Expanding ORBI RBR50 system

[KenLoc]

I have a system comprised of an RBR50 router and an RBS50 satellite.  To expand my coverage I bought an RBW20 to plug into a wall socket.  I wanted to extend the system in a straight line ie from RBR50 to RBS50 to RBW20.  However, the RBW20 has weakly connected to the router rather than the other RBS50 satellite.  

Is there a way to reconfigure the system so the RBW20 connects to the RBS50?  This should provide a much stronger signal to the RBW20. 

[plemans]

How far apart are they? They need a minimum of 30 ft between then to function appropriately. 

Also is daisy chain mode enabled in your settings? This needs to be enabled for them to function as you desire. 

What firmware is each device on?

[KenLoc]

Thanks for your help.  The RBS50 is about 40 ft from the RBR50.  This setup has always worked fine.  The new RBW30 is about 50 ft from the RBS50 and about 80ft from the RBR50 (hence the weak connection (in different rooms).  The RBR50 firmware is v2.5.0.38.  The RBS50 is the same.  The RBW30 is V2.3.5.6.

The RBS is connecting to the RBR at 5Ghz and the RBW is connecting to the RBR at 2.4Ghz.

I am using the Orbi app (latest version) on an iPhone 7 but cannot find anywhere in settings that allows me to enable daisy chain mode.  Can you point me to the correct place to do this?

[plemans]

here's what it means.

https://kb.netgear.com/000048458/What-is-daisy-chain-and-how-does-it-work-with-my-Orbi-WiFi-System

Page 58 of the manual has the walk through but its in this location:  ADVANCED > Advanced Setup > Wireless Settings

one thing to check is if there's anything in between the satellites. Brick, concrete, adobe, foil lined insulation, and hvac all block signals. If its falling back to the 2.4ghz signal something might be blocking signals. if you're house is a standard wood/sheetrock house, try moving the satellite a little as maybe hvac within the walls is blocking. 

[KenLoc]

I went in through the orbilogin website and found the daisy chain setting.  It was already enabled.

[KenLoc]

There are walls between the RBW and the router it is connecting to, but only gyprock.  However the walls and the distance (80ft) may be causing the signal to default to 2.4Ghz.  There is nothing between the two satellites.  They are at each end of a long room (50ft in length).

[plemans]

Try rebooting the system. Shut everything off. Then turn on the router. Wait a few minutes, turn on the rbs50, wait for it to fully boot, and then try the rbw. It should dynamically balance out but stranger things have happened. 

[Retired_Member]

Here's your problem:  v2.5.0.38.

As well as be careful with your understanding of network extension.

[FURRYe38]

Has a factory reset and setup from scratch been performed since last FW update? This has helped others with odd issues. Last resort to try. 

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@KenLoc wrote:

Thanks for your help.  The RBS50 is about 40 ft from the RBR50.  This setup has always worked fine.  The new RBW30 is about 50 ft from the RBS50 and about 80ft from the RBR50 (hence the weak connection (in different rooms).  The RBR50 firmware is v2.5.0.38.  The RBS50 is the same.  The RBW30 is V2.3.5.6.

The RBS is connecting to the RBR at 5Ghz and the RBW is connecting to the RBR at 2.4Ghz.

I am using the Orbi app (latest version) on an iPhone 7 but cannot find anywhere in settings that allows me to enable daisy chain mode.  Can you point me to the correct place to do this?

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[michaelkenward]

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@plemans wrote:

How far apart are they? They need a minimum of 30 ft between then to function appropriately. 

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I know that there is an old KnowledgeBase article that says this, but does anyone have any decent evidence to support this strange idea?

It is not my experience.

[plemans]

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@michaelkenward wrote:

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@plemans wrote:

How far apart are they? They need a minimum of 30 ft between then to function appropriately. 

---

I know that there is an old KnowledgeBase article that says this, but does anyone have any decent evidence to support this strange idea?

It is not my experience.

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@michaelkenward 

I've had a couple people on here report good results with seperating out the distance. I also had better results (on older firmware) when I seperated them out in my house. My house isn't huge (3200sq ft) and I was running 3x satellites. Seperation helped with stability a lot. Again, this was multiple generations of firmware ago so who knows if it was firmware optimizations that helped it or the moving the router/satellites around. 

[michaelkenward]

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@plemans wrote:

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Again, this was multiple generations of firmware ago so who knows if it was firmware optimizations that helped it or the moving the router/satellites around. 

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That's the bit that makes me suspicious. Something written three years ago is well behind the curve, especially for new technology like this. Without sort of explanation, I take that particular bit in the KnowledgeBase with a pinch of salt.

My approach is to do what you did, experiment, but don't insist that there has to be some magic separation. After all, this is not information that appears in manuals.

For some people, 30 feet means put it at the bottom of the garden. Advice in other contexts, Arlo for example, is that 30 feet is about as far as you can stretch the wifi.