Getting a new wireless NIC...

K

Klaerth

Weaksauce
Joined
Jul 10, 2007
Messages
87
...would this assist a friend of mine? He currently has an old network adapter, a Linksys WUSB11 v2.8, which appears to be a wireless b adapter with the most recent support having been in early 2004. I'm trying to determine if switching this out and acquiring a more recent (and wireless g adapter, to suit what his modem/router can support) would assist his speeds.

He has some comcast cable package or another - I'm uncertain as to what, for he isn't the one paying for it, as he's yet living at home. However, a Speakeasy test gave him these results:

Download Speed: 3465 kbps (433.1 KB/sec transfer rate)
Upload Speed: 4254 kbps (531.8 KB/sec transfer rate)

While the upload seems fine, his download speed is absolutely /horrible/. So too is he now and again (several times throughout the day) losing his connection entirely. He's had Comcast come by and supposedly check on the network infrastructure and the like several times, to no avail. Would the 1999-2004 adapter, or the wireless b usage (with a router that is capable of wireless g), potentially be part of the cause of his problems?
 
not really going to help, nor will it hurt though

his download is low for comcast, and random knockoffs are the result of an ISP issue. He is not getting anywhere near the recommended comcast speed (upwords of 10+Mb/s) and should complain until it's fixed - it takes a lot of bitching but they'll fix it eventually..
 
IntelOwnz said:
not really going to help, nor will it hurt though

his download is low for comcast, and random knockoffs are the result of an ISP issue. He is not getting anywhere near the recommended comcast speed (upwords of 10+Mb/s) and should complain until it's fixed - it takes a lot of bitching but they'll fix it eventually..
Click to expand...

And he shouldn't expect to until he upgrades to a wireless network that can support it...

If OP has a 10mbit+ service, upgrading should get him better performance; he won't get the most out of it the way it is. But I wouldn't consider 500K/s 'absolutely horrible', so the actual problem is probably something else.
 
Is he losing connection to the router or comcast? Those are two different issues. I have a feeling he needs to check his router out first though. If he is losing connections during torrents, then it's a no-brainer.

The lowest package hits 20/6 in my area - which I have a feeling is b/c of FiOS finally getting lines into our areas. Thanks Verizon for upgrading all Comcast connections :D
 
How about plugging a network cable in to test?
 
Had him plug in a laptop to test it out, and his DL speeds were over four times as high whilst wired. Unfortunately, given the layout of his house, his room is two stories away from where their router is kept, so it is a bit difficult to try and get his desktop wired in, though we're going to see if there might be an easy and unobtrusive fashion to do so. If that ends up not being possible, however, what wireless adapters might be recommended?

His current router/modem - Motorola SBG900 (Supports wireless b and g)
His current adapter - Linksys WUSB11 v2.8 (Wireless b, made in 1999, supports b only, etc.)

The adapter, given it's age, I imagine would be the thing to replace here. As a note, he claims his signal strength is always at full, despite the distance, so my uneducated guess would be that it would be the switching to an adapter capable of utilizing wireless g networks should help in solving his problem..?
 
Switching to 802.11g will get you increased range and performance, as will switching to 802.11n (but you'd have to change out the router in that case as well). I haven't seen that Motorola modem in the wild, but my experience with integrated router/modems has not been pleasant. All of the ones I've seen have poor range, poor firmware and generally suck.

If he's got a desktop PC I would go with a PCI card instead of USB. Get one with an external antenna on a short pigtail so you can position it for best signal, or if it turns out to need it, replace it with a higher gain one. I'm a fan of the Ralink 802.11 chips, their Windows drivers are pretty nice and they've released proper open-source drivers and documentation as well. Something like the Rosewill RNX-G300EX would be my suggestion, though I usually use GIGABYTE GN-WP01GS since it's available locally, but it doesn't have the external antenna.

If you still don't have luck with the new card, I'd put the modem in bridge mode, disable its wireless and routing features and get a decent router to replace it.
 
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