2Wire → 2701HG-B WIFI Hints (want to improve performance)

I have a 2Wire 2701HG-B that was provided to me in conjunction with AT&T DSL. This model was a replacement for an earlier 2Wire model that proved susceptible to lightning damage.

I've been using the 2701HG-B to provide DSL access and wired (ethernet) routing to an iMac and a streaming video device. It works well for these purposes.

I'm in an ~800 Sq Ft apartment; all on one floor. So, it's a relatively small space. I added an AirPort Express 802.11n in order to stream audio from the iMac to the far end of the apartment. That works fine.

I recently added a Windows 7 netbook. So, I turned on the 802.11g wireless on the 2701HG-B. I'm having a tough time maintaining good wireless connectivity. Yes, this is G as opposed to N on the airport, but the reliability seems much worse.

In the same room, I set up the netbook in order to stream web video. With wireless, it proved incapable of streaming without dropouts. Sometimes, the netbook would not even find the network. I plugged in an ethernet cable instead and all was well; in fact, that's what I've taken to using.

But, sometimes I want to walk into the kitchen. Again, very poor quality signal. I tried carrying the iMac into the kitchen and again found a poor signal (speed was greatly reduced). It connected better than the netbook, but still it was a problem.

My question: Is the wireless portion of this device really bad? Would I do better running it in bridge mode and getting a different router? (recommendations appreciated).

Or, is there something that I can do to improve the performance? I currently place the router in the corner of the room at desktop level (near an incoming phone line). Do I need to move it higher? The airport is on the floor in a corner of my kitchen and that works fine.

Maybe there is a faq for setting up wireless that I need to read.

Thanks in advance.

1. Make sure the Airport and the 2Wire are operating on different frequencies. Assign the Airport Channel 1 and the 2Wire Channel 6 or 11. There are only 3 real channels in 2.4GHz, 1,6, and 11.

2. If you can move the 2Wire higher that might also help after you assign channels.

3. My 2Wire easily covers a 1200 square foot apartment. But I used my netbook to figure out which other WiFi networks were nearby and set up mine to avoid getting interference by picking a channel the others were not using.

4. The best solution would be an Airport Extreme or a Linksys E4200. These operate in both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands simultaneously. For the netbook you would want a WiFi USB adapter that can be set to operate in either the 2.4GHz or 5GHz bands. The Netgear WNDA3100 is one.
»www.netgear.com/home/pro ··· 100.aspx You can then put the iMac on the 5GHz and select 5GHz when you want to get the iMac's content.

Thanks. Seems that I need to do some learning.

I should mention that I see about 20 visible networks from my apartment. Perhaps more not broadcasting their ID.

If you have that many wireless networks in your area, you absolutely need to check out inSSIDer. A free and indispensable tool for identifying wireless signals and their strengths. »download.cnet.com/inssid ··· 357.html

If your neighbors have strong signals in 1, 6, or 11 you will be able to identify those and pick the least used or weakest.

There is also a Power setting for your wirelss »192.168.1.254/xslt?PAGE= ··· PAGE=J46 be sure that is cranked up if your inSSIDer is having difficulties find your 2wire relative to your neighbors.

And of course as the previous post mentions, make sure the 2wire is as high as possible and not around metal - like a wire shelf or along side a computer where by the signal can easily be attenuated.