2 x Airport Express - One Good One Excellent

[mcmul]

I bought and installed 2 x Airport Express yesterday and I can already notice the speed difference. I have turned the WiFi off on the ISP provided router (kitchen), bridged one AE to it via the WAN port (right beside it, kitchen) and then extended the other AE (near the front door). However the Airport Utility app provided by Apple is reporting the AE in the kitchen has "excellent" connecticity and the one near the door "good", which is very bizarre because my living room is next to the front door and my office/bedroom is above it.

Does anybody know how I can run some diagnostics to work out what's happening? I'm so confused by this, and wondering what AE I'm actually connecting to.

 

[Mikael H]

I bought and installed 2 x Airport Express yesterday and I can already notice the speed difference. I have turned the WiFi off on the ISP provided router (kitchen), bridged one AE to it via the WAN port (right beside it, kitchen) and then extended the other AE (near the front door). However the Airport Utility app provided by Apple is reporting the AE in the kitchen has "excellent" connecticity and the one near the door "good", which is very bizarre because my living room is next to the front door and my office/bedroom is above it.

Does anybody know how I can run some diagnostics to work out what's happening? I'm so confused by this, and wondering what AE I'm actually connecting to.

If you're extending the network and connecting to the main AE, if you look at the Airport Utility, the line between the two access points will be dotted, as opposed to if you're connected to the secondary one, in which case it will be a fully drawn line.

Radio waves are absorbed and reflected differently by different materials, so it's not impossible that you could have a better signal when connecting to the router furthest away from you when sitting in a certain location. If this doesn't disturb your connection speed, then you don't really have a problem, except possibly for having spent unnecessary money on an extra AirPort Express.
The alternatives are to move the routers (or your desk) around a bit, pull an ethernet cable through the house, or testing a HomePlug solution for sending network traffic via the electrical infrastructure in your house.

 

[mcmul]

If you're extending the network and connecting to the main AE, if you look at the Airport Utility, the line between the two access points will be dotted, as opposed to if you're connected to the secondary one, in which case it will be a fully drawn line.

Radio waves are absorbed and reflected differently by different materials, so it's not impossible that you could have a better signal when connecting to the router furthest away from you when sitting in a certain location. If this doesn't disturb your connection speed, then you don't really have a problem, except possibly for having spent unnecessary money on an extra AirPort Express.
The alternatives are to move the routers (or your desk) around a bit, pull an ethernet cable through the house, or testing a HomePlug solution for sending network traffic via the electrical infrastructure in your house.

Very interesting, thanks. Do you know any good links regarding the AE? So, the attached picture implies I'm connected to the door AE? I bought the extra AE to boost the connection and to also run a switch from the Ethernet port to attach my NAS/multipurpose box and a couple of other things. I might move it to the living room and hard wire my Apple TV to it, too. Decisions, decisions!

 

[Altemose]

Very interesting, thanks. Do you know any good links regarding the AE? So, the attached picture implies I'm connected to the door AE? I bought the extra AE to boost the connection and to also run a switch from the Ethernet port to attach my NAS/multipurpose box and a couple of other things. I might move it to the living room and hard wire my Apple TV to it, too. Decisions, decisions!

That connection means the connection to the network. The kitchen AE reports excellent because it connects via Ethernet (which is generally trouble free) to the modem. The other Express connects wirelessly to the kitchen Express and is getting a "good" wireless signal. It does not have to do with the connection of the client.

 

[Mikael H]

Very interesting, thanks. Do you know any good links regarding the AE? So, the attached picture implies I'm connected to the door AE? I bought the extra AE to boost the connection and to also run a switch from the Ethernet port to attach my NAS/multipurpose box and a couple of other things. I might move it to the living room and hard wire my Apple TV to it, too. Decisions, decisions!

I'm sorry, I was wrong in my last post. To clear things out: The dotted line simply indicates a wireless connection between AirPort devices. A solid line means a cable connection. Sorry for any confusion I may have caused.

I'm not at home right now, but it might be that you actually need to look at the client lists for each airport device to see which one of them you're connected to.

 

[mcmul]

Thanks to you both!