Asus RT-N65U 5ghz Range problem

[freakdemon]

I have just upgraded my wireless to a ASUS RT-N65U Router and a Amped Wireless SR20000G. The Asus came highly recommended and the Amped wireless extender/repeater is supposed to be the best you can get.

I recieved the Asus about a week ago and everything set up great other than the range of my 5Ghz Wi-Fi. I cannot get 12 feet away from the router and I lose all signal. I then set it up manually, 1. Wireless Mode:N Only 2. Control Channel:161 3. Channel Bandwidth:40Mhz 4. WPA2-Personal 5. AES

With this I also toyed with the other settings but these seemed the standard for 5Ghz, and I left the 2.4Ghz settings as they are from set-up. All settings to Auto except the channel bandwidth as 20/40 (I have tried 20Mhz but it made no difference.

I have not even got to the extender set up since if the router will not set up no point in setting that up.

Here's the thing, I did call Asus Technical support. I reluctantly allowed him remote access but I got his info first and new I could shut him down at any time. He poked and prodded a little and did the most basic checks you can do, came back and told me there were conflicts that he saw but "can't remember where he saw" them and he wanted me to get transferred to a tech who would CHARGE me to fix it. LITTLE did he know, I am a Computer System Technician/Programmer/Microsoldering specialist of 28 years. This problem with the 5Ghz Wi-Fi is usually an easy fix but not this time and I felt since it was less than a week old they should at least have the knowledge of their product to let me know what I possibly missed. NO they did not and once again are showing how POOR their support is.

So, Why I have come to Tom's is to see if anyone else has any ideas. Btw I have a AMD 8350 8-core 32gb G.Skill 12600 DDR3 AsRock Extreme 9 MB 1200W EVGA PS and dual EVGA Titan Video cards.

I also have what is called Ultimate 60 through Cogeco. The best you can get from them.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[bill001g]

I would suggest you do not use channel 161. This block of channels is very complex regulation wise. Some countries forbid its use and other require reduced power to be used. You may have a router that is running at low power on those channels.
I would try to use the lowest channels you can. Most countries allow these to run at full power and not shut themselves off if they detect weather radar. The middle blocks of channels are the ones subject to the weather radar rules.

 

[wirelessnut]

5 Ghz range will usually be shorter than 2.4.
This is due to higher frequencies having shorter wavelengths. Shorter wavelengths do not penetrate solid objects like walls very well.

But 12 feet is certainly not right unless your immediate area is surrounded by lots of metal or dense building materials.

What is the wifi card in your AMD box? Loose antenna or maybe connected a single band antenna instead of a dual band antenna?

 

[freakdemon]

I have tried all ranges on the 5Ghz to no avail, I do own a large house but it is new and very open. My Main tower is in my Office along with one other that is wired direct to the router. My goal is to extend the signal throughout the house, this is why I got the Amped Wireless 10,000 sq/ft. Extender/repeater. Any other towers use a Dual Band ea2500 Cisco Net adapter, all laptops use Broadcom internal which is fairly standard other than the odd Atheros adapter. My office has to be on Cat5 (direct) and my shop is in the process of being finished and will be running a switch, not sure how many ports yet. As stated my goal is to get the best I can get and maximize the Wi Fi for the house, if I can get the 5Ghz to act right.

 

[bill001g]

If you can see the router ie no doors or walls etc and it still does not work then I would be suspect of defective equipment someplace. It easily goes more than 50ft at max level. Now if you have walls and doors in the way all bets are off. I know there is a UV rating on the windows at my office building that completely blocks 5g as well as 2.4.....kills cell phones pretty good too. So it does not take a lot to block the signal. It should have no issues in most houses though.

 

[freakdemon]

Well, after doing quite a bit of figuring I finally got it. One wall was partially blocking the router so it was throwing off the range of the 5Ghz only (When I say partial, it is so slight one could hardly tell)

1. I disconnected Modem, Router and Extender
2. I hooked up just the router to my computer seeing it as a lone system and reset the modem
3. During this time I reset the router then powered it down
4. I then hooked the modem to the router with no other computers present but my own and configured the router.
5. After configuration I went to almost double the range on 5Ghz
6. I then set up a laptop connected to the extender within 2 ft. of the router and configured the extender.
7. This time I got a full 100% on the 2.4 and 92% signal on the 5 (Amped requires a minimum of 70% on both signals to pretty much work at all)
8. When configuration was done I unplugged the extender, moved it to the room it was to stay in and now I get a signal so strong (they do say 10,000 square ft, on the extender) i get 5 bars in the whole house, no dead spots to be found and I pull 4-5 bars on my 2.4 at my neighbors house who is not just right next door since he has a big property and house also.

In the end it was a tricky configuration. I do recommend the Asus RT-N65U router although do not expect to get any customer support ( I have filed a complaint with Asus and will post on their forums.)
As far as the Amped Wireless SR20000G, it totally lives up to everything they advertised. I cannot believe the range from it and quality of signal once it is finally set up. I am going to go for a walk with my cell, Galaxy S4 Octa-core 64gb, and see how far i can go before i lose signal.

Thanks for everyone's reply