Post by: hingyfan on February 28, 2011, 09:46:41 PM
Anyway, we have a sprawling house, all on one floor, except the the basement, which is not finished. There is an unfinished attic too.
There are two almost separate parts of the house, with a brick wall between them. The wifi stops at the wall. The table top iMac and router are in a back room. I need to get the wifi into the living room in the front so the ipad and laptop will work in there.
I would also like to use setup this to play itunes from the desktop in tha back room through the stereo the front room but i haven't thought that one through yet.
Running ethernet cables seems like too much of a chore. But i saw wifi repeaters in an magazine ad and thought that might work. Does anyone have experience with them? The seem inexpensive enough that i might get two if needed.
I also wouldnt now how to hook up a cable since the saucer has only one "out" and that is going righ to the desktop I do not want to go wireless on the iMac.
If it matters, this is pre-intel.
Thanks!
Post by: Highmac on March 01, 2011, 12:26:26 AM
Post by: Paddy on March 01, 2011, 08:11:38 AM
This one might do the job...at 4X the price, I sure hope so...:
http://www.macwireless.com/html/products/a...1n_repeater.php
Post by: Xairbusdriver on March 01, 2011, 08:58:11 AM
Post by: hingyfan on March 01, 2011, 11:32:28 AM
OK here is the odd house. Note a bedroom, the master bedroom, opens on the kitchen.
It was originally a bungalow and is now a sprawling estate! Not really but it is large and all one one floor, although there is an attic, a basement and a sub basement. The previous owner's father was a carpenter and the two of them went nuts on it. Our inspector almost fainted but here we are.
The drawing is primitive and doesn't show the alcoves and there should be a bathroom or two somewhere.
Also off the kitchen is a deck and i would like coverage there.
I'm now in the back room labeled Mac. The rooms on this side of the house work fine off the Extreme saucer. But there is a brick wall and distance between the computer room and the living room. I figure what I need is two repeaters. One under the living room and one between that and the computer, also in the basement.
My friend, who is something of an expert, says one or maybe two Airport Expresses should do it. These things were always a mystery to me. I thought they only carried itunes to remote stereos, which is actually part of what i want but not main thing.
Funny thing i like to tell about the house is that i was disinterested in the walk through until the agent said, this house is a bit strange, it has a sub basement. And she took us down there. This is under the big living room. It is huge. With visions of the band getting back together and rehearsing down there, i almost blurted out We'll take it!
But we did take and i did get a band together and we actually work, sometimes.
Turns out the owner was a gym teacher. He and his father put this in as a gym. Still has chin-up bars.
Actually I don't have enough time or room to describe the whole thing. Did i mention the 120 foot driveway? Did i mention the three big snow storms we had this winter?
Post by: Xairbusdriver on March 01, 2011, 03:22:39 PM
Since you have a basement (or two!) I'd really consider using Ethernet connections between the "Mac" room and anywhere else you might want to put a repeater. I don't think simply adding more Airport stations is the most efficient or least expensive method. Apple once made their Airport routers with external antenna connectors, but no longer. A good antenna is a good way to extend coverage, but only if the signal strong enough to use the full bandwidth, if the signal gets too weak, the hardware slows down because of constantly resending the same data.
I know nothing about trying to connect two Airport routers via Ethernet {nor many other things!}, but it might just work. I'll do some searching...
Tons of links here: <Sharing Apple Base Station Experiences>
This seems to confirm that an Ethernet connection would solve your distance and bandwidth problems quite inexpensively. <Apple Discussion Topic: two airports connected by ethernet, extending same wireless network>
Now, is that a cross-over cable or just straight through?!
You can get a 100 foot 'straight' for less than <$50 (+ shipping). Your last option is color, perhaps you'd best check with your wife about that (even though the cable will be mostly out-of-sight!
Post by: hingyfan on March 01, 2011, 07:41:43 PM
My second concern is drilling more holes in walls and/or floors. A third concern is getting this to work together. I think i am reading the wireless ones, when they work, do everything automatically.
We do pay for an extra wifi speed "boost."
I think i'll try buying one Airport extreme and see what that does. At the very least it can eventually be used to connect the stereo in the other room.
Post by: Xairbusdriver on March 01, 2011, 10:05:49 PM
I agree that there is usually a big speed hit when using WiFi, even with the latest version (n?). And I use Ethernet to our BS, also. But remember that if you continue to use the old 'saucer' you will degrade the whole WiFi network to the fastest speed it has. And a wireless connection between each BS will also introduce additional latency which might make some tasks difficult or impossible. Ethernet will negate that problem.
Am I beginning to sound like a cable salesman!
Keep in mind that the Apple Stations publish a pretty small transmitter power rating and it may even be overstated. If I were to spend money on more wireless equipment, I would definitely factor in a (transmitter) power booster/repeater rather than simply buying additional low powered base stations. The lower the power, the shorter the usable distance available between stations and the slower the bandwidth.
Post by: hingyfan on March 01, 2011, 10:13:19 PM
Post by: Paddy on March 01, 2011, 10:29:20 PM
http://www.ezlan.net/Distance.html
I'd suggest the first step would be to get a new Airport Extreme and see how that works - it might even be enough. I've found ours WAY better than the old Snow that we had.
Post by: RNKIII on March 01, 2011, 10:55:07 PM
I would give it a try for under $80, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.
Bob K. Rnkiii
Post by: Highmac on March 02, 2011, 12:34:13 AM
At least adds another possibility into your lengthening list
Post by: pendragon on March 02, 2011, 07:44:40 AM
I think the 30 free trial of Bear Extender is worth a go, though I am uncertain re shipping machinations across then pond. Perhaps an email to the developer is the ticket.
FWIW, I found the Developer Interview worthwhile.
Post by: Xairbusdriver on March 02, 2011, 11:44:47 AM
Limited power is not necessarily a bad thing, limiting your WiFi to your house is safer than transmitting to the whole block!
You already know...
- Ethernet is faster
You need (at least) another base station
You already have at least two ways to lay the wiring with only one (hidden) hole
Good luck, young Will Robinson!
Post by: Highmac on March 03, 2011, 01:01:35 AM
Touch wood, the only wifi trouble at present is the old Netgear DG834G which seems to need reboots more frequently! I have two Airport Expresses for playing iTunes through the kitchen and living-room stereos and they both get the Netgear signal fine (simultaneously), each about 40 feet away and through two 4½in brick walls.
The Bear Extender looks useful, but I can't find a stockist so it would have to be imported to the UK personally; and the 30-day free trial doesn't include shipping and return costs....
Post by: antony on March 03, 2011, 06:27:36 AM
If you want a good WiFi coverage, the best way is to get more Base Stations. I personally do not recommend getting WiFi repeaters, in fact, I recommend you upgrade your current AirPort Extreme (saucer) to one of those new AirPort Extreme Base Station (802.11n) or Time Capsules (802.11n), or at very least AirPort Express Base Station (802.11n).
Next, you might need multiple Base Stations. All of those needs to have the same wireless network ID, so when you travel from one base station to next, you can remain connected. To achieve this, there are two ways. The first one is connected via ethernet cable known as Roaming Network. The second one is connecting each base stations wirelessly, known as WDS.
Also, I strongly against using ethernet over power outlet (or ethernet over power line), the main reason being is doing so, you are intentionally ruining the sinusoid wave form of your electricity.
Well, that was my two cents, not a cheap option I know.
(As for me personally, I have 3 AirPort Extreme Base Stations, and 1 Time Capsule Bast Station, all 802.11n, and Roaming across the house.)
Post by: hingyfan on March 14, 2011, 09:02:44 PM
Post by: antony on March 15, 2011, 08:54:43 AM
AirPort Base Station (Graphite) 1999, 802.11b
AirPort Base Station (Dual Ethernet) 2001, 802.11b
AirPort Extreme Base Station (no modem) 2003, 802.11b/g
AirPort Extreme Base Station (Modem) 2004, 802.11b/g
AirPort Extreme Base Station (Power over Ethernet (UL 2043)) 2004, 802.11b/g
To best of my knowledge, the later three (Extreme 802.11g) can support roaming or WDS networking. (I personally don't like the term repeater in this situation as it is a bit confusing.)
Between roaming (ethernet cable between each base station) and WDS (wireless between each base station), you get much faster performance for roaming set up of course. The WiFi performance is unfortunately degraded under WDS setting.
If your "saucers" are of the 802.11b models, forget about it, it is too slow.
For the performance's sack and long term consideration, I would suggest you getting a few new AirPort Extreme Base Stations (with 802.11n) and hook them up with long Cat.6 ethernet cables, i.e. roaming network.