RAX80 New Firmware Released 1.0.1.70

[Kamarinchev]

Exactly the same situation for me too.
Wi-Fi connecting drops within an 20-30 minutes of start-up.

The 5Ghz band disappear and appears again after a few minutes

Performance is not stable at all

Most of the time can't load websites on 5Ghz 

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@GabboCH wrote:
Exactly the same behaviour as me.
Ethernet & Wi-Fi connecting drops within an hour of start-up for me.
This is not acceptable in any modern home network.
I'd have never had to reboot or login to my unbranded ISP router after setup, the same for the Netgear EX8000 extender I'm now using instead.

I've sent 6 debug logs immediately after different kind of events & never had one reply from Netgear support, I don't even think they've opened them as several of the original logs I sent were empty & they didn't even mention it.

I don't think they have any intention of fixing these issues & these routers will never work properly.
3 months is too long without even any acknowledgement that these issues exist.

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[PDWhite]

The problem may, or may not stem from the same problem I'm seeing. I did find that setting the 5 Ghz band to "up to 2400 Mbps" will usually make the problem go away, but you may need to to a hard reset before making the change. (One of the problems I've observed is that more than a few experimental retries can actually lock 5 Ghz into permanent mumble mode. - Frankly, I'm not content to sit with 2400 Mbps, max. I paid for a device advertised as capable of 4800 Mbps and insist on getting what I paid for.

As far as the problem of getting responses, try choosing the 'Contact Support>Replace my defective product' as your choice when making your service request. Also, make certain you can retrieve the previous case numbers for your previous complaints as proof you've had this condition for a while now.

-- Personally, I purchased the extended support. My experience has been that my last several wireless routers have an average life of two - three years, so that extra year of services will actually help protect my investment. And, the paid services also sends my service requests to a group that is more likely to know what they are doing and less likely to issue a never-ending litany of band-aid fixes.

In any case, after trying everything the tech suggested and having no results you can live with, the will/may offer to do a replacement. 

Good luck!

[joshhae23]

Netgear,

2 Major Issues below, the 3rd is the log file present each time over the course of 48 hours. I've seen this mentioned several times over the forum but no viable explanation or solution has been provided over the last two firmware releases. I've waited patiently long enough and it's time that not just my issues are addressed, but a status update is given to everyone else on this forum who spent the extra money on your equipment and are basically being shafted at this point. 

1.  I currently have Spectrum Ultra Internet Service (400 MB/s) yet my 400 dollar router wont allow my speeds to go above 200 MB/S. *I thought i hated my previous very expensive router (Linksys EA9500) but I owe them an apology letter compared to this.

2.  My internet disconnects roughly every 1-2 hours.  It doesn't show up on your administrative logs, not sure why, but luckily my telivision is connected via LAN and it shows up every time the internet cuts out, sometimes 1 minutes, sometimes 5, but we haven't made it through 1 netflix movie without a network interuption since the day we got this router 

3.  I clear out my logs and started to monitor them every time my internet would cut out over the course of 2 days.  This Time/Date Stamp showed up each and every time, 

Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00
Wednesday, Dec 31,1969 16:00:00

[PDWhite]

Josh,

I'm very familiar with problem #3. After seeing it several times after a restart, I have dismissed it as just (another) artifact of the firmware's tenuous grasp of the underlying hardware.

As for your problem #1 about slower throughput than your service should be, this suggests a few questions to answer before any conclusion it made. First: Where are you measuring the speed. To determine this correctly, you must run the Speedtest that is located on the RAX80's QOS page. Running this on your computer or phone will only tell you how fast your computer or phone is running. Secondly: If the speed test on the QOS page only shows 200 Mbps, the problem is between the RAX's web interface and the street. It is quite likely that that may need some examination. (You may need to call your internet provider to help you configure their modem to work correctly with your RAX.) They should also be able to determine whether you are actually getting your rated bandwidth from the internet or not. - Suggestion: See if your internet modem also has a speedtest built in. Many of them do...

Problem #2: This may also apply to the interface with the modem. If you have is 'auto' connected with the modem, it may have simply allowed itself to become just another device on the modem's LAN. Most modern internet modems also contain firewall and router capabilities, and they may be throttling the throughput to your RAX in order to save some for other users, whether they exist or not. - The best way to bypass these problems is to have your modem device set to pass-through mode or not. Direct pass-through is by far the best. Ask the service provider how to correctly set their modem for pass-through or at least router behind router service. However, there are problems with pass-through which can affect uninterrupted bandwidth. These settings can be incorrectly configured, such as lease renewal. - If you cannot get a pass-through type internet connection, you may need to put your RAX into pass-through mode. (PLEASE look at the RAX's Internet IP to make certain it is running on a private IP address; Pass-through on a direct-to-internet connection can be a real disaster. 

On the side of this issue. Netgear does manufacture excellent networking equipment, however, they really released a mega-lemon with their RAX80 Nighthawk. I noticed that by reading the reviews on various websites, most of the good ones come from people who know very little about the technology. Maybe ignorance is bliss.

Personally, I think the RAX80 should be renamed the NightTurkey. I manged to return mine, and I replaced it with another AX-capable router by another manufacturer who managed to do everything right. Since then, I've had flawless wifi coverage, full speed from my 1 Gigabit internet service, and no connection hiccups.

I hopt this bit of advice is helpful. I give it free; you make take it for what it's worth... 🙄

[xjn]

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@PDWhite wrote:

Josh,

I'm very familiar with problem #3. After seeing it several times after a restart, I have dismissed it as just (another) artifact of the firmware's tenuous grasp of the underlying hardware.

As for your problem #1 about slower throughput than your service should be, this suggests a few questions to answer before any conclusion it made. First: Where are you measuring the speed. To determine this correctly, you must run the Speedtest that is located on the RAX80's QOS page. Running this on your computer or phone will only tell you how fast your computer or phone is running. Secondly: If the speed test on the QOS page only shows 200 Mbps, the problem is between the RAX's web interface and the street. It is quite likely that that may need some examination. (You may need to call your internet provider to help you configure their modem to work correctly with your RAX.) They should also be able to determine whether you are actually getting your rated bandwidth from the internet or not. - Suggestion: See if your internet modem also has a speedtest built in. Many of them do...

Problem #2: This may also apply to the interface with the modem. If you have is 'auto' connected with the modem, it may have simply allowed itself to become just another device on the modem's LAN. Most modern internet modems also contain firewall and router capabilities, and they may be throttling the throughput to your RAX in order to save some for other users, whether they exist or not. - The best way to bypass these problems is to have your modem device set to pass-through mode or not. Direct pass-through is by far the best. Ask the service provider how to correctly set their modem for pass-through or at least router behind router service. However, there are problems with pass-through which can affect uninterrupted bandwidth. These settings can be incorrectly configured, such as lease renewal. - If you cannot get a pass-through type internet connection, you may need to put your RAX into pass-through mode. (PLEASE look at the RAX's Internet IP to make certain it is running on a private IP address; Pass-through on a direct-to-internet connection can be a real disaster. 

On the side of this issue. Netgear does manufacture excellent networking equipment, however, they really released a mega-lemon with their RAX80 Nighthawk. I noticed that by reading the reviews on various websites, most of the good ones come from people who know very little about the technology. Maybe ignorance is bliss.

Personally, I think the RAX80 should be renamed the NightTurkey. I manged to return mine, and I replaced it with another AX-capable router by another manufacturer who managed to do everything right. Since then, I've had flawless wifi coverage, full speed from my 1 Gigabit internet service, and no connection hiccups.

I hopt this bit of advice is helpful. I give it free; you make take it for what it's worth... 🙄

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The built in router speed test is almost useless because it doesn't let the user pick which server. Whenerever I use it, it picks a really close server from a local ISP that is slow. I get a more accurate and much higher speed test over Ethernet or on phone since I can pick a decent server. 

[PDWhite]

XJN,

The speed test that is built into the router doesn't need to be connected to any special server. It is only there to test the speed of data to and from the internet.  The important thing is that it actually runs on the router; having a source nearer or farther away should be about the same, but the number of milliseconds of initial response time will likely be greater. This features allows you to see how fast the interface is. 

If you want to know how fast your in-house network is running, you can run a speed test on a wired desktop machine and then from a Wi-Fi connected laptop or tablet. - Remember that those devices, especially wi-fi, may have maximum speed capabilities lower than the actual throughput of the network. Example: I have a one gigabit internet service. The speedtest on my router will report the speed is very nearly one gig.   I have a laptop with a older wi-fi chip in it that maxes out at about 500 mbits.  My (wired) desktop  with a gig network card shows a speed very nearly as high as my router. (I have a full CAT-6 network.) 

[xjn]

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@PDWhite wrote:

XJN,

The speed test that is built into the router doesn't need to be connected to any special server. It is only there to test the speed of data to and from the internet.  The important thing is that it actually runs on the router; having a source nearer or farther away should be about the same, but the number of milliseconds of initial response time will likely be greater. This features allows you to see how fast the interface is. 

If you want to know how fast your in-house network is running, you can run a speed test on a wired desktop machine and then from a Wi-Fi connected laptop or tablet. - Remember that those devices, especially wi-fi, may have maximum speed capabilities lower than the actual throughput of the network. Example: I have a one gigabit internet service. The speedtest on my router will report the speed is very nearly one gig.   I have a laptop with a older wi-fi chip in it that maxes out at about 500 mbits.  My (wired) desktop  with a gig network card shows a speed very nearly as high as my router. (I have a full CAT-6 network.) 

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I have gigabit also but I can only get high speed using speed test result of 940Mbps outside of router... the server picked does matter because not all servers can handle gigabit speed test. The router picks a rural speed test server closest to me and never gets gigabit speed, about 400Mbps... I can tell which server it picks even though it does not show name cause can manually pick it on another device and see same numbers. If I switch to a server in a major metro area or big city I see 940Mbps faster speed test results over Ethernet from another device... I never see speed test result that high on router built in test. Netgear should make it so can manually choose server..

[FredAloneForEve]

There is a new firware available.

[cliff344]

There's a new firmware release (.88).  I loaded it 2 days ago, and it's really working well.  By George I think they are on to something.  Everything is working well and stable after 48 hours.  No reboots or disconnects.  The only issue I've seen (minor), is the QoS bandwith utilization does not show bandwidth usage, and when using the Nighthawk app, some wireless devices show up as wired devices.  Other than those two things, I haven't seen anything else wrong.  I think I will wipe the dust off this brick now and finally get some use of it!  I've also tested and retested wireless speeds, and they have remained consistent.  My IPad has consistently ran at about 500Mbps real-time.

[cliff344]

I've done some testing on the last couple of firmware releases on this unit (RAX80).  Downloaded the latest version as of yesterday (10/14/20), and it seems really solid and working the best I've seen yet.  Still has one big flaw, that I noticed about 2 firmware releases back.  If you plug a USB drive into any of the ports, within about 4-6 hours, the router will crash and loose internet connections to wired and wireless devices.  This has happened now for me with the latest 3 firmware releases.  I like to run using both ports, using one for a media server, and the other as a backup drive for my PC's. They need to get this right!  My X8 never had this issue using the same 2 drives I have.  I surely hope someone from netgears sees this post and works twards getting this fixed!  As long as I don't use the USB ports, this thing will run flawlessly for weeks without having to reboot.