BT Hub 5 keeps changing channel

Zee · 04-03-2014, 13:38

I have set my Hub 5 to 116 and sometimes to 128 on 5GHz band but randomly it'll change itself to 48 or 44 even though the channel I have selected is still set to 116 or 128, only difference is it says current channel 48 or current channel 44.

Anyone know why this could be happening?

04-03-2014, 13:56

The Homehub 5 has some kind of smart switch technology, which means it is always looking for the least congested channels. Make sure you've turned it off.

Zee · 04-03-2014, 14:06

seems that feature is switched off if I select my own channel manually according to the help files on BT's website...

qasdfdsaq · 06-03-2014, 18:43

Channels 52-140 require DFS (dynamic frequency selection) by law. They are shared by radar, which is assigned as the primary user of this band and WiFi as a secondary user. Only channels 36-48 are free from this requirement.

A router must constantly monitor for radar signals and if it detects radar impulses on the channel it is using it *must* switch to another, clear channel within something like 60 seconds. You cannot legally operate a wireless router on those channels without DFS being on, and hence, you cannot turn it off, and you cannot override this nomatter what you select. Even if you set a channel manually in this range, it can only "prefer" this channel and cannot unconditionally use it - it must still switch if radar is detected. WiFi is only allowed use those channels as long as they are clear, and not being used by radar.

In an ideal world the router would maintain a list of "clear" channels that are free from radar and switch to the nearest one when the occupied channel gets a radar detection. However when switching channels it has to monitor the new channel for 30-60 seconds to make sure it is actually clear.

In practice it looks like the HH5 is taking the easy option and just defaulting to a guaranteed clear channel, i.e. one that doesn't require DFS, instead of randomly picking a new channel to avoid having to interrupt your connection for up to a minute. This, incidentally, was why the original Superhub couldn't use any 5Ghz channels other than 36-48 - they never implemented DFS at all.

Ignitionnet · 06-03-2014, 19:25

It should be noted that the 5GHz radio on the HH5 is a steaming pile of excrement and the firmware on the thing in need of work. I've had all kinds of issues with it from crashes under not especially high load to intermittent latency spikes, fixed by reboot, to extremely poor throughput.

None of these are a problem on 2.4GHz. It needs some work.

qasdfdsaq · 06-03-2014, 23:47

Interesting. I was on the pre-release trial of the HH5 and didn't get a huge number of issues - though other people I shared it with did. Haven't used it since the trial though, I'm guessing it hasn't been fixed by the sound of things.

Ignitionnet · 07-03-2014, 14:06

Not in my experience.

qasdfdsaq · 07-03-2014, 15:11

Also interesting -

"I've noted that from time to time the HH 5 arbitrarily stops wirelessly connected devices from being able to reach one another, this is resolved through a reboot of the HH 5."

This, and the random freezing/crashing/rebooting under load when doing LAN transfers as an access point are very similar to problems I saw when testing the Superhub 1, which is what led me to eventually give up using the Superhub as an access point.

Never really had a chance to test the HH5 extensively myself, as I've been technically homeless and all over the place since I got it. Left it at a friend's house and he had no end of problems yet when I visited it worked fine on my one device...

**Chris** · 07-03-2014, 15:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ignitionnet

Not in my experience.

Do you get the impression they're ignoring you over there?

**Chris** · 07-03-2014, 22:37

Handbags via private message only please, ladies.

idi banashapan · 07-03-2014, 23:41

Quote:

BT Hub 5 keeps changing channel

take the remote off it.

Ignitionnet · 09-03-2014, 12:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris

Do you get the impression they're ignoring you over there?

I take it as a compliment. They've no comeback.

**Chris** · 10-03-2014, 08:35

I don't appreciate being ignored. I have removed several posts and will issue an infraction against the next one that tries to continue any argument or feud against another member. Take your disagreements to PM, or preferably to another forum.

qasdfdsaq · 03-06-2014, 21:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ignitionnet

It should be noted that the 5GHz radio on the HH5 is a steaming pile of excrement and the firmware on the thing in need of work. I've had all kinds of issues with it from crashes under not especially high load to intermittent latency spikes, fixed by reboot, to extremely poor throughput.

None of these are a problem on 2.4GHz. It needs some work.

I'm curious, did you ever get over these problems, and what firmware version is your HH5 running?

I've just begun using the HH5 as an AP again recently and from what I find, the range and performance is actually exceptionally good. Literally beating every other router I have. There's some instabilities specifically, and only with my mobile phone, from what I tell, whenever the transmit buffer becomes full, but with other AC devices (e.g. laptops) it's perfectly stable.

The 2.4Ghz range and performance are also pretty decent, but being only 2T2R is handily beaten by my various 3T3R 2.4Ghz routers in raw speed.