[SOLVED] WiFi vs Powerline for new build

[ndirishkmk]

I’m putting together a new budget build and with some help from a few of you on here I settled on the config below. My question is around networking. I don’t have an Ethernet connection in my office. Is my best bet a WiFi card or Powerline (router is in the next room)? Any suggestions on specific products? Thanks!

CPU: Ryzen 1600 AF
Motherboard: MSI B450M PRO-M2 MAX Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory
Storage: ADATA XPG SX6000 Pro 256 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon RX 570 4 GB GAMING Video Card
Case: Phanteks Eclipse P300A Mesh ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply: Corsair CX (2017) 450 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply

 

[richiestang_78]

If it were me and the router was in the next room I would just run a Ethernet cable through the wall.

However between wifi and powerline I would say it depends. For wifi if you have a lot of devices, or its a 2.4ghz router then you may have speed and signal instability. If its a more modern 802.11 N or AC then you should be good since they both have 5ghz modes and being in the next room the wall shouldn't interfere too much with the signal.

For powerline adapters the issues can be the following, if your home/building has old wiring then you may have speed and stability issues. If you live in a apartment/condo and you have a shared electrical circuit then your data/network may not be secured since anyone with a adapter can access your network from there eletrical circuit. I think some of the newer adapters have better encryption to prevent this but Im not sure.

 

[ndirishkmk]

The router is in the next room but it is on the far end and I'm not sure it is feasible to run a cord, but I'll definitely investigate this option! I do have a lot of devices on the WiFi but it is a newer router with both N/AC capability. I do live in a single family house that's just under 20 years old, so I shouldn't have an issue with shared electrical but that's definitely something I didn't know!

Any recommendations on specific products either way?

 

[GarrettL]

I looked into power line too and another issue is how your house is wired can have an impact on performance. At times it can be similar to wifi.

 

[richiestang_78]

The router is in the next room but it is on the far end and I'm not sure it is feasible to run a cord, but I'll definitely investigate this option! I do have a lot of devices on the WiFi but it is a newer router with both N/AC capability. I do live in a single family house that's just under 20 years old, so I shouldn't have an issue with shared electrical but that's definitely something I didn't know!

Any recommendations on specific products either way?

Even 5ghz will suffer some stability issues when there are lots of active devices. Your home should be fine with a power line adapter being modern.

As far as running an Ethernet cable, its quite easy especially if you arent trying to run a network. These https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Pass-Through-Wall-Port/dp/B07MVND474 are nice since all you have to do is drill a hole, put this in it and pass a cable through. And then if you ever want to the hole would be easy to patch. You can run the cable along the base boards using some cable staples.

 

[ndirishkmk]

Even 5ghz will suffer some stability issues when there are lots of active devices. Your home should be fine with a power line adapter being modern.

As far as running an Ethernet cable, its quite easy especially if you arent trying to run a network. These https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Pass-Through-Wall-Port/dp/B07MVND474 are nice since all you have to do is drill a hole, put this in it and pass a cable through. And then if you ever want to the hole would be easy to patch. You can run the cable along the base boards using some cable staples.

This is really interesting, thanks! Will I see any degradation of speed if I have to run a line that's 100 ft or so?

 

[richiestang_78]

This is really interesting, thanks! Will I see any degradation of speed if I have to run a line that's 100 ft or so?

You should be fine, I think 300 feet is the maximum for Ethernet cable.

 

[ndirishkmk]

Update on this, when I looked at wiring, I noticed that there's already cat5e wiring running to the room. However, it is spliced and connected to a regular phone jack. Is there a way that I can fix this and use it for ethernet instead (don't need the phone jack)? How would I go about "reassembling" the wiring and adding the actual jack connector?