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extending my wireless network in my home

J

johnnyyt

macrumors member
Original poster
Feb 22, 2013
67
0
stupidly, my modem is setup at one end of my house. the router im currently using is a linksys e2000 but it doesnt give me the range im looking for.

ive decided on buying an airport extreme to go along with my new rMBP. :)
im debating between either buying the 5th gen airport extreme or the newer 6th gen extreme. are there any significant differences in range and performance?

i will also be getting an airport express as well to extend my network and to cover any deadzones.
 
I would get the newest version. There are couple threads on here from users reporting better signal penetration even while on N wifi, likely due to the improved antenna design of the new model. Plus you future proof yourself with 802.11AC.

I have the new Time Capsule (tower), and notice my iPhone on wifi holds a good signal at a much greater distance than the previous gen. did.
 
While the new antenna might help you, it might not. And sounds like you'll have non 802.11ac stuff for a while. I think it's unfortunate that the AEBS still doesn't allow attachment of an external antenna...Apple seems to have a thing about antennas. :confused:

And before you buy an Express to extend the range, consider an adapter for that rMBP. Perhaps somebody is making a USB stick that receives 802.11ac, and depending on your sensitivity it may receive the 802.11ac signal better than the older signals. And the Express doesn't do 802.11ac so it can only deliver the older stuff.

That wouldn't help if you have other wifi needs, but you didn't specify what else you're trying to connect.
 
robgendreau said:
While the new antenna might help you, it might not. And sounds like you'll have non 802.11ac stuff for a while. I think it's unfortunate that the AEBS still doesn't allow attachment of an external antenna...Apple seems to have a thing about antennas. :confused:

And before you buy an Express to extend the range, consider an adapter for that rMBP. Perhaps somebody is making a USB stick that receives 802.11ac, and depending on your sensitivity it may receive the 802.11ac signal better than the older signals. And the Express doesn't do 802.11ac so it can only deliver the older stuff.

That wouldn't help if you have other wifi needs, but you didn't specify what else you're trying to connect.
Click to expand...

I don't have any devices that are using wireless AC and I probably won't have any for the next little while. I'm trying to extend the range to the other end of my house so that I can use multiple devices all around my house. It's not just my rmbp but I also have phones, an ipad, and a couple ps3s as well.
 
robgendreau said:
...I think it's unfortunate that the AEBS still doesn't allow attachment of an external antenna...Apple seems to have a thing about antennas. :confused:
Click to expand...

I am not sold on external antennas. A friend of mine got an ASUS AC router recently with external antenna with the idea of sending the signal to his detached garage which is about 200 ft away. Well, the signal was pretty weak, so I suggested that he got a replacement directional antenna from ASUS which is made for that router. Long story short, the replacement arrived, and with a bit of aiming and playing with power out, it helped boosted the signal about 10% at the expense of signal in other directions in seemed.

However, the ASUS AC router was significantly better than his old N router even for N clients. After his experience and my spending time trying to help him boost the signal, I consider external antenna not that helpful. I did consider making a coffee can antenna for him, but then again I understand if you focus the energy in one direction, you lose if in other directions. The way I see it is that you have X amount of energy to be broadcasted. Unless your router is at one end of the house and the rest of your clients are at the other end and fit in a directional beam of a directional antenna, putting a directional antenna on a router doesn't really help the situation.

By the way, just for comparison I tested my Time Capsule AC against his ASUS ASUS RT-AC66U with external antenna for distance, and the Time Capsule AC does at least as good if not better than the ASUS.

So, I don't know how well the 5th gen TC performs, but if it is anything close to the new one, and if OP currently can get some signal with the old linksys e2000, I suspect the 5th gen TC will do just fine. Just speculating. But this is a long term purchase, so I would go with the new TC because chances are I will be stuck with it for a while and I am doubtful the saving is that great going with the old one.
 
You might try a range extender
http://www.ampedwireless.com/mobile/products/rec10.html

It allows you to goto the farthest spot and then attach to the main wifi and then boost it
 
johnnyyt said:
stupidly, my modem is setup at one end of my house. the router im currently using is a linksys e2000 but it doesnt give me the range im looking for.

ive decided on buying an airport extreme to go along with my new rMBP. :)
im debating between either buying the 5th gen airport extreme or the newer 6th gen extreme. are there any significant differences in range and performance?

i will also be getting an airport express as well to extend my network and to cover any deadzones.
Click to expand...

I have both 5th and 6th gen. My 6th gen is the time capsule model. It does have better coverage on wireless n. takes up less space. Looks really cool. Also the TC is very convenient for Time Machine particularly if you run MacBooks.
 
Rnichols said:
You might try a range extender
http://www.ampedwireless.com/mobile/products/rec10.html

It allows you to goto the farthest spot and then attach to the main wifi and then boost it
Click to expand...

I think range extender is the last resort as the performance is going to be compromised. It's something you get when you can't find a wireless router that can sufficiently cover all the area you want and can't add another router (wired) to extend the range.

I would go with either the latest TC or Wireless Extreme and be done. Why make thing complicated. If you really want to save the money, try another wireless N router that has the reputation of long range like an ASUS.
 
meistervu said:
I think range extender is the last resort as the performance is going to be compromised. It's something you get when you can't find a wireless router that can sufficiently cover all the area you want and can't add another router (wired) to extend the range.

I would go with either the latest TC or Wireless Extreme and be done. Why make thing complicated. If you really want to save the money, try another wireless N router that has the reputation of long range like an ASUS.
Click to expand...

Yea, I had the same thought,then I tinkered with these, they seem to work alot better for some reason.. But they do make routers that have a 10,000 sq ft. coverage too .. So that would more than cover a standard home.
 
Sorry to hi-jack but I am looking to extend my wifi range outside my home. I have a Netgear router that works pretty well in the house. I just hooked up an airport express to my network to stream music to speakers on my patio.

The setup works and I can sit on my patio and airplay from my phone to the express, but if I move a few feet away from the house my phone will lose the wifi signal and the airplay will stop.

Any ideas or suggestions.
 
Last edited:
We have new TC one one end of the house , new Extreme on the other, and great coverage everywhere. I highly recommend the combo.
 
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