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expiredLarryJSlick posted Mar 28, 2023 12:37 PM
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expiredLarryJSlick posted Mar 28, 2023 12:37 PM

ASUS RT-AX86U WiFi 6 AX5700 Dual Band Gigabit Gaming Router w/ AiMesh

+ Free Shipping

$225

$280

19% off
Amazon
142 Comments 47,734 Views
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Deal Details
Update: This popular deal is still available.

Amazon has ASUS RT-AX86U WiFi 6 AX5700 Dual Band Gigabit Gaming Router w/ AiMesh on sale for $229.99 Now-> $224.99 when you apply the $5 off coupon on the product page. Shipping is free.

Thanks to community members LarryJSlick for finding this deal

Product Details:
  • 10/100/1000 Ethernet Standard
  • 2.4 GHz + 5.0 GHz Frequency Band
  • WiFi 6 AX Networking Standard (5.7 gigabit per second)
  • 4x Antennas
  • RJ-45 Ports
  • AiMesh Support

Editor's Notes

Written by SubZero5 | Staff
  • About this product:
    • 4.6 out of 5 stars rating at Amazon based on over 2,970 customer reviews
  • About this store:
  • Additional Note:
    • Please refer to the Forum Thread for additional discussion regarding this deal.
No Longer Available:
  • Walmart also has ASUS RT-AX86U WiFi 6 AX5700 Dual Band Gigabit Gaming Router w/ AiMesh on sale for $229.99. Shipping is free.

Original Post

Written by LarryJSlick
Community Notes
About the Poster
Deal Details
Community Notes
About the Poster
Update: This popular deal is still available.

Amazon has ASUS RT-AX86U WiFi 6 AX5700 Dual Band Gigabit Gaming Router w/ AiMesh on sale for $229.99 Now-> $224.99 when you apply the $5 off coupon on the product page. Shipping is free.

Thanks to community members LarryJSlick for finding this deal

Product Details:
  • 10/100/1000 Ethernet Standard
  • 2.4 GHz + 5.0 GHz Frequency Band
  • WiFi 6 AX Networking Standard (5.7 gigabit per second)
  • 4x Antennas
  • RJ-45 Ports
  • AiMesh Support

Editor's Notes

Written by SubZero5 | Staff
  • About this product:
    • 4.6 out of 5 stars rating at Amazon based on over 2,970 customer reviews
  • About this store:
  • Additional Note:
    • Please refer to the Forum Thread for additional discussion regarding this deal.
No Longer Available:
  • Walmart also has ASUS RT-AX86U WiFi 6 AX5700 Dual Band Gigabit Gaming Router w/ AiMesh on sale for $229.99. Shipping is free.

Original Post

Written by LarryJSlick

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+70
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Top Comments

natecmd
250 Posts
69 Reputation
Have been watching this router as a potential replacement for a converted $39 t-mobile -> ac68u that still seems to still be working well (with a second hardwired mesh) for 50+ devices.

Still can't bring myself to spend that much on a router that was released in July 2020 (basically 3 months shy of 3 years at this point). I feel like 99-130 would be a slick deal.
DanP9832
1 Posts
14 Reputation
TP Link routers generally have more limitations than the Asus routers. Before buying any router, I would search Dong Knows Tech. Lots of information about all of the big brands and how to buy a router. If you take the time, you will learn alot and it will help you make an informed decision about what you need in a router. For me, the AI Mesh upgradeability and the ability to customize the router (a little harder to setup) makes Asus the way to go.
rastatech
1178 Posts
231 Reputation
Fantastic router and range. I have 2 smaller S versions. Put Merlin on it: https://www.asuswrt-merlin.net/ but the hardware is great. The U has the same wireless chip as S but the 2.5GB port and it's 3 or 4-core CPU vs dual-core I believe, and also has 512 RAM vs 256 as the S.

I am getting ~ 600-740 Mbit/s download on wireless real world performance throughout the place with 2 AX86S in AirMesh on 5ghz (Ethernet backhaul). ~940 ish download via ethernet (Comcast 1.2 Gbit/s connection). Same on iPhone 13/14. Super stable connection. Netgear CM1100 modem.

141 Comments

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Apr 05, 2023 05:41 PM
1,693 Posts
Joined Dec 2004
Jack SchittApr 05, 2023 05:41 PM
1,693 Posts
Quote from isdex1 :
Currently running Merlin 386.10 on 2 of the T-mobile AC1900 flashed Asus RT-AC68U with hardwire backhaul. It's fairly stable, but 2 main issues for me. 1) wifi call (ios or android) doesn't work well with this, it seems to have a problem of "handing off" from ap-to-ap, and sometime I couldn't even make call out with wifi calling enabled. 2) it is running extremely low on the NVRAM due to VPN clients and server setup to the point that I no longer could setup up static IP due to the NVRAM.

Would the AX86U be able to resolve these 2 issues?
Similar setup until last week. I had a pair of those converted and running Tomato fw on them with the 2nd as an access point for coverage at the other end of the house. Main unit was working it's poor heart out and losing wifi connections. I put stock Asus fw on the both of them (after wiping the T-mo partition described in an earlier post) then setup aimesh with both in AP mode and put them behind a pfsense box I made from a very old SFF desktop. The pfsense handles all the heavy work now and the aimesh provides a seamless handoff for "moving" wifi devices. Still have things to configure in pfsense, but no more disconnects at an (additional) net cost of zero. Happy camper Wink
Last edited by Jack Schitt April 5, 2023 at 11:43 AM.
Apr 05, 2023 09:21 PM
731 Posts
Joined Nov 2012
NickW0069Apr 05, 2023 09:21 PM
731 Posts
Quote from Jack Schitt :
Similar setup until last week. I had a pair of those converted and running Tomato fw on them with the 2nd as an access point for coverage at the other end of the house. Main unit was working it's poor heart out and losing wifi connections. I put stock Asus fw on the both of them (after wiping the T-mo partition described in an earlier post) then setup aimesh with both in AP mode and put them behind a pfsense box I made from a very old SFF desktop. The pfsense handles all the heavy work now and the aimesh provides a seamless handoff for "moving" wifi devices. Still have things to configure in pfsense, but no more disconnects at an (additional) net cost of zero. Happy camper Wink
I have a similar setup but just one flashed AC1900 to RT-AC68U. I bought another AC1900 a year ago and haven't flashed it yet to work with aimesh.

I'm not having any issues with my router and I've had it for 7+ years and flashed for about 5 years. To me it's like "if it ain't broke, don't fix it' but I do have poor signal in my bedroom. But I think the aimesh setup would fix that. I have no need for Wifi 6 yet and don't have too many devices or users in the household regardless.
Apr 05, 2023 09:31 PM
160 Posts
Joined Mar 2008
onepiece2007Apr 05, 2023 09:31 PM
160 Posts
Great Solid router.
Pro
Apr 06, 2023 02:26 AM
1,649 Posts
Joined Sep 2014
bootymonger
Pro
Apr 06, 2023 02:26 AM
1,649 Posts

Our community has rated this post as helpful. If you agree, why not thank bootymonger

Might as well get Pro version for same price if you can:
https://slickdeals.net/f/16557565-asus-ax86u-pro-225-at-amazon
2
Apr 06, 2023 05:09 PM
441 Posts
Joined Oct 2014
PolandLinuxApr 06, 2023 05:09 PM
441 Posts
Router with excellent range. Easily covers 3 x 1000 square feet as it is in the central location on the top floor.

Apr 06, 2023 05:52 PM
466 Posts
Joined Apr 2005
opti1Apr 06, 2023 05:52 PM
466 Posts
Quote from swgfanforlife :
Competitive gamer here and I bought this router in may 2021. It's been excellent paired with a Arris SB8200 modem. I get 980 download speed and 53 upload, so blazing fast for my rural area. If I lived 20 miles closer to town, they have even faster internet, but we stream TV in 2 rooms while someone is always on their phone or tablet. All the while I'm raiding with a 40 man team in my game, and no one has any lag.

... snipped ...
Who do you have for ISP?
1
Apr 07, 2023 12:12 AM
3,284 Posts
Joined Jun 2017
NikonShrApr 07, 2023 12:12 AM
3,284 Posts
Stull rocking my ac86u which I won't upgrade till it dies.

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Apr 07, 2023 02:03 AM
95 Posts
Joined Jan 2018
PJM6851Apr 07, 2023 02:03 AM
95 Posts
I have had this for 2 years and don't go nuts flashing third party firmware on it or anything and it just delivers. Great range, rarely needs to be rebooted, and delivers consistent strong speeds. I had been using Netgear routers before this and the experience is night and day.
Pro
Apr 07, 2023 03:21 AM
1,696 Posts
Joined Jan 2010
swgfanforlife
Pro
Apr 07, 2023 03:21 AM
1,696 Posts
Quote from opti1 :
Who do you have for ISP?
It used to be called Suddenlink, but they got bought out by Optimum in my area last year. Our towns electrical, cable and internet were all destroyed in Hurricane Laura. When they rebuilt all that, they installed high speed here. It really shocked a lot of us, because we only have a population of around 800 people in this small community. I'm pretty sure they received some emergency federal money to help rebuild the infrastructure after the hurricane.
Apr 07, 2023 05:14 AM
1,178 Posts
Joined Jul 2018
rastatechApr 07, 2023 05:14 AM
1,178 Posts
Quote from mrpenurious :
Correct me if I'm mistaken, but I thought the U and S endings were simply indicative of whether the unit was purchased from a store or an online purchase.
No, that was the U and R versions with prior models, where some where some at BBuy and other retailers and others at others. There can be the W as well for a white one, rarely. But the S is a different model for the AX86 series. The wifi chip is the same but the higher CPU. RAM, and the 2.5 Gbps port are only in the U model. And now there is a Pro model with an even stronger CPU as well.
Apr 07, 2023 05:24 AM
1,178 Posts
Joined Jul 2018
rastatechApr 07, 2023 05:24 AM
1,178 Posts
Quote :
Quote :
Quote from NikonShr :
Stull rocking my ac86u which I won't upgrade till it die
That's a great machine as well. I had two of these for a long while. The difference isn't huge, and likely not worth it for everyone, but the WIFI 6 of the AX86 does add a bit more range and throughput. With the AC86U we got about ~560 ish max download on our the place on Airmesh, in real world experience, and with 2 AX86S we get up to ~740 ish max. That's on a Gigabit Comcast connection.

But the coverage is a bit better in our challenging place. Last year I covered a huge house with 2 of these in mesh and it eliminated dead spots that the AC86u still had. This will likely serve me for years now as long as Merlin keeps updating them.
Apr 07, 2023 06:39 AM
1,178 Posts
Joined Jul 2018
rastatechApr 07, 2023 06:39 AM
1,178 Posts
BTW, the RT-AX86S is only $170 right now as well:
https://www.amazon.com/ASUS-AX570...17K47?th=1

I know, "only"... not like the $49 Linksys 54G back in the days or the Tmobile AC68U. Big Grin

AX86U vs AX86S:
1GB RAM (U) vs 512 MB (S)
1.8Ghz Quad-core CPU (U) vs 1.8 Ghz dual-core CPU (S)
extra 2.5 Gbps WAN/LAN port on the U

Otherwise same WIFI, same 1 GB WAN/LAN port plus 4x 1GB LAN, same port aggregation for 2x 1Gbps WAN/LAN combination.

https://www.asus.com/networking-i.../techspec/
Last edited by rastatech April 7, 2023 at 12:47 AM.
Apr 07, 2023 08:37 AM
481 Posts
Joined Aug 2004
laszlomdqApr 07, 2023 08:37 AM
481 Posts
Quote from BeFlatLine :
Absolutely love this router. Upgraded from an Asus AC68U to it due to the AC68U getting overwhelmed with the amount of devices I had. Ended up having to reboot it nearly daily to keep good connection speeds and reliability. Upon upgrading, noticed throughput speeds were much better. As an added bonus, I was able to repurpose the old AC68U to a mesh node for the AX86U. Desired results were achieved: I almost never have to reboot the router now and connections are remaining stable. Win!

Note: I changed the firmware to Merlin for both routers because I liked the customizability. Functions fantastically.
I'm exactly in the same boat. I purchased the AX86U Pro but I've been running a AC86U flawless for many years. They are very expensive routers so why change what it works. My AC68U cost me a fourth of the price of the AX86U. Anyways, my wifi speeds have improved immensely. Other than that I don't see a big difference.

Question: Could the old AC68U be used in mesh mode with the AX86U but just in the 2.4Ghz network?
Apr 07, 2023 09:15 AM
2,165 Posts
Joined May 2008
Roy2001Apr 07, 2023 09:15 AM
2,165 Posts
Quote from xseanx :
I've also have this same issue with 5g wifi, the culprit was it interference with the neighbor's wifi. So I download the wifi analyzer app to search for best channel and manually set the bandwidth channel to 80mhz and control channel to 52 and the problem goes away ever since.
6E is your solution

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Apr 07, 2023 10:38 AM
52 Posts
Joined Sep 2015
Dr_AilomanApr 07, 2023 10:38 AM
52 Posts
Take a look at the Asus gt2900 RoG model. Solid router. Came out July 2019 and it's around 130

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