× Introducing the Orbi 970 Series Mesh System with WiFi 7 technology. For more information visit the NETGEAR Press Room.
Orbi WiFi 7 RBE973
Reply

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

Jeff-4
Guide

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

Perhaps a stupid question... Does the EAX20 work any better? I am on the 4th factory reset of my new EAX80.

Message 26 of 67
brian5s
Tutor

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

I returned it! I still have the RAX80, as this was beyond the return period.  But, I dumped it! I like Netgear, for the most part.  It's the lesser of all evils. I went with the new WIFI6 Orbi Pro Mesh router/satellite.  Works extremely well! Dump the EAX80 now if you can!

Message 27 of 67
Tofu101
Star

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

Good advice.. I returned mine EAX80 and kept my EX8000, which is stable and OK.  

Message 28 of 67
PurplePanda
Tutor

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

For those of you having connection problems and possibly channel problems,  I used a WiFi Channel Analyzer like "WiFi Commander" to analyze what channels my neighbors were using.

I am no longer using the EAX80, I returned in it within the 30 day policy like a year ago, but I used an analyzer to see which channels were open.  From what I saw, many of my neighbors' wifi routers were using the same channels and I was able to manually set my channels and improve my connection reliability, range, and bandwidth.  I'm still using 2 SSIDs, which is stupid in 2020.  NETGEAR FIX THIS!

Here is the app I was using to monitor wifi channels, but it's got some 'license authentication error' right now.  I blame the pandemic, but if you find a different app that does the same thing and works today, this should help you choose the best channels in your range.
https://wifi3d.app/

I'm deeply frustrated that NETGEAR still hasn't resolved this, added wired backhaul to the EAX80, and using wireless backhauls seem to really limit bandwidth.

Linus did a review of Asus's AIMesh platform (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtDRs434LYQ), and I'm honestly intrigued.  It looks interfesting and I might check it out for WiFi 6E/7 when that comes out, or try the new top of the line Orbi that supports WiFi 6E/7.  Who knows if WFH lasts longer, I might try the Orbi or ASUS AI Mesh now.

After returing the EAX80 I had a thought that maybe making the wireless backhaul bandwith too large might limit client bandwidth and reliability.  The theory is based on the idea that the Backhaul might prereserve wireless badwidth and might prevent those channels from being used dynamicly with the clients.

I hope this helps.

Message 29 of 67
carys4
Star

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

Agreed - the EX8000 X6S is far superior than the EAX80 in terms of reliability and stability

Message 30 of 67
rgs28ja
Tutor

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

Well I finally pulled the plug (literally) and got an ASUS RT-AX92U WIFI6 mesh router.  Zero problems after 3 days.  SONOS is still a pain to setup but everything else went flawlessy.  No IP passthru - no isolating devices to the main router .....

Model: RAX200|Nighthawk Tri-band AX12 12-Stream Wi-Fi 6 Router
Message 31 of 67
Jeff-4
Guide

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

I thought I had posted this, bit it didn't show up... Well, I too am sending back my EAX80 as well as the RAX80. My system went down once again, right after emailing Netgear.  By the way, I absolutely could not get to them via their phone line, which was continuously busy. This EAX80 is a disaster.

 

Per the suggestion of brian5s, I juts put in an order for the Costco version of the Orbi WiFi 6 system. At least I know the returns will be easy if needed.

 

Thanks for comments and support!  

Message 32 of 67
inspectorgadjet
Apprentice

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

I have these issues with the EAX80 and my RAX120 as well, I wish I had seen this forum before my return window was up. I guess I have to hope they release new firmware soon.

I tolerated the issues as long as I did because I was having to reboot the EAX80 once every week or two, but the problem has started happening multiple times every day now since I updated to the newest firmware on the RAX120 with the Netgear Armor functionality.

Message 33 of 67
Jeff-4
Guide

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

I was lucky ot still be ble to return both the RAX80 and EAX80 and receive a full refund. After more than a week of uptime and no issues, the Orbi WiFi 6 system (RBR840, purchased from Costco), I finally feel like I have a stable, well-performing system.

Message 34 of 67
fg8
Guide
Guide

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

I purhcased the new wifi 6 router RAX120 and extender EAX80 thinking that they woud be great and coming from a respected company. EAX80 is just an expensive plastic box with lights. It has no wired backhaul and rarely picks up any device. I can be standing right next to it and it will not even pick up my iphone through wifi. I have received no response or solution from Netgear after trying many times. Two wishes. 1.  I wish I had read this fourm before buying. 2. I wish I had not bought anything from Netgear. As a long term customer I have lost all respect an loyalty for Netgear! My solution is to strongly recommned to all my friends is to NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM NETGEAR!

Message 35 of 67
Coaleyed
Guide

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

You guys got me crossing my fingers here, but so far no issues other than connected devices churns butter in my old EX8000 now and never shows a list.

 

Running RAX200 with EX8000 and EAX80 hardwired and set up as APs.

 

Is everyone here having trouble with extender mode?  Or has it bled over into AP mode as well?

Message 36 of 67
fg8
Guide
Guide

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

All problems are with the EAX80 in extender mode - basically the reason why most people buy it. It is futher complicated as there is no wired backhaul capability and Netgear just ignore the many requests for a fix.

Message 37 of 67
kryptoknight
Tutor

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

What's the status on this problem?  Is there a fix for this?  Other than returning the EAX80 for a refund..  The darn thing keeps on dropping to below 10 mbps on a 5ghz channel.  Bouncing it works but then drops again after an hour.  This really is horrible for something that costs almost 200 bucks.  Please advise NetGear.

Message 38 of 67
david85297
Star

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

They have no interest in fixing it. 5-6 months ago they said their devs were aware of it when they tried to help me. Since there has been no release of a firmware update, this probably means it is hardware related issue. If they could fix it, they would have done it since this issue has been around since it was released.

 

I've heard that the EAX80 will work with RAX200? Definitely doesn't work with my RAX120. 

Message 39 of 67
carys4
Star

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20


@Jeff-4 wrote:

I thought I had posted this, bit it didn't show up... Well, I too am sending back my EAX80 as well as the RAX80. My system went down once again, right after emailing Netgear.  By the way, I absolutely could not get to them via their phone line, which was continuously busy. This EAX80 is a disaster.

 

Per the suggestion of brian5s, I juts put in an order for the Costco version of the Orbi WiFi 6 system. At least I know the returns will be easy if needed.

 

Thanks for comments and support!  


Hey @Jeff-4 I just went the same exact route - I ordered the Orbi wifi-6 system as well. I ordered directly from Netgear as I had a discount code to use. Absolutely no problems so far. I am selling the EAX80 and RAX80 on ebay as a bundle as I'm typing this. What a disaster of a wifi-6 equipment. The Orbi Wifi-6 (I got the RBK852) is so far advanced from the Nighthawk system (EAX80/RAX80). Even the app for Orbi is way more responsive and less buggy than the Nighthawk app. 

Message 40 of 67
Tofu101
Star

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

I have an RAX200 and had the RAX80.. which kept disconnecting until I finally returned the POS.

Model: RAX200|Nighthawk Tri-band AX12 12-Stream Wi-Fi 6 Router
Message 41 of 67
Jeff-4
Guide

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

My Orbi WiFi 6 units have been up and running, problem-free, since May 11.  I really dodged a bullet in being able to return my Netgear units, but it was not without stress. I think I'll just settle in and hope that the Orbi future-proofs me for a generation or two of WiFi advances...

Message 42 of 67
fg8
Guide
Guide

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

I finally had Alfie from Netgear in the Philipines call afer many days of no contact. The result? I can't use the smart connect on the EAX80 and need to broadcast the 2.4GHz and 5GHz signal on the RAX20 and EAX80 to get any decent wifi throughout the home. Not sure why I bought these items as I just wanted one signal on 'promised' super speeds over Wifi 6 , as advertised by Netgear. Also, the fact that I cannot use the EAX80 in wired backhaul mode is just crazy when this could be done on the older Orbi mesh systems. Not sure what Netgear was thinking when they released the EAX80. 

Message 43 of 67
Tofu101
Star

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

Don’t go down that rabbit hole. It doesn’t broadcast 2G and 5G consistently either even without smart connect. Sooner or later it will fail. Send it back, get rid of it, use it as a door stop, It will be a better use of matter.
Model: RAX200|Nighthawk Tri-band AX12 12-Stream Wi-Fi 6 Router
Message 44 of 67
Blkromeo
Tutor

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

I just got the Eax80 and am having all, kinds of issues too. Took me factory resetting  times to get both the 2.4 and 5ghz networks to show up at the same time. I tried smart setup and wps (which never connected both networks, it was one or the other every time) The 2.4 network stutters fairly often and the 5ghz is unusable after about 2 min following a reboot. The app shows it getting a great connections and speeds, but practical use says completely otherwise. It was slowing down my router at times as well before the last reset which got both networks up, and thankfully that issue hasn't come back. 

 

I love netgear products, but they always seem to be 1 software update from working properly. I had the X6s and after the last update it got, it started doing the same thing before it died on me, which led me to the Eax80. I'm going to try to get this working with cust support but if not I'll probably get a link sys extender. The wife needs something that works and I just don't want to have to spend 3 or 4nhours trying to get a netgear product to work every few weeks. 

Model: RAX80|Nighthawk AX8 8-Stream WiFi Router
Message 45 of 67
kryptoknight
Tutor

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

Download the Beta firmware from the Netgear support website and try it out. I tried it out and it seem to have fixed something. Haven't experienced loss of connection on the 5ghz channel since couple days ago that I installed the beta firmware. Keeping fingers crossed.
Message 46 of 67
Blkromeo
Tutor

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

I did download it and it's  connected now to both the 2.4 and 5ghz. It's just the speed is horrible slow for the 5ghz xtended. It stutters, Google.com takes like a minute to load, other web pages hang and videos don't even load. I don't know if there's anything else I might be able to change on my router thst will help or what. 

Message 47 of 67
PolishHedgehog
Initiate

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

I second all comments. The extender promises a lot and does not work at all. I connected the device and it dropped the 5Ghz connection with the RAX200 router. Then I factory-reset the extender, updated the firmware and it dropped the connection with the router.

I conducted up to 20 factory resets within the last few days, tried several configurations and everytime the device drops the connections.

 

Main effect: All devices connected to the extender lose connectivity and don't get it back. Basically it acts as a WiFi jammer in my household.

 

Conclusion: I will return it and use 2.4Ghz as best as possible until a functioning device appears on the market.

 

What should you do: Stay away from the EAX80. It is a diva!

Message 48 of 67
Bubbz85
Tutor

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

I am having the same issue with the eax80 range extender I have finally set it up today to work with my rax120 and replace a r7000 extender I only really use the extender to take the load of all my smart devices I.e lights, sockets and cameras etc as I have a lot!
But when I connected it I get good speed over 5g but over 2.4g is piss poor barely 2-5mbps
When I check my link sped between the eax80 and rax120 it's over 2000mbps! I just can't seem to work this out
So now I am back to using my r7000
I hope some one sorts this soon
Message 49 of 67
fg8
Guide
Guide

Re: Problems w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk 8AX - EAX80 Range Extender w/ New WiFi 6 Nighthawk AX12 - RAX20

I have the same set up with a RAX120 and EAX80. Countless problems with both over the last year while working from home. The only way I could get them to sort of work was to change to Extender mode on the EAX80 (not Mesh mode) and switch off Wifi 6 on the RAX120. This is pointless as these features are why I puchased these expensive units in the first place. Netgear Tech could not fix the issues for me other than reduce settings. Unfortunately I could not return both units, otheriwse I would. The main outstanding problem is that the RAX120 still goes to sleep once or twice a week and stops connecting Wifi to everything while I still have a strong internet connection coming into the house. I have the latest firmware (1.2.0.16). You would think this bug could be easily fixed by Netgear - but no! The only way I could fix this was to manually reboot the RAX120 each time.  

Message 50 of 67
Discussion stats
Announcements

Orbi WiFi 7