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Help w/ Time Capsule w/ DSL modem/WiFi router

S

swingerofbirch

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Oct 24, 2003
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The Amalgamated States of Central North America
I just purchased a 500 GB Time Capsule (woo hoo!) for use with my MacBook.

I currently have a Westell 327W modem/wireless router that came with Verizon DSL.

I haven't received the TC yet, but I'm starting to plan what I'll need to do. I'll still need the Westell for its modem. So I assume the set-up would be phone line to Westell, ethernet from Westell to TC. That sounds simple enough, but will I need to somehow deactivate the wireless signal coming from the Westell?

Thanks!
 
swingerofbirch said:
I just purchased a 500 GB Time Capsule (woo hoo!) for use with my MacBook.

I currently have a Westell 327W modem/wireless router that came with Verizon DSL.

I haven't received the TC yet, but I'm starting to plan what I'll need to do. I'll still need the Westell for its modem. So I assume the set-up would be phone line to Westell, ethernet from Westell to TC. That sounds simple enough, but will I need to somehow deactivate the wireless signal coming from the Westell?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

You won't have to. You could always use the wireless from the Westell for a b/g only network, and your TC for a wireless N only network. Set the TC to 5 GHz, and you won't have much interference from the Westell network (or slowdown from non-N devices accessing your network).
 
When you say for the modem is it because you think that TC wouldn't be compatible for some reason or do you need the ports? I'm asking because I had the AE (Airport Express) before and had a switch (needed a few ports) but the AE was my modem and worked very well with Verizon. Just wondered if or what your reason was ;)
 
Artful Dodger said:
When you say for the modem is it because you think that TC wouldn't be compatible for some reason or do you need the ports? I'm asking because I had the AE (Airport Express) before and had a switch (needed a few ports) but the AE was my modem and worked very well with Verizon. Just wondered if or what your reason was ;)
Click to expand...

Hmmmm...As far as I know neither the AEX or TC have a modem, so I don't quite understand....Internet comes into a house through a phone line or cable line and you need something to convert that into an Ethernet connection or wireless signal. As far as I know the AEX and TC don't have inputs for phone lines or cable lines. That's what the modem is for.
 
swingerofbirch said:
Hmmmm...As far as I know neither the AEX or TC have a modem, so I don't quite understand....Internet comes into a house through a phone line or cable line and you need something to convert that into an Ethernet connection or wireless signal. As far as I know the AEX and TC don't have inputs for phone lines or cable lines. That's what the modem is for.
Click to expand...

Sorry, just found my first one from Verizon, the Westell as it was so small I thought it was a switch and it went to the Airport Express, which worked fine. I had 25ft of cable from the modem to the Express>Express plugged into my outlet in my artroom (back of my basement) and that was it.
I'm now using the wireless Westell 327w from Verizon and it's okay. Sorry for the confusion :eek: However what I had before worked very well FWIW. Now I thought they gave instructions on how to disable the wireless in the Westell modems or at the very least.
Maybe try Westell's website for some info before it gets to your house. I can tell you that the tech service, from my experience, has been great on the Mac side of Verizon because they helped me setup my stuff the first time around with the Express (Apple was terrible help).
My only complaint is when the power has gone out the Westell 327w can be fussy about being reset. It takes about two to three times using a paperclip and holding the reset button for 30 seconds, no power, no phone lines hooked up not even connected to an Xbox, PS3, nothing. Also for some reason and maybe they send something (update or whatever they do) the modem drops out during the night every once in awhile and I have had to reset it (never happened using the other Westell modem with the Express).
So I would think that as long as you have everything plugged in correctly it will work fine for you and once it does wireless printing is great to have BTW.
 
I have this same set up, but I'm still trying to figure out how to configure it optimally. Right now, I have my TC set to just "join" the wifi network created by the Westell 327W because I found, to my surprise, that the Westell seemed to have much better range in my house than the TC. :confused:

I have a new N Express coming tomorrow, I hope, and when it arrives I plan to do some re-configuring, including trying to have the Westell and TC run b/g and N networks alongside each other, with the Express picking up and extending the N network. I also have two separate VOIP ATAs, and they were not playing nice downstream from the TC, so I may see if I can plug them into the Westell so they're running parallel to the TC instead of behind it.
 
Time Capsule and Verizon Westell Wireless Setup Experience

This reply comes a few months after the thread stalled, but it googled high when I was trying to set up my new Time Capsule with my Verizon Westell Wireless DSL Router, so I thought I'd share my results.

First thing I did, under advisement from teh Apple Store Genius, was do my first TC backup for both my MBP and my wife's iMac by telling the AirPort Utility to connect the TC through Ethernet. This was suggested because the first backups would take a very long time over wireless. So I connected the two computers to two ethernet ports on the TC with two ethernet cables, plugged the TC into the power strip, and used AirPort Utility on each of the macs to connect to the Time Capsule. This I did to save time, but I could have done each computer separately if I had only one ethernet cable.

One glitch was that after the MacBook Pro was set up and starting its backup, and I then started to set up the iMac a few minutes later, the Airport Utility on the iMac reset the Time Capsule, stopping the backup on the MBP for a few minutes. It started up again, but that was unexpected.

Anyway, after only about 6 hours, both computers were backed up for the first time.

Then I used Airport Utility to add the TC to my existing network, since the Westell Router has the DSL uplink I need for internet. Time Machine started backing up, but it was really slow.

Then I tried using one of the ethernet cables to connect the TC to my Westell Wireless Router, and used AirPort Utility to add the TC to my existing network again. Within minutes, each of the computers were adding to the existing backups on the TC over the Westell wireless network, and speed was much better. I'm happy.

I do wonder, though, if it would be possible to use the TC as the wireless network, and the Westell as just a DSL modem, and if it would be faster. Right now the Westell is pretty fast, very reliable, and has good range in my house.
 
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