RAX80 Unstable 5ghz WiFi

dj2819
Apprentice
May 18, 2020
Does anyone have a solution for this? I been pulling my hair for the past month trying to find a solution for my RAX120. Random devices on the 5Ghz band lose connection where the OS says its connected but there is no access to the network (locally or external) and the device isn't pingable on the network.

Things I tried:
Downgrade all the way to .114, upgrade all the the way to .122 firmware with factory resets
AP mode with 2 different routers
Change DHCP time to stress the network
New replacement unit from Amazon
Disable AX, enable MIMO, Disable AX and MIMO, enable AX and disable MIMO
Switch all devices to 2.4ghz band. Then some devices on the 2.4ghz band started experiencing the same issue but much less frequently (might have something to do with the number of devices)
Factory reset with new SSID.

God Netgear support is useless, the first phone agent I spoke to was amazing, knew the product and listened to all the steps I performed and deemed the issue get escalated. After that it went downhill where my support ticket got closed (for who knows reason) and then I couldn't get ahold of anyone on the phone because they all hung up. I had to write a angry message to get a new support ticket and someone who would take the issue seriously but even then I provided all the information I know, debug logs, etc but I doubt anyone is going to do anything.

So F Netgear, I have an L***** WiFi 6 router coming in Tuesday and June 1st will be the end of Netgear for me if this issue doesn't have a solution. Can't believe after a decade of flawless products it came to an end like this with the R8500 with random disconnects and now this RAX line... the R8000 was the last router from Netgear I owned that actually worked....
- LElzie
  Initiate
  May 18, 2020
  Firrmware version v1.0.2.76_1.0.35
  
  I am still having a nightmare of a time with this router. I can't even walk into the next room without it dropping 5g and telling me connected with no internet or dropping all together. The 2.4 is working with no issues.
  My router is 5ft off the floor on its own shelf. I have moved it around and nothing better.
  
  I have reset the router, and have also done different SSIDs hoping that would help but nothing. I went back to my old R8000P router and it works flawlessly with 3 bands. What gives. This was a costly investment that I have had nothing but troubles with. If you have any suggestions, that would be great.
  - dj2819
    Apprentice
    May 18, 2020
    Have you tried doing a channel scan to see if any are conflicting? I use istumbler on my MacBook. Not sure what the Windows alternative is. At least you can narrow that down.
    
    Also here are the questions Netgear support asked me when I told them about the issue (not like they replied to any of my answers in a week...):
    
    1. May i know who is your ISP, brand and model of your modem?
    2. May i know your current network topology/setup?
    3. How long and often is the disconnection?
    4. Is 2.4 GHz network and wired connection from the router not affected of the disconnection?
    5. How many devices are connected to the 2.4 and 5 GHz?
    6. When WiFi is down, are you remained connected to the router's WiFi name with no internet access or are you literally disconnected from the WiFi name and had to manually reconnect?
    7. Will 5 GHz disappears from the WiFi list when there's disconnection?
    8. Is there still disconnection on 5 GHz even when connected near the router?
    9. Are devices still have valid IP addresses during disconnection?
    10. Is there still disconnection even if there's only one device connected to the 5 GHz?

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