Just installed and setup this EX8000 range extender, in the exact spot my EX3700 wall extender was plugged in, and the connection is awful. Firmware is up to date. I am using the same network name as the router. Keeps dropping or saying no internet connection. I tried moving the extender to a half way point and its only mildly better than no extender at all.
Model: EX8000|AC3000 Nighthawk X6S Tri Band WiFi Mesh Extender
Did you setup via wps or the installation wizard? I'd highly recommend the wizard.
Did you test the extender by directly connecting to it (to ensure its not a backhaul issue)?
The extender also has smart connect/band steering. Are you testing the 2.4ghz signal or the 5ghz? 5ghz is significantly faster than 2.4ghz. You can't compare 2.4ghz to 5ghz speeds because of how much faster 5ghz is.
Firmware - Not sure, but it stated it was up to date
I did WPS.
I was testing 2.4. My old extender that I am on as we speak is 2.4 and it is fine for what I need.
I connected directly to it sitting in the room with the router and it was fine.
I didn't have an issue until I moved it to where the EX3700 is.
I spoke to a rep from Netgear and he recommended that I factory reset the extender, setup via the wizard and then login to the router and change the MTU from 1500 to 1492 and the Channel for 2.4ghz to 11 and 5ghz to 161.
I am hitting an average 15mbps off of the EX3700, which is fine for work and some streaming if need be. I am looking for a more consistent connection and if I could get a stronger signal, that would be great.
Could it be that the range of the EX8000 isnt as good as the EX3700? Seems unlikely to me.
It could be location. 2.4ghz has better penetration and broadcast distance that 5ghz. the EX8000 reserves the 1 5ghz band just for router---extender communication. With 5ghz broadcasting short range and with less penetration ability, that might be the cause of the issue.
the tribands are designed for this to try to reduce latency and increase speeds over a standard extender.
What are the interior walls made of in your home? certain materials are great at blocking wifi. these include concrete, brick, adobe, plaster lathe, foil lined insulation, etc.
Plaster/lathe or sheetrock, depending on the room.
I moved it to the halfway point between the router and where I am trying to reach and I can barely connect to it.
I have lots of rooms within the house that get a signal from the router without an issue. I only use 2.4ghz, unless I am in the room where the router is. Only one streaming stick is connected to 5ghz at the moment and not in use.
Still begs to question why this little wall plug model seems to do what the EX8000 can't.
What are your thoughts on the advice from support regarding the channels and MTU? I don't really want to mess with my router, because it works fine otherwise.
I can do a factory reset and set it up through the wizard and try again.
Plaster/lathe or sheetrock, depending on the room. Plaster lathe is horrible for wifi. It tends to be made of a concrete mixture and have metal within it for the concrete to bind to. basically making some rooms faraday cages or worse because of the concrete/metal mix.
I moved it to the halfway point between the router and where I am trying to reach and I can barely connect to it.
I have lots of rooms within the house that get a signal from the router without an issue. I only use 2.4ghz, unless I am in the room where the router is. Only one streaming stick is connected to 5ghz at the moment and not in use.
Still begs to question why this little wall plug model seems to do what the EX8000 can't. -----its becaues the "little plug" is mainly using the 2.4ghz and the big expensive one is designed to operate off the 5ghz. Which doesn't function well in your home. Both because it doesn't broadcast as far and because it doesn't pass through materials as well as 2.4ghz. Its not really an ideal extender for your situation.
What are your thoughts on the advice from support regarding the channels and MTU? I don't really want to mess with my router, because it works fine otherwise.
I can do a factory reset and set it up through the wizard and try again.
You're home isn't ideal for wifi because of the wall materials. You can try the re-install but I'm betting your home is a black hole for wifi. Many have to resort to using multiple access points for these types of setup. You could try using a poweline wifi setup. Or moca adapters (ethernet over coax cable)
If you're home is designed with plaster lathe, you have the option of running cable, and you want a single ssid setup? I'd skip the extenders and just move to something like netgear orbi. It has the option of wireless backhaul and/or wired backhaul. Plus is more seamless and stable. And you can add satellites as needed.
Plus with this method you can test it. The areas that need cable, you can wire the satellite/satellites. In the area where the signal gets through fine, you could just use the wireless backhaul.
Yes, I can run cable. This is for a detached garage where I am currently working. I have coax over here, so moac is an option, but I really wanted to expand the range of wifi if I could. Orbi looks awesome, but a little more than I wanted to spend. I already have the cable, and would just need another router to run in tandem as an AP. Would you have a recommendation on a decent netgear router to act as an AP to allow SSID?
Any of them you can use the same ssid but they'll be "sticky" and not roam like they would with a mesh system. A standard system they don't switch until they pretty much loose signal. Versus a mesh system roams based on the phones roaming protocol because the mesh system supports it.
Even the mesh extenders don't roam if running in AP mode. they do in extender mode.
