Aebs - Complete And Utter Rubbish

[srexy]

I've been trying to get along w/this thing for a year now. I struggled w/the usual woes of not being able to connect to my airdisk and got around it by reverting to 7.1.1 firmware. For the most part this is successful.

However - for the last 6 months I've been using wireless n 2.4ghz. I just spent 2hrs rearranging my office so that I could possibly use n 5ghz .

My house is held together w/ glue and string and aka drywall and wood framing 2x4's yet this POS refuses to connect to my MBP at a mere 40 ft.

I am sick and tired of this rubbish and Apple's seeming indifference to so many users' plights.

If I have a point it is this:

what "plane" does the antenna for the AEBS prefer. My problems always occur downstairs and I'm wondering if the Airport Extreme antenna prefers it's victims on the same level?

 

[gogojuice]

Well I have one of these in my basement and my house is over 2000+ ft (not including the basement) two story and I have no problem showing all the bars where ever I put the AEBS.

I am using the 5ghz only (N) mode.

I can try to move it around tonight in the 2.4 range if you want tonight.


I have 2 mac pros and the macbook pro on it and it doesn't seem to make a difference which machine I use.

On a side note. When I reboot into windows xp it shows the signal as very low (not sure on the terminology), but it still connects and I can surf and Dl just fine.

Let me know if you want me to try it out.
Cheers.

 

[pilotError]

I have mine in the Attic, and my iMac is 2 floors below without issue.

All of my devices are actually on the main floor and I haven't had issues.

My AEBS (gigabit) has been flawless up until last week, although I never tried the airDisk option.

Last week, my AEBS kept dropping out and I had to power it down/up to get my iMac to connect to it. I was worried that I was starting to have issues with it, but the last few days have been fine. I guess that the Cable company was doing work in the area and it screwed up the router.

I'll keep an eye on it and see how it goes. Strange that some have problems and others don't.

If you live in an area of constant expansion by your provider, you could be having these issues. I noticed that no matter what I did, I couldn't reconnect to it once it happened. The light on the front remains green, so there's just no indication. Wired connections don't work either.

I wish there was a better diagnostic tool than the little green light...

 

[JNB]

I've had less issues with the AEBS (as in none) in the 5GHz band on a widely mixed environment (Macs, printers, Dell, Xbox360, Wii) than all the other routers I've tried. For me, it's been zero config.

 

[srexy]

Hmm - I wonder what the issue is then.

2.4ghz seems to work a little better - it's the 5ghz N that gives me fits...

Now that I've calmed down - the AEBS is within 8' of the following appliances:

20" ACD
PC workstation
Apple BT keyboard and mouse
MS usb wireless kb and mouse
cordless phone (not the base station mind you)
OWC external hard drive
Numerous transformers for phones, ACD, Netgear router, etc etc.

None of these are between the AEBS and my problem spots but I wonder if they are the root cause?

 

[JNB]

None of those "should" cause enough RFI to clobber the AEBS. I have cordless phones within 6' of the AEBS on the 5.8GHz band, zero interference. Not that it should matter, but try putting the AEBS on a filtered line, minimize any current-induced interference. The house circuit mine is on is cluttered with all kinds of electronics, including a color laser printer, and I've never had the slightest hint of a dropped or mitigated signal.

 

[Makosuke]

This may not help you any, but I have definitely noticed interference between devices that you wouldn't offhand think would share the same spectrum and my AEBS.

In my case, I've noticed that when I'm maxing out the bandwidth of the AEBS from my MBP (as in large file copy to an in-house server, not just regular surfing) that my Logitech wireless mouse will drop out. This is the other way around, but obviously there's some spread between the spectra.

Also, I noticed that on maxed bandwidth (again, does NOT happen unless I'm transferring large files between on-network computers) the built-in speaker in the Wii remote would stop producing sound (though gameplay was fine--at least the controller portion is Bluetooth, though I'm guessing the sound is different?).

In both these cases the Airport performance was fine, but the point is that things can bump into the same spectrum, and I noticed several wireless devices on your list.

I'll also note that with a newer n-based AEBS I've had zero problems with a Wii and three Macs on the wireless network (one wired). However, with the previous-gen (UFO-style) I was suffering frequent dropouts of my signal, which I eventually traced to a neighbor's wireless network somehow interfering with mine some of the time (it seemed to be off much of the time).

The solution was to experiment with manually set channels until I found one that didn't show the problem. Might try that as well.

 

[srexy]

This may not help you any, but I have definitely noticed interference between devices that you wouldn't offhand think would share the same spectrum and my AEBS.

In my case, I've noticed that when I'm maxing out the bandwidth of the AEBS from my MBP (as in large file copy to an in-house server, not just regular surfing) that my Logitech wireless mouse will drop out. This is the other way around, but obviously there's some spread between the spectra.

Also, I noticed that on maxed bandwidth (again, does NOT happen unless I'm transferring large files between on-network computers) the built-in speaker in the Wii remote would stop producing sound (though gameplay was fine--at least the controller portion is Bluetooth, though I'm guessing the sound is different?).

In both these cases the Airport performance was fine, but the point is that things can bump into the same spectrum, and I noticed several wireless devices on your list.

I'll also note that with a newer n-based AEBS I've had zero problems with a Wii and three Macs on the wireless network (one wired). However, with the previous-gen (UFO-style) I was suffering frequent dropouts of my signal, which I eventually traced to a neighbor's wireless network somehow interfering with mine some of the time (it seemed to be off much of the time).

The solution was to experiment with manually set channels until I found one that didn't show the problem. Might try that as well.

It's very odd whatever's going on here. It just drops in and out seemingly at random.

My MBP has been sitting in the same spot for the last 2hrs and sometimes it will jump up to 5 bars, 4 bars, 3 bars 2 bars and then 0. It will go from 5 to zero in one step. It just went from 0 to 5 and now back to 2!!

I'll try some of the troubleshooting steps you guys have outlined.

When you say a filtered line - do I need to call in my electrician to do this or is there an in-line device I can add to my outlet?

Thanks for all comments so far.

 

[JNB]

When you say a filtered line - do I need to call in my electrician to do this or is there an in-line device I can add to my outlet?

Nothing quite so drastic. Just a decent power strip with line filtering & surge suppression, or a desktop-grade UPS would provide the same benefit (plus possibly providing protection against voltage drops, as well). Line noise is a bitch.

Generally, though, if you haven't noticed any obvious problems on that circuit (lights dim or flicker, buzzing on the phone lines), or alternatively, have any high-amperage equipment plugged into the same circuit, like refrigerators or air conditioners, it probably won't solve anything (but is good practice, in any case).

 

[srexy]

I still haven't figured out the 5ghz spectrum issues. I tried to set the 5ghz to a discrete channel but there is no dropdown for that. Is there any way to force a specific channel for the 5ghz?

I'm on the 2.4ghz and holding 4/5 bars in one of my "trouble spots" after I set the channel to 3 vs automatic.

I'm pretty sure that I have the AEBS plugged into an APC battery backup but I'm going to double check - maybe I'll even swap it over to a surge protector because I'm not 100% convinced that the APC is working well.

 

[Makosuke]

I'm on the 2.4ghz and holding 4/5 bars in one of my "trouble spots" after I set the channel to 3 vs automatic.

If this holds up, then it's pretty much guaranteed to be an interference issue. What from, that's another matter, but if forcing a specific channel does it, at least that's a pretty solid diagnosis.

 

[katorga]

Mine works fine

3000sq ft, AEBS is on 2nd floor over the garage and I get full signal anywhere in the house using 5Ghz N. My complaints:

- no dynamic DNS support
- no SPI firewall
- weak logging
- I have yet to get bootcamp (leopard) XP to connect to N

I kept my Dlink 4300 in place to resolve the above and provide G signal for the wii and older computers with no N support.

 

[dvd]

I'd crank up iStumbler and see if you've got a neighbor that's stepping on you.

I had similar difficulties in the 2.4 range because I've got 17 (at last count) neighbors within a detectable radius all running various 2.4 channels (mostly ch 6!) .. moved to 802.11n at 5Ghz and it's been smooth sailing ever since.