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Forum Discussion
Tri-Band vs. Dual-Band allocation?
How are resources allocated with a WiFi 6E Tri-Band router Versus a dual band WiFi 6 router? If a WiFi 6E router is installed yet the only devices around use WiFi 6 is the third band simply a wasted ...
For the RAX120, and pretty much all modern models, they have thermal sensors for all of the major components that could impact stability and can get hot. The current cooling solution seems fine.
The stability issue seems more like an SOC voltage scaling and LLC config issue if it is anything like some of the single board ARM systems. (issues like that can be fixed in firmware)
The router has multiple thermal sensors and the fan comes on long before they reach a critical temperature. In such a case, if you get improved stability from getting the temperature well below the design thermal range before the fan kicks in normally, then it often points to SOC voltage issues, e.g., if a batch of VRMs are outputting slightly lower than they should be, and need a few extra millivolts offset.
While I can't be 100% sure without actually having both a fully stable unit and one that has issues and probing the voltage rails as close to the SOC as possible using an oscilloscope, it is a potential issue, especially if a device has been undervolted, or a using a voltage curve designed to reduce thermals as much as possible, where variance in components can result in rare stability issues.
You may have even experienced issues like this on some PC motherboards, if you pushed the max stable overclock for your CPU, while trying to keep the voltage as low as possible. if the motherboard ever fails, odds are likely that applying the same overclock settings may not be fully stable on the replacement board, or it may be stable but temperatures may be 1-2C hotter due to variance in the VRM.
Heatsink for the RAX120:
Wow…. That’s a lot. This model has been a round a while (v2). Sounds like the design is way too close to tolerances for a device that is not new, is at the top of the product line, and sells at a premium.
Is there a way to control the fan? High/medium/low?
The 120 isn't really top of the line. There is a RAX200 and now RAXE500.
Bye the looks of it, that fan should have been a bit bigger IMO. I believe the fan was intended to be automatic and turn ON when the heat triggered at a certain level.
Some have found there is a fan control enable or disable on the routers debug web page. This seems to be seen on the v2 version of the 120. Not sure if the v1 version has some or same issues. There is a long thread regarding v2 reboot problems that users are seeing. One user found the fan controls and enabled it seem to help some, however other users posting adding additional force air cooling under the router which seem to have now help keep the router from rebooting. Laptop coolers are recommended, even with routers that don't have fans. I keep on under mine 24/7.
I installed the ax120 yesterday and so far it is steady, no reboots, and I get the full speed from my ISP. The connection is solid and all of my WiFi and Powerline Ethernet devices are cranking away. Time will tell.
IT RUNS VERY HOT. The fan has not kicked in. It is in the dedicated “machine room” in my house so I really don’t care if it makes some noise. My R8000 was pretty warm but never hot. I’m gonna scout around for a user on the forum who has found the fan control. Where is the debug page on the web interface?
Thanks for the help.
Pete D.
Check the routersIPaddress/debug.htm page for any FAN options.
If you don't see any, I highly recommend getting a USB laptop fan under the router ASAP.
