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best router for flex smartSdr to have least latency ?

mnewbill
mnewbill Member ✭✭
in SmartSDR for Windows

Hi,

from the research I did, I have come to the conclusion my older router is just not up to the task of supporting the flex radio and its remote capability without a lot of latency.

I have the asus rt-ac68R in a mesh configuration, hardwired to the flex radio lan port.

the radio shack switch is connected via a mesh node using a 5g signal to tx to the main router which is 100 feet opposite side of the house.

then out to the fiber. this also adds even more latency.

I am looking for suggestions of whatever routers you "remote" operators use to get multiflex to work without continual popping on your remote pc.

I am sure that there is more than one correct answer, so if you please tell me the routers you are using, I will go and compare the features of those and decide if i want to upgrade.

a mesh system with a node at the shack someone proved to work is even better, maybe if I upgrade to one of those 6ghz mesh systems it may help?

its possible all I have to do is hardwire the 2 nodes together for a lan cabled backhaul system, but I dread pulling that 100 foot lan cable through my attic to make that happen. - worse, if I do that and nothing improves…

but if someone has evidence that solved the issue, then ok. or any remote systems of links as I described that can work.

thanks for any advice.

Tagged:

Answers

  • Mike-VA3MW
    Mike-VA3MW Administrator, FlexRadio Employee, Community Manager, Super Elmer, Moderator admin
    edited January 12

    I used to recommend TP-LINK but now there is concern about some spyware. It might be as simple as using a 100mb/sec switch connected to the radio as some 1G ones have problems with autointoxication.

    Are you sure the router is the problem. Before you replace things, you should run some tests on your network and see if you can find the issue.

    The challenge is you have to assume it can be anything. Network cards in the computer, cables (yes, they go bad), switch, etc.

    I don't think your problem is latency, it is UDP packet loss.

    I would spend some time getting to know iPerf.

    https://www.techtarget.com/searchnetworking/tip/How-to-use-iPerf-to-measure-throughput
  • Neil D Friedman N3DF
    Neil D Friedman N3DF Member ✭✭✭✭

    My stock Spectrum router seems to work pretty well.

  • Val DM1TX
    Val DM1TX Member ✭✭

    I am using a Fritzbox in my home QTH and a Mikrotik router on Remote QTH

  • mnewbill
    mnewbill Member ✭✭

    I am doing more experimenting. I have done the unthinkable and pulled a 100 foot ethernet cable through my attic (ouch) and wired the main router in the point of fiber entry direct to the host router the radio equipment was already hardwired to. felt like I took a step back in time 10 years, but I did it.

    it has helped the situation by at least 80 percent less packet loss. maybe more. i can use the remote now in any room of the house on wifi without annoying popping. that was at least a big leap.

    what was happening to my laymen understanding is the host router had to take my packet, ask the main router over wifi control channels what to do with it, wait for answer and then send it to the wifi computer.

    at least something like that was going on. with the hard wire, it can get this information faster what to do with the wifi traffic. since the wifi computer was attached to the same host router as the radio was hard wired to, it seems like it wouldn't need to send to the main router first, but it did. and they were 100 feet apart across the house. (the reason I had a mesh system, to prevent dead spots, and the cable guy installed my main entry at one side of the house - which made sense when it was literally wire, due to bonding, now that it is fiber, i could get them to bring it in anywhere I guess, that is future talk.

  • mnewbill
    mnewbill Member ✭✭

    but I appreciate the listing of known working routers, as mine is 10 years old maybe, it may be time for upgrade one day anyhow. just not ready to drop the 300 bucks on that just yet until we are sure of the issue as mentioned.

  • Mike-VA3MW
    Mike-VA3MW Administrator, FlexRadio Employee, Community Manager, Super Elmer, Moderator admin

    I have been using the TP-Link ones that come in a metal case. Mine isn't available now, but maybe something like the SG2008.

    Other may wish to comment.

  • Ken
    Ken Member ✭✭

    I use a TP-Link ER7206 v1.0 1.4.3 Build 20251027 Rel.82388. This has worked well for me. I have a 1 gig fiber connection to the Internet and all the Ethernet cables are double shielded cat 8. Between the shop, where the Flex 8400 is and the router is at, up to the house where my computer is at I run Unifi switches with a 10 gig fiber connection. Everything works as it should.

  • Ken
    Ken Member ✭✭

    I am looking at changing my router because the er7206 is at end of life! Looking at Unifi udm pro.

  • John KB4DU
    John KB4DU Member ✭✭✭✭

    A wired connection will almost always outperform a wi-fi link.

  • David Decoons, wo2x
    David Decoons, wo2x Member, Super Elmer Moderator

    I used to get a quick 5 pops every so often on my old WiFi setup (don’t remember if it was WiFi 5 or 6). I just bought a Ubitquiti UCG Max router. Overkill for home use but WAN and LAN ports are 2.5 GB. It has a 1.5 GHz quad core processor with 3 GB RAM and a 256 GB nVME for storage. It is just a router, no WiFi.

    For WiFi I am using the Asus Zen WiFi mesh with triband 2.4. 5 and 6 GHz. It uses the 6 GHz channel for backhaul. I have it set up in access point mode as the router part isn’t as fast as the Ubitquiti.

    My desktop PC connected 2.5 GB to router will get full speed (1 GBs up and down). On WiFi my phone 15 Pro Max and iPad Pro get about 700 MBs up and down. Latency improved on both wired and wireless. Offloading the router part from the mesh unit leaves more CPU cycles to process the data. No issues with the Maestro C or iPad anyplace in the house.

    in the future, I may switch to Ubitquiti access points. Maybe.

    73 Dave wo2X

  • David Decoons, wo2x
    David Decoons, wo2x Member, Super Elmer Moderator

    I also agree with Michael. Pinpointing the cause of the latency can lead to something other than the router.

    If you have a PC with WiFi, there are programs that will scan the 2.4 and 5 GHz channels and show what it can hear. Your WiFi may be on the same channel as your neighbor and the pops you hear may be the WiFi looking for another channel (another access point) with less interference. I had a laptop that would scan for stronger channels.

    Good luck in the hunt.

    Dave wo2x

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