Wireless Router, Internet Connection

[NickF]

There was a thread short while back related to what wireless routers people were using. This is somewhat of a related question... I have fibertel 50 mbs service. Occasionally, I have problem with the Fibertel connection, and call and that is resolved or explained (e.g. outage in area). BUT I frequently have problems with my wireless connection (when the wired connection is working fine). Sometimes there is no wireless connection at all even when in close proximity to the router. I use the wireless router provided by fibertel, called a Motorola Surfboard. Fibertel does not seem to be able to help me when I have these issues with the wireless connection. Could the inconsistency with my wireless connection be likely due to the router provided by Fibertel. Is that why many people seem to buy their own router rather than use the one provided by the service provider??? Thanks.. this issue has been driving me up the wall. If you do use another router than the one provided by the service provider are you able to get support from the internet provider if you have issues? Any advice on this appreciated.

 

[thorsten]

You basically have two devices: the cable modem transforms data from the cable network to ethernet and vice versa. The router connects the external network to your internal, and if it's a Wireless router also provides an access point for those devices. In practice, this can be implemented as two different boxes or also combined into a single one. The problem with the provided boxes is that they a) often focus more on price than on features/stability and B) often have their configuration limited. Buying a new router would enable you to take that into your hand. Some advantages you might get are e.g., better wireless coverage due to improved antennas, more stability due to better software, use of the 5GHz band instead of only 2.4 GHz (which is likely polluted if you live in a big apartment building) and more features (e.g. built-in firewall, support for a safe guest network, ...).
I had major stability issues with one of the Fibertel routers which the company didn't solve and they are all gone since switching to my own router (except for some power-/network outages you mentioned). If you have your own router, Fibertel only 'helps' you for the inbound cable connection, but you have to configure your router yourself (which is not too difficult with modern devices). E.g., if you'd plug a PC via a LAN cable into the cable modem and the internet is working, everything is fine on Fibertel's end and issues are caused within your home network. If you cannot get a signal directly over the modem, it's likely to be a Fibertel issue.

 

[NickF]

thorsten, thanks for the very clear explanation. I think I will get my own wireless router. Seems like there is a decent chance this could solve stability issues regarding the wireless connection for the reasons you mention. One additional question if you don't mind... do you think I will need to swap out the combined cable modem / router box I currently have with Fibertel for another one that just offers modem. Or do you think I can just get the wireless router and connect to the combined box I currently have with Fibertel. Thanks!

 

[thorsten]

Typically you should be able to use the cable modem. You might have to deactivate the router function (Fibertel should be able to tell you this if you tell them you want to use a separate router), but it might also just work by plugging the new router into the network outlet of the cable modem and configuring it (even though in this case, the WiFi of the Fibertel box is still running in parallel, so personally I'd try to turn it off).

 

[NickF]

btw.... getting the router turned out to be a great solution to improve the stability of the connection. After having router for a few days now, I have had no issues with losing connection as I did before. The real test was using the VPN, which I seemed to lose every 15 minutes before. Now, no problems. I ended up getting the tp link tl-wr841HP. Does have 5 ghz band but is working well along with a tp link extender to help with the range.thanks again thorsten

 

[thorsten]

Glad your issue is solved Nick