Get wired performance from your Wi-Fi network

Here is an informative article on setting up a hybrid Wi-Fi and powerline network in a home application.

GK

 

Seems like a well written sponsored review.

Wired Cat 5e/6 > "powerline network adaptors"

The article's 'secret sauce' is 'weak sauce'

 

It is well-written for anyone starting out... plus small paragraphs. I learned some tips from it. It's a niche solution that could be useful in some applications. More value than some posts here.

Thanks for bumping it up! I'm hoping for more relevant comments.

GK

 

I've been using a part wireless part powerline setup for a while now, and it's more or less underwhelming.

I used to have an all wireless G setup until my WRT54G kicked the bucket. From about a room away from the access point, I could get 1.5MB/s (mega bytes) between any two wireless connected devices (usually a laptop and my file server).

When I bought my WRT160N, I originally intended to upgrade all of my wireless G devices to wireless N and run an all-N all-wireless setup. However, among those devices are two desktops, and the cheapest reputable desktop N cards I could find were about $40 a pop. Instead of spending $80 on two such cards, I spent $100 on a WD LiveWire powerline kit (with a total of eight ports, it was steal compared to NetGear's offerings).

So now I have my WRT160N in room A. I have one of the LiveWire modules connected to the WRT160N in the same room, and one of the LiveWire modules connected to the two desktops in room B. Going between the two desktops, I still get... 1.5MB/s.

Going between one of the desktops and a laptop connected to the WRT160N with N, I get... 3MB/s.

Admittedly, the speeds I'm getting are a lot more stable than what I got with the WRT54G, but the moral of the story is honestly to properly hardwire your house, because everything sucks.

 

With those throughputs, I'd be cynical, too. They all seem low. My WRT54G typically connects at full speed and feels about half as fast as the 100Mbps Ethernet here. I recently setup a Linksys E3000 (dualband N)... N connections on 5MHhz band were solid at 300Mbps, but that would drop more quickly at distance compared to the 2.4MHz connections.

I could not find a WD Livewire throughput spec on their website... that's a red flag for me. But your low throughput could be the WiFi, not the powerline Ethernet.

GK

 

You are not always getting anything near the max speed your wireless setup claims. A wired setup is much better than Wireless because you will get the speed steady all the time. You should check to see that your home wiring system is suitable for the use of powerline network adapters before purchasing. SmallNetBuilders has allot of info on the devices and how to get around some of the problems with powerline adapters. Here is an article that I like.
Slow HomePlug? Five Ways To Boost Powerline Network Speed - AFCI, Noise - SmallNetBuilder