Reddit mentions of Linksys WRT1900ACS Open Source Dual-Band Gigabit WiFi Wireless Router ,Black

Not OP, but we've deployed Ubiquiti products in a few of our enterprise customers and it is running great. I am not sure how much you already know about networking, but I'll explain for anyone else reading.

First, some background to fully understand what it is you are trying to do. The thing that most consumers call "routers" are really three things: a router, a switch, and an access point. TLDR the router portion is the thing that actually moves traffic between machines, the switch extends how many physical ethernet ports you have, and the access point gives you wifi.

The Ubiquiti Access Points (UAP) are just access points. You will still need a router to route traffic, and your consumer one will work just fine for most people. If you are looking to get something more SOHO, Ubiquiti also makes their own router/firewall (check out USG, or ideally EdgeRouter). For all intents and purposes, it is a pretty good idea to separate the roles of your network (physical appliances for the router, firewall, wireless, etc...), and you can have as many UAP's as you'd like for wireless. The UAP's run off of Ubiquiti's 24V Power-over-Ethernet (POE), which can be provided via a POE injector or with a Ubiquiti Switch (either Unifi or EdgeMax). So for a basic network, you'll disable the wireless functionality on your consumer router, and plug a UAP into a port (obviously you'll need to pass it through the POE injector first). Rinse and repeat for however many UAP's you want, maybe another one on the other side of the house for example.

The UAP is pretty useless on its own, though. It needs a piece of software called the Unifi Controller. The software is free, and you can run it on Windows, Linux, or with Ubiquiti's appliance called the Cloud Key. Within Unifi Controller, you'll setup the UAP's; e.g. setting the visible wifi name (SSID), security, channels, etc... It isn't too complicated, the interface is really intutive and anyone who is even slightly technical could figure it out. The controller also serves another really important feature, which is zero-handoff. As long as the controller is running, your device will connect to the access point with the best signal. This is the seamless switching you asked about.

Ubiquiti also is focused on mesh networking, although we are generally pretty against that for businesses for reliability reasons. Of course, the exception to that is Cisco Meraki, which is a hybrid that will self-heal. If you lie and say you are an IT professional, you can get a free Meraki with a 3 year license. Just make sure that you follow the rules.

As a note, I would stick to the UAP AC's. They are the newer version and run great. For consumers, the UAP-AC-LITE is going to work fine. Obviously there is more to networking and wireless solutions than what I went over here, but this is the general gist of it.

Mine's a Linksys WRT1900ACS. But it was really expensive ($180, iirc), and may have been overkill. I think they make a newer model now, too.

I had a spare Apple router laying around. Haven't had issues at 30-40ft or so. WiFi is a tricky business, because no matter where you go, the environment will always be different for WiFi channels.

A lot of places are broadcasting on 2.4g or 5g. So having a router/ap that does both is probably your best bet for flexibility.

If you're wanting something simple and cheap, just look at some basic home routers like Linksys (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B014MIBLSA/ref=twister_B07FTFK622?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1).

If you are willing to do a bit more pre-setup (one-time) and have a greater throw for your WiFi, I would suggest an ubiquiti edgerouter and Ubiquiti long range access point (https://www.amazon.com/Ubiquiti-EdgeRouter-Advanced-Gigabit-Ethernet/dp/B00YFJT29C)
(https://www.amazon.com/Ubiquiti-Unifi-Ap-AC-Long-Range/dp/B015PRCBBI).
That'll get you DHCP and a longer distance than most retail routers.

If you need any more suggestions or have questions, let me know. I'm a certified network engineer.

Edit: the reason I like ubiquiti is because it scans the current environment for wifi channel conflicts and makes the appropriate adjustments.

I'm going to buy this router. It is capable of 802.11ac which is better than 802.11abgn. It's 5ghz instead of the 2.4ghz and can sustain higher bandwidth with less latency. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B014MIBLSA/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

For modem I chose this without much research, You can spend 20 dollars less on the non extreme model. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DACQM9M/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Save yourself a huge headache and buy yourself your own equipment. Keep your own hardware and save yourself some rental fees each month and supply yourself with solid and reliable WiFi.

My equipment:

• TP-Link DOCSIS 3.0 (16x4) High Speed Cable Modem | Max Download Speeds Up to 680Mbps
  
• Linksys AC1900 Dual Band Open Source WiFi Wireless Router (WRT1900ACS)
  
  Spectrum has their recommended modems (which interface properly with them).
  
  http://www.spectrum.net/support/internet/compliant-modems-charter-network/

I see. Thanks for the explaination.


My questions then, is, what am I actually getting in the pfSense gear with the higher price. For example, if I got an SG-1000 and one of these Ubiquiti WAPs, what am I getting that I would in, say, a Linksys AC1900 at half the price. Hardware performance wise. (I realize it's also pfSense vs DDWRT)

I'd recommend either the WRT1200AC (if you want to save a few bucks) or the WRT1900AC (if you want better performance), both from Linksys' "WRT" line. Either one will work great (in my experience at least).

I'm currently using an N600 dual band tplink router (TL-WDR3500) that I'm not satisfied with. Even wired I lose a ton of speed when connected to it rather than through my modem provided by my isp.

How do the router you linked compare to https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B014MIBLSA/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER.

I am actually looking for a new router myself right now, I am thinking about getting the Linksys WRT1900ACS.

Reviews on it are very good.


http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B014MIBLSA/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_1?pf_rd_p=1944687662&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B00KEK4Q5Q&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0EC0Z7XHAJ455P3WGXP7

I'll be honest, I'm tempted by this: https://www.amazon.com/Linksys-AC1900-Source-Wireless-WRT1900ACS/dp/B014MIBLSA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1480104461&sr=8-1&keywords=wrt1900acs#customerReviews though I'm leaning to the ubiquity setup.

I use a Linksys AC1900 on the 5GHZ band. I have no issue maxing out my 110 meg connection.

I've also had good luck with MOCA adapters....

[Newegg] (https://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAB2753F0077&cm_re=Linksys_WRT1900ACS-_-33-124-605-_-Product) and Amazon are a bit better.

First of all, an aunt that plays games? Awesome.

Now for the router, every time i hear of gaming router i hear,

https://www.amazon.com/TP-LINK-Archer-C7-Wireless-Gigabit/dp/B00BUSDVBQ/ref=lp_300189_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1478449765&sr=1-2

https://www.amazon.com/Linksys-AC1900-Source-Wireless-WRT1900ACS/dp/B014MIBLSA/ref=lp_300189_1_7?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1478449765&sr=1-7

https://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-Wireless-Router-Gaming-WNDR37AV/dp/B003Q9CI48

https://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-AC1750-Router-800MHz-Processor/dp/B00Z0V2NQ8/ref=pd_lpo_147_tr_t_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=ZVHA9T8NTHBY4JXN3QFM

You can read the descriptions or reviews for one that suits you. :)

Ah, yes. It is the 1900ACS. Seems to have a 1.6G CPU. So you're saying that, also considered the faster transfer speed, antennas, and processors, the 1900 will give noticeably better speeds? (hopefully work $90 more).

It's super easy. I never did it before either, and I'm a female who has zero experience with house repairs. I can build a computer but don't know a damn thing about house repairs like electricity, plumbing, or anything like that. Basically, my dad just used his drill, drilled a small hole and went into the basement and we snaked the ethernet cord up through to my room.

If you want to get a new router, I would recomend getting a Linksys WRT AC1200 Dual-Band and Wi-Fi Wireless Router with Gigabit and USB 3.0 Ports and eSATA. I have the model that's slightly higher, the Linksys WRT1900ACS Dual-Band Smart Wi-Fi Gigabit Router, but I don't think you would need to spend that much unless you wanted to.

Or you could get a powerline adapter or wireless range extender. You could get the TP-LINK AV500 AC750 Wi-Fi Range Extender, Powerline Edition (TL-WPA4530 KIT) which has both and currently has a $10 off coupon. Obviously, ethernet is always better than wireless if possible. Make sure what you get can handle the speed of your modem/router. You can do a speed test with any of these websites (I typically check a few different websites and then average the speed): Ookla Speed Test, CNET Speed Test, Source Forge Speed Test, Bandwith Place Speed Test, SpeedTest.Org, e-Speed Test, SpeedOf.Me Speed Test, Speak Easy Speed Test, Verizon Speed Test, Charter Speed Test.

Remember, if you make any purchase with Amazon, always use Amazon Smile which donates a portion of your purchase to a charity of your choice. So instead of going to http://www.amazon.com, always go to http://smile.amazon.com and help someone out.

A modem is device which connects to your ISP and decodes/encodes the data being transferred. A router handles the data and serves it to your home via WiFi or wired ethernet.

A lot of ISPs sell 2-in-1 devices which contain both the modem and router in the same device. These work good for small basic networks but are very limited if you have higher bandwidth or more devices in your home.

I've been using an ARRIS SURFBoard SB6121 modem for about a year with Time Warner with no problems.

I also have my own wireless router which you will need to get if you buy the above modem. The router I have is a Linksys WRT1900ACS which is probably overkill for what you would need. I would suggest something along the lines of a TP-LINK AC1200.

I have this router and it works great in my 2 story home. https://www.amazon.com/Linksys-WRT1900ACS-Dual-Band-Gigabit-Router/dp/B014MIBLSA/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1468383500&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=Linksys+router&psc=1