Seeking Recommendations for Gigabit Router

[Phaewryn]

It has finally happened - my $5 yard sale gigabit router has died. Or at least it's dropping coverage left and right and my wired gigabit connection is getting speeds that are just absolutely ridiculously slow (90-400mbps) through the router.

I have gigabit fiber service to my home and I have a few requirements that a router needs to meet. I'm hoping I can get some recommendations on routers that will meet all of my needs because honestly it's just kind of overwhelming with everything that's available out there right now, plus I'm finding that many websites don't specifically list the information I need to know and must have to set up my network the same as it is currently. I'm change adverse - and setting up all my smart devices again is a big no.

Things I need the router to do are:

1. Have separate SSIDs for the 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz channels. This is a MUST. My smart home devices will not work if they are not totally seperate SSIDs with different names.

2. Have a guest network. This is a bonus but a strong preference.

3. Get 1000mbps throughput on the wired ethernet connection. This is absolutely necessary. I don't use wireless on my primary device: my ethernet connection needs to be perfect gigabit.

4. Get minimally 300mbps on the wireless connections (preferably more, but gigabit isn't necessary on wifi).

5. Handle the 2.4Ghz traffic/congestion from the numerous smart bulbs, cameras, doorbells, speakers and so forth and not create lag in any of the device connections. This is important because a doorbell isn't very helpful if it rings after the person has given up and left or the smoke detector doesn't alert me until after the place has burned down.

My apartment is a one bedroom, probably 800 square feet or less size place, and I have a small outdoor space that is just outside the room that I would have the router placed in, so I only need the coverage to extend maybe 50 feet, 1 room is going to need coverage through 2 walls. Being able to adjust/lower signal strength so it's not broadcasting to the whole neighborhood would be a bonus.

Please tell me what you're using if you have the same set up and needs. I've been using ASUS routers, and certainly like their interface, but open to other brands. Would like to keep it inside a responsible budget (under $300, but the lower the better if it gets the job done). Of course I'm open to the idea that my budget is unreasonable and I might have to sacrifice other things to afford a new router that does the things I need.

 

[R-T-B]

Get minimally 300mbps on the wireless connections (preferably more, but gigabit isn't necessary on wifi).

You can easily get that on the 5Ghz and up bands, can be a struggle on the 2.4Ghz band though do to the low lane quantity and congestion.

 

[thesmokingman]

I prefer the ugly routers, the ones that look like spiders and crabs.

 

[agent_x007]

I can recommend what I use : https://www.amazon.com/Netgear-R7800-100NAS-Nighthawk-Ethernet-Compatible/dp/B0192911RA (I use mine with Voxel's firmware)

However it doesn't have WiFi 6(A)/7 support (because it's a a bit old :/)
On the other hand it's cheap, so you can buy it and still get something else for get better overall coverage.

 

[Phaewryn]

You can easily get that on the 5Ghz and up bands, can be a struggle on the 2.4Ghz band though do to the low lane quantity and congestion.

Unfortunately, the devices are designed to only work on 2.4GHz so there's nothing I can do about that.

 

[R-T-B]

Unfortunately, the devices are designed to only work on 2.4GHz so there's nothing I can do about that.

You'll likely get 300mbps at short ranges but getting high speed 2.4ghz working is unfortunately, hit and miss. A lot of it depends on your rf environment.

 

[Phaewryn]

I prefer the ugly routers, the ones that look like spiders and crabs.

I would prefer that it has antennas that can rotate down minimally because it really needs to fit under my desk on top of my tower PC which gives about 6 inches of space max for it to wedge into. I can find another spot, but that's probably going to be on top of the Klipsch speaker and bouncy.

You'll likely get 300mbps at short ranges but getting high speed 2.4ghz working is unfortunately, hit and miss. A lot of it depends on your rf environment.

Luckily it all is extremely short-range - my whole apartment is 30 feet max both wide and deep. All the devices are within 25 feet of the router. Actually, reassessing, I think all except 1 lightbulb are less than 20 feet from the router.

 

[Bill_Bright]

Have separate SSIDs for the 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz channels. This is a MUST. My smart home devices will not work if they are not totally seperate SSIDs with different names.

I am not saying you are wrong, but I have a hard time believing this. I have lots of wireless devices (multiple TVs, Roku, cell phones, blue-ray players, laptops, tablets, cameras, security sensors, etc.) and none require separate SSIDs. In fact, my laptops and tablets require both my 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands use the same SSID "if" I want them to automatically select the best band, and automatically switch, if necessary, as I move about the house.

It sounds more like you have a menu option/configuration setting issue.

I would prefer that it has antennas that can rotate down minimally because it really needs to fit under my desk on top of my tower PC

That is far from ideal. The very purpose for having antennas you can reorient is so you can reorient them for the best RF propagation. And that is dependent on the router's location, the wireless device's location, and potential points of interference or signal blockages in between those devices.

Also, sitting a router on top of another electronics device (notably the PCs switching PSU - but other components too) is just asking for EMI/RFI issues.

You need to figure out a better place to sit your router, and maybe even look for one with detachable antennas that you can mount up high.

 

[bonehead123]

^^what Bill said^^

But anyways, I have had excellent luck with several mid-upper range Netgear routers that I have bought over the past 6 years or so....but there are several other good brands out there too.

However, if you value your sanity, stay far, far away from Toilet Paper's stuff...which is IMHO, bottom barrel, crapozoidy garbaggio

 

[Hardi]

finally got 1Gbit fiber to my home too, and went with https://www.amazon.com/ASUS-RT-AX86U-Extendable-Forwarding-Subscription-Free/dp/B0BQ417K47
meets all my requirements and should meet all yours too.
downloading @ 100MB/s atm with no problems

 

[Phaewryn]

Well, I temporarily rented a router from my ISP, and I have to say that after briefly learning the interface, I have another MUST-HAVE: The network map of all my devices in the UI needs to be editable so I can identify devices on the map by a name/alias I assign, not MAC address. I am not impressed with this Calix GigaSpire BLAST U6 that the ISP is providing. Another little irritation is that the default wireless network is a fancy new wifi 6 new-fangled dohickie that my phones can't even use. They get terrible speeds on it, of like 60/50mbps and 53/49mbps, and you can't change anything except the SSID and type of security key. I was able to make both a "guest" network for my own use with both 2.4ghz/5ghz that gets 710/270mbps and 640/200mbps, and a secondary 5ghz only "guest" network that doesn't put any strain on my crowded 2.4ghz frequency but which also gets similar speeds. I'm sure it's just that all my devices are too old to make use of the wifi 6/MU-MIMO technology on that network (my phones only have a single antenna), but it's good to know that it would have been a frustrating waste of my money to buy a router similar to this one only to not be able to use all the newest features it boasts. I'm sure some of the Alexa devices I have running probably can use it, but I don't think I need a major upgrade just to have my doorbell be a little snappier.

I am not saying you are wrong, but I have a hard time believing this. It sounds more like you have a menu option/configuration setting issue.

That's what I get for buying the bottom of the barrel in smart bulbs: https://www.amazon.com/DAYBETTER-Changing-Compatible-Assistant-Multicolor/dp/B096TQWWKW/ will not function if they feel the 5ghz touching them during set-up, and set-up occurs OFTEN as they forget to stay connected pretty regularly: "If your wifi is dual band...you need to connect to the 2.4G only to complete setup. It has to be on the same 2.4G wifi to sync and register."

That is far from ideal. The very purpose for having antennas you can reorient is so you can reorient them for the best RF propagation. And that is dependent on the router's location, the wireless device's location, and potential points of interference or signal blockages in between those devices.

Also, sitting a router on top of another electronics device (notably the PCs switching PSU - but other components too) is just asking for EMI/RFI issues.

You need to figure out a better place to sit your router, and maybe even look for one with detachable antennas that you can mount up high.

Did I forget to say it shares the top of the PC tower with the line conditioner, which sits there click-clicking right beside the router every time the wind blows?
Yeah, I will try to find a better location for the new router. I'm thinking the subwoofer is a marginal improvement, so that's where the loaner is now. If I didn't rent in an apartment with brittle plaster walls, I could do normal things like put up shelves.