Airport dropping out lots...

[smwatson]

I bought an Airport Express thingy because I was bored of having a wire trailing from my laptop to my speakers all the time, but the signal isn't very consistent and it drops out quite often. Any tips to make it as solid a connection as possible?

Also, BT HomeHubs really don't like them...

 

[jclee]

I bought an Airport Express thingy because I was bored of having a wire trailing from my laptop to my speakers all the time, but the signal isn't very consistent and it drops out quite often. Any tips to make it as solid a connection as possible?

Also, BT HomeHubs really don't like them...

Do you have a macbook pro? if so, what generation? Mine is a first generation and my signal drops a lot. This is due to my laptop, not my router.

 

[smwatson]

Do you have a macbook pro? if so, what generation? Mine is a first generation and my signal drops a lot. This is due to my laptop, not my router.

Aluminium Unibody MacBook.. the 2.4GhZ one. I've never had a problem with wireless before, I think it's either the HomeHub interfering with it or something else getting in the way.

 

[mstrze]

Try changing the channel that the AEBS broadcasts on. You might be getting interference from a neighbor's network or microwaves or other wireless devices.

Since it's new, this probably won't matter, but after a couple of years I developed connectivity issues and did a factory reset of the AEBS and it cleared them right up.

I suppose it couldn't hurt if all else fails.

FWIW: My setup is a Netgear wireless router for 802.11g items in the house like the Wii and our iPhones while the AEBS does the 5Ghz 802.11n items like the Mini, AppleTV and my wife's MacBook.

 

[smwatson]

I've tried that, nothing. Considering sending it back and getting a refund - useless. Wanted to stream music to my speakers but it's just hopeless.

 

[mstrze]

Last things I can think of: since your MacBook's Airport card allows 802.11n Wifi , make sure through your Airport Utility that your AEBS is indeed broadcasting an 'n' signal. AND if this is your only wifi device, you can set this up as a 5Ghz 802.11n ONLY signal and avoid a heck of a lot of interference. Setting it as a dual g/n or a/b/g/n at 2Ghz can lead to more interference so if you can get away with 5GHz 802.11n you will be much better off.

Also, there is a setting in the Utility for "Interference Robustness"...click this either on or off...whatever is the opposite of where it is now. Sometimes this helps with 'noisy' areas.

 

[Hrothgar]

I have an Airport Extreme router, but use an Express to stream iTunes to my receiver. I find that it will work fine for weeks, then one night it will constantly drop the signal. power-cycling doesn't help. The next day, it will be fine again for a while.

 

[mstrze]

I have an Airport Extreme router, but use an Express to stream iTunes to my receiver. I find that it will work fine for weeks, then one night it will constantly drop the signal. power-cycling doesn't help. The next day, it will be fine again for a while.

Sounds like interference. On some nights, the local atmosphere can magnify signal like this. It's the same reason why you can sometimes pick up radio or TV signals from hundreds of miles away.

Or maybe a local 'neighbor' does something that cuases interference very intermittently and you are only synced with his or her schedule once every few weeks?

 

[pprior]

I've read that (somewhat counterintuitively) -reducing- signal strength can improve this issue. Something to do that higher levels start causing more interference or conflict with other devices, etc.

Never tried it myself, but maybe worth a shot - it's easy to change in airport utility.

 

[mstrze]

I've read that (somewhat counterintuitively) -reducing- signal strength can improve this issue. Something to do that higher levels start causing more interference or conflict with other devices, etc.

Never tried it myself, but maybe worth a shot - it's easy to change in airport utility.

This is spot on! Just like with new digital TV broadcasting in the US, having an amplifier on the antenna often makes for a poorer signal.