much that can be done about that.
Our focus has been on performance with a dedicated wireless band. As we've gone for performance rather than trying to minimise the size of the unit at the expense of performance, we also put a lot of effort into designing Orbi to be aesthetically pleasing. Whilst the router might be tucked away somewhere the satellite could be e.g. in the living room where it could be in the field of vision a lot.
22 Replies
interface answer from other post:
"no app for orbi when you set the orbi up you go to http://orbilogin.com on your mobile devices or your PC.
DarrenM"
Every home is different but this is our general guide for common house layouts: http://kb.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/31029/~/where-should-i-place-my-orbi-satellite%3F
The optimal placement does very depending on the layout of the home.
You can experiment a bit to see what works best for you, but there's a good chance you'll find the first place you put the Satellite works great.
Most internet connections have wiring that terminates at the edge of the home. Yes some of the coverage of the router would fall outside the home. Unless you are able to place the router in a more central location (due to internal wiring) there's not much that can be done about that.
Our focus has been on performance with a dedicated wireless band. As we've gone for performance rather than trying to minimise the size of the unit at the expense of performance, we also put a lot of effort into designing Orbi to be aesthetically pleasing. Whilst the router might be tucked away somewhere the satellite could be e.g. in the living room where it could be in the field of vision a lot.
Can the Orbi satellites connect with each other and would that reduce performance? In other words, if you placed the Orbi router at the edge of the house where the internet service comes in, and you placed an Orbi satellite in the middle of the house, could you also place another Orbi satellite at the other end of the house (opposite end vs the Orbi router) and still get fast, reliable coverage from the second Orbi satellite?
my guess is yes you would "get fast, reliable coverage" up to the limit of Satellites (4?)
communication between the router and a satellite or a satellite and another satellite is the same takes place on that third frequency. The only difference would be the number of hops through satellite(s) to get to the router if you were communicating with the internet. I imagine most users would not notice that difference at all. If you were communicating in your local area network (i.e. from your laptop to your smart TV inside your home) there would be no change.
edited for clarity
Agreed, the size of the system does not hinder me unline thouse routers that have antenas that look like a spaceship that landed around my tv area. I like the hues of blinking lights which indicate the health of my system from disconnected (red) to white for connected.
Just received the Orbi kit through Amazon and had a question on placement. I have looked through the post and viewed the location pictures. Due to where my cable modem I need to kind of reverse the setup. I am looking to put the router on the seond floor edge and have the satellite on 1st floor middle. I have a mixed system of DISH satellite with a cable modem. The playroom on the second floor has the kids gaming systems, main router and modem. I try to keep the gaming systems hard wired into the router which over time created less problems. Just checking before I crack open the Orbi box if I could run into a problems with the router on second floor and satellite centrally located on 1st floor.
I think you shoud be fine, The picture is just an exsample of one setup. Everyons situation will be diffrent, One forum member reported he put the sattelight in the basement and the router on the first floor and has great coverage. See link below-
https://community.netgear.com/t5/Orbi/Orbi-WiFi-System/m-p/1147753#M494
hi serac
just thought i would answer your post in detail to clear up a few misconceptions
"Assuming the router puts out coverage equal to the satelite then much of that coverage could be lost past the edge of the home. How would the coverage be on the edge of the home opossite to where the obri router sits?"
this would be wrong as beam forming has changed the way wifi works and well as mimo where the signals bounce of the wall and reflect back into the space
"Seems like it would be just like a home with a single WAP / router if it were positioned where the orbi satelite is? (assuming you can get a ethernet connection there)"
not exactly as you just wouldnt have the over all coverage the orbi system has
i actually setup the orbi system quite similar to the diagram and got whole house coverage which not even the latest 2156M router would do
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"Mesh is the future for consumer wifi. I trust Netgear more then any other mesh product I have seen but you have more placement options with eero and luma.
- 3 (luma eero) vs 2 netgear units for roughly the same price"
at this stage the orbi is not true mesh as its based on star topology , it is planned for mesh topology at some stage
"-we are trying to cover 3800 sqft home 3 floors (including basement)"
suggest you would prob need 1 x orbi router and 2 x orbi sats but start with 1 and 1 and see how it goes as you can always add another sat later on
"Luma has no line of sight requirement (eero might but I don't think so)"
nor does the orbi :)
"I would like to get rid of luma and get Orbi but based on the above I think I might just by another AC1750 router (hardwire it, set to WAP only mode so no NAT issues) then run the same SSID on both routers. Pain to run the ethernet to the 2nd WAP but it would save me $300 and maybe be better?"
of course hardwired is always going to be the best way
but the orbi system is there for those that dont or cant do hardwire
pete
Your post was very helpful as my setup is basically the router unit on the second floor in the middle my home, and the satellite unit on the first floor. My internet cable connection are routed directly to my second floor office and has always worked well.
I am blown away with the EXCELLENT WiFi coverage around my home (approximate 2,200 sq. ft), even though I have been setup on the Apple Airport Extreme (2013) the signal strength was good -- but nowhere near what the Orbi has produced!
I am thrilled!
I have a single story 2026 sq ft home with a small wiring closet that is almost in the center of my house. This is where my cable modem and current router are located. From this location I have CAT5e runs to wall jacks in all my rooms. I use small switches in a few of the rooms that feed TV, Roku, DVD, server, desktops, etc.
I’m slowly building a smart-home and some of the devices are Wi-Fi only, case in point, my Ring doorbell. Sometimes the connection is fine and other times, not so good. In other parts of the home I have Wi-Fi security cameras that have the same problem.
My current wireless router is in need of an upgrade because of those areas around the house that lack good Wi-Fi service so I’m looking at the Netgear Orbi. Because my cable modem is located in the wiring closet, the Orbi router will need to go there. Where should I put the satellite unit so I’ll have the optimal coverage?
hi at 2026 sq ft i think the orbi system would be overkill and would not achieve good results as the units would be just too close together and create issue with overlap and roaming issues , i have a single story house thats just over 4000 sq ft and the single orbi router and 1 sat is plenty , and in my case running the second saty causes an overlap issue , i believe how orbi see it , 1 router = 2000 sq feet , 2 router and sat = 4000sq ft , 3 router and two sats = 6000 sq feet
tbh at that size you prob best of with a single wireless AC unit something like r7000 up to the r8500 , i have just started looking at the r8500 and it covers from one end of my house to the other without any disconnects and my wemo down the other end work fine
seeing as you can place the router in a central location i would suggest any good wireless ac router would be fine and prob saze you some money
Thanks Peteytesting for the feedback. I currently have a Netgear WNDR3700/N600 and as I add more wireless devices to it, i've noticed a slowdown in performace. Randon speedtests at the same locations vary day by day. Like I previously said, with the Wi-Fi cameras (4), a couple of Echos, a couple of thermostats, a couple of smartphones, tablets and a couple of laptops.
I use the wired portion of my network for everything else. I'll look at the R7000 & R8500 to see if they can handle the workload.
I have a small 915ft house with a basement around the same size. Would have both the Orbi and Sattelite turned on just be overkill? I went form a Nighthawk X8 to Orbi and have seen a considerable drop in WiFi signal strength in the rooms furthest away.
Mind you, it's a Scandinavian brick house, so the walls are considerably thicker then typical US houses.
Is the Orbi not suited for my type of house?
I really believe that Netgear has built some very intelligent technology into the Orbi system. I think they have designed the system that there wouldn't be issues with overlapping or conflicts between the Router and Sat unless they were obviously sitting right in the same room. Even at a 915 sq. ft level and basement, the system would perform very nicely. In regards the other posts about placement, after I have thought through my complete network, I can actually reverse the setup with my router on the second floor and the Sat on the 1st floor and utilize the recommended layout that Netgear suggests. After I drew out a diagram, I actually will be able maximize more of my devices through wired connections and free up some of the WiFi connected devices on the network. I performed a speed test this morning and on my 1st floor level sitting about 100 feet away from the Sat currently, the results were 233Mbps!
I know placement is critical to Wi-Fi performance. In addition to my current router being located in the center of the house, it is located high off the floor (about 8 feet). Is that good or bad?
I too looked at my hardwired layout and even though my cable modem comes into my wiring closet in the center of the house, I think I can patch the output from the cable modem to my office, which is more towards the outer area of my house were my home server, desktops, and printer is located. This will allow me to put the Orbi router there and the satellite in the center of the house. It will also allow me to patch my server directly into the router which should improve the distribution of my Plex files throughout my wired network.
