Orbi AC2200 Tri-band WiFi System (RBK40)

Same. my original Orbi from precovid was garbage performance originally, but after about 6-8 months of continual firmware upgrade was WONDERFUL and blindly fast 880 on a 1GB , symmetric up/down . Rock solid unflappable. But, they stopped updating any firmware and my security software was screaming at me to patch holes. So I researched and almost no one can deal with the new Netgear stuff you and others mention here. So, I went with a pair of Asus ROG GT6's... Stable but otherwise disappointing performance. fantastic tweaking software, but despite this, just 'meh' overall. highly asymmetric performance: fast-ish – still only slightly faster than HALF of what the 5 year old Netgear got on the download. And it's horrible on the upload. So seriously disappointed in Asus. Everyone seems to think Ubiquiti is the best (within reason) and I'm going to sell my Asus Stuff and try that too. Thanks for your info.

I've had several meshes, all using wireless backhaul. First I had the Netgear Orbi mesh (wifi-5) that worked well for a few months, then Netgear made firmware upgrades mandatory, and put out some really bad firmware. Went to eero (wifi-5) after that, and that one never did work well for me. It worked, but not as well as I thought that it should have. I tried the eero Pro 6 mesh (wifi-6), and that was never stable. After that it was the Asus ZenWiFi AX (wifi-6), which worked really well here. The mesh that I'm using now, the ZenWiFi BT10 (wifi-7) is also working really well...the wireless MLO backhaul is very fast and has been stable. About as close to wired backhaul as I've seen, the speed at the remote node is very close to my ISP's provisioned speed. The latest firmware for the BT10 mesh has been great, but it took a few versions to get the degree of stability that I want. So, for me, yes, there have been ups and downs, but the Asus ZenWiFi meshes have been the best that I've had. Both have worked great with wireless backhaul, which is what I need. And have been stable and have provided whole house wireless coverage.

I went from an old Orbi RB system to the 770 and have loved it! Sorry to hear so many haven’t. But so far it’s been great for me all around.

I've used orbi 5ghz 4 nodes in 7500sqf home for years and worked great. I was able to use MOCA since the house got coaxial wired to all rooms. I've downsized and recently bought Asus axe7800 3-pack at bestbuy. Just grab 2 sets and you got a router and 5 nodes to mess around with.

I have to agree on “consumer” grade mesh systems, I have tried Asus and two different Netgear Orbi systems (last one cost me $1800 at the time) and all I get is headaches. They last for a month or so and then lose satellites and devices are always dropping until I reset it and then a week later all over again. So I decided instead of dropping another $1200-1800 on a Wifi 7 Consumer Mesh I would invest in Ubiquiti equipment, now I don’t have it running yet but will be using Mesh on the second floor AP as I don’t care if it’s full speed or not.

Orbi is fine. Your problem is the wireless backhaul between the two access points. The only way to make it better is to run ethernet or add more orbi access points to improve the mesh backhaul. You will add latency and spend more money by adding more acces points. It would be fine for doomscrolling, not great for competitive games. If you have coax cable run throughout the house you can try MOCA adapters or ethernet over powerline.

I’m looking to update my unreliable Orbi system. I have a 2,300 SF 2 story house. House is NOT run with CAT5/6, and I won’t be running cables in this house. I have 1 Gig fiber internet, using the ISP’s modem in pass through/bridge mode. I have enough networking experience that I feel like I’d be able to do UniFi, but not if it’s completely overkill. Here’s what I’m looking for: \-Wireless access points with wired ports to devices in 3 locations (at router, home office, and Movie Room). \-Might as well future proof to WiFi 7, but I heard that no systems “really” support true MLO?? \-True Mesh Network (if they are reliable), I feel like the hub and spoke Orbi system isn’t as reliable. \-Is it possible to have Tri-Band each with separate SSID’s and encryption modes? Some of my IOT devices (looking at you Ecobee) only support WPA2, and will NOT support WPA2/WPA3 mixed mode. I’d like the 2.4Ghz network to be WPA2, and everything else WPA3 or mixed. I have like $2,000 in gift cards at Costco, and see they have the TP-Link Deco 7 Pro BE11000 3 pack system. But not sure if that’ll cut it and be a lateral move from my crappy Orbi system. The price seems suspiciously low. Any advice or suggestions are really appreciated! I’m not sure what brands and systems are well regarded these days…

APs are connected via Orbi’s wireless backbone. I think it’s a 5GhZ signal, hub and spoke. Direct signal from main AP, to each of the satellite APs. Not true Mesh as the satellites don’t connect to each other directly. I try to use CAT6 from AP satellites to certain high bandwidth devices as long as I can hide the cable run. Issues are inconsistent speeds and drop outs. Wireless connecting to the “wrong” AP that doesn’t have a strong signal. Unable to split 2.4 and 5Ghz bands with separate security, so need to default to WPA2. Tons of weird issues if I need to reboot the system (I suspect devices connect to the first AP that reboots, and stay stuck to that one). And other pairing issues. I think a lot of the issues stem from Hub and Spoke, rather than True Mesh.

I currently have my main ISP modem/router in pass through/bridge mode, wired with CAT6 to my Main Orbi Router/AP which is doing all the routing and DHCP. This router then has a wireless backhaul that uses a dedicated channel to connect to each of the 2 satellites. The satellites do not mesh with each other. It’s a bidirectional communication from the main router to each of the two satellites. It’s not “true mesh” because of the satellite nodes do not interconnect, they only connect to the central node. ie less redundancy, single point of connection, more dead zones, more limited zones. I’m wondering if a true mesh network might solve some of this problem. I very much understand that I should connect each of the APs/satellites with a wired backhaul for best performance. That’ll require running a ton of wire up and down walls into the attic, which I’m fully capable of doing. I did this with a ton of speaker wire a few years ago. It’s just a pain in the ass, and idk if it’s worth the squeeze right now. I was wondering if there is a solution that will: 1. Replace my current system. 2. Improve performance 3. Allow me to not be stuck fully on WPA2 due to some IOT devices not compatible with WPA3 or WPA2/3 mixed mode 4. Allow for “some” future proofing and scalability. I could be completely wrong, but my thinking was a true mesh network (where each node connects to each other, rather than hub and spoke) would at least fill the gap until (or if) I ever get around to running cables. If there is no better solution than what I currently have, then I can accept that as well.

I’ve always had some issues with it. First of all, the system/software seems too dumbed down and not enough control. AP satellites are connected to the main AP through a dedicated 5GhZ wireless backbone. But satellites don’t talk to each other. It’s a hub-and-spoke rather than a true mesh, which I think causes issues. I have devices connecting to the wrong satellite, dead spots that come and go, you can Google tons of issues and I see the same thing.

Thanks for the input. I didn’t know if what I head about WiFi 7 was true or not. I figured if I’m going to upgrade, I might as well do the latest and greatest, if it makes sense. ISPs are giving the option to upgrade to 2-3 gig in some parts of town for a fairly reasonable price, so had that in the back of my mind. I’m perfectly fine saving money and getting a good WiFi 6 system! I “could” and still “may” run cables, but it’s a pain in the ass and I have a ton of other house projects more important right now. We may be selling and moving in the next year anyway.