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Forum Discussion
6000451 Antenna reduces my Speed.
I have the MR6500 Modem. I also bought the Mesh System, AX1800 to improve Wifi coverage in my home. Seems to work well. Getting about 25MB download and 4-5MB upload speeds using speedtest in the Mesh...
Moist likely an issue with MIMO 4x4 (Quad internal antenna array) vs MIMO 2x2 (dual external antennas). When using the internal antenna array, you're actually receiving more signals than when using the external antenna. This will result in less throughput. Assuming that you're using a 2x2 antenna that connects to both of the TS-9 inputs on the bottom of the MR6500. You should only use the external antenna connectors if you have very weak signal and need the additional boost. Otherwise you will be compromising the device's ability to pull in signals.
Thanks for the reply - so are you saying that the flat antenna that I have (6000451) has 4 internal pickups inside it, and I'm likely getting conflicting signals that could be sitting on the signal I'm trying to pull in? That could certainly explain it. WHen I bought the antenna, i was set up in one are of the house - but found a much better location elsewhere. Thought this antenna would simply improve the signal reception, but I hear what you are saying. It absolutely behaves that way. Wonder if I should keep the antenna for times when I travel and have worse signal...
Actually just saw that the MIMO product you were talking about appears to have 4 cable leads - mine is a NetGear 6000451, with only two leads.
If using only two port outputs of a 4x4 MIMO antenna, then he's effectively making it a 2x2 MIMO antenna. The M6 series hotspot cannot support an external 4x4 MIMO antenna because it only has two ports.
- Thanks for the suggestion. I am not using a 4x4. I am using a Neatgear 6000451 two lead flat MIMO antenna. When connected, speed and performance go down.
Actually, I'm saying that the device with NO external antenna connections made has a 4x4 MIMO bandwidth internal antenna. If you use the TWO external antennas ports, then you will be disabling the 4x4 MIMO internal antenna and limiting your reception to only the two external antenna you have plugged in and creating a 2x2 MIMO connection. This will effectively reduce the receiver's ability to capture all signal paths by reducing total bandwidth by 1/2. The only time you should need to use the external ports is when you are in such a weak signal area that you can't get a good signal. By using the external antenna ports, you will gain a higher signal but the total data that can pass through those will be less than if you have a good signal using only the internal antenna. It's a compromise that should be understood. More signal doesn't always mean more data. Think of it as a pipe. You double the size of the pipe (4x4 MIMO) and you increase the amount of flow. If your pipe is so long that it restricts your flow (weak signal) then making a shorter (stronger signal) but reducing the pipe size will give you some data but better than nothing.
Does the external antenna you're using have two TS-9 connectors coming out of it? Are you plugging both into the bottom of the device? If this is the case, then you will be in a 2x2 MIMO environment. If you're only plugging in one TS-9 connection, then that is even worse.
- Ahhh! I didn’t understand that! That makes sense. So I don’t have a defective antenna- I’m just actually reducing my signal reception from four internal to two external when I plug the new external antenna in. I should probably just keep it for travel as I do get to some remote places, and it may actually help in those situations. Thanks for this insight. I would not have guessed that the modem had 4 receptors.
Here's an interesting article to help clarify what MIMO means and how it relates to your hotspot.
https://www.techtarget.com/searchmobilecomputing/definition/MIMO