DST

Question

Is the DST compatible with the R6300 router?

I plugged the DST into an AC outlet in the room next to the room holding the R6300, tried with and without synching the two units, but the "DST" LED remains off. I know the specs say the DST requires a Nighthawk R7300, but is there any technical reason it won't work with an R6300?

(BTW, I opened a chat session with Netgear Support and was told the DST and R6300 should be compatible, but when I explained that they did not connect, I was then told I was chatting with sales support and should be talking to tech support. As far as I can see, there is only one "support" button on the Netgear website. I definitely got the feeling I was being fobbed off.)

If it is relevant, this is the situation: a 4-year old house (ie., new wiring) that has no ethernet or coax. I am using Powerline 1200 units to extend ethernet to other rooms (in order to use Tivo Mini units which have ethernet but not wifi capability--this setup is not recommended by Tivo, but it works, most of the time). The wifi router (R6300 supplied by our cable company 2 years ago -- I cannot tell if there have been any firmware updates) is in a centrally located laundry room which is sound-proofed with R-19 fiberglass insulation. Using Netgear Genie, I measure the wifi signal in the utility room at 75%, but it drops to around 40% in adjacent rooms. I attribute the drop in signal to the thick fiberglass surrounding the router. I am trying to use the DST to boost the wifi signal in one of the adjacent rooms to improve video streaming.

TheEther · Answer

There are a few misconceptions that need to be cleared up.&nbsp;Wi-Fi is not broadcast through Powerline. &nbsp;The strength of the Wi-Fi signal coming from the router has no bearing whatsoever on Powerline performance. &nbsp; Powerline performance depends on the quality of your AC wiring, distance and radio interference.&nbsp;Your Powerline adapters are connected to your router via Ethernet. &nbsp; Unlike Wi-Fi, Ethernet performance is pretty much constant (either 100 Mbps or 1000 Mbps).&nbsp;You DST is broadcasting its own Wi-Fi signal. &nbsp;This signal is independent of the router's Wi-Fi signal. &nbsp;So long as both Wi-Fi networks are using different, non-overlapping channels, the two signals do not interact. &nbsp;The DST does not boost or amplify the router's Wi-Fi.&nbsp;Let's examine the role of each part of your network. &nbsp;Your router is connected via Ethernet to a PLP1200. &nbsp;That Ethernet segment runs at 1000 Mbps. The PLP1200 is connected to your DST over Powerline. &nbsp;It sounds like your DST is far enough away that speeds over Powerline are sub-50 Mbps. &nbsp;Either Powerline or Powerline+DST's Wi-Fi is the bottleneck. &nbsp;If you are really measuring -45 dBm from the DST from 3 ft. away, then it sounds like something is wrong with the DST'S Wi-Fi signal. &nbsp;You could also try measuring the speed through the DST's Ethernet port.&nbsp;Finally, getting a R7300 will not boost the Ethernet signal injected to the Powerline network. &nbsp;As I mentioned, Ethernet performance is not based on any notion of signal strength. &nbsp;The R7300 will also not boost the DST's Wi-Fi signal. &nbsp;What a R7300 might do is put out a stronger Wi-Fi signal than the R6300v2.

TheEther · Answer

The R7300 is basically a router with a built-in Powerline adapter. The R6300 does not have a built-in Powerline adapter, so the DST will not work with it.

If I'm not mistaken, the DST is HomePlugAV compatible, so you may be able to connect it to existing Powerline 1200 network.

DenLavoie · Answer

Thanks, TheEtherThe R7300 vs R6300 makes sense.Your suggestion about connecting the DST to the PL1200 network sounded intriguing. I presume you mean to connect the DST to the PL1200 via an ethernet cable so the DST is broadcasting the wifi signal received over the powerline from the router (To be clear about the setup: the router is connected to a PL1200 via an ethernet cable, and this PL1200 is pumping the signal through the house powerlines to the remote PL1200s.). I tried this configuration by plugging the DST into the pass-through A/C outlet on the PL1200 and connecting the two with an ethernet cable, but no luck. No increase in signal (as read by Genie) right next to the DST over the wifi signal being sent out by the R6300 in the next room (today the signal strength is about 55%), indicating the DST is not broadcasting. &nbsp;FYI, the indicator lights on the DST are as follows:&gt; Wifi LED: solid blue ("the DST adapter is securely paired with a WiFi device", according to the instruction book)&gt; DST LED: off ("the DST adapter did not find any other compatible DST routers using the same encryption key.") (I presume because an R7300 router is not present)&gt; Power LED: solid green ("on")&gt; Ethernet LED: solid green (("connected to ethernet")&nbsp;This state occurs with or without trying to synch the DST with the R6300 (attempting to synch the two results in about 90 seconds of furious blinking, then everything settles down into the static, non-functioning state). Frankly, the state description is a bit confusing: the ethernet is connected, the DST is securely paired, and the DST did not find any other compatible DST routers... ??&nbsp;It looks like I will have to get an R7300 if I'm going to improve the signal in this room using a DST. My hope is that the R7300 will also improve the signal generally and that the new router will pay for itself by eliminating the&nbsp;rent paid to the cable company for the R6300 .&nbsp;Again, thanks for the advice.&nbsp;

TheEther · Answer

Actually, I was suggesting that you connect the DST as if it was another PL1200. &nbsp;IOW, plug it in a regular A/C outlet and set the encryption key to match the one used by the other PL1200s. &nbsp;I'm betting that the DST will connect to the PL1200 network.

DenLavoie · Answer

Well, that worked, at least to connect the DST to the PL1200 network (the DST LED is on now, although it is solid red, indicating a signal of&nbsp; &lt;50 Mbps). So the DST is transmitting a wifi signal, but is it stronger than that from the router directly? Using Genie to&nbsp;measure the DST’s wifi signal three feet away from the DST indicates that the DST signal strength on both frequencies is about the same as that being received from the R6300v2) router in the other room—i.e., about -45 dBm&nbsp; from the DST&nbsp; vs. about -43 dBm for&nbsp; the router. It looks to me like the DST is providing no significant improvement in the wifi signal. That is not what I expected.&nbsp;Now, this may be due to a poor signal being received through the powerline: the PL1200s “Pick A&nbsp; Plug” LEDs indicate a signal that fluctuates between green and red on the&nbsp; (i.e., between &lt;50 Mbps and &gt;80 Mbps link rates), staying red about 25% of the time (doesn’t matter where in the house the PL1200s are plugged). Netgear’s documentation indicates that diminished link rates may be due to interference, but my situation should be close to ideal for a powerline network: a four-year old suburban single family house dozens of feet from the nearest neighbor, a main electrical feed 160 feet underground from the street, and no unusual electronic or mechanical systems in house. Also, the red indicators on the PL1200s do not seem to correlate with the operation of LED lighting, kitchen appliances, HVAC compressor, or air handler. All in all, I am underwhelmed by the performance of the PL1200s and the DST so far.&nbsp; If they don’t work reliably in my situation, their technology is not robust enough to sell in the general market.&nbsp;That said, the problem may be with my network signal source—the router. Measuring in the next room, through R19 (i.e., dense) fiberglass in the wall, Genie indicates that the wifi signal strength is attenuated about -45dBm, roughly 50%. When I do the measurements three feet away from the R6300v2 router, I still get roughly -30dBm attenuation or roughly 88% signal. I would expect virtually zero attenuation this close to the router. My last resort is to replace the R6300v2 with an R7300 in hopes of increasing both the wifi signal at the source and the ethernet signal injected into the powerline system.&nbsp;Again, thanks, TheEther, for the advice.&nbsp;Cheers!

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DST

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