Posted: 12/6/2011 6:32:34 AM EDT
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I have a little issue i am trying to work out and could use some help. I have a wired and wireless network active at home but i need to get the signal downstairs and across the house to a smart TV. The house is a 1.5 story and my current "network" is in the bonus room over the garage. The house is a typical rectangle shape and i would say the house is about two two car garages wide. In my perfect world it would be wired but right now that isnt an option. So I've been doing some reading about making routers work like a bridge and using that to extend my network wirelessly. Then I can run my ethernet cable (at a loss of speed i know) to the TV. A side benefit of this is i would get a little better reception for my laptop used wirelessly I think. Then i started thinking why bother trying to convert a router to a bridge vs just getting a bridge. Now im starting to see a cost difference. I see Cisco/ Linksys has a WES610N bridge which looks like the easiest solution but i'm a little worried about how good of a connection im going to see. I have a Belkin router now that is a N but I hate to do all this to get a weak connection. It has 4 ethernet ports on the back which i like in case i add something to the system vs their cheaper option with just one port. I see there are network extenders available to help with the distance im going but ive read they can cause issues with dropped connections and such. I also looked into the powerline deal and im not too sold on that. Another issue is i think I read it needs to be on the same circuit and that wont happen. It also cant be hooked to a surge protector and im not wild about that either. So can any of you give me some ideas on how to make this work without costing too much? Thanks, Major |
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I would suggest two of these and utilize the router original router as just a switch. Use the first ecb3500 as your Access point, then set up the 2nd as your bridge, hook the 2nd one up to a switch and hook up as many devices as you want down or upstairs.
link |
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Quoted:
I would suggest two of these and utilize the router original router as just a switch. Use the first ecb3500 as your Access point, then set up the 2nd as your bridge, hook the 2nd one up to a switch and hook up as many devices as you want down or upstairs. link I've been using a D-link DAP-1360 in my barn as a bridge to my house, but if it craps out I think I'll replace it with this one... that looks nice. I picked up a few WRT54G's at a yard sale this summer, I also thought about putting dd-wrt or tomato on them and trying them out as bridges also. |
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If you want a great product at a great price Google Ubiquiti wifi. These are commercial grade type radios at a price you would pay for a lot of consumer grade bridges. They have lots of options and styles to suit your need. Look at their "M" series of radios. They setup and program very similar to your Belkin or Linksys routers but the big difference is the antenna design and amount of power they are capable of putting out.
Putting DDWRT or other 3rd party firmware on a Linksys will give you the functionality you are looking for but you will still be held back by the hardware on those devices. I have just finished a large wifi project using Ubiquiti equipment and have to say that I am beyond impressed with the results for the cost of their equipment. Just check them out. Also you can find their stuff on ebay as well. |
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We are switching to Engenius WAPs at work and now I will use them at home. The model linked to covers about 200 feet outside a buildin, all metal, known as an accidental faraday cage. we cannot even get AM inside. I myself just purchased one of these from Newegg. Awesome product. Crazy good signal strength. Highly recommend it! |