Poor Wi-Fi Performance on Gigabit Connection

ryan1jz on 15/08/2020 - 11:58

Hello OzB,

I decided to try AussieBroadbands new gigabit connection, 1000/50. Previously, I was on a 100/40 connection and all my speed tests were always maxing out the connection and I was pretty happy.

I have a TP Link AC3150 router, and FTTP to the property. If I connect my iMac directly to the NBN box via ethernet, I get around 550Mbps. When I plug the NBN box into my router, then connect a device such as my PS4 via ethernet through a datapoint, I get between 350-500Mpbs. When I do a speed test on my Macbook Air via WiFi, it will hit around 250Mbps then slowly drop to around 200Mbps. Same when I use WiFi on my iMac, and WiFi on PS4, I haven't seen it go over 100Mbps yet.

I did ring ABB tech support, and was told because the direct ethernet connection is hitting near 600Mbps, (tech support told me their expected speed is 250Mbps) NBN wont do any investigating. I guess 600Mbps is ok (even though I'm paying for gigabit), my PS4 game downloads are nice and fast at least. But I and the tech guy was a bit stumped that the WiFi speed was so poor. All devices are connected to the 5ghz band, it doesn't matter if I'm near or far to the router, I don't get speeds over 250Mbps. I mainly use my laptop which doesn't have an ethernet port anyway.

Does anyone have any thoughts on how I could possibly improve wifi performance? Or should I buy a new router? This one is only two years old and it's performed great up until this point. ABB tech suggestion was to buy a new router, after changing a few settings in the router, (channel width, whatever that is)

I have power cycled the router numerous times (and the NBN box), I've done a factory reset also. Trying ozspeedtest.com nets me 340Mbps as opposed to ABB's own speed test site.

Any input or advice to pump up these rookie numbers is appreciated.

Computing

Comments

  • WoodYouLikeSomeCash on 15/08/2020 - 12:10
    +3

    Might be time for a new router.

  • Twix on 15/08/2020 - 12:20
    +3

    Login to the Aussie BB portal and next to where it says your POI name click on the graph icon and it will show the <POI name> (link number) you're connected to. What does it say for you?

    What year is the iMac and Macbook Air?

    Are you using cat5e or cat6 ethernet cables?

    • ryan1jz on 15/08/2020 - 12:59

      It says, NBN CVC: Ballarat (Link 2) 14/08/2020

      Here is the graph

      https://imgur.com/tm0nFyc

      I'm approx an hour drive from Ballarat.

      My Macbook Air is mid 2013, and my iMac I think is 2010-11

      I'm using cat6 cables.

      • Twix on 15/08/2020 - 13:08
        +3

        There is heaps of spare CVC there. Some older machines are struggling with gigabit using ethernet. Do you have a recent Windows laptop with ethernet or can borrow one off a mate to test the NBN NTD again?

        • ryan1jz on 15/08/2020 - 13:13

          Unfortunately not, my mum got a brand new windows laptop that I'm sure has ethernet, but I'll have to wait til lockdown is over until I can pay her a visit.

          ABB was happy in saying that the speed tests that I got when my iMac was plugged directly into the NBN box was fine, but it's still the wifi that is annoying me right now. Here's the tests with my iMac plugged in via ethernet.

          14-08-2020 08:22:41PM
          Melbourne
          518.92Mbps
          36.5Mbps
          4ms
          14-08-2020 08:22:01PM
          Melbourne
          543.87Mbps
          39.3Mbps
          4ms
          14-08-2020 08:21:17PM
          Melbourne
          515.45Mbps
          34.95Mbps
          4ms

          • Twix on 15/08/2020 - 13:28
            +3

            @ryan1jz: Those results are fairly average for gigabit using ethernet. I know some guys who upgraded their machines and ethernet speed went up to around 940Mbps.

            There is nothing you can do to improve wifi on those older Apple devices. iMac 2010-11 is 802.11n and Macbook Air 2013 is using a early 802.11ac chip.

            • ryan1jz on 15/08/2020 - 13:36
              +1

              @Twix: So perhaps it's not my router but my old macs? (and my Samsung Galaxy s8 plus which is getting the same wifi speeds)

              I'll have to get my hands on a newer laptop to borrow with ethernet and wifi I guess to rule the router out. In saying that, I'd rather it be a $300 router purchase over a new laptop lol. But it's not the end of the world, just a tad disappointing.

              Thanks for your input, more testing needs to be done!

              • Twix on 15/08/2020 - 13:54
                +3

                @ryan1jz: This review shows your router is capable of doing 919Mbps ethernet and 660Mbps wifi.

                I think the bottleneck is the Macs. Yeah more testing on a recent laptop with ethernet is needed and preferably with an SSD.

                • ryan1jz on 15/08/2020 - 14:36
                  +1

                  @Twix: Thanks for finding that! I'll test on another laptop to see what speeds I get. At the same time, I'd like a router that can do gigabit speeds over wifi so I'll look into that in the near future also.

                  I guess I should have done a bit more research before getting a gigabit plan, but maybe now I can justify upgrading my hardware.

                  • Twix on 15/08/2020 - 14:38
                    +4

                    @ryan1jz: To get anywhere close to gigabit using wifi you need a 802.11ax router and 802.11ax chips in your devices. Ethernet is still king!

                    • ryan1jz on 15/08/2020 - 14:43
                      +1

                      @Twix: Perfect, thanks, that's what I'll look out for.

                      Yeah ethernet still is king isn't it. I'm lucky to have a few data points around the house to make use of it for equipment that isn't moving, but would still be nice to get those higher speeds when moving about the house, and to simply be getting what I'm paying for.

                      • jace88 on 15/08/2020 - 18:41
                        +1

                        @ryan1jz: Maybe get a newer router/mesh network which can use an ethernet connection for the backbone and support higher wifi speeds for devices… just keep in mind not all wifi connections (even 5Ghz) are equal. Speed will only be as good as weakest link.

                    • Ramrunner on 18/08/2020 - 11:14
                      +1

                      @Twix: ^— This

                      Despite the advertising hype, as a technician that deals with a lot of WiFi, I've yet to see WiFi hit genuine Gigabit speeds reliably and consistently in any household that has them.

                      With WiFi, basically buy the best WiFi you can (Orbi WiFi6 Mesh seems to be king of reviews for full house speed at the moment), but don't expect it to ever give as good a speed as wired. If it approaches it's max claimed speed you're actually doing really well.

                      Especially with 2.5Gb ethernet speeds starting to hit the home market.

  • whooah1979 on 15/08/2020 - 12:45
    +2

    Are all you nodes MIMO?

    • ryan1jz on 15/08/2020 - 13:01

      I'm not sure what that is sorry, how do I find out?

      • whooah1979 on 15/08/2020 - 13:03
        +1

        Have a look on the box or in the manual. Your WiFi nodes are running at half duplex (1/2 bandwidth) if you don't have MIMO.

        • ryan1jz on 15/08/2020 - 13:06

          The webpage says this: Multiple Reliable Connections — MU-MIMO(Multi-User MIMO) technology allows the router to run several devices at the same time to achieve speeds up to 4X faster than standard AC routers

          • whooah1979 on 15/08/2020 - 13:08
            +1

            @ryan1jz: Your WiFi router may have MIMO but the WiFi will only run as fast as the slowest node.

            • ryan1jz on 15/08/2020 - 13:10

              @whooah1979: I'm really stupid sorry, what is an example of the slowest node? Is that something in my network that I can change with a setting?

              • whooah1979 on 15/08/2020 - 13:13
                +1

                @ryan1jz: Ok.

                My guess would be your Macs (when they're using Wi-Fi). I'm not sure about the PS4.

                Check their specs to see if they're MIMO compatible.

                • ryan1jz on 15/08/2020 - 13:20

                  @whooah1979: You could be onto it, the apple website lists this as the networking specs:

                  802.11ac Wi-Fi networking;3 IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n compatible

                  From a quick read, 2015 and upwards have MIMO compatible WiFi… In saying that, my Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus get the same speeds as my laptop, and that has MIMO according to the Samsung website…

                  Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4/5GHz),VHT80 MU-MIMO,1024QAM

                  Thanks for your input and your help too :)

  • chickenchipsgravy on 15/08/2020 - 14:09

    How much boost on teh juan jay, bruh

  • Iangh on 15/08/2020 - 16:13
    +1

    Need to check max speed of wifi adapter. I recently bought an old Dell 7040 and windows reported max speeds of 800/800. The old PC it replaced was about 250/250. Speed depends on the spec and quality of the adapter. Doesn't matter to me as I have the groundbreaking 50/20 NBN.:)

    For windows, https://www.windowscentral.com/how-determine-wi-fi-and-ether….

    For mac, https://www.tweaking4all.com/os-tips-and-tricks/macosx-tips-….

    • ryan1jz on 15/08/2020 - 18:24

      Thanks for that link, interesting info

      Network Utility reported a link speed of 300Mbps, but my TX rate was listed as 867Mbps…. This is on my Macbook air, this info just confuses me more!

      • Iangh on 16/08/2020 - 09:11

        You can see the difference in ethernet, 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz speeds here for different android boxes, https://androidpctv.com/review-mecool-km1-s905x3-opinion/. A good example of how speed differs due to adapter, bearing in mind they test boxes under the same conditions. Expect the real rate on your kit to be a lot less than the rate reported by WIN10. It's a bit like the MPG for your car; the advertised rate in the brochure was tested under optimal conditions (add cheating for VW), nobody sees that MPG in real-life driving.

        • ryan1jz on 16/08/2020 - 10:39

          Thanks for that link

          It's a bit like the MPG for your car; the advertised rate in the brochure was tested under optimal conditions (add cheating for VW), nobody sees that MPG in real-life driving.

          That's fair enough, the user Twix in this thread found that my max wifi speed with this router is 660Mbps, it would be nice to able to get somewhat close to that, but I think I'll need a newer computer to test to see what my router is actually capable of.

  • greyeye on 16/08/2020 - 08:55

    go read
    https://www.duckware.com/tech/wifi-in-the-us.html

    there are MORE than what router company advertises.
    In a summary, speed depends on the client adaptor, neighbor's radio channel interference. (if you see neighbor's AP appearing on the list of wifi on your computer, there is a good chance that it will SLOW down your wifi)
    And also importantly if you want to perform speed test of wifi, run iperf between two computers (one over wifi, one more ethernet), not Speedtest.net
    most client are 2x2 and WILL NOT reach the max advertised speed regardless.

    • ryan1jz on 16/08/2020 - 10:46

      Thank you for that link, most of it has gone over my head with a quick read but will give it a proper read later today.
      I'll get iperf for mac also and run some tests out of curiosity, according to the user Twix in this thread, my routers max wifi speed is 660Mbps, from the replies in this thread it's seeming like it's my old computers which are the issue, I'll be borrowing a newer laptop once this lockdown is over to see what it can achieve, but I fully understand that I won't be able to get the advertised max speeds.

      I guess I expected to max out, since on my last 100/40 connection I was getting 98/38 constantly, silly me just assumed my hardware would be fine and I'd get top results from the new connection.

  • HeWhoKnows on 16/08/2020 - 10:11
    -4

    "hitting near 600Mbps"

    I dont see any problem.

    OP is chasing super sonic speed for what reason?

    • ryan1jz on 16/08/2020 - 10:30
      +3

      You don't see a problem with only getting half the speed I pay for? And if you had read the title, my main issue is poor wifi speeds compared to ethernet. Everyone in this thread has been super helpful in discussing probable issues, seemingly my old computers, and maybe my router. What have you contributed in this thread?

      I'm chasing a speed that is available to consumers who have FTTP which I do, what concern is it to you what I do with it?

  • BuyOrNot on 16/08/2020 - 12:17

    tech support told me their expected speed is 250Mbps

    So you are paying for 1000 but your expected speed is 250 Mbps. WTF?

    • Twix on 17/08/2020 - 12:04
      +1

      ISPs have to put a busy period speed on all NBN plans. Most results I have seen are consistently doing around 940Mbps.

      • WoodYouLikeSomeCash on 17/08/2020 - 12:08
        +1

        Yup, we get 300-900 (not with NBN) and our advertised speed is 200mbps.

  • Thinkscape on 16/08/2020 - 13:09
    +2

    Current WiFi technology will not give you throughput of 1Gbps.

    If you want to throw money at the problem ($800+), you can buy one of the top-end Netgear or Asus routers, with matching WiFi 6 adapters on the client side.
    Here's a handy chart with "peak" throughput at short distance: https://www.smallnetbuilder.com/tools/charts/router/bar/187-…

    For typical Wifi 6 routers $200-$500 and a typical built-in wifi cards (i.e. in Macbook Pro 16") on 5GHz you should be expecting 200-600Mbps. You might get higher total throughput with 2-4 clients (computers) transferring simultaneously. Remember that it will fluctuate with interference from other networks, electronics, EV charger, microwave oven, etc. Router positioning, removing obstructions and external antennae help too (i.e. if you get a PCI-E adapter, make sure you have an antenna on a cable that you put on top of your desk or monitor)

    Hoping it helps.

    • Thinkscape on 16/08/2020 - 13:14
      +1

      ps: when testing WiFi, always test it in local network first - i.e. throughput between local devices, or computer and router.
      This will be the theoretical max on the WiFi. Only after you establish that, try testing going into the world (i.e. with speedtest.net) which will give you slightly lower results.
      Also remember that at 1Gb speeds it does put load on CPU. If you put a good WiFi 6 adapter into a slow computer, your speed might be cpu-bound. Same applies to routers - even if they have a 1Gb ethernet port, it doesn't mean that they can route traffic at full speed (that's why you'll get more luck with the routers in $500+ range which have beefier internals)

      For reference, I can get up to 950/49Mbps on AussieBB NBN - using ethernet.
      About 650Mbps using $650 WiFi 6 Netgear router and Asus ROG motherboard wifi adapter (funny correlation ;)), about 400Mbps on Macbook Pro 16" (through 1 wall)

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