Wireless repeater??

[#1]

We have had our conservatory converted with a proper roof, and made it more into a lounge. I've put a TV in there with a Blu-ray and one of our Roku express boxes. Router, a Plusnet hub2 that's works fine is at the front of the house. We get pretty good wireless coverage around the house, my phone in the conservatory on 5ghz is getting around 60mbps, my wife's that's on 2.4ghz around 30mbps, on a connection of almost the full 80/20. Oddly the Roku box is only getting 6mbps, but it says signal etc all good. It's HD only, so that's likely enough, but wondered if a wireless repeater would be helpful. Streaming through it is ok with pretty good quality, or should I just leave alone. Signal on 5ghz is -64dBm in the conservatory according to wifiman. Any advice?

[#2]

Have a look at this

https://community.roku.com/t5/Wi-Fi-connectivity/Poor-download-speed-but-my-internet-is-400mbps/td-p...

It would appear that this is not uncommon with some roku boxes. So I doubt a wireless repeater will help much.

[#3]

Thanks for that, I'll have look at the signal strength etc. It seems to stream fine, and didn't glitch. When it was in my bedroom, which is directly over router was getting 33mbps. Maybe as it's streaming fine I should stop fussing 😯

[#4]

@penfold 

Although not the cheapest option would it be possible to run an ethernet cable from the router to the lounge?

If you live in a detached or semi detached property the cable could be external, terminated at either end by ethernet wall plugs. In the "lounge" you could install a WiFi Access Point (WAP) or a powered ethernet switch which would allow hard wiring of the TV and other devices.

As stated it's not the cheapest option but would give you a solid starting point in the "lounge" and is future proof.

Brian

[#5]

It would be difficult and quite involved. I could use power line networking to a WAP. The Roku box doesn't have an ethernet port. I was hoping to use a mains powered wireless repeater for ease.

[#6]

Whilst not the optimum solution I have a Plusnet Hub 2 and use a TP-Link Mesh dual band WiFi Extender AC1900 (RE550). I installed mine about 12 months ago and have been pleased with the results (my previous old BT branded single band extender did not want to work with the Hub2. I now get a reliable WIFi signal in the two rooms furthest from my router where coverage was previously patchy. Phones, tablets etc, seem to switch seamlessly between the router and the Extender if I move around the house.

I suspect that TP-Link have other and newer models available now but the AC1900 RE550 does still seem to be available from some on-line sellers. There are, of course, other manufacturers of similar equipment.

[#7]

@penfold 

If an external cable is possible, I was thinking along the lines of getting someone in to do it - hence not the cheapest option. It is future proof and no worries about the signal reaching the "lounge".

Powerline adapters may well do the job. Things may be better now but in days of old poeple either liked them or didn't. Make sure you get a pair with sufficient WiFi speed in case (or if) FTTP comes along.

Others may offer advice on what to get. Some have a WAP built into the second unit along with ethernet sockets.

Brian

[#8]

Thanks all for the suggestions. I'll have a look about at best options.

[#9]

If you're considering Powerlines then make sure both units are in a position where they can be plugged into the same electrical circuit, especially if your consumer unit is a split load type with RCDs or has RCBOs. Take the rated spec e.g 1000av with a large pinch of salt, they should be ok up to about 100Mb which is fine for your existing FTTC connection BUT if you are thinking of getting a higher speed Full fibre in future then they will limit the speeds on anything connected via them.

[#10]

Apologies for resurrecting this post. I decided to leave things as they were working, but I've now got a printer in there and it struggles connecting to the wireless. Ethernet is not currently an option so I was looking at the TP link TL-WPA7167 as suggested, as I can keep the same ssids and I already use the 4010 units. Only question I have is how do they cope with wireless that's not split into 2.4 and 5ghz, but combined like the hub 2 does. Thanks 👍

[#11]

@penfold 

Don't know about this device but I had no problem with an RE200, see: https://community.plus.net/t5/Tech-Help-Software-Hardware-etc/Separate-Bands-with-a-Smarthub-2-or-Pl...

[#12]

Just had a thought, not sure why I didn't think of this before. I said ethernet is out of the question, but in essence it's not. The conservatory is wired into the house ring via a 30a trip switch. Long story but it couldn't be wired separately as wiring old even though I have a modern CU. I could use a normal power line adapter in the conservatory and repurpose my hub1 as a wireless access point. I don't know why I'm fussing over having same ssids as printer and Roku box only use 2.4ghz and I can split the network on the hub1. I assume everything else would connect to the strongest network as long as the phones know about it and ignore it if not. Is the guide on the forum the most up to date?

[#13]

@penfold I did exactly that for a neighbour, where the router was at the front of the house and conservatory at the back.

Take the claimed speed of the powerlines with a pinch of salt though!. Using a pair of these https://www.tp-link.com/uk/home-networking/powerline/tl-pa7017-kit/ gives around 150 Mb max connection. 

[#14]

Thanks

I currently use TL-PA4010. I have 2 of them, that feed my sons PC as he prefers ethernet for gaming, and this was the next best thing.  Gets around 60Mbps on an 80/20 connection.

Ill repurpose his Home plug temporally to test.

Would you recommend changing the SSID to match the Master Router or change and split the bands.  The only things that will really connect would be the printer and Roku box.  Phones for some reason keep connected to the 5Ghz network of the master router although signal drops from 40dBm in the living room to 78dBm in the conservatory.  

If FTTP ever comes to my area will maybe upgrade to AV1000 kit

[#15]

Would you recommend changing the SSID to match the Master Router or change and split the bands

It's a bit 'suck it and see' what works best for you.

I my neighbours case, I used different SSIDs and channel numbers.  I'm pretty sure that his next-door had recently moved their router/AP and it was now close to the conservatory. He had an Eero that was not being used, so I put that on the end of the powerline in the conservatory configured as an AP.