Very high / unexpected speeds from an old router ( DLink Dir-655 ) - am I missing something ?

[ze_undertaker]

Hi people. I am a proud owner of a pretty old by now D-Link Dir 655 router.
However, I got a good deal on a brand new Asus N56U so I purchased it in order to replace the old D-Link thinking it's time for a renewal. Although Murphy said "if it ain't broken, don't fix it", and I was always pleased with the Dlink - I though wtf - 4 years might be enough, and if this one is so good, imagine the new models.

The Dlink is a A3, HW version so pretty old. Firmware is 1.37NA.

Now, bringing the Asus home, all glossy and everything, I though I should conduct some tests. Considering that internet tests are very unreliable, I thought it's best I test the wi-fi speeds on my own local network. So - connected my PC to the routers ( one by one ) via cable ( I have Gigabit on my PC ). Both routers have all ports Gigabit so no advantage there on one over the other. Then, connected my laptop via WI-FI to each router ( that was connected to the PC via ethernet cable ) and started to copy big files ( over 2GB each ) from the PC to the laptop and vice-versa.

My PC's config is: ASRock Z77 Pro 4, i5 3570k, 16GB Ram, Samsung 840 SSD
My laptop is a Sony F22 with an Sandy Bridge i7 2630QM, 8 GB RAM, OCZ Agility 3 SSD
All files were copied from SSD to SSD to keep things as little as depended to anything else but the routers as possible. Also the laptop was fairly close to the routers for this test ( around 2m ).

Results:
- Dlink - a constant 20 MB/s so a 160 mbps line
- Asus 2.4 Ghz - 10 MB/s so a 80 mbps line
- Asus 5 Ghz - 17-18 MB/s so a line of aprox 140 mbps

I also repeated the test the other way around ( copied files from the laptop to the PC ) and the results were the same. So a pretty big win for the Dlink considering it only has a 2.4 Ghz line so it couldn't take advantage of the 5Ghz line.

Next, I though of testing the LAN -> LAN speed - so connected both my PC and Laptop to each router at a time via cables and conduct the same tests.

Results:
- Dlink - a constant 80-81 MB/s so a throughput of 640 mbps
- Asus - a constant 60 MB/s so a throughput of 480 mbps

Although websites like smallnetbuilder say that the throughput is less than 300 mbps I was able to get more than 640 mbps and to be honest, it could be even higher if I'd have faster SSDs. And they also tested newer revisions. Also I was pretty surprised to see that it surclassed the newer ASUS N56U which is getting lots of praises over the net lately. When it comes to range, both performed pretty similar.

Am I missing something? Is there anything wrong with my testing methodology? Is it normal for a 5 year old router to perform THIS GOOD? Could this Dir 655 be an absolute animal and it's being overlooked by users? Perhaps there's something "WRONG" with my sample Are there any other Dir 655 users willing to repeat this test please ?

 

[Pinhedd]

Hi people. I am a proud owner of a pretty old by now D-Link Dir 655 router.
However, I got a good deal on a brand new Asus N56U so I purchased it in order to replace the old D-Link thinking it's time for a renewal. Although Murphy said "if it ain't broken, don't fix it", and I was always pleased with the Dlink - I though wtf - 4 years might be enough, and if this one is so good, imagine the new models.

The Dlink is a A3, HW version so pretty old. Firmware is 1.37NA.

Now, bringing the Asus home, all glossy and everything, I though I should conduct some tests. Considering that internet tests are very unreliable, I thought it's best I test the wi-fi speeds on my own local network. So - connected my PC to the routers ( one by one ) via cable ( I have Gigabit on my PC ). Both routers have all ports Gigabit so no advantage there on one over the other. Then, connected my laptop via WI-FI to each router ( that was connected to the PC via ethernet cable ) and started to copy big files ( over 2GB each ) from the PC to the laptop and vice-versa.

My PC's config is: ASRock Z77 Pro 4, i5 3570k, 16GB Ram, Samsung 840 SSD
My laptop is a Sony F22 with an Sandy Bridge i7 2630QM, 8 GB RAM, OCZ Agility 3 SSD
All files were copied from SSD to SSD to keep things as little as depended to anything else but the routers as possible. Also the laptop was fairly close to the routers for this test ( around 2m ).

Results:
- Dlink - a constant 20 MB/s so a 160 mbps line
- Asus 2.4 Ghz - 10 MB/s so a 80 mbps line
- Asus 5 Ghz - 17-18 MB/s so a line of aprox 140 mbps

I also repeated the test the other way around ( copied files from the laptop to the PC ) and the results were the same. So a pretty big win for the Dlink considering it only has a 2.4 Ghz line so it couldn't take advantage of the 5Ghz line.

Next, I though of testing the LAN -> LAN speed - so connected both my PC and Laptop to each router at a time via cables and conduct the same tests.

Results:
- Dlink - a constant 80-81 MB/s so a throughput of 640 mbps
- Asus - a constant 60 MB/s so a throughput of 480 mbps

Although websites like smallnetbuilder say that the throughput is less than 300 mbps I was able to get more than 640 mbps and to be honest, it could be even higher if I'd have faster SSDs. And they also tested newer revisions. Also I was pretty surprised to see that it surclassed the newer ASUS N56U which is getting lots of praises over the net lately. When it comes to range, both performed pretty similar.

Am I missing something? Is there anything wrong with my testing methodology? Is it normal for a 5 year old router to perform THIS GOOD? Could this Dir 655 be an absolute animal and it's being overlooked by users? Perhaps there's something "WRONG" with my sample Are there any other Dir 655 users willing to repeat this test please ?

That seems about right for a 5 year old high-end router. D-Link has been in the networking business for a very long time. Many of their consumer products are quite good.

 

[ze_undertaker]

I understand this WAS a hi-end router back in the days, but the Asus N56U is no slouch either. Also considered a hi-end model and we're talking about 5 yrs gap. In computer gear that is a century. Now I'm really confused about which one to keep 😀

 

[Pinhedd]

I understand this WAS a hi-end router back in the days, but the Asus N56U is no slouch either. Also considered a hi-end model and we're talking about 5 yrs gap. In computer gear that is a century. Now I'm really confused about which one to keep 😀

In terms of microprocessors 5 years is an eternity but consumer networking has been stagnant for quite some time. Most network switching is done by ASICs that are fairly mature, so there hasn't been a whole lot of improvement outside of the enterprise sector. Keep in mind that 802.11ab (aka gigabit Ethernet) was standardized in 1999 and it's still the dominant standard on PCs. Heck I still use a 24 port gigabit switch that I purchased in the mid-2000s. Most of the improvements to consumer routers have been on the application side, adding new features such as mass storage support, printer support, more flexible routing features and firewalls, etc... It's a bunch of iterative value-added features that only a handful of people use. I have a D-Link GamerLounge router from 2006 that still kicks butt.

 

[digitaldoc]

Your testing methodology is spot on, and clearly the Dlink DIR-655 is the faster model.

I looked up the Asus N565U and while you purchased it "Brand new" it looks like it has been out since 2011, and like the Dlink it is on the N standard, and not the newer AC one. It also gets listed as having transfer speeds of 300, so I would not expect it to be any faster than the Dlink.

Long story short- return the Asus, keep the ol' Dlink, and save the dough for when the Dlink no longer serves your needs.

http://www.amazon.com/ASUS-Dual-Band-Wireless-N-Router-RT-N56U/dp/B0049YQVHE