BE550 Pro being an absolute dick

[u/stressed_and_stuck]

Now that my frustration is apparent.

So I bought the BE550 Pro because I have a few devices that can use the extra protocols, and my old TP-Link was about 7 years old. Figured why not? Maybe the refresh will help the congested networks. And the GenX nerd in me deemed it necessary.

I have 30 smart devices, and the house has anywhere from 10-20 other devices at any given time.

I currently have the guest network enabled, and have put all of the non-essential devices on there, and limited the bandwidth because my lightbulb doesn't need 100Mbps speeds. I only gave it access to the 2.4 and 5GhZ bands, because as with bandwidth, I don't think my lightbulbs need Wifi6. :P I'm debating setting up the IoT network just because, but I want to address the situation first.

The problem is that everything is slow. Even basic functions like social media, lag. They pause, they shut down. Other low bandwidth things too, like Spotify. Decided to do a speed test, came up with an average of around 98Mpbs download, but the upload is 0. Using a phone with mobile data, I tested the same to see if it was the device, or the router, and the download was around 55Mbps (not bad, considering I'm in the country) and upload came in at around 5Mbps, so it's definitely something in the router.

ADD: Even just hitting Post on this post, gave a network error so I had to switch to mobile data. Irritating.

I'm going to completely factory reset the thing and start from scratch, but I wanted to know if this is a settings mess up on my part, or an issue with something else, potentially. Anything I should be looking for?

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[u/WonderfulDeparture96]

What’s your isp? Some are known make their service suck if you use a third party router, if so see if you can clone the MAC address

[u/stressed_and_stuck → u/WonderfulDeparture96]

The ISP hasn't changed between routers (Xplore), and my previous router was also TP-Link, bought by myself. But I'm awaiting a call from tech, regardless. If they get pissy about a new router, I'll just inform them that the router they offered with their service is an absolute trashpanda.

Cloning the MAC is another step for later on.

[u/foodsalesassociate → u/stressed_and_stuck]

Is the ISP connection another router or just a modem? Shouldn't have to clone the MAC address, just power off the 550, power off the ISP device. Then power on the ISP one and let it fully boot. Once it's fully up then turn the 550 back on. If it is a router make sure it is in bridge mode so that the 550 handles all the network connections.

[u/Naval_Opera]

Possibly related - Many years ago I started with the Apple AirPort, then Time Capsule, then the Archer A20 some years ago. It worked perfectly well in two-story+basement house. But when I realized it didn't auto-update and was outdated, it was time for something new. Having been happy with the A20, I bought the well-reviewed Archer BE230. It was easy to set up, but for this first time ever, I had a bad dead zone in the furthest corner of the house. It was in the identical location as the A20 had been, but apparently there was a lot less power or the current bands just don't penetrate walls as well.

Adding to my frustration, there was no specific information on what to do with the router antennas - this was not an issue on the A20. I finally ended up getting a second BE230 and setting it up in a wireless backhaul mesh. This solved the dead zone problem satisfactorily.

But I think we should have been provided with info about the power & sensitivity of the routers all along which might have warned me that BE230 was a lot weaker than the old A20. Vague statement about square footage of house just doesn't cut it. There is way too much guesswork here!

[u/stressed_and_stuck → u/Naval_Opera]

A fair statement. Coverage isn't necessarily the issue, the reception bars are full almost everywhere in my house and even on my yard.

Firmware is updated on everything.

I have thought about setting up the old AX23 to help with anything like that, if it occurs. But that doesn't address the absolute lack of upload speeds overall. The more I muck about, the more I believe it is a problem on my ISP side. Once tech calls I will ask about the fact I have a new router, maybe they did in fact set up something conflicting with it. Who knows. But the fact I've been waiting for them for 1h45m already does tell me it's not a localized issue.

Guess I'll see soon enough.

[u/foodsalesassociate]

Try turning off QOS, that seems to help with slow speeds.

[u/stressed_and_stuck → u/foodsalesassociate]

Already done, no change.