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Firstly I would just like to say I think the R7800 is a fantastic product.
Only downside to me is the UI is a bit slow.
I was always a netgear customer in the past not only in my work but in the home.
For a while and after I bricked my last router tinkering I decided I was sticking with VM Hub 2AC for a while.
I then went on to Amazon over the weekend and decided to buy this wee belter of a router.
I want to push it to the limits and upgrade it a little.
Can I buy larger antennas for this unit that covers all its frequencies so I can further boost my signal or at least try?
Is there a list of recommended advanced settings for this unit?
Give you an example on an Asus model I was messing with, if you switched off the USB it was if more power was diverted to things like signal and speed.
So do any of you have any settings I should try out to see if I can push things?
I am also thinking of installing a small switch, just to give me a few extra LAN ports really.
So to round up I am looking for antennas, good advanced settings setup to boost things and a gigabit switch recommendation.
Recommend you use your original antennas. Longer antennas will give you a little bit more range but the longer they are the more directional they are. Almost all antennas for use with routers are of a dipole type. They radiate out in a doughnut or toroidal pattern. The longer the antenna the flatter the pattern and the more difficult it is to get good reception.
The best configuration for your router is the default that it comes with out of the box. Any configurations that you do will most likely slow down your router. QOS is especially bad at slowing down the router and should only be used with very slow connections like DSL at 5 Mbps.
There are some configuration items you should definitely edit.
First of all CHANGE THE PASSWORD from the default to a good one you can remember. (Not 1234, abcd, qwerty, or other common password) YOU WILL GET HACKED IF YOU DON'T CHANGE IT.
Second reserve all your IP addresses. Turn on all your network devices, especially cell phones, and open up a login window to your router. Go to the Advanced tab and select Setup and LAN Setup under that. Add each address one by one using the +Add button at the bottom of the screen. I always click the apply button at the top of the screen when I finish adding all the addresses but that might not be required.
Third I don't have any other routers around me so I turn off the play nicely with others setting of Enable 20/40 MHz Coexistence. Under the Advanced tab select Advanced Setup then Wireless Settings. Uncheck the Enable 20/40 MHz Coexistence box. (Second box from the top.) This has helped to increase the throughput of my 2.4Ghz devices.
If you need to open up any ports just remember that there is a cumulative performance hit for every instance.
Oh I forgot to mention that I am using two NETGEAR ProSAFE 8-Port Gigabit Ethernet Switches (GS108). I have used TPLink switches in the past without any problems. I bought the NETGEAR switches because I got them on NewEgg during a sale where they were half price. The NETGEAR switches have much better specs.
I also have started using CAT7 cables. They are over kill but they aren't very much more money. The more devices that are hard wired the better the performance of your wireless network.
Well Lee the force must be strong with you dood cos the only 2 things for me to do is switch off the 20/40 and QOS. The rest I generally do as standard m8 now re DHCP reservation etc and even CAT 7 cables. I also have a mycloud NAS plugged in via ethernet cable and im a gamer so I have to open up a few ports sadly.
Thanks very much for the pointers and I will get QOS and 20/40 off now and have a look at the switch you use, I am one of those guys if I get a netgear router ill get matching switch etc... Bit of OCD in me.
It looks like NewEgg has the switch on sale again. Better price than Amazon and no tax but limit to one per customer. Maybe one for you and another for the wife if you need two.
