Extending an extreme dual band network using an old Express (802.11g)s

Previously I had a 802.11g home network based on two Airport Express (old version) in WDS mode.
I've installed a new Airport extreme station in order to have a dual-band network to use 802.11g/n without loosing performance and hoping to cover my area with the enhanced power.
Unfortunately there are still some corners with insufficient signal so i tried to extend the 802.11g segment with the old airport, checking the extreme flag to allow the network to be expanded and manually configuring the express WDS page.
I payed attention to the channel (the same in extreme and express station) and configured the airport ID of the extreme base station in the express remote station.

When using WDS you automatically reduce the efficiency of the Airport Extreme's 802.11n extended features. WDS requires that the network drops to 802.11g instead of 802.11n which boasts the extended network range.
There isn't much more you could do for network range other than changing the channel to remove wireless interference or move the Airport Expresses closer to the areas of low signal (internet speed will be reduced the farther the Expresses are from the main base.)

Similar Messages

Extending an extreme dual band network using an old Express (802.11g)

Previously I had a 802.11g home network based on two Airport Express (old version) in WDS mode.
I've installed a new Airport extreme station in order to have a dual-band network to use 802.11g/n without loosing performance and hoping to cover my area with the enhanced power.
Unfortunately there are still some corners with insufficient signal.
As I do not want to throw away the old Express and buy a new one I tried to extend only the 802.11g segment with the old airport, checking the Extreme base station flag to allow the network to be expanded and manually configuring the Express WDS page.
I payed attention to the channel (the same in extreme and express station) and configured the airport ID of the extreme base station in the express remote station.
Unfortunately I could not have the WDS running on the 802.11g segment.
Does anyone have experience in such matter? Is that possible?
Thanks a lot

Scatmac wrote:
As I do not want to throw away the old Express and buy a new one I tried to extend only the 802.11g segment with the old airport, checking the Extreme base station flag to allow the network to be expanded and manually configuring the Express WDS page.
I paid attention to the channel (the same in extreme and express station) and configured the airport ID of the extreme base station in the express remote station.
Unfortunately I could not have the WDS running on the 802.11g segment.
You need to configure your new unit to participate in a WDS network. You can't see that option unless you hold down an "option" key when you pull down the "Wireless Mode" list.
Depending on what other equipment you have, you might want to configure your Extreme to create a separate 5 GHz band. That's under the "Wireless Network Options" button on the same panel as the "Wireless Mode" list.

Extending a simultaneous dual-band network using an Airport Extreme

I have a new Time Capsule that can operate in simultaneous dual-band mode. I have a single SSID for both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz networks, and all of my devices correctly connect using the appropriate frequency.
I also have an older square Airport Extreme that's dual-band capable (but not simultaneous dual-band). I have this Airport Extreme set up to extend the network from the Time Capsule, but it's extending the 5 GHz network rather than the 2.4 GHz network. I'd rather have it extend the 2.4 GHz network because our iPhones move around the house much more often than our other wireless clients.
I know that I could go back to having different SSIDs for the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz networks, and then telling the Airport Extreme explicitly to extend the 2.4 GHz network, but I'm really enjoying having a single SSID that any device can use to connect to my network.
Thanks,
Scott Gardner

Thanks for the replies. Right now, there's about 30 feet, two interior plaster/lathe walls and a closet between the Time Capsule and the Airport Extreme. The area of the house where I'm trying to improve the 2.4 GHz reception (an attached studio) is only about another 18 feet, one interior wall and one exterior wall further past the Airport Extreme's current location. I can't put the Airport Extreme any further from the Time Capsule because the 18 feet between its current location and the attached studio is an open area.
If there are no hidden settings that I'm missing, I guess I'll just break the network back into two discrete SSIDs and explicitly tell the Airport Extreme to extend the 2.4 GHz network.
Thanks again,
Scott Gardner

Time Capsule in a Dual Band Network using Airport Extreme (N) and (2) AE

I need help and step by step directions to configure my TC in a Dual Band Network. Currently, I have my TC set up in a Create Network mode using 5Mhz and my AE (n) set up to establish a WDS and my AE (2) set up as WDS.
Everything works but my AE constantly blinks amber and I can't use my TC as a backup drive on anything but my Macbook and iMac. My 2 powerbooks (G4) can't back up to the TC. I am using Leopard 10.5.2 and airport utility 5.3.1.
I use one of my AEs to connect a vista pc to my network by ethernet (it works) and the other AE in my family room to connect to my Toshiba HD DVD by ethernet (it works).
Please help I must be missing something otherwise my AE wouldn't be blinking.

double click the blinking one in the utility and see if it tells you why its amber...WDS error?

Dual band network using Mini as 11g base station to send airtunes to AX?

Here's what I'm trying to do: set up a dual band network, pretty much exactly as described in Apple's doc (with the AEn as the router, in 5ghz 11n-only mode and accessed by a CD2 MBP with 11n enabled ), but using a Mac Mini as an 11g software base station (via Internet Sharing) to connect a AX via 11g so I can stream music to my stereo via Airtunes. I've got the Mini seeing the AX, and iTunes on the Mini sees the AX for Airtunes, but the CD2 MBP does NOT see the AX, either in iTunes or with Airport Utility. I'm currently messing around with IPNetRouterX in order to get the Mini to bridge it's ethernet connection from the AEn to it's Airport port, but no succes so far. Any Ideas?

The problem is that the Mac mini is creating a different subnet for the AirPort connection. Therefore the MacBook Pro's Ethernet connection to the Mac mini can't reach the AX.

Dual band network using non-apple Wirless G router (dlink or linksys)?

I now have a pure 5GHz N network with 2 Extreme base stations, Mac Pro and Macbook on it, but want to make another 2.4GHz b/g network (to preserve the speed of 5 GHz N).
I currently have the b/g working using the Airport Express as a bridge but its range is limited compared to other g routers I have (with external boosted antennae), plus it was an additional expense.
Any clues as to how to use a 3rd party router like a dlink DI-624 or Linksys WTR54G? I tried hooking them to the Airport Extreme's LAN port to the Dlink WAN port w/ DHCP. It will share the internet connection but won't access the local network (since it is on a different subnet eg 192.168.0.1 on dlink vs 192.168.1.x on Airport).
I can't get the Dlink router to use the same subnet as the extreme. Suggestions?

Duane:
Thanks again. 2 for 2 (I have one more to ask, separate thread).
To help others, I've explicitly documented the steps I took with my Dlink DI-624. Here are the steps I did:
1. Reset to factory settings with the pin button on back.
2. Connect dLink WAN port to one of the Airport Extreme's LAN ports
3. Confirm I can connect via 802.11g using my Macbook (choosing the 'dlink' SSID)
4. Type 192.168.0.1 to get to the dlinks' admin pages
5. Change the dlink's admin password, Apply
6. Change the network SSID and set the wireless mode (b/g or g only, etc), choose the encryption level (WPA2) and set the password, Apply
7. Wait for the router to reboot. Now, on the Macbook choose the new SSID above and enter the password
8. Log in again to 192.168.0.1 - this time you'll need the password set for the router in step 5
9. Now, set the dlink's DHCP server to Disabled. Apply and let the router reboot.
10. Move the ethernet connection from the dlink WAN port to one of its LAN ports
11. Choose the new SSID and voila: full internet access and local LAN access (confirm you're now on the same subnet and can see local network resources).

Setting up/extending a Dual Band network

Any recommendations regarding dual-band vs. the n/b/g blended network? Is it possible to set up a dual-band network on an AEBS-n and also boost the "n" side of the network with an AX-n? I've searched the discussions but have not found much on the topic, other than some comments regarding iMacs not liking "n" or 10.5.3 or airport utility 5.3.1 or maybe the "automatic" channel setting or possibly something else.....
A little history:
We have 3 iMacs (new 3.06 Ghz, 17" late 2006, 20" late 2006), 3 MacBook Pros, and one dual-2.5 Ghz G5 that all shared internet access through a Motorola modem/Comcast cable via an Airport Extreme Base Station b/g. The AEBS was in the basement and configured as a WDS with an Airport Express b/g that served to extend the network's reach to the second floor and remodeled kitchen (new steel beams). This setup has worked nearly flawlessly for years until recently, when both of the older iMacs started experiencing intermittent airport signal drops--supremely annoying. The modem seemed to work fine, however, and the AEBS light stayed green and the G5 and MBPs weren't having issues (some running Tiger, some Leopard).
I thought that upgrading to Leopard (erase and install) might take are of any weird settings or corrupt files and thus improve the iMacs' airport connections, so I upgraded the first one, and it seemed to fix the problem--no drops of airport or internet for several hours. I then decided it was time to upgrade the network as well--swapping out the old b/g AEBS and AX for a new AEBS-n and AX-n. (Yes, I know, not too smart to change both the OS and the network at the same time ... but here we are.) Since the G5 in the basement can't connect to an "n" network, I decided to set up a Dual Band network with the AX-n acting as the old AX b/g had to extend the network.
This is what it looked like:
cable modem ------>
AEBS-n ------> wireless to Airport Extreme-n ---> wireless to older iMacs and MBPs
AX b/g (connected via ethernet to AEBS) -----> wireless to the G5
This worked, sort of, in that all but the G5 could all pick up and join either the "n" or the b/g network. Problem was, the network was very unstable-- the airport signal would suddenly drop out for no reason then recover, or the airport icon would show a full 4 bars but have no internet connection. This was happening on all of the macs, perhaps more so on the two older iMacs, while the modem itself showed no change in status, and the AEBS-n light would remain green. When I removed the AX-N from the setup to see if that was causing a hiccup, the drops were a little less frequent but the kitchen iMac was marooned with 1, maybe 2 bars in the airport icon and the signal strength on the second floor was decreased. Oh, and the drops continued to happen. I've now reverted to a b/g-compatible network, which is better, but still hasn't prevented all of the drops.
My questions are:
1-Any ideas about why the airport is acting wonky? Are 'n' networks proving to be more problematic than the old ones?
2-Is it possible to use an AX-n to extend the range of the "n" side of a dual band network?
2-If so, any ideas for improving the network's reliability?
3-If not, will going back to a b/g-compatible network negate the supposed speed benefits of 802.11n? Would I go back to using a WDS setup then?
I've tried so many different settings, combinations, configurations trying to get this up and working, that I'm ready to pull my hair out. Any help will be greatly appreciated!
Message was edited by: wiswic

Thanks for your reply. Looking back at my sorry attempt at a diagram, I realize I wasn't clear about a couple of things. The modem is connected via ethernet to the AEBS-n. The AEBS-n is connected via ethernet to the AE-b/g, which provides wireless coverage to the G5 and others. So far, everything is in the basement.
We live in an old house--no way to set up the network via ethernet--and so rely on the airport network to provide internet access to the computers on the first and second floors. In our old network, I had an AE-b/g as a WDS remote located in the kitchen that provided the first and second floors with their internet connection.
When I upgraded our network, I set up the new AEBS-n as a 5.0 Ghz an-only network (create a network/allow network to be extended) and connected the old AE b/g to it (bridge mode/create a network) to provide wireless internet for the G5. The iMac in the kitchen could hardly pick up the "n" signal at all, and it could receive only a weak signal from the b/g network. Lots of dropped airport signals and also lots of dropped internet connections. Strangely enough, the MacBookPros on the second floor could pick up both signals pretty strongly, but they, too, had lots of drops. The 2nd floor iMac was even worse than the kitchen iMac--spotty reception at best, and lots of drops. The G5 and the iMac in the basement, meanwhile, were fine--strong signal and only intermittent drops.
Hoping to extend the reach of the "n" network and thereby eliminate the drops, I added an AE-n to it (bridge mode/extend the network) and put it where the old b/g had been. This boosted the "n" signal to the kitchen and 2nd floor, but the drops seemed to become more frequent and for longer durations. Perhaps this was merely coincidence, but it made me question whether adding the AE-n in a dual-band network was advisable. Not finding any info that specifically addressed that scenario, I turned to the discussion forum for guidance.
Further research leads me to believe that the iMacs' issues may be more due to their being iMacs in the first place, but I was still left with a very unreliable dual band network for the rest of the Macs. Reconfiguring the AEBS-n and AE-n as an n (b/g compatible) network has led to far fewer drops, but like you, I'd prefer to keep my "an" devices separated from the G5 to make use of their higher wireless speed.
So....I guess what I need to know is whether anyone else been having so many dual band dropouts? Have you had any success in eliminating them? Have you successfully extended the "n" side of their dual band without adversely affecting stability?
As long as I know this isn't a lost cause, I'll give it another go and keep tweaking settings in hopes of finding a stable setup....

Extend my Time Capsule (Dual Band) network

Hi, I need to extend my Time Capsule (Dual Band) network as currently the Time Capsule is downstairs connected to a modem and I need to connect my Blu-ray player via ethernet to the internet which is upstairs.
I came across the following article from Apple http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4259 if I follow this will I be able to use the ethernet ports on the AEBS?
Also do I need to purchase an AEBS or is there another router i.e. Linksys or D-Link?
Cheers

Apple's "extend a wireless network" will enable the ethernet ports on the "remote" device in addition to providing more wireless coverage in the area where the remote device will be located.
Be sure to check to make sure that there will be a good wireless signal where the "remote" device is to be located by moving your laptop to the proposed location and logging on the wireless to make sure that you get a good, stable internet connection.
If you cannot get a good wireless signal at this location, you'll need to look at an ethernet connection method to allow communications between the devices.
It is extremely unlikely that the "extend" setup would work with devices from other manufacturers, so it would be wise to stay with the same manufacturer on any type of "main" and "remote" wireless setup.

Configuring WDS w/ Airport Extreme Dual-Band 802.11n & Express 802.11g

I currently have an Airport Extreme Dual-Band 802.11n Model: A1301 (located downstairs) and an older Airport Express 802.11g Model: A1084 (located upstairs) which I had been using to stream iTunes to my upstairs stereo (which worked flawlessly). Recently a friend of mine recommended that I reconfigure my network to a Wireless Distribution System setup which would allow me to create a remote wireless node which improves my wireless signal strength upstairs, allows an interface to Airplay to play our music from our iPod's/Pad's and also provides an hard-wired Ethernet connection for my newly delivered Network Extender for my cell phone. So I followed the URL: support.apple.com/kb/HT4262 to assist in this conversion and found that I was unable to configure my network as desired. While this documentation is very good, there is one snafu that I worked out that finally allowed a successful setup. Follow the instructions for:
- Connecting a WDS main base station to the Internet
- Configuring a WDS main base station
- Configuring a WDS remote base station (See last line of instructions for the correct WDS Main ID)
Ensure all Wi-Fi base stations are powered on and allow them time to appear in the AirPort Menu Extra.
From the AirPort Menu Extra, select an 802.11g Wi-Fi base station to configure as a WDS remote.
In AirPort Utility, select the WDS remote Wi-Fi base station in the Base Station Chooser, and click Manual Setup.
Select the AirPort icon from the Toolbar, and click on the Wireless tab.
From Wireless Mode select Participate in a WDS network.
Click on the WDS tab.
From WDS Mode, select WDS remote.
Enable Allow wireless clients (see the first note below).
If not already supplied, enter the 2.4Ghz AirPort ID of the WDS main, then click Update.
There are two Apple ID's for the dual-band Extreme (2.4 & 5.0Ghz). Be sure to use the 2.4Ghz ID which is listed under the "Summary Tab" of the utility. What is confusing is that in the AirPort Utility, when you position the mouse cursor over the graphic of the Extreme on the left-hand side of the GUI, you are presented with a yellow dialog box which displays the 5Ghz ID and this can be misleading especially when you are trying to connect to an older 2.4Ghz Express ...

My Express is the A1264 802.11n model. My Extreme is the A1354 model.
The most crucial issue is the the Tivo, because the Premiere only works with Ethernet (I dont' have and wont' buy the upgraded wireless doohickey), but of course I would prefer that the Express also act to extend the signal, and I particularly want it do so using WEP access (or nothing, see below), since I have a second Tivo which ONLY works wirelessly and which ONLY works using WEP, not WPA.
Since there were so many different issues and needs going on, I was excited about the Dual Band because it meant I could potentially get 5G speeds for my iPad and perhaps the Tivo Premiere connection, while allowing a completely separate band for the OLD Tivo.
The other option I've been trying out (to accommodate the Tivo2 that can't handle WEP) is having no security, but making the networks hidden.
A third option I tried to make work was to create a "guest network" for just the Tivo2.
But what I'm finding out (it's what I always struggle with...networking is a nightmare.) is that if you take one from Column A, Column B disappears, so to speak.
The way it used to work on the non-dual band Extreme was as I mapped above, and the Tivo2 and my iPad used the wireless signal with no problem while the Express was Ethernet connected to the TivoPremiere, but it did so using WDS, which doesn't even seem to exist as a possibility, forget teh fact that it undermines the speed boost (so I read)
I've frankly never been able to understand the differences between the various modes and structures, and believe it or not I'm very smart and very comfortable with computers and Macs, having worked on them for 25 years.
And one of the biggest reasons I've had such a hard time is because of the many times that I have updated after making changes, Airport Utility tells me it worked, but nothing happens and then after too much frustration I end up unplugging and shutting down every single piece of equipment and rebooting everything and then it DOES work. Sometimes. But I can't be doing that every time I make one tweak, I'll go insane!
And the number of pin-resets I've done on the Express, the Dual band, and even the cable modem would make your head spin!
So there's my story. Kinda. Does it make any sense? At least in terms of my goals?
Your help is more appreciated than you can imagine.

Connecting ap extreme (dual-band) to ap express b/g via wds

main question: can i have two b/g ap expresses extend the b/g signal from a main dual band station?
either this is way complicated or i'm really slow (i know). i have a new-ish ap extreme dual band (v. 7.5.2) and two older ap expresses (v. 6.3). i thought i was extending the extreme's b/g signal by choosing the "join a wireless network" option, and just learned that option does not extend the b/g signal. maybe i am slow...
i learned that the ap extreme dual band's checkbox "allow the network to be extended" is only for other N wireless airports (counter-intuitive). i learned that trying to make my remote (but not relay!) ap expresses participate in a wds network, first, causes them to need to be reset. every time. i learned that i need to make the wds setting on the main station FIRST, and option-click on the wireless mode menu (counter-intuitive? sheesh!) i've read several posts about people having problems (one person said apple doesn't really want us to use wds, so that's why it's hidden). i found this page and did all the steps on the main station:
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/2355832?threadID=2355832&tstart=0
and the result was an amber light w/ a wds error (i saw the amber light in the airport utility window, i didn't check to see if the unit was blinking).
neither the above link, nor the pdf mentioned (http://manuals.info.apple.com/en_US/Designing_AirPort_Networks_10.5-Windows.pdf) pages 42-46 mention a wds error or what to do.
w/ the wds error, i still had internet, but could not access the other two b/g ap expresses to make them wds remotes.
2nd-ary question: why is this so hard? why the secret option-click menu? why doesn't the apple help utility spell this out (it only mentions N airport, and says for other devices, to "check the Apple Support Website.")? there are so many posts on this, some are poorly worded (maybe mine too!), some are slightly different scenarios...
any help is greatly appreciated.
marc

Marc,
I would suggest that you decide whether to move back 5-6 years and use WDS....with a tremendous loss of performance on your dual band Extreme....(It becomes a "g" wireless router using WDS and the bandwidth of your entire network will drop by half for each AirPort Express you have on the network).
So, instead of "n" wireless at 130 Mbps, your WDS setup will yield 13 Mbps at best. WDS is very difficult for most users to setup because it is very easy to make a mistake and hard to find your way out when you do.
The "Extend a wireless network" setup will maintain "n" speeds on the entire network with a very small bandwith loss. But, you have to use all "n" devices for this to work, and you can only have "main" and "remotes". There are no "relays" in this setup. It is a much easier setup to configure than WDS.
The Apple document below provides all the details. I could not tell from your post whether you had looked at this.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4145

Airport Extreme (Dual band) with Time Capsule (Dual band) Extension problem

Hi
I have an airport extreme (dual band) set up with a dual band Time capsule extending the 5ghz band .. however the mac address that the time capsule says its using is the 2.4ghz band.. I only noticed this while setting up static IP addresses on my network... does this mean it is extending the 5ghz network on a 2.4 ghz band? how do i set it up to just extend the 5ghz properly.. any clarification would be appreciated.
thanks in advance

See my answer to your other post.

Time Machine: External Hard Drive connected to a dual-band network

I currently have a dual-band network setup using a 1TB Time Capsule (wireless-n only) and an AEBS (wireless b/g) in bridge mode.
My unibody MBP and ATV utilize the Time Capsule, while an older Macbook and MacMini utilize the AEBS. I have Time Machine configured on the MBP to use the Time Capsule for backup.
I have connected an external 500GB hard drive to the AEBS for the purpose of using Time Machine for the Macbook and MacMini. The Airport Utility shows the external drive connected to the AEBS, but when I try to configure Time Machine for the Macbook and MacMini I am only allowed to select the Time Capsule as the destination. Sorry for the long post. Any help would be greatly appreciated

Assuming you have the square Extreme (not the UFO-style), you can use an external USB HDD with it.
Time Machine backups to AirDisks (e.g. USB HDD attached to Extreme) is unsupported, but has been successful by some. As well, once you decide to move any old TM backups (HDD connected directly to the Mac) to an AirDisk, you cannot continue backing up to your previous TM backup. The format it saves to vs. a local HDD is different. The folder structure you see becomes a sparsebundle/disk image via the AirDisk.
If you are interested in proceeding with your plan, check these links out:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=8225748&#8225748
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=8650723&#8650723
http://jamesshore.com/Blog/How-to-Accelerate-Time-Machine.html

Airport Extreme Dual-Band Base Station Is excessively slow

Let me start off by stating this is my first apple support discussion and I have no experience in these forums but rather forums elsewhere.
My Airport Extreme Dual-Band Base Station is completely updated as of DEC. 30, 2012 running version 7.6.1 and I have the latest airport utility, so bare in mind some of the previous fixes I've Read seem unavailable to my setup
Our household has 7-13 of the following devices connected in a 24 hour average:
5-6 iPhones all running iOS 6 (1, iphone 3gs; 2-3, iPhone 4; 2, iPhone 5)
1 iPad 2 wifi only running iOS 6
2 MacBook Pro 13" early 2012 models one running mountain lion and the other running lion
1 mac mini early 2011 model running mountain lion server and is connected outside the network as a public server
1 Apple TV latest model(1080p) latest updates
1 LG 47" 1080p 3D TV
3 blueray players
2 Windows 7 PC one a laptop and the other a desktop
1 HP All-In-One Printer
1 AT&T MyCell Antenna
My problem is as follows:
My network is running rather sluggish. the base station is getting at the very minimum good signal strength to all my devices most of them getting great signal, so I doubt it be the result of range. I've tried messing with the channels and radio settings but have yet to find a correct optimal settings. I've tried searching around these forums as well as in other areas and have not found a suitable solution. my apple TV lags and jitters a lot. I have trouble airplay to it because of what I've read elsewhere which is latency issues. I have no clue how to test latency. I have realized that it isn't a matter of noise in the area because noise doesn't pass 15% and signal is optimal in all areas. of where the devices are. I've noticed connecting my server directly gives me 47Mb/s as compared to the Ethernet connection of 32Mb/s so I am clueless as to a solution. I know that with my old router the wifi speeds were outstanding but that router kept disconnecting wifi clients and then reconnecting them. sadly this is happening again with the apple router. last night my iPad would not stay connected and our network had so much lag that I couldn't even load the youtube app let alone a video. also buffering takes an odd amount of time sometimes 3 minutes. for a 30 second video on youtube. I have no guest network active and I have a wpa2/wpa personal encryption set on the network. I could use some serious help. the people of my household have no problem returning the apple router but I think to urge otherwise. if I could get some help in a solution that would be fantastic.
Thanks in Advance,
Blaine Miller

Can you tell us whether your "modem" is a simple device with only one ethernet port or is it a "gateway", which is a combination modem/router with 3-4 ethernet ports?

Extend an AE dual-band router with a 2nd AE dbr: will automatic mode work?

I have a new Apple Extreme dual-band router, and it works just great. My N devices all get the maximum bandwidth, and the G devices connect easily as well. I have a section of my house that gets weak reception, and want to extend the network with a second router.
If I bought a second Apple Extreme dual-band router, and configured it to Extend Wireless Network and Allow Wireless Clients, could I then leave it on the default radio mode of Automatic? It seems like either router would then be able to tell if the wireless clients were N or G, but communication between the routers would be N. I want to keep the maximum bandwidth for my N devices.
Thanks in advance

I have a new Apple Extreme dual-band router, and it works just great. My N devices all get the maximum bandwidth, and the G devices connect easily as well. I have a section of my house that gets weak reception, and want to extend the network with a second router.
If I bought a second Apple Extreme dual-band router, and configured it to Extend Wireless Network and Allow Wireless Clients, could I then leave it on the default radio mode of Automatic? It seems like either router would then be able to tell if the wireless clients were N or G, but communication between the routers would be N. I want to keep the maximum bandwidth for my N devices.
Thanks in advance

Dual Band Network Problems; Air Disk, Air Tune = AIR ****

Here is my set-up; I have a dual band network. I have my MacBook Pro on the 5GHZ side and everything else on the 2.4GHZ side. I have an external Hard Drive, which houses my iTunes Library in Apple Lossless format, connected to the USB port on the Extreme and I also have an Airport Express attached to it, to transmit the 2.4GHZ network.
Here is my problem; when I play files, the MacBook Pro has to read the files wirelessly from the external HD on the 5GHZ network and then send it to the Airport Express on the 2.4GHZ network. I notice sometimes that the speed of the music speeds up slightly. Like the playback is trying to catch up or something. I only notice it when I play large files, i.e., the Apple Lossless files. It never happens with 128 AAC files or other compressed files and it also never happens when I hardwire the laptop to my audio system via USB cable. I also notice the the time it takes to start, stop and change tracks is considerably longer
Can all this wireless stuff be the cause of my problem?
Macbook Pro 15" Core 2 Duo 2.16 GHZ Mac OS X (10.4.9)

Reading I think you are confusing two things. There is Ethernet (hardwired) and there is Wireless.
Ethernet:
The TC has three Gigabit ethernet ports on the back that can give you 10, 100 or 1,000 Gbit/s speed depending what devices you connect. You don't need to configure this as it's auto sensing and negotiates the highest possible speed.
Wireless
This is when you don't have any wires going between your devices and you have different wireless speeds from a/b/g to n. The wireless network will always be only as fast as the fastest device you connect, ie you connect a wireless g device to a wireless n network it will slow down to g. So it's adviceable to have a separate g and n network which you can do with your two base stations.
So back to your case if you hardwire your DirecTV and PS3 into the TC and then the TC back to your AEBS you don't need to worry about them, they will auto negotiate with their Ethernet ports.
Your MBP can then connect wireless to your TC using wireless n network. if you have other wireless g devices suggest you set them up to connect to your AEBS.

Extending an extreme dual band network using an old Express (802.11g)s

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for