I am trying to connect my EX8000 wireless extender to my main router, an Asus triband GT-AX11000. The default SSIDs for the two 5 MHz bands on the router are xxxxx-5G for low band, xxxxx-5G-2 for hi band. They have the same password.During setup, the GUI askes for which bands I want to extend (2.4 and -5G). There is no way to request the 5G-2 band for backhaul connection, and since it has a different SSID, the extender doesn't see it and connects to the low band.If I make the SSIDs the same for both 5 MHz bands, then the extender does connect to the hi band, but my Apple devices find the hi band and connect to it as well (even after I hide SSID and have all the Apple devices "forget network"), so the backhaul is not dedicated. What is the correct way to solve this?

Something I haven't tried yet. I'll see if I can get some time this week and try out my EX7700 and EX7500 with the AX11000.

Not 100% on this but the Ex8000 has the 2x 5ghz bands. It prefers to use the wider (1733mbps) for the backhaul versus the other 5ghz channel that is only 866mbps. Reason why is its pointless to have a wide fronthaul if its constricted by the backhaul. I don't remember off the top of my head which 5ghz is the 1733mbps backhaul that it prefers and I'm not home to hook mine back up. Does it matter in speed which 5ghz you connect to? If its an issue of which devices you prefer on each band, you could just swap the ssid's around so they auto-swap. Is it connecting with the wider 5ghz backhaul since I don't remember which one it is?

That’s the problem. The EX8000 is Tri band, and is supposed to connect to the high band for faster backhaul as you say. But there seems to be no way to tell it the SSID of the backhaul band. If I make it the same SSID as the low band it will connect to high band, but so do my other devices. If different SSID, the extender doesn’t see it.

What firmware is on the extender? A couple things to try? 1. remove the "-" in the name so name it ****5g2 and not ****5g-22. Can you disable the low band 5ghz on the asus just for setup? Again, not at home right now but I can fire mine back up with my RAX200 and check it.

It asks for the SSIDs of the bands to extend (but not of the high band for backhaul). I can disable low band but then it will connect to a high channel on my more remote access point, which is a dual band router with many other devices sharing it. If I disable the low band on the router and turn off the access point radio, it will only connect to hi band if has same SSID as the band I am telling it to extend. It seems to need to know the SSID and PW for the backhaul band (makes sense) but there is no way to input that info. If I trick it into connecting to hi band and then go back and change SSID it reconfigures to connect to my access point (which is definitely not stronger. It would need to know the info for the backhaul band in order to connect to it, wouldn’t it?Firmware is latest.

How do I create dedicated backhaul between X6S EX8000 Wireless Extender and Asus triband router?

18 Replies

plemans
Guru - Experienced User
Jul 14, 2020
Not 100% on this but the Ex8000 has the 2x 5ghz bands. It prefers to use the wider (1733mbps) for the backhaul versus the other 5ghz channel that is only 866mbps. Reason why is its pointless to have a wide fronthaul if its constricted by the backhaul.
I don't remember off the top of my head which 5ghz is the 1733mbps backhaul that it prefers and I'm not home to hook mine back up.
Does it matter in speed which 5ghz you connect to? If its an issue of which devices you prefer on each band, you could just swap the ssid's around so they auto-swap.
Is it connecting with the wider 5ghz backhaul since I don't remember which one it is?
- josephwitkin
  Tutor
  Jul 14, 2020
  That’s the problem. The EX8000 is Tri band, and is supposed to connect to the high band for faster backhaul as you say. But there seems to be no way to tell it the SSID of the backhaul band. If I make it the same SSID as the low band it will connect to high band, but so do my other devices. If different SSID, the extender doesn’t see it.
  - plemans
    Guru - Experienced User
    Jul 14, 2020
    What firmware is on the extender?
    A couple things to try?
    1. remove the "-" in the name so name it ****5g2 and not ****5g-2
    2. Can you disable the low band 5ghz on the asus just for setup?
    
    Again, not at home right now but I can fire mine back up with my RAX200 and check it.

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How do I create dedicated backhaul between X6S EX8000 Wireless Extender and Asus triband router?