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Need help extending my wireless network
SirSkyRider:
Good evening, fellow members of BakaBT.
I have a slight problem with my current gaming setup. I want to access the internet with my gaming devices (atm mainly the PS3), however, my WLAN access point and the devices are in separate rooms on different floors and thus the connection happens to be rather unstable. I have created a diagram which may help you understand my problem and two possible solutions I have thought up.
The right room on GF is my room, were my wireless access device (an Apple AirPort Express) is located (blue rectangle). The room on 2F is where my gaming devices are located (orange rectangle) and is the only room in the house where I don't get a good connection with them. The red line marks the rough way the connection is right now (which isn't working).
Solution 1 (green): I get a repeater and install it in the room above mine. It may also be possible to use an AirPort Extreme as an access device in this case and use the Express as the repeater.
Solution 2 (yellow): I get a new access device (or a router that can be reprogrammed as such) and two repeaters. In this case, I'd probably abandon the AirPort Express, since it can only be used in combination with an AirPort Extreme and this may turn out too costy.
Optional solution (dunno yet if this can work): I turn on the WLAN on our home router and amplify it with two repeaters.
Now to my questions:
1. Which solution do you think would be the best (both technically and cost-wise)?
2. Should I quit using the AirPort system altogether?
3. Which access devices, routers and repeaters would you recommend?
kitamesume:
1) don't use a repeater, introduces really insane latencies, and cut's overall bandwidth by half.
2) why not move both devices on the 1F right room? costs the least (only costs the trouble of re-placing them)
3) if option 2 is not possible, although first see if you could put an external antenna on the apple express, buy a 9-12dB antenna and place it near the center of your diagram (connection wise, a straight vertical line is shorter than a diagonal line.)
4) if option 3 is not possible, i pick question 2 and answer yes.
edit: option 5) quit apple, slowly? nah, try now.
Bob2004:
Assuming the only place where you can connect your router to the internet is where it already is, then the best solution would be to get an ethernet cable set up. Ideally all the way up to the 2nd floor, but even up to the 1st floor then connecting a second wireless access point to it there would be better than using repeaters (since bandwidth is halved when in repeater mode, and latency is increased). Failing that, yeah, two repeaters would be the best option. It all depends on how much money/effort you have available to spend though.
SirSkyRider:
--- Quote from: kitamesume on October 01, 2012, 06:17:24 PM ---1) don't use a repeater, introduces really insane latencies, and cut's overall bandwidth by half.
2) why not move both devices on the 1F right room? costs the least (only costs the trouble of re-placing them)
3) if option 2 is not possible, although first see if you could put an external antenna on the apple express, buy a 9-12dB antenna and place it near the center of your diagram (connection wise, a straight vertical line is shorter than a diagonal line.)
4) if option 3 is not possible, i pick question 2 and answer yes.
edit: option 5) quit apple, slowly? nah, try now.
--- End quote ---
2) entirely not possible, that is my grandma's hobby room and I can't set up a TV there.
3) hmmm... I don't know if that is possible, but I will look into it.
4) like I said... that room is already in use
5) already on it, more or less.
--- Quote from: Bob2004 on October 01, 2012, 06:20:41 PM ---Assuming the only place where you can connect your router to the internet is where it already is, then the best solution would be to get an ethernet cable set up. Ideally all the way up to the 2nd floor, but even up to the 1st floor then connecting a second wireless access point to it there would be better than using repeaters (since bandwidth is halved when in repeater mode, and latency is increased). Failing that, yeah, two repeaters would be the best option. It all depends on how much money/effort you have available to spend though.
--- End quote ---
Eh, I think you misunderstood me a little. This isn't a "router" in the classic sense, but a wireless access device that is connected to a normal ethernet. Which is the next problem – there are only ethernet cables laid out on the ground floor of our house. To make an ethernet access on the other floors would mean quite some construction work and that won't be my call to make.
Another option I just thought of was the construction of a "bridge" by connecting a second access device to a splitter and from there to my consoles, since my Laptop gets full connection through 802.11n WLAN (which my consoles don't support). Any thoughts on this?
Bob2004:
Ahh, so just a wireless bridge then? OK, yeah I did misunderstand you.
As for laying a cable upstairs, I wasn't thinking of anything that would require much in the way of construction work - more like have it run along the top of the skirting board, up the stairs, and under the door (or potentially through a small hole or groove drilled in the corner of the door, or the door frame - though that would be more major), held in place using those cable clip things you can get for exactly that purpose. Chances are you have some cables running around your house like that already. You could do it yourself with minimal difficulty, though obviously you'd still want to double check it's OK with the owner of the house first.
You might also want to check that you don't have any phone sockets (if using ADSL) or cable sockets (for cable internet) on the first floor. If so, connecting your modem and AP to that might solve the problem (although it may impact the speed of your net connection, depending on the quality of the wiring in your house).
And finally, there are those power line networking things which plug into power sockets and use the power cables to provide networking. I don't know how good they actually are, and my advice would be to use it only to connect one or two things at most (so connect your games console to your router, and not do anything else with it). Could be worth looking into though, since it's become a relatively cheap option nowadays, and I have actually heard good things about it.
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