Please help with my confusion over 2 routers

[#1]

Hello,

I have Plusnet Fibre, with a SAGEMCOM router supplied by Plusnet. I also have an Apple Airport Extreme for Time Machine backups. I find that the Airport generally has a much stronger signal to my computer (which is upstairs; the routers are in a cupboard under the stairs.) I also have a Synology NAS, connected to the Airport Extreme.

Is there a recommended/optimal way to connect these up? I have been using the Airport as my preferred router, but I thought that ideally I should be using the Plusnet router, as it is supplied with my service, and is the first thing in line to be connected to my BT Fibre gizmo; is this nonsense? At the moment the Airport is physically connected to the Plusnet router, and the NSA to that.

Many thanks,

Ben

[#2]

Why put your router in a cupboard unless you are also in the cupboard?

If you want to make sure that you get an even worse signal place your cupboard inside another cupboard.

Ideally you would use a wired ethernet connection, but most people make do with wifi.

[#3]

Which Sagemcom router do you possess?

Is it the 'Hub One', or 2704n 'Hub Zero' which you connect to a separate Openreach modem?

If you have the 'Hub One', this is your 'main router'.  Turn off the wifi on the 'Hub One' as it doesn't seem like you need it.  Configure your Airport Extreme to use 'bridge mode'.  The NAS can be connected to either Hub One or Airport Extreme.

Alternatively, if you do not use Plusnet TV, you could ditch the Sagemcom, and connect your Airport Extreme directly to a VDSL modem such as the units which Openreach used to supply. (There are two models:  Huawei HG612, and ECI)  The Airport Extreme becomes your 'main router'.

[#4]

Many thanks bill888, I've not yet done this as I've been v busy. I will try out your suggestions tomorrow am and post back.

[#5]

@Ben1

I use an Apple AirPort Express on an ethernet cable plugged in to another router (a Draytek as it happens) and this works well.

My Draytek does just 2.4GHz WiFi and the AirPort separate 5GHz and 2.4GHz networks.

Just plug it up to your main router and the AirPort utility will help you configure it correctly.

[#6]

I have the 2704n, so the Hub Zero. Is the Hub One a more recent one than router Zero? I don't have Plusnet TV, so I think I will look into the VDSL modems. If I start using Plusnet TV, would I receive a Hub One, and would that be advantageous?

I now seem to have developed a new problem; despite speedtest.net telling me my speeds are 46Mb dl / 9Mb ul (the fastest I've ever measured ironically) all speeds/connections seem to have slowed to a crawl; web pages are taking 5 minutes minimum to load, and often don't load properly at all or else don't 'draw' any images completely if at all. I don't know if my new problem is related to these 2 routers, I thought that perhaps they are competing with one another? The speed/connection issue is ridiculous.

As there don't seem to be any such speed problems with my iPhone (its what I used to test the speeds), I assume that its a problem with my computer (which as I mentioned is a few rooms and a floor away from my router but has never been a problem before.) I don't appear to have a virus. 

Regards,
Ben

[#7]

Thanks markhawkin 

[#8]

If you are using the 2704n with plusnet fibre, then I think you should find the 2704n is wired to an Openreach VDSL modem.  

If you decide to remove the 2704n and connect the Airport Extreme to the Openreach modem, see this old thread which may help you set up the Airport Extreme.

https://community.plus.net/t5/Broadband/Another-Airport-Extreme-connection-problem/td-p/1118892/page...

The Hub One is a dual band wifi router (rebadged BT Home Hub 5 type A) which Plusnet started to offer to Plusnet fibre customers from last November.  The Hub One also has a built in VDSL modem.

As far as I am aware, both Hub One and Hub Zero support Plusnet TV services.

With regards to your new PC issue, to eliminate issues which may be caused by poor wifi, what happens when you connect the PC direct to Hub Zero or Airport Extreme using ethernet cable ?  

[#9]

Thank you, I will get to it...

[#10]

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@Ben1 wrote:

As there don't seem to be any such speed problems with my iPhone (its what I used to test the speeds), I assume that its a problem with my computer (which as I mentioned is a few rooms and a floor away from my router but has never been a problem before.) I don't appear to have a virus.

---

I have cracked the issue with my computer crawling to a snails pace, I needed to zap the PRAM, which after I did it has returned the computer (and dare I say it, the loading of web pages, emails etc etc) to normal speeds. Dumb of me not to have thought of this before.

I will explore the idea of moving the router. The reason I relocated it under the stairs is to do away with (or conceal) the mass of cables that its easy to accumulate. I asked the BT engineer to site the BT fibre box there, I didn't realise that having the router in the cupboard under the stairs as well could be problematic. Is there a limit to how long an ethernet cable can be? I could try and re-site the router out of the cupboard (it doesn't need to go all the way to where my computer is.)

Thanks again.

[#11]

@Ben1

The mention of Parameter RAM (PRAM) suggests that the computer you are having trouble with is an old MAC.

Hopefully the problem remains fixed. If not and you use WiFi for this computer, I had a load of WiFi issues with a computer which were finally sorted by ensuring that the 5GHz WiFi and 2.4GHz WiFi had different SSIDs.

90m is often considered the maximum length for a network cable (actually it's a bit more complex than that but 90m will be OK).

[#12]

Actually not markhawkin, its a 2015 iMac! I'll obviously keep monitoring it nut its continued to be stable. I sort of understand what you mean about SSIDs, but I would appreciate a helpful push in the right direction!

[#13]

@Ben1 in that case I don't think it is now called a PRAM.

Leaving that aside, I found all sorts of funnies when I had an Apple Airport Express and both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz networks had the same name (SSID), as they do by default.

The problems considerably lessened when I prefixed the SSID on the 5GHz network with.... 5GHz which can be done via the management app in one of the deeper meus.

My main issue was with a particular Windows 10 machine but during investigation it seems such problems are not uncommon.