Wireless router?

[mouettus]

Since it will be used as a mean to transfer audio streams to my audio system from my pc, i decided to put this in the audio section.

Who owns a wireless router here?
Which brand?
Which model?
For how long have you been using it?
Have you ever experience problems with a model or another?

Here's the story: Last year, I decided to try my gf's wireless router because she bought a laptop and I wanted to share my internet connection. It was a D-Link DI-624. I've had a handful of problems. The router was going slower and slower every time i rebooted it. or it even stopped working. every hour or so I had to do a hard reset. I'm very comfy with computers so my knowledge is not the problem (i think). Tried every options, every configurations, every firmware possible. Finally decided to go back to hardwiring my modem directly on my pc.

Now, 1 year later, I decided to give wireless routers another try. So I pick up a Linksys WRT54G v8 for a nice 60$ price on sale. Works flawlessly for the first day. Took me 2 minutes and a half to put it on service. my hardwired pc, my gf's laptop and my PS3 were working perfectly.
So I wake up the next morning only to find that nothing works. I'm not even able to ping my router to access its options. So I reset it. It worked... for about 2 minutes. Then, I lost everyting again. Haven't been able to surf for more than 1:30 (in minutes) since then. Once again, tried every option, configuration and firmware. Looks like its going back to the store.

Am I unlucky or what? What do you guys use?

 

[Haoleb]

I have a microsoft MN700 which connects to the cable modem in another part of the house, and I have a WRT54g here under my desk working as a wireless acess point and router for my desktop. Havent had any problems with either of them.

 

[jinjuku]

I swore off Linksys products ages ago. I have been extremely happy w/ my Netgear WGR 614. I have set a ton of them up with (my house, friends, and family) with no issue.

I have the following setup:

MAC table filtering is turned on (ask if you don't know what this is)
Changed SSID from defaults and turned SSID off
Changed admin password from defaults
Disabled remote admin
Using WPA2-PSK-Serverless encryption with a nice lengthy password

Just put my friends PowerMac (OSX) and Sony laptop on the WGR 614. Took MINUTES. They have been fine ever since.

 

[Polygon]

Who owns a wireless router here?

Sure do.

Which brand?

It's a Netgear.

Which model?

DG834G.

For how long have you been using it?

Going on 3 years now.

Have you ever experience problems with a model or another?

I have not had any problems with this one. I've had problems in the past, mainly with Actiontec garbage. If you want to use it to stream content then I will say that my Netgear, even with a low connection, will stream music fine without drop outs. However, video will require a good signal but I haven't experienced drop outs with a good signal or better.

 

[bandphan]

I swore off Linksys products ages ago. I have been extremely happy w/ my Netgear WGR 614. I have set a ton of them up with (my house, friends, and family) with no issue.

I have the following setup:

MAC table filtering is turned on (ask if you don't know what this is)
Changed SSID from defaults and turned SSID off
Changed admin password from defaults
Disabled remote admin
Using WPA2-PSK-Serverless encryption with a nice lengthy password

Just put my friends PowerMac (OSX) and Sony laptop on the WGR 614. Took MINUTES. They have been fine ever since.

netgear wgr series is easy to setup and maintian with very few power cycles required. With a cbs block home i have no problems with 60+ range outside

 

[MDS]

NetGear WPN824v2
Had it for about a year now and it has worked flawlessly since day one.

My prior router was a NetGear too, MR814. It lasted about five years and then suddenly died which is why I now have the WPN824.

 

[Hi Ho]

I have always used D-Link and Linksys network gear. I stay far away from Netgear as I have had my share of problems with them.

At home I have a D-Link DI-604 wired router which I have been using for over three years with no issues what so ever. I have a Linksys SD205 switch behind my theater gear so my DVR, HD-DVD player, and reciever can connect to the network. I recently purchased a laptop so I needed wireless. I purchased a D-Link DWL-2100AP wireless access point. I get excellent signal throughout the house and I have had zero issues with it.

If you already have a wired router then you don't have to replace it with a wireless one. A good wireless access point like the 2100AP is more flexible and will probably work better than an inexpensive wireless router.

 

[abboudc]

Which brand? Linksys
Which model? WRT54G v2. After v4 (i think) they switched chipsets...the newer ones are horrible. I flashed mine with open source firmware (Sveasoft Satori).

For how long have you been using it? 4 years?

Have you ever experience problems with a model or another? I've had problems with a v5 where it would work fine for a day or two then disconnect. Strangely, i had a Linksys desktop wireless card that couldn't see the router. I've never had a problem with any of the other equipment in my house (Airport Express x2, Linksys WGA54G, Powerbook, PSP, etc).

My next router (802.11n) will either be an Apple or Linksys/Netgear that i can flash with an open source firmware.

 

[agabriel]

I would suggest a wireless router with at least 8mb of ram. It will handle more connections before timeouts occur. I have a linksys WRT300N and its been great. I had a netgear b router before the linksys that constantly needed to be reset.

 

[jinjuku]

If you already have a wired router then you don't have to replace it with a wireless one. A good wireless access point like the 2100AP is more flexible and will probably work better than an inexpensive wireless router.

Don't waste $85 on an access point. I use my WGR 614 as an wireless AP connected to my Sonicwall TZ170. You simply don't bother connecting the WAN port. That is essentially what a WAP is: I router with the WAN side yanked out. Why pay more for it?

Not a huge fan of D-Link either. I like SMC also(they OEM a lot of equipment for other manufacturers).

 

[jonnythan]

http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/component/option,com_wireless/Itemid,200/

You get what you pay for - most of the time.

Don't get a Linksys WRT54g. Do get a Zyxel X-550, D-Link DGL-4300/4500, Linksys WRT600N, etc.

 

[gus6464]

I have a linksys WRT54G v.6 that is being used an a v.5 as backup and both work flawlessly. I've had 2 netgear routers (regular one and a rangemax) and they were both garbage. Only lasted 3 months as they couldn't handle all 5 pcs, ps3, and wii hooked up to it routing a ton of bandwith between the devices. Before that I also had a D-link which was also trash and only lasted 6 months. First router was a linksys wired one like the WRT54G which lasted 5 years and just got rid of it because I upgraded to wireless. I personally won't buy anything other than linksys now when it comes to routers.

 

[gus6464]

http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/component/option,com_wireless/Itemid,200/

You get what you pay for - most of the time.

Don't get a Linksys WRT54g. Do get a Zyxel X-550, D-Link DGL-4300/4500, Linksys WRT600N, etc.

I find it funny how every single router above the WRT54G is either an N router or MIMO. Of course they are going to be faster!

 

[nick1000000]

I own and love my netgear. One of the best routers that protects against hackers. Also they have the best customer service I have come across. I had a problem with a new one I bought but I gave them the wrong address to send it to, I moved during the process. They sent me a new one even after they sent my repared one to the wrong address.

 

[majorloser]

Belkin G Plus MIMO Router
for about 6 months

http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProductPage.process?Product_Id=203415#

 

[jinjuku]

I find it funny how every single router above the WRT54G is either an N router or MIMO. Of course they are going to be faster!

I was thinking the exact same thing. It's like dissing a Toyota Corolla because all you are comparing it to are Corvettes, Ferrari's, and Porches.

Looks like there is a Linksys and and Netgear club here Either should work. All I know is YEARS ago I had to many problems with Linksys products to ever go back to them. They are probably fine now. All I know is I have put ~ 20 of the Netgear WRG 614's out there and have had zero problem. I do this for living.

 

[GlocksRock]

I use a D-Link DI-524, have been using it for a couple years with no problems.

 

[evilkat]

I had a WRT54g which bricked after 3 years of service. Switched to a DLink DIR 655. Can't say that the WRT54 was without problems....the bandwidth I got from it was always flaky wired/wireless. DIR seems to be doing better thus far though.

It's odd how you timed out everytime after 1:30m. Could it be that it's trying to renew a key every 1:30 and failing to do so everytime? It'd be weird if that's the case...does it work okay in 'wired' mode or is this only a wireless issue?

If you're positive it's bricked, then be sure to claim warrenty sooner rather than later. Seems like u've already tried the firmware update with little success. Routers are a pain the ***...you never notice them till something hits the fan.

 

[NYyankeeboi]

Belkin Wireless N1 router F5D8231-4

I've had to put N cards in both my laptops, I no longer have the horrible clutter and useless space a desktop uses, I always hated that.

I had Linksys before and that was a joke, but I will swear by the Belkin....

 

[masak_aer]

I used to own WRT54G v.3. Worked fine for the first 2 years, then suddenly i'd lose connection every 30 minutes. Really ticked me off, so i got the Linksys N. it is working well now, but sometimes it will connect to the router fine, but no internet connection so i figure it might have something to do with my ISP. I used to had Netgear (forget the model), it was working well.