Airport Express with powerline -- limits of 100BaseT?

Question

Background
My home network currently uses an Airport Express A1392 to create simultaneous 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz networks. In addition to non-media application (e.g. checking email, printing, general internet surfing), I also use my network to stream audio from  a media server to various stereo components via DNLA. Since, my DNLA renderers  lack wifi, I am using two Airport Express A1264, both in "Join a network" mode, to provide the DNLA renderers with wifi capability (they join to the 5 GHz network). This setup works great for streaming CD quality audio (44.1 kHz 16bit) to the DNLA renderers, but recently I've been trying to play hi res audio (192 kHz 24bit or 96 kHz 24bit), and the network doesn't offer sufficient throughput 48 kHz 24bit. (I also tried turning off the 5 GHz network and putting everything on 2.4 GHz, just in case making the A1392 run two simultaneous networks were consuming too many network resources, but that turned out to offer less throughput, not more, than my current configuration.)
I'm considering adding some powerline adapters in order to take the DNLA renderers off of the wifi network and put them on something that is wired. I've read that the powerline adapters rated for 500 MBps offer real world throughout somewhere between 100 and 150 MBps, and that should be enough to  allow me to stream uncompressed 192 kHz 24bit audio with plenty of bandwidth to spare. While I'm at it, I may look into installing gigabit powerline adapters to accomodate future growth, assuming they aren't prohibitively expensive (I've heard they are available from both Monster and Belkin).
Question:
I am aware that the AE A1392 has 100BaseT ethernet ports, and I don't want that to be a limiting factor on the throughput of the powerline network. If I have a powerline adapter plugged into the LAN ethernet port of the AE A1392, and 3+ powerline adapters elsewhere in the house providing ethernet to my DNLA renderers, my media server, and possibly other components in the future, will my AE A1392 be performing a switching function (in which case I'd expect the 100BaseT ethernet port on the AE A1392 would constrain my bandwidth), or do the powerline adapters perform all of the switching? If the powerline adapters do not perform any switching but depend on the network router or a seperate ethernet switch, then I imagine my options are either to upgrade the AE A1392 to an Airport Extreme, which offers a 1000BaseT ethernet ports, or else to insert a traditional gigabit switch in between the AE A1392 and the powerline adapter.
Thanks for the help!

Answer 1

Duane wrote:
Rude_Dog, Welcome to the discussion area!
First of all, thanks for your input, Duane.
Currently your AirPort Express (AX) is a wireless client of the Time Capsule.
If you connect them via Ethernet, you would reconfigure the AX to create a wireless network and to act as a bridge (not sharing a single IP address).
Is that like automatic ? The second I plug the patch cable into the AX, it creates a separate network ?
If you want to make one big wireless network, so that you can roam without having to switch between networks, you would configure the AX to use the same SSID (network name) and wireless encryption type/level/password as used by the Time Capsule. If you don't do this you will have 2 separate wireless networks. One created by the Time Capsule and another created by the AX.
Actually, I want to get as much as possible away from wireless. The only devices still wireless are the AX (b/g) and my Touch - everything else is hardwired.
Is there no possibility at all to get the AX to join the existing network and yet have a "wired" connection so that I have no more interference from my bl**dy neighbors ?
Or do I need new AX(n) units to achieve that ?