Belkin F5D7230-4 and 20 meg
 

Hi all,

I recently moved my TV package from SKY and over to VM - very happy with it so far.

I also decided to upgrade my existing 10mbps broadband to 20mbps. I got the new modem connected into my existing Belkin 54g F5D7230-4 (version 1.x) wireless router.

However, I seem to have a problem with getting anything over 10mbps using my wireless router. If I connect the laptop straight into the modem or router I get the expected 18-16mbps no problem - any wireless connectivity bottoms out at most just over 10mbps.

I have updated all the relevant firmware and drivers on both the router and laptop but still no joy.

Signal strength is excellent all over the house and even tried using it sat next to the router. Is it a case of buying a new N router and that will sort it?

All pointers will be greatly appreciated.

Cheers

Jay

Re: Belkin F5D7230-4 and 20 meg
 

The practical maximum speed of G mode wireless is about 19Mbit/s (ref Wiki) but in practice that is achieveable if you have no overlapping networks within range and you are operating in 'pure' G mode. A lot of routers default to mixed B/G mode, to accomodate older cards, so check the router setup to make sure your is in G Only mode. You can also try changing wireless channels to see if you pick a less congested one (a lot default to 7 or 8, so try picking 1 or 13). If you want see what other networks are in the area some wireless adapters have a utility to scan the area, or check out Kismet.
Having said all that, yes, N is more likely to make full use of your bandwidth, providing all adapters and router are upgraded.

Re: Belkin F5D7230-4 and 20 meg
 

I changed the router to be G only.

Next door have a wireless SKY router that was running on the same channel as mine so I have changed that to various different ones, however, it doesn't seem to make any difference.

I have a signal quality of 99% and RSSI of -61dB (although I'm not sure what that is!)

My understanding is that 54g would be able to cope with a 20mbps connection?

Cheers

Jay

Re: Belkin F5D7230-4 and 20 meg
 

In theory it should get close to 20mbps.
Other factors that may be involved -
Processing power of the router (any other devices on the router?)
Encryption (and other) overhead (try disabling encryption for a test)

Re: Belkin F5D7230-4 and 20 meg
 

Nothing is connected to the router except the modem into the WAN port.

I removed all encryption and saw a slight increase but still not over 11mbps.

Looks like a new router then - although it should work!!!

Cheers

Jay