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Orbi WiFi 7 RBE973
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Advanced Wireless Settings

ama1942
Aspirant

Advanced Wireless Settings

Hello,

 

I just bought the RBK40 and it works fine, I updated to the latest firmware and I noticed these 3 options in the web interface :

Advanced -> Advanced Setup -> Wireless Settings :

- Enable Implicit BEAMFORMING - Boosts WiFi speed, reliability, & range for all mobile devices
- Enable MU-MIMO
- Enable Fast Roaming

These options was not enabled, so I enabled it but I can find any informations about these options nor in the help nor in the manual.

 

Can someone explain these options ?

Also why is it disabled by default ?

 

Thank you.

 

Model: RBK40| Orbi AC2200 WiFi System
Message 1 of 10
KBeatty
Tutor

Re: Advanced Wireless Settings

You won't find any great answers on these. If you have a MU-MIMO device (they're rare atm), then you definitely want it enabled. Implicit beamforming also helps a bit with slighly older wi-fi devices, so it's worth enabling as well.

 

However, my understanding is they were causing some disconnect issues in earlier firmware releases so Netgear disabled them by default. FWIW, I have both on and have no issues.

 

As for fast roaming, I have that disabled. Other users have complained it causes devices to be a bit too agressive in switching between satellites and router causing unnecessary hiccups in connection. Since I have no probelm currently with how my network peforms, I've just left that alone. 

Model: RBK50| Orbi AC3000 High-Performance Tri-Band WiFi System
Message 2 of 10
ama1942
Aspirant

Re: Advanced Wireless Settings

Thank you KBeatty, it's nice to share your settings and experience.

 

Right now i have no problem at all, the system is working fine for me.

 

I initially read an article about the Orbi explaining that the system was the best in its class, so I first installed a RBK40 for a friend of mine and it's working fine since about two months (his previous wifi box was simply horrible), then last saturday I bought mine. I did'nt know about problems with Orbi but I noticed that a lot of people complaining have RBK53...

 

Anyway I will keep in mind the possible issue with fast roaming ... I will let it enable right now

 

Message 3 of 10
Hydro130
Luminary

Re: Advanced Wireless Settings

Good stuff from KBeatty above - I'll add my $0.02 on those settings and a couple others...

 

First, there are a heckuva lot of moving parts both with Orbi itself and environment-dependent factors that can make or break performance from one cusotmer to another, so while my Orbi setup works really awesome for me, YMMV...

 

I have a basic 1-router-1-satellite Orbi setup.  The Sat is ~20-25 feet from router with a "Good" wireless backhaul connection (ethernet wired connection not a option in my house).  The router is in my basement and sat is on main floor - a couple of walls are in between too.

 

Daisy Chain

I recommend enabling this feature only if you have multiple sats that link like this: R-S-S.  If you have just one sat or your multiple sats are hub-&-spoke (S-R-S), then leave Daisy Chain disabled.

 

Implicit Beamforming

It's my understanding that implicit beamforming is only potentially helpful for older non-ac wireless devices (i.e. b/g/n 2.4-only devices).  I only have a few of those in my house, and they connect perfectly fine with beamforming disabled, so that's where I leave it.  I've experimented with having it "on" too, and didn't have any issues, but I also didn't notice any improvements. So, in an effort to just keep things as simple as possible, I leave that option disabled.  

 

It's also my understanding that explicit beamforming (specifically for wireless ac devices) is inherently built into Orbi - there's no seperate selection option for that explicit beamforming capability.

 

MU-MIMO

I'd bet almost anything that you don't have multiple mu-mimo devices that could potentially take advantage of this feature (such devices are still quite rare).  Enabling MU-MIMO offers no advantage if you have only one (or none) MU-MIMO devices. Even with multiple MM devices (which is very uncommon), the performance gains of this feature are minimal at best.

 

I don't have any such devices at all, so I leave this feature disabled.  To paraphrase one of the wise old-heads on smallnetbuilder.com, MU-MIMO is the "3-D TV" of the wifi world these last couple years -- a lot of glitzy hype, but no real substance 😉

 

Fast Roaming

I have this feature disabled, since it caused my phone to bounce back-&-forth between my router and sat wayyy too much.  I am very dependent on wifi-calling, so that's how I noticed it.  My wifi-calling is super stable with this feature disabled, but it's certainly worth playing around with in your own setup - maybe it'll work great in your particular environment.

 

Wireless channels (2.4 and 5)

I've always left mine at the default since those work fine for me, but I'm in an uncongested area.  If you are in a more congested area, it's definitely worth analyzing your overall local wireless environment to determine the best channel selections for you, but that's good advice for setting up anyrouter - Orbi or otherwise.

 

UPnP

As I've dione with every router I've ever owned, I have this feature unchecked (disabled).

 

I don't have any devices that no-kidding require UPnP, so disabling it keeps a potential security loophole closed.   I have some devices that say they require UPnP, but those have always worked perfectly fine with UPnP disabled on all of the various routers that I've ever owned (Orbi, Asus, Linksys, etc).

 

Good luck!

Message 4 of 10
KBeatty
Tutor

Re: Advanced Wireless Settings

That was some good extra info Hydro, and your setup is almost identical to mine (basement router, satellite on main floor which extends to second floor).

 

FWIW, I've read that iPhone 8/8s/X as well as the new Samsung Galaxy phones support MU-MIMO as well as the 2017 MacBook Pro. The info has popped up in reviews and comaprison articles rather than as a statement from Apple, so I won't swear to its authenticity. However, if true, MU-MIMO are less rare today then they were a year ago.

Model: RBK50| Orbi AC3000 High-Performance Tri-Band WiFi System
Message 5 of 10
ama1942
Aspirant

Re: Advanced Wireless Settings

Thank you for the details, I have an iPad Mini 4 and in the WLAN specs it's stated :

 

WLAN

Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, hotspot

 

Is dual-band = mu-mimo ? or is it just 2.4 and 5Ghz freq ?

Message 6 of 10
KBeatty
Tutor

Re: Advanced Wireless Settings

No. MU-MIMO is a newer technology, and only found in very new devices (2017 and later). Google it if you want some more info on what it's supposed to do for you. Dual band simply measn your iPad can access both 2.4 and 5 ghz WiFi.

Message 7 of 10
ama1942
Aspirant

Re: Advanced Wireless Settings

Ok thank you,

 

Moreover for my information what are your internet speed test result through the Orbi Hydro130 and KBeaty ?

Message 8 of 10
Hydro130
Luminary

Re: Advanced Wireless Settings

I experimented with enabling MU-MIMO and did not have any bad results or anything like that, so if you want to enable it, I think you'll be just fine - I doubt you'll see any issues.  I just keep it disabled for simplicity's sake.

 

I have 100/10 service from Comcast and I consistely get 120+/12+ on speedtest ressults all over my house and front/back yards.  On the DSLreports speed test, I get A or A+ on overall quality, and bufferbloat.

 

I'm absolutely thrilled with how welll my Orbi works - I've had mine since they were launched in the fall of 2016, and I've had very few (and only minor) issues with it during that time.  Overall, it's been the best router I've ever owned, no question!

Message 9 of 10
tagteam
Virtuoso

Re: Advanced Wireless Settings


Hydro130 wrote:

I'm absolutely thrilled with how welll my Orbi works....

 

+!


 

Message 10 of 10
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