For some reason my EX6200 drops the 2.4GHZ connection every day or so. The 5GHZ is fine and both my 2.4 and 5GHZ connections on the router are fine. Rebooting fixes the issue for another day or so. I have the latest firmware: V1.0.1.60_1.1.98

Hello all. My ISP tech just left. At first he couldn't explain it either, but he made a few calls to more senior techs and came up with this answer: the bulk of consumer grade extenders, Netgear included, will not be able to simultaneously and consistently extend the 2.4 G and 5 G networks. It's one or the other. The ISP can provide an extender that will do this (it's about the same cost as the EX7000) but their extender has to be hardwired to the base station. That's what he said, for what it's worth.

Babylon5 wrote:Nick, Metzger, DigitalMaestro (thanks for the link), I will raise this with Netgear to see if this is a recognised issue. Did this issue appear immediately after first setup, or some time later? If later does a factory reset resolve the issue for a while?I can't speak for others but the issue occurred for me right out of the box and was not affected by a factory reset. Netgear eventually also did a hardware swap and that also did not resolve the problem. Since the same symptoms were exhibited by the replacement unit provided by Netgear then it points to a firmware issue to my mind. Netgear did provide one or two beta firmware releases for me to try but none resolved the issue. DM

In my case, the extender worked fine out of the box for the first day or so. Then the 2.4 GHz network stopped working. A power cycle of both the extender and the router was required to get it working again. I went through this a few times, approximately every day or so. As of two days ago, power cycle stopped resolving the issue, and a factory reset also failed to resolve the issue. After working with Netgear support, I returned the extender to Best Buy and I'm now trying an EX7000. Guess what? Same problem. Out of the box, the extender was never able to extend the 2.4 GHz network. When I log into the extender, the status indicates that everything is working normally, but none of my devices can get an IP from the 2.4 GHz network. Even more strange, the "original" 2.4 GHz network from the router also fails while the extender is connected. If I disable the extender and power cycle the router, the "original" 2.4 GHz network works normally. Throughout all of this, the 5 GHz network (both extended and "original") work just fine.

Hi,same problem with one of my two EX6200, every day drops the 2.4 GHZ connection,I have the latest firmware V1.0.1.60_1.1.98Rebooting fixes the issue for another day....

Babylon5 wrote:OK, I will contact Netgear to see if they are aware of this issue, but I would suggest that it is not as prevalent as you may think, otherwise we would see many more users with the issue posting in the forums. As described it’s pretty fundamental and should be picked up quickly in any test / review. I for example have an EX6200 set up at a relative’s house where only 2.4GHz is used and it’s been operating flawlessly in that mode for months now. Now I don’t deny that you have problems, and I’m not suggesting that you are the only people with this problem, but I’m more inclined to think that it’s a hardware fault with the EX6200 or a compatibility issue with the base station. Could you all please tell me the manufacturer and model number of your base station? Metzger, I do have the EX7000, though I use it as an AP rather than an extender, but for many weeks I tested it in extender mode and had very few issues with it. As an AP it hasn’t failed me yet.My base station is a Netgear R7000. I'm running the EX6200 in Fastlane mode using the 54Ghz as the backhaul to the base station and the 2.4Ghz to the clients. Rather than dropping every day, the latest beta firmware provided by Netgear would drop every 7-10 days or so. It's odd that the problem is not more widely reported since I had this same issue across two brand new EX6200s. Both were setup in Fastlane mode using standard options. I'm not using the USB port or any of the other features of the EX6200 except for Fastlane yet the problem occurs. It would seem that it should occur for at least those users with Fastlane. I seem to recall that I had the same issue when I extended withotu Fastlane as well.

EX6200 drops 2.4GHZ connection every day or so

70 Replies

nhann
NETGEAR Employee Retired
Aug 17, 2015
Hi nickambrose,

Which router are you connected to with the EX6200? Please try changing the WiFi channel and updating your router.
http://kb.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/23783/~/improving-2.4ghz-wireless-performance-by-changing-channel

Let us know how it works for you.

Regards,

NhanN
- nickambrose
  Tutor
  Aug 17, 2015
  I will try it. I really dont think that I should have to pay for a tool after spending $120 on hardware! You should at least provide a tool for me to use!
  
  Thankfully I found a free one and will try channel #1 as it only had 2 users
  - nhann
    NETGEAR Employee Retired
    Aug 17, 2015
    Hi nickambrose,
    
    Please note that you are also able to view WiFi networks through the NETGEAR genie desktop app.
    
    The software linked previously gives much more detail on the connections than the genie screen below.
    
    Regards,
    
    NhanN
Metzger
Guide
Aug 18, 2015
Thank Heavens - I thought I was going crazy. I've had my EX6200 for about a week, and I'm having exactly the same issue. I'm in a chat with Netgear support now... they seem to be thinking I should reflash the firmware, but I seriously doubt that's going to help.
- nickambrose
  Tutor
  Aug 18, 2015
  Welcome (or commiserations?) to the club.
  
  They didnt even seem to print the serial no on my extender so I wasn't even able to register my product to call in!
  
  I am trying to change the Wifi channel on my router but I dont know why that should help (no other 2G network has a problem)
  
  Will update when I get a chance.
  
  I have latest firmware but did not "reflash"
  - Babylon5
    NETGEAR Employee Retired
    Aug 18, 2015
    A blank serial number usually suggests that the unit is a refurbishment; did you purchase it from a reputable dealer? Is there any pattern to the failure, for example always around the same time of day, when streaming video, when there are many network users?
noboundaries
Guide
Sep 17, 2015
Did we get a reply from NETGEAR on this issue.???

I have updated to latest firmware, and still the 2.4Ghz drops every few days.

It is bloody annoying

I am going to take it back and get my money back. I hate it when they burry their heads and hope it goes away, READ you forums, ths is not a isolated issue NETGEAR...
- nickambrose
  Tutor
  Sep 17, 2015
  Yeah it sucks that they wont even acknowledge but I guess thats the way of it.
  
  I found that going to Fastlane with 5GHZ extender -> Router and 2GZ device -> Extender seems to have it stable for now.
  
  I still get periods of time when internet stops working for 10-30 seconds but its now impossible to say if its the extender, the Wifi Router, the cable modem or the Monopoly (Comcast)
  - Martinello
    Aspirant
    Oct 03, 2015
    My EX7000 is running in access point mode (a wired connection from my router to the EX7000). And when initially set up, both 5.0GHZ and 2.4GHZ are working fine.
    After a few days the problem first occurred that the 2.4GHZ connection didn't connect any more. The 5GHZ connection worked fine.
    Since then a reset of only the EX7000 solves the 2.4GHZ problem, but this isn't a workable situation. Since the connection drops every day!
    
    My EX7000 is configured to get an IP address from the router. The router's wifi is disabled and there are no other broadcasting devices on the wifi channel.
    
    So, I'm not happy about the product either. Not exactly the same device, but exactly the same problem as described in the topic...
MarkNC
Aspirant
Nov 05, 2015
Same problem here. Right out of the box. I had to switch AT&T unite pro modem to 2.5GHZ only as some devices in house do not work on 5GHZ.
- nhann
  NETGEAR Employee Retired
  Nov 06, 2015
  Hi MarkNC,
  
  Which firmware version is your EX6200 currently on?
  
  Try updating to latest firmware:
  http://support.netgear.com/product/EX6200
  - MarkNC
    Aspirant
    Nov 06, 2015
    I did update to the latest firmware when installing a few days ago. Also checked it again just now through the genie. Still having same problem. I have to just shut off the 5ghz and run with the 2.5.
amo
Aspirant
Jan 08, 2016
Chalk me up as another very disappointed Netgear customer with an EX6200 which performs *appallingly* in Fastlane mode with the latest firmware. 5-6Mbps is a common speed for 2.4Ghz clients, despite the EX6200 getting a good 5Ghz (300Mbps) signal from the main router.

FYI, similar reports here:
http://www.snbforums.com/threads/ex6200-disappointing-2-4-ghz-speeds.16672/

I will raise a support ticket with Netgear, but others' experiences aren't filling me with hope that Netgear will fix it any time soon. I hope I'm wrong...
amo
Aspirant
Jan 08, 2016
Hahaha... awesome support from Netgear - NOT! Following the support links to get to a live chat session...

*************

Marie: Thank you for choosing NETGEAR.
Marie: My name is Marie with Expert ID 46279. How may I assist you today?
Alan Ogilvie: Hi. I have been experiencing extremely poor performance with my EX6200 in Fastlane mode. This problem has also been reported by other users on Netgear Community forum
Alan Ogilvie: https://community.netgear.com/t5/WiFi-Range-Extenders-Repeaters/EX6200-drops-2-4GHZ-connection-every-day-or-so/td-p/972002/page/6
Marie: I see. I apologize for the inconvenience this might have caused you, Alan. However, you have contacted Arlo, NETGEAR's support for monitoring system. Please allow me to transfer this session to the appropriate department for them to be able to further assist you.
Alan Ogilvie: I posted to the forum a few minutes ago.
Alan Ogilvie: Thank you
Marie: You're welcome, Alan. Again, thank you for choosing Netgear. Have a great day!
Marie has disconnected.
Brian Paulo: Thank you for choosing NETGEAR.
Brian Paulo: My name is Brian with Expert ID 46378. How may I assist you today?
Alan Ogilvie: Hi. Can you see the message I typed above?
Alan Ogilvie: Regarding the performance of my EX6200
Brian Paulo: Alan, you are through to the presales group and I will not be able to help you today with your NETGEAR EX6200 extender, however, if you click on correct link on Contact Us page for post sales group, one of my colleagues will be glad to help you with your inquiry. Thank you and have a good day.
Brian Paulo has disconnected.

*************

Utterly pathetic.
amo
Aspirant
Jan 08, 2016
Ok, so I finally managed to raise a support ticket. I'll report back for everyone's benefit if and when I have any (good) news...
amo
Aspirant
Jan 08, 2016
Switched back to non-Fastlane mode, and things seem a lot more stable. Let's see how long that lasts...
amo
Aspirant
Jan 09, 2016
OMG, Netgear support really is the pits.

"We are sorry to inform you that your NETGEAR product's support warranty(90 days of email support) has expired and we will not be able to provide you further technical assistance via email. We are sorry for the inconvenience caused."

Uhhhh...I bought the product on 6th November 2015, which is 64 days ago. Get a better calendar!

If this is the way Netgear treat their customers, it's a pretty safe bet that I won't be buying their products in future.
amo
Aspirant
Jan 09, 2016
Jeez, I feel stupid. It appears that I recorded an incorrect purchase date (year 2014 instead of 2015) in Netgear MySupport.

So *I* am the one who needs a better calendar :-)

Forum Discussion

EX6200 drops 2.4GHZ connection every day or so