BigFoot Networks 1102/1103 Driver Update

Driver Version 6.1.0.213 released on October 31,2011

Support

RELEASE NOTES
NEW FEATURES IN THIS RELEASE
This is a maintenance only release to address specific issues, listed below.

FIXES IN THIS RELEASE
Addressed compatility issues that were introduced with iTunes version 10.5
Addressed compatibility issues that were introduced with Safari 5
Addressed issue with the ability to launch World of Warcraft
Improved compatibility with Windows Home Server 2011

The old driver needs to be completely removed before the new on can be installed and configured.

I just updated the BFN 1103 on this notebook.

Downloaded the new driver
Uninstalled the old driver using Uninstaller program(Your Uninstaller)
Rebooted
Installed new driver
Rebooted
Setup

 

+rep 4 u

KNOWN ISSUES IN THIS RELEASE

- The disabling of the Killer Network Card will cause the Killer Network Manager to show an inaccurate link speed.
- Changing of display resolutions may cause the Killer Network Manager interface to display improperly, though operation is unaffected. To reset to proper display, the application will have to closed and re-started.

 

Thanks WhatsThePoint for this post!

-

 

You're very welcome Larry!

Followup:

I needed to turn my router off and on after updating the driver.

It's been a day now since I uninstalled the old driver and installed the new version.

I have my SSIDs for the 2.4ghz band and 5ghz band named differently but using the same password for WPA2 PSK security on my ZyXEL NBG5715 450Mbps Simultanious Duel-Band Wireless Router.

I replaced the 3 stock external antennas on the router with high gain antennas.

I have both bands set for manual channel selection that I find least used in the inSSIDer program.

I also have both bands on 40 channel width.

inSSIDer shows my connection strength to be just about the same from different places in my apartment that has steel reinforced concrete walls.

Naturally line of sight in the router room was best at an average of 12db.

About 20 feet from the router through 2 walls I'm at an average of 43db.

Where the new driver is worse than the old driver is in using speedtest.net

My scores are down about 5Mbps on both bands for both up and down.

 

Are these wireless cards worth it? and do they come with Bluetooth functionality?

 

Worth is different for each notebook owner when it comes to upgrades.

Stock wireless cards are usually chosen to keep the advertised price low,not for performance.

For many users they suffer from frequent disconnects especially when you start to move further away from your router and not in line of sight.

Some stock wireless cards have BT included while others don't.

In many Clevo/Sagers the stock card is the Realtek RTL8188CE without BT.

This is a 2 antenna single 2.4ghz band 150Mbps half height mini pci-e wireless card.If you're very close to the router and hopefully in the same room it may be good enough for the average surfer.

If your card doesn't have BT you can use a USB BT dongle for the times you may need it.

Upgrade wireless cards offer 2 antenna Duel-Band 2.4ghz and 5ghz 300Mbps in the case of the Intel 6205 and the BFN 1102.If you want BT included on the card there's the Intel 6230 with BT 3.0.

Better yet are the 3 antenna 450Mbps Duel-Band Intel 6300 and BFN 1103.

The wireless card is only one piece of the wireless connection puzzle.

The wireless router should compliment the wireless card you're using to take advantage of simultanious duel-band and be of the same max speed as the card.

Proper wireless card settings and router setup are essential to the must do list.

There's many more factors that influence connectivity,signal strength,download and upload speed etc.

Bigfoot Networks was acquired by Qualcomm Atheros on September 1st.I hope they don't get forgotten inside the corporate maze.

 

other than this, have you seen any other changes? is your wireless range better/worse? 5mbps is quite significant. if the new drivers are to blame, i wouldn't want to update them and take the throughput hit..

 

I'm in a very large city.

MY IP uses the newest equipment.

My notebook is 20' from the router and through 2 cement walls.

My average download speed was 33Mbps and upload 52Mbps with the 5ghz band slightly better so going down to 28Mbps for me is no big deal.I'll test again soon but at different times of the day.

I have great hardware and excellent broadband service.

If your scores in speedtest.net are low to start with you may not see any change at all.

In fact your scores might increase because of the factors that effect wireless are surely different.

My apartment building is centrally wired.I have no modem or login.I connect my router directly to the jack socket in the wall.

My cable TV,Internet phone and internet broadband serice are a package deal for $30 a month on a 2 year contract.

At some times I can view close to 50 other networks in inSSIDer in this highrise apartment complex.

In real world surfing and downloading I see no difference.

Downloading speed is mostly about the sites your getting the files from.

If you download a file from the Sager support site what's your best speed?

If you download from AMD what's your speed.

With simultanious duel-band try downloading a Windows 7 ISO from Digital River while watching a video on youtube.How does your duel-band wireless card and duel-band router stand up to the test with your Bigfoot Killer 1102 or 1103 and router combination.

 

The new Bigfoot Killer 1103 and 1102 driver has been removed from downloads on the Bigfoot Networks site.

It's been replaced with a modded version of the previous driver and Dated November 3,2011

Support

The new drivers have been pulled because they cause network crashes in Windows.

Visit the BFN forums for more info.
Killer Technology Forums

 

And they didn't fix a thing. Same old memory leaks, same old iTunes problems. Were I not able to run this piece of garbage 1102 with generic drivers, I would have run it through a paper shredder.

 

In May 2011 Atheros was acquired by Qualcomm and subsidiary Qualcomm Atheros was formed.

On September 1st Bigfoot Networks was gobbled up by Qualcomm Atheros.

I fear that Bigfoot Products may not get quality support under Qualcomm Atheros.

The retained staff moved to new headquarters location and got new bosses.

 

Don't forget that the Killer Wireless-N 1102/1103 use Atheros chipsets anyway, it's a firmware tweaked Atheros AR9380/AR9382 (1103/1102) with a layered service provider driver.

 

what do you mean, generic drivers?

 

^a single Atheros driver that works for a whole host of many different wireless cards can be considered generic because it's not aimed at 1 wireless card.
See here:
www.station-drivers.com • Afficher le sujet - Atheros AR5xxx/9xxx Wireless Lan Version 9.2.1.459 WHQL


With the Atheros WHQL v9.2.1.459 driver the BFN 1103 works OK on both bands but it's much slower connecting.

Clicking on my browser icon it takes a few seconds longer for the home page to be found and to fully load.

Clicking on sites in my bookmarks also are slower to connect to.

I don't use iTunes so it's a non issue for me.

I'm now back with the modiefied BFN 64bit 6.1.0.183 driver/software.

It's the best available at the moment.

 

Generic = reference

They are drivers provided by the chipset manufacturer, just like the ones you would download straight from NVIDIA or AMD for your video card.

Can you give specific examples? I want to try them out myself.

 

Clicking on the big blue "E" in the taskbar gets my homepage as "done" in an average of 3~4 seconds with the BFN 183 driver while it takes about 8 or more seconds with the Atheros driver.

Clicking on the Chrome icon gets me to my fully loaded home page as done slightly faster than with IE but once in Chrome it's a speed demon with the BTN modded 183 driver.

I have excellent modemless Internet service right out of the wall in a centrally wired high rise apartment building.

I don't game on my notebooks so I can't comment on that.I game on a pretty good desktop with a GTX570 and 24" calibrated BenQ VA monitor.

 

Maybe try 9.2.0.444

Atheros apparently maintains a 9.2.0 and 9.2.1 branch of drivers, this one is from 8/21/2011 and solved some delay issues I was experiencing with the last 9.2.1.x driver.

 

Perhaps my request wasn't clear - can you please provide links to the websites with which you're having issues? Unless, of course, those sites are inappropriate for this forum.

Those drivers might work for the Bigfoot 1103, but I couldn't get them to install on the 1102. The 9.2.0.458 set, which is actually newer (dated 10/03/11), does work on the 1102. Seems to be a slight improvement in page loading/response. No changes in download speeds. Unless something drastic happens, these are keepers.

 

I've gone back to the original unmodded Driver Version 6.1.0.183 released on July 15,2011 until something else released and proven better.

It's what gives my 1103 it's best results in my notebook,with my router setup,IP service and my in enviorment.

 

Bigfoot Networks released BETA DRIVER v6.1.0.219 on November 10th.

This is for the Killer 1102 and 1103

Support

Bigfoot forum:
Beta Driver Release - Version 6.1.0.219

 

Can you upload it to MirrorCreator. That driver gave me the best performance for my 1103 too.

 

Tried the new beta drivers. The iTunes bug was indeed fixed, but they then broke the ability to reconnect to my network after resuming from sleep. Probably something isolated to my specific system, but annoying nonetheless. Back to the Atheros drivers for me.

 

Bigfoot Networks posted another new modded driver today for the Killer 1102 and 1103

Verion 6.1.0.219 modified 21 Nov 2011

http://www.bigfootnetworks.com/Supp...oads&_a=view&parentcategoryid=47&pcid=0&nav=0

I haven't tried this new driver yet.

I returned to unmodded 6.1.0.183 and all is well again.
I'm not an iTunes user.

I uploaded unmodded 6.1.0.183 for Patrck 744 and for anyone else that may want it.

http://www.mirrorcreator.com/files/0BZ03BCZ/Killer1102-1103Setup_6_1_0_183_win7_64bit.exe_links

 

Geez I didn't know the drivers were so buggy for the Killer-N 1103.. I was planning on ordering one along with my new notebook. Hmmm would you guys suggest purchasing the 1103?

 

The BFN 1103 with 3 antennas teamed with a good 450 Mbps Simultanious Duel-Band Router is probably the best card out their.

When iTunes 10.5 was released those that use it had trouble with the 183 driver and the fun began.

The new driver adds stability in iTunes and a few other apps at the cost of some performance.

Bigfoot Forums:
New Driver for Killer 2100, E2100, Xeno Pro, and Wireless-N – 6.1.0.219

I don't use any of the software that' has reported issues with the Bigfoot Network Manager so v6.1.0.183 is great for me.

 

Ah I see. Thanks for the reply!

 

I just got a Sager NP8170 (P170HM3) with the 1103 and I've been getting kicked out of my wireless off and on. My DIR-655 router's SSID disappears and reappears at times. I'm wondering if it goes away with the new drivers. I'm not sure which drivers I have, but I'll have to investigate. I don't use iTunes or other mentioned programs.

 

You know that your D-Link DIR-655 is a single 2.4ghz band 300 Mbps router.

It has no 5ghz band connectivity.

The 2.4 ghz band has a lot of interference.

How far are you from the router?

Are you going through floors and walls?

Is the channel you're using congested by other nearby networks using the same or close to the same channel as you.

Use inSSIDer to view other networks and which channels being used.

Walk around your home while inSSIDer is running to find where connection strength is strongest.In the green is better or best.

With Windows 7 WPA2-AES security will yield the best speed.

Channel Width is best when set to 40.

IMO best Routers for BFN-1103 and Intel 6300:
Netgear WNDR4500
TrendNet TEW-692GR
ZyXEL NBG5715

When you run the speedtest.net in the Bigfoot Network Manager be in the room with the router and in line of site.This will set the Manager at the highest connection speed in your enviorment.

 

Thanks for the pointers. Reason I'm concerned is, that my last laptop worked flawlessly with same router and same spot (downstairs & through walls). I had an Intel 5300 card in the laptop. I would think that this 1103 would be similar or better in performance.
My Droid 3 phone with wireless N sees the router no problem at the same spot, while the 1103 will lose the router and SSID disappears.

Going over your points:
1) Yes 2.4Ghz only. I think my dir-655 has two streams though?

2)I don't care for 5Ghz at this point cause it's not great at long distances. I'm downstairs and other side of house... pretty far.

3) I love using inSSIDer, and I make sure I'm on channel 1 (which is more free than 6 & 11). All is green and strong, but the SSID drops randomly. Even when playing my MMORPG.

4) Win7 WPA2-AES is what I use (I've done my homework a while a go).

5) I'm afraid to use the channel Width of 40 because I don't want to interfere with my neighbor who's on channel 6 (they're pretty computer savy). We all avoid channel 11 since that's where Optimum, TimeWarner, and others are on. On second thought... should I use 40?

6) Thanks for the router options. It's just the thing I was looking for. Any other newer routers in the pipeline we should keep an eye out for?

7) Good idea about running speedtest in the room. I'll do that. Makes sense.

+ rep cause you knew some things I knew and knew some more

 

What you can also try in the Bigfoot Network Manager on the Network page with speedtest.net is to give both TCP ACK Frequency 1 and 2 a try to see which gives best results.

On the Advanced page is a Gaming Optimization.

BTW,I had a DIR655 before I went to Duel-Band.It served me well.

I test my simultanious duel-band by downloading a Windows 7 ISO from Digital River while watching a video on Youtube.

 

I thought you couldn't use dual bands simultaneously. I thought you can only be on one band at a time. Has this changed recently?

 

i have a netgear wpn824v2 and trying to get a np8130 with bigfoot networks... but is it going to give a big difference in speed? i dont know what to get when im playing games 24/7... if im near the router i might just plug the wire into the laptop but... if im downstairs i want to go wireless... does netgear wpn824v2 work with bigfoot networks?

 

last I checked it was only one band you could connect to at a time. 2.4ghz or 5ghz. The benefit of 5ghz is the mimo / bandwidth / and shorter frequency allowing faster data transfers.

Downside is the higher frequency doesn't travel as far (it's physics!).

Routers now support dual band's so a 2.4ghz device AND an 5ghz device can both be connected (which is cool). I think this is what they mean.

 

The BFN-1103 wireless card in the notebook is Duel-Band 450Mbps.When coupled with a Simultanious Duel-Band Router,300Mbps or 450Mbps you get the simultanious ability.

What separates these routers is whether both bands are 300Mbps/450Mbps and whether they're a total of 300Mbps,450Mbps or both bands are 450Mbps simultaniously.

The Linksys E4200 is 450Mbps Simultanious Duel-Band but the 2.4ghz band is 300Mbps and the 5ghz is 450Mbps and allows a total of 450Mbps.

The Netgear WNDR3700v2(aka WNDR37AV) is a 300Mbps simultanious duel-band Router that is limited to a total of 300Mbps.Loved my WNDR 37AVv2.

The Netgear WNDR4500,TrendNet TEW-692GR and ZyXEL NBG5715 theoretically are 900Mbps because they are 450Mbps simultaniously on each band.

What's on paper and what you may get in real life can differ greatly because there's just too many variables in wireless networking.

Just when you think you got it all mastered.....Murphy's Law

 

I found my problem. The cordless phone is a 2.4Ghz and it will knock out the wifi. I guess a power outage somehow made the phone switch to channel 1 or something. I don't know how to change it either. But once I changed my router's channel to 11, problem solved.
I've noticed power outages will make many wireless equipment flip channels.

 

I am having some issues with the current Version 6.1.0.219 modified 21 Nov 2011 . Whenever I transfer purchases from Ipad 2 to Itunes my networks cannot access internet. But when I restart my PC everything is back to normal.