2.4 or 5 GHz?

NowRetired

After a run in with a hoover, I need a new wireless USB dongle for my second computer.

I also have a Wii that I use with my Virgin super hub.

I noticed that my Virgin hub can use the 5 GHz band so should I buy a 5 GHz wireless dongle for my second computer?

I was thinking of changing to 5 GHz because I can see 4 networks near me all using Virgin.

Does the Virgin super hub use both the 2.4 or 5 GHz bands at the same time or is it one or the other?

kwikbreaks

The Superhub isn't concurrent dual band - it's either 2.4Ghz or 5GHz so if you set it to 5GHz then 2.4GHz only devices will no longer work.

NowRetired

it's either 2.4Ghz or 5GHz

Any way to get a Wii to work at 5GHz?

kwikbreaks

http://techforums.nintendo.com/message/79373

http://techforums.nintendo.com/thread/8284

thescouselander

5Ghz is definitely the way forward as it is generally a clear frequency band. As above the superhub can only do 2.4 or 5 ghz but not both simultaneously. In our house I run the superhub on 5ghz (at 300 mbps using two channels) and I also have another wireless router running 2.4 ghz for devices that cant suport 5ghz.

NowRetired

In our house I run the superhub on 5ghz (at 300 mbps using two channels) and I also have another wireless router running 2.4 ghz for devices that can't support 5ghz.

How do I set this up?

I still have the old modem/router. It was only replaced because my speed was upgraded.

kwikbreaks

For £30 you could get a Tenda N60 which is concurrent dual band and put the Superhub in modem mode.

I can see half a dozen or more 2.4GHz access points near me but they don't interfere as I've been careful about which channel I use for my own network so the money saving way forward is to stick to 2.4GHz and find the clearest channel as you can get a 2.4GHz N dongle for less than £5 on eBay. If you already had some 5GHz devices then that would be a different matter.

NowRetired

After costing a new 5GHz USB adapter and the hassle of getting it working against a new 2.4 GHz adapter I choose the MSE way and have ordered a 2.4 GHz adapter.

kwikbreaks

It's the sensible short term solution. When 2.4GHz starts failing you is the time to think about spending larger sums than the minimum.

InSSIDer is the free tool of choice for checking your local WiFi environment and selecting the best channel to use. Do not trust the Superhub "Auto" channel function for this.

distinctd

Remember that range and signal penetration is a lot worse on 5GHz than with 2.4GHz

thescouselander

NowRetired wrote: »

How do I set this up?

I still have the old modem/router. It was only replaced because my speed was upgraded.

Yes, its very simple but you'll need to do a bit of setting up - this is what I did with my old Linksys WRT54GS router I had left over when VM gave me a super hub:


1) Set the old router to operate as a Router instead of a Gateway
2) Disable the DCHP server on the old router
3) Assign the old router a local IP address as appropriate to aviod conflicts on the network - I used 192.168.0.4
4) Set the VM Superhub up on 5Ghz wireless
5) Connect one of the LAN ports from the superhub to one of the Lan ports on the old router (note to not connect anything to the WAN port on the old router)
6) That's it - you should have both routers on the network and you should be able to access everything on the 2.4 or 5 ghz networks.


The other advantage of this setup is that it also gives you more wired ethernet ports which is handy if 4 wired ports isn't enough for you. In my case 4 ports isn't enough as I have all my AV equipment networked over wire as well as my IP phone and network drive.