Extend signal range / increase signal strength of root ap

[max_gbel]

Hi, i'm using s zd1200 two R500 and one H500 which cover two households with around 250 sq meters in total. The mesh ap placed furthest from the root ap has a variable signal strength of 25-40% to the root ap. Now I'm actually looking to increase that signal strength because I believe that this variable signal strength (especially when down to 25%) is the root cause for occasional heartbeat loss.
My question now is if a R600, R700 or even a R610 or R710 would get me that increase in signal strength? I unfortunately don't have the possibility to add another AP between that root ap and mesh ap in question.

Any suggestions or real world experience would be highly appreciated!

Thx Max

[max_gbel]

No worries, but thanks for your help anyway!

[max_o_driscoll]

Clutching at straws here! Are you able to change orientation or position on wall/ceiling and look for best outcome...ie are you able to fiddle with set-up.

Closest physical proximity  is not always the strongest signal due to unexpected reflections and attentuation.

Sorry not actually answering question as to whether different APs would improve things. Better (much more expensive) kit will help. R710 is definitely next up the food chain and if you can afford it then why not. But it still might be worth seeing if you can get more out of present setup and work out heartbeat issues.

Be bloody annoying to find same thing happening after throwing money at problem!

[max_o_driscoll]

Old document and probably tells you what you already know.

https://support.ruckuswireless.com/answers/000001673

Main reminder is that meshing occurs on 5GHz which attenuates more than 2.4GHz. So those  2 concrete walls could be the main problem!

[max_gbel]

Max, thanks for all your help!
I have played around with positioning but due to some obtrusive places according to my wife in our living room she wanted it to be rather placed out of sight. I have to admit that she was right because myself also thought that in the middle of the room (where signal strength was best) under a glass table was not very "sexy" either. Now it is placed on the top of a cupboard which works fine but as mentioned I have occasional heartbeat loss (like once or twice a month.

Yes I'm aware of the 5Ghz meshing specs. I have high density of foreign ssids (most of them still in the 2.4Ghz realm but starts already to shift to 5Ghz) in my neighborhood and Ruckus so far was the only setup that worked more or less flawlessly. I worked with Zyxel and Lancom (both business solutions) before and both were unstable on a daily basis, and I will not mention any poor consumer gear I tried and borrowed from friends.

In any case it looks like as if the 5Ghz is not being stable enough for whatever reason and it might as well be the walls in between...

[john_d]

I set up a 6400 sq ft property a while ago using Unleashed (R500, 600, 710), and I definitely noticed a big improvement when I replaced an R500 node with a R600 and the R600 root nodes with R710's. Throughput increased by about 50%.


If adding another mesh AP is not an option (which, BTW, is my preferred recommendation), then I think your next best option is to use a pair of R710's: One as a root and one as the distant mesh. The extra sensitivity and the 4 spatial stream capability will give you the best shot of a reliable mesh link.

EDIT: But again, if there's any chance that it's possible to reconsider adding an AP between the concrete walls, it is worth considering.


Also, in case you haven't tried yet, try switching your 5GHz channel. In one of my environments, switching from channels in the 36-48 range to channel 100 delivered a noticeable performance improvement and stronger mesh signal. Not sure if that's due to the regulatory transmit power differences, radio sensitivity differences, or propagation differences caused by the frequency change. But it's worth a shot.