Alternatives to Powerline Adapters

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StarBlazer

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#207638 6-Jan-2017 10:11

I bought a Powerline kit (DHP-W313AV) to solve a wi-fi deadspot in the far bedroom, but could not get it to work. I could get the units to only sync on certain sockets in the house which of course didn't include the socket where I need the wi-fi. I'm not looking at wi-fi extenders for obvious reasons.

I'm no expert on networking technologies, and according to the wife I need to keep it cheap - she complained at $150 for the D-Link Kit! I've looked at the Ubiquiti type APs but don't really understand what I need and they don't really fit in the cheap bracket. I could stretch to around $200 but I'll have to cash in some brownine points...

I can run CAT6 from the router (FritzBox 7490) via a patch into the garage (the bedrooms are above the garage) where I also have power, although limited sockets - however POE could be an option, I presume I would need a power injector for that. The cable would be around 10-15 meters depending where the unit ends up.

The question is what are my options? For example a cheap/used router capable of being run in AP mode - suggestions as to which model I could use would be great; wireless AC/N would be best.

It will be used by my two daughters, phones stuff mainly; Social Media, Browsing, Spotify, some YouTube and Netflix. Needs to be able to connect to the primary network for access to the NAS. The biggest problem is that the phones keep losing the connection to the wi-fi so it uses up all their mobile data.

Thanks in advance.

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#1699243 6-Jan-2017 10:14

Cable is the way to go and a power injector is a simple solution.

Jase2985

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#1699246 6-Jan-2017 10:17

dont the access points come with POE injectors? all you need is power at one end of the network cable to plug in the injector

the Cheaper unifi one is only 802.11n and its about $150 https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/NETUBI1038/Ubiquiti-UniFi-UAP-24GHz-N300-300Mbps-Indoor-Wirel

the 802.11ac version is about 190. https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/NETUBI1228/Ubiquiti-UniFi-UAP-AC-LITE-Dual-band-AC1200-300867

Dynamic

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#1699249 6-Jan-2017 10:21

A directional antenna on a WiFi access point that supports external antenna can make a notable difference as the signal is focussed rather than spread 360 degrees. Here is one example

Alternatively you can try making your own parabolic reflector

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hio77

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#1699255 6-Jan-2017 10:36

Jase2985:

dont the access points come with POE injectors? all you need is power at one end of the network cable to plug in the injector

the Cheaper unifi one is only 802.11n and its about $150 https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/NETUBI1038/Ubiquiti-UniFi-UAP-24GHz-N300-300Mbps-Indoor-Wirel

the 802.11ac version is about 190. https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/NETUBI1228/Ubiquiti-UniFi-UAP-AC-LITE-Dual-band-AC1200-300867

depends on the product.

all the ones you listed will do POE natively with their own injectors.

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StarBlazer

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#1699258 6-Jan-2017 10:46

Unfortunately the Fritz doesn't have external antennae.

Looking at the Ubiquiti gear, do I need any other equipment? Does the AP just plug straight into any router (via the POE adapter)? How difficult are they to configure once connected?

Thanks

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Mattmannz

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#1699277 6-Jan-2017 11:38

They are pretty easy to setup, they have some controller software but it doesn't need to be running all the time, you can do initial configuration and then turn it off again. There is also a Cloud key option if you don't want to have your own controller.

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Jase2985

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#1699281 6-Jan-2017 11:42

i believe @michaelmurfy has a cloud option for the unifi devices

BarTender

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#1699420 6-Jan-2017 15:03

Plenty of cheap last gen APs on trademe. But I would always go for one that is dual 2.4 & 5g as 2.4 depending on where you live is mostly congested.

Hammerer

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#1699484 6-Jan-2017 17:02

StarBlazer:

I bought a Powerline kit (DHP-W313AV) to solve a wi-fi deadspot in the far bedroom, but could not get it to work. I could get the units to only sync on certain sockets in the house which of course didn't include the socket where I need the wi-fi. I'm not looking at wi-fi extenders for obvious reasons.

I'm no expert on networking technologies, and according to the wife I need to keep it cheap - she complained at $150 for the D-Link Kit!

You should start with the socket in the wi-fi deadspot and then try to connect to the other sockets. Once you know it works then you can reconfigure to make the adapter at the centre of your network your main one.

The main reasons why they don't work:

* Not connecting directly to the socket. Don't use power-boxes, surge protectors or anything else designed to degrade or interfere with high-frequency signals.

* Old wiring. Old switchboard. Old fuse-box.

* Connecting through a built-in electrical filter or meter. Again this includes surge-protectors but often people aren't aware of additional electrical devices 'hidden' in their ceiling or walls.

* Connecting to circuits on different switch-boards. We can connect to an external garage because the switchboard is in the house. If we had a separate switchboard then we probably wouldn't be able to do that. Having said that i've seen the old ones work between different houses.

* Total cable length between the sockets is too long.

* Getting what you pay for. All products are not created equal. i would always check reviews of tests before buying. The most robust (i.e. likely to stay connected) doesn't necessarily have the highest speed. Even among the best brands they can have models that just don't work very well.

ANglEAUT

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#1699671 7-Jan-2017 01:02

Hi.

Have you looked at the excellent guide by @raytaylor about extending Wi-Fi in your house?

As mentioned above, @michaelmurfy has a Unify CloudController that you can use should you choose a UniFi AP. (It is my understanding that you actually don't need the Controller all the time. You can use the mobile app to configure the device and leave it at that.) Remember that a Wi-Fi extender needs to sit somewhere where there is Wi-Fi signal so that it can then boost / extend the signal (& performance drops).

Sounds like what you are looking for is something like Eero (expensive) which creates a wireless mesh network in your house. Apparently, the UniFi APs can do that as well. Looking around, there is also talk of Open-Mesh.

Please keep this GZ community vibrant by contributing in a constructive & respectful manner.

michaelmurfy

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#1699676 7-Jan-2017 01:17

Yes I'd recommend going the UniFi AP route - I have a cloud controller you can use.

Depending on your budget the UniFi AC LR will suit you well. You could also grab another UniFi AC access point (maybe the Lite) for the other end of the house and power them via PoE. It literally takes a couple of minutes to adopt them to the cloud controller and from there you can configure your whole network from a nice web interface.

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StarBlazer

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#1700254 8-Jan-2017 16:29

Hammerer:
StarBlazer:

I bought a Powerline kit (DHP-W313AV) to solve a wi-fi deadspot in the far bedroom, but could not get it to work. I could get the units to only sync on certain sockets in the house which of course didn't include the socket where I need the wi-fi. I'm not looking at wi-fi extenders for obvious reasons.

I'm no expert on networking technologies, and according to the wife I need to keep it cheap - she complained at $150 for the D-Link Kit!

You should start with the socket in the wi-fi deadspot and then try to connect to the other sockets. Once you know it works then you can reconfigure to make the adapter at the centre of your network your main one.

The main reasons why they don't work:

* Not connecting directly to the socket. Don't use power-boxes, surge protectors or anything else designed to degrade or interfere with high-frequency signals.

* Old wiring. Old switchboard. Old fuse-box.

* Connecting through a built-in electrical filter or meter. Again this includes surge-protectors but often people aren't aware of additional electrical devices 'hidden' in their ceiling or walls.

* Connecting to circuits on different switch-boards. We can connect to an external garage because the switchboard is in the house. If we had a separate switchboard then we probably wouldn't be able to do that. Having said that i've seen the old ones work between different houses.

* Total cable length between the sockets is too long.

* Getting what you pay for. All products are not created equal. i would always check reviews of tests before buying. The most robust (i.e. likely to stay connected) doesn't necessarily have the highest speed. Even among the best brands they can have models that just don't work very well.

Thanks for the additional information. Unfortunately after hours of trying various plugs and configurations the kit went back to the shop. The main unit was set up in the cupboard with the rest of the network kit and plugged directly into the wall socket. Only two sockets in the house were able to obtain a connection. Even moving the second unit from one wall in the kitchen to another wall in the kitchen made it fail, moving it back to the first socket got a connection immediately after it had rebooted.

I had the electrics upgraded 9 years ago with modern fuse board which does have RCD protection. There are two rails on the board and admittedly sockets appear to have been added to the positions randomly. The garage is on its own fuse and has a separate board in the garage too, but as I said I was unable to get a solid setup in the main part of the house.
Thanks

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StarBlazer

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#1700256 8-Jan-2017 16:40

michaelmurfy:
Yes I'd recommend going the UniFi AP route - I have a cloud controller you can use.

Depending on your budget the UniFi AC LR will suit you well. You could also grab another UniFi AC access point (maybe the Lite) for the other end of the house and power them via PoE. It literally takes a couple of minutes to adopt them to the cloud controller and from there you can configure your whole network from a nice web interface.

Thanks @michaelmurfy
Do I need to have the UniFi AC LR first or can I just buy the lite version and use it directly with my FritzBox? Do they need to be controlled?
I have one dead spot where the 2.4 is flooded with other stronger routers and the 5 doesn't quite reach so mobile phones keep switching to data! Do you have an alternative suggestion - budget is tight and going over $200 will be frowned upon.

I've measured the distance to the likely location of the AP and it's around 20 meters. Is that okay for a Cat6 cable?
Thanks

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Jase2985

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#1700257 8-Jan-2017 16:44

they dont need a controller to be on 24/7, you can set it up then turn the controller off.

20m is fine for Cat6, and the lite version should be fine if your using it with the fritz's wifi at the other end of the house

michaelmurfy

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#1700258 8-Jan-2017 16:53

@StarBlazer Whilst you don't need the controller it is good to have for additional features, firmware updates etc. Since I have the cloud controller running this isnt an issue. You can just grab the UniFi AC-Lite and test performance with that as it'll still be far better than your Fritz!Box.

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