ASUS RT-AXE7800 Tri-Band WiFi 6E 6GHz Extendable Router w/ 2.5G Port Expired

if it doesn't run Merlin I'm out.

What is the difference between AX88U? (Except AX88U got 8 ports and and this got Wifi 6E)
It seems AX88U is having similar price but that is Wifi6 and dual band only, so it has to be some advantage?

How many devices do you have connected on average?

One important thing to note about tri band or even dual band is that you're not going to get whatever the total advertised throughput is for 99.9% of your devices.

There are some network cards that can connect to multiple bands and aggregate them, but for most mobile and smart devices, you're only going to be sitting on one band and the maximum throughput for that particular band is the maximum your device can get.

What this does accomplish, however, is that it creates different "lanes" for the traffic from your various devices to run on without bogging each other down.

If you have multiple high throughput devices and no way of connecting them via Ethernet, a multi-band router is going to get you as close as possible to multi-gig speeds on multiple devices without any fancy traffic shaping or needing to watch what you're doing so that it doesn't inconvenience others.

The other benefit to this is that if you have a lot of smart devices, they can all sit on the 2.4Ghz band and not tie up any portion of your 5Ghz/6Ghz bands.

The AX86U is probably suitable for a majority of folks out there. And the fact that it supports the customized Asus Merlin firmware earns it some extra points.

Let me get this straight... you have your primary router upstairs and you're getting bad throughput when you're BELOW the router?

Are you familiar with how antennas work?

Most WiFi routers come with omnidirectional antennas. Their biggest coverage area is always perpendicular to the direction they're pointed with some signal straying off at angles that usually radiate upward (as most antennas are pointed upward).

If you want a better signal downstairs without spending a dime, your antennas should be pointing down.

Setting up two of these on a mesh network is probably overkill. Luckily, all of the AiMesh capable Asus routers are compatible with each other. You can find most of them for under $200, with some as low as $50.

Comcast recently screwed over a lot of people by taking a bunch of modems off their previously "recommended" list and then not providing them with adequate provisioning.

I had the same issue with being on a 1Gbps plan. They did a free "upgrade" to 1.2Gbps and stopped provisioning my modem correctly. No amount of tech support could figure it out and they wouldn't admit they screwed up.

My speeds shot down to 400Mbps max, so I cancelled and got fiber rather than continue going in circles with them.

You need to call them up, have them check the provisioning, and confirm that the 8210 is still on the "supported" list for the plan you have.

Do a speed test (do NOT use their test or speedtest.net, as they have rigged those with prioritization tricks) by downloading a large file or using speedof.me (they aren't able to rig this one).

If your speeds are still terrible with the tech on the phone and they claim your signal is fine, have them send someone out to check the performance at the tap. Keep in mind the hardware they give the field guys is also somewhat rigged as it can do a lot of things your modem can't and isn't provisioned for any certain speed. It's going to give back maximum potential readings and most of the field guys will just slap the side of it and call it a day while looking cocky.

If your line to the premises is fine, you're back at square one with the modem, but now you have them doing a bunch of finger pointing at the modem being defective.

At this point, you can either try a different modem that they certify is "supported" or force them to downgrade your plan. If you play it right, you might get them to credit you for the difference on the months you've already paid for.

Lotta wrong info here. I've never even heard of an sb 8210 and can't find it on Google, so who knows what modem that person actually had.

Signed up Comcast internet for 1000 Mbps and using Asus RT-AC86U but max download speed I was getting 300 Mbps and am using Arris surfboard modem SB 8210, any help would be appreciated as how to increase the router speed

Lotta wrong info here. I've never even heard of an sb 8210 and can't find it on Google, so who knows what modem that person actually had.

That said, cable isps will only provision a modem for what it can handle, with thought given to what impact it will have with other neighbors on the mode. Over time, as speeds increase and modems age, modems will be dropped from active support. They'll also be limited based on that provisioning file. You can't use an old 16x4 modem and expect gigabit speeds, obviously.

If you're using a modem that Comcast will only provision to 400 mbps, then your options are either to drop your speeds to that package and maybe save some money, or upgrade to a newer modem that can actually handle the package you're on.

Also, your thing about the speed tests is misinformed. The tests aren't rigged in the way you think. Comcast can only "guarantee" your speeds on their network. You aren't guaranteed gigabit speeds to every server anywhere in the solar system. Trying to download a large file from a server in Asia when you live in north Dakota probably won't get you gigabit speeds.

Ooklas speed test tends to pick servers closest to you, including your own isps test servers. My muni fiber isp works the same way, but you can choose other servers on speedtest.net to see what speeds you get to increasingly distant locations.

Ok makes sense, the company router doesn't have external antennas so that makes sense. So on this router should I try mounting it upside down to cover the downstairs? I guess I probably should have had it installed downstairs instead, and then the signal would have been going up and around. It's mexico the entire house is surrounded in metal gates/bars so I wasn't sure what to do. I could pay to have router moved down though.

for the other aimesh routers, will I see a drop in speed if I go with one of the cheaper asus? I'm ok paying for another if it's going to be significantly faster than a $100 Asus aimesh router to add. thanks!

You plan on paying $400+ for a wifi 7 router in the next 2 years? Cause you wont find a wifi 7 router under $200 till probably 1.5-2 years from now.

Yes it is a huge jump from wifi 6 and 6E but its not worth the wait for people who are on a budge but still want the best possible.