How to increase Airport Extreme signal strength

I post this in the way of advice, which anyone is free to accept or ignore.
I recently switched to Comcast ("triple play") from an in-complex Ethernet internet system. On my Mac Pro (MP), using speedtest.net, I attained download speeds of at least 22 Mbps. Very fast, I must say. However, I noticed that my Mac Book Pro (MBP) speeds were considerably slower, sometimes only a tenth of those on the MP. I am happy to report that after some reconfiguration I'm attaining almost identical speeds between the MP and MBP. What did I do?
I had initially configured the Airport Extreme (AEx) to operate at 802.11n with 5 Ghz only. Using iStumbler, I discovered that my signal strength was a bit under 60% and the "noise" was 13%. Other wireless devices appearing in the iStumbler window (we live in a downtown apartment complex) showed the "noise" levels at 9%--across the board. I fiddled with the location of my cordless phone (5.4 GHz) and even disconnected it. There was no change in the noise level. I moved the MBP up against the AEx and, while the signal strength increased, upwards of 70%, the noise level remained the same--at 13%.
So, I reconfigured the AEx to 802.11n (b/g compatible). Voila. Not only did the noise drop to 9%, just like the other devices, but the download speeds on the MBP zoomed to around 20 Mbps, or just about the same as the MP.
Too boost the MBP speeds even further I set up an Airport Express (AE) right next to where I use my MBP. I configured it to extend my wireless network.
By the way, I have my MP connected directly to the AEx via Ethernet. The AEx is directly connected to the cable modem. I configured my wireless network as "closed," using interference robustness. I left the multicast rate in default mode, which is 2 Mbps. Transmit power is at 100%.
What I seemed to have learned from this experience is NOT to use the 5 GHz only setting on an AEx, if one wants maximum Internet download speeds. (This seems counterintuitive, I know, because the theoretical limit of 5 GHz is 300 Mbps under 802.11n and "only" 54 Mbps using the 2.5 GHz setting.)

Purchase another Apple AirPort Base Station such as the $99 Express to "wirelessly extend" your AirPort wireless network.

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Airport Extreme signal strength problem

My airport extreme's signal is very weak by the time it gets to the other end of my house, and a couple of computers at that end have been using my neighbor's unsecured wifi for their internet connection. How can I extend or strengthen the broadcast? Is there a setting in the airport utility app? The computers affected are windows xp computers. My iMac and Vista pc are connected via the ethernet cable, so they're not using wifi.

Welcome to the discussion area!
Wireless signal strength dissipates quite quickly with distance and any obstructions such as walls or ceilings will make this effect even more noticeable.
If you have a newer dual band AirPort Extreme and you want to extend both bands for greater wireless coverage using wireless only, then you'll need to look at another dual band AirPort Extreme.
The AirPort Express can also be configured to extend your wireless network, but it will only extend one band.
The extending device would normally be located at approximately 1/2 to 2/3 of the distance between your main router and the area that needs more wireless coverage.
Post back if you decide to add an extending device to your network and you need help with configuration details.

Why is my airport extreme signal strength so weak on my macbook pro?

I live in a 4 story brownstone, next to neighbors with lots of wireless routers. My macbook pro (OS X 10.6.8) frequently is dropped from my airport extreme router. The strange thing is, the macbook receives a much stronger connection to my next door neighbor's wireless router (which is behind 2 brick walls, and down 1 floor) than it does to my airport extreme router - located 15 feet to my right with no interfering walls. In fact, I can stay solidly connected to my neighbor's router even when I'm 2 floors above him.
There are 4 other devices in my house connected to my airport extreme router. All have no problems connecting.
An ipad, which moves around from floor to floor, even outside on my front stoop.
A stationary imac located 4 inches away from the router
A stationary brother laser printer, about 10 feet to the right of the router (no interfering walls)
A stationary lexmark inket printer, about 10 feet in front of the router (behind 1 partition wall)
What can I do to troubleshoot this?

Problem solved. My router had some significant interference from a neighbours router that is no longer an issue.

How far does airport extremes range go

how far does airport extremes range go

Apple says up to 300 feet or so, but since tests like this are performed in a very large room with no walls, the specification won't mean much to most of us in the real world.
Bottom line is that it is not possible to make a good guess about distance capabilities in a home without knowing the number of walls and or ceilings the signal must pass through.
(A typicall wall of sheetrock and 2 by 4s will absorb on average about 15-20% of the signal and a ceiling absorbs more because it is thicker).
As a very rough guide...if the signal from the wireless router must pass through 4-5 walls, or a ceiling and 2-3 walls, then there won't be much of it left by the time it reaches a computer or other wireless device.

How to setup airport extreme vs express at WDS mode?

How to setup airport extreme(Main) vs express(Site) at WDS mode?

Please check out the following Apple Support article on how to configure a WDS.

How to start airport extreme on windows 7 professional

how to start airport extreme on windows

Doublechecking before proceeding ... are you getting a message saying that "the Bonjour Service can't be started" when you try to install iTunes? Or is something different going on?

Airport Extreme Signal Weaker than Before

My Airport Extreme signal is weaker than it used to be. Nothing has changed except I can no longer connect to the internet without running diagnostics each time I try to use it. It will connect and then stay connected until my macbook goes to sleep. When it wakes up, I have to re-connect using diagnostics.
I am using it in the same room I always have and never had problems before. But for the past several weeks, it is just not behaving as it always has. I have checked for a firmware update, but airport utility doesn't indicate that one is available. It's running: Version 6.3.2.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. It's run great for the past several years. This is a new issue...

Because I can no longer connect to the internet without running diagnostics each time I try to use it. It will connect and then stay connected until my macbook goes to sleep. When it wakes up, I have to re-connect using diagnostics.
I am using it in the same room I always have and never had problems before. It will connect without problems in other rooms that are closer to the base station. But from the room where I ordinarily connect, it won't automatically connect anymore.
I can get it to connect from that room, and it will stay connected, but I can only do so by running diagnostics, telling it to assist me and then selecting the network and and following the steps to connect.

I am trying to extend my airport extreme signal to another airport extreme can this be done? I have tried several time using the automated set up but it keeps failing... What am I doing wrong?

I am trying to extend my airport extreme signal to another airport extreme can this be done? I have tried several time using the automated set up but it keeps failing... I have selected every possible security/password encryption level... What am I doing wrong? If it os possible where can I find step by step instructions? Please & Thank you!

The challenge with the older round AirPort Extremes are that they are "g" wireless devices.
When you configure them for WDS, the speed on the wireless network is cut in half...and probably will not have the bandwidth required to stream video reliably from either AirPort Extreme since both are affected by the WDS setup.
There is not an "automated" setup for WDS. You have to do this manually on both AirPort Extremes. Unfortunately, it is not an easy configuration and it's easy to make a mistake and hard to recover without starting all over again.
Apple's instructions for WDS are here if you want to give it a try.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4262
It is possible that it might work. Keep us posted on your progress
Adding a single AirPort Express will unfortunately not help. You have to have "n" wireless devices at all router points.

How to test strength of airport extreme signal?

We have a 2nd generation Airport Extreme Model Number A11XX as well as a 1st generation Airport Express. We use the Airport Express to connect our iTunes to speakers exclusively. We recently upgraded to 'blazing' speeds of internet (15Mbp up to 30Mbp). Internet speed keeps fluctuating and internet provider has sent 2 people out in the last month since upgrade as well as reprovisioned our modem 3xs AND finally replacing our modem for the second time...all reporting no problem found, though both experiencing the fluctuating signal while here. We have been using Ookla speedtest to keep track of these fluctuations. Charter says that it has to be our wireless router and that they do not support wireless, which is fine, except our problem is not solved. They suggest we plug in directly to the modem via ethernet cable. I would like to know if there is a way to test the signal of our Airport Extreme to see if this is in fact where our problem is coming from.
A few things to note:
DEVICES:
1 iMac, 1 MacBook Pro, 1 Macbook, 1 iPad, 2 iPhones (obviously not all on at the same time....no more than 2 computers at a time)
Never had airport/wifi icon on computer/phone drop below 3 out of 4 bars....usually full strength.
Airport Extreme 2nd generation
Airport Express 1st generation for speakers only
ISSUES:
Experiencing fluctuating internet via WiFi AND directly plugged into modem. go figure.
Fluctuating Speeds from 3Mbp-35Mbp regularly (often timing out because entire signal drops out). And yes, I know the signal won't be at a constant speed always, but such large swings are just not acceptible.
Architect working from home with the need to upload and download large files as well as video conference.
If we need to get a new wireless router that is fine, but we'd rather not since as far as we can tell it seems to be working just fine.
Anyone have any ideas?
Thanks!

What firmware is the AE running??
Factory reset and downgrade the firmware if you are on 7.6.4.. go back to 7.6.1 or 7.5.2
The latest firmware on such an old model is no good.
Factory reset after the downgrade and redo the setup as simple as possible.. use simple names.. this is now important since mavericks which uses SMB networking by default. Names short, no spaces and pure alphanumeric.
Please plug into the AE by ethernet and see if the issue exists over ethernet.. if it all works fine by wired connection and is failing by wireless then basically you have done what is possible and the unit is failing.. replace it.

How to use Airport Extreme as a wireless hub

I just switched ISPs and decided to move the location of the modem. Bought a new Airport Extreme and set it up next to the modem. I get good WiFi through out the house (30-50Mbps). However, I have a location (in the entertainment center on opposite side of the house) that needs wired connections. Running wires to this location is not an option. I thought I could repurpose an older (~5yrs) Airport Extreme for this purpose. I reset the old Airport Extreme and then set it up using the Airport Utility to "Extend" existing network. Setup goes fine but then network performance drops to almost nothing (download speeds of <1Mbps). I suspect the two routers are interfering with one another. Not sure what to do. Is there an option to wireless connect the Old Airport to the New Airport, but not extend the wireless network, while keeping the ethernet ports on the back active?
Thanks in advance for your help.
-A

Running wires to this location is not an option.
If the area has poor wireless connection.. when you locate the airport there it will not get much signal and so will give very poor signal.
What you are asking to do.. will not help.
Is there an option to wireless connect the Old Airport to the New Airport, but not extend the wireless network, while keeping the ethernet ports on the back active?
No, there is no such option and it would not help anyway. The problem is the location of the airport is just very poor.
What about trying Ethernet over Power adapters.. called homeplug in some areas. They do not always work but when they do, will usually work better than wireless.
Otherwise you have to do some longer cords and move the old airport nearer to the new one or into a better location.. eg up higher in the room.
I thought I could repurpose an older (~5yrs) Airport Extreme for this purpose.
What model is this exactly?
Running what firmware?
You can sometimes improve things if you move the wireless link from 2.4ghz to 5ghz .. I use a similar setup and strangely discovered that although signal is better at 2.4ghz the speed is very poor.. by forcing the connection to 5ghz I actually get so much better speed.
I would also note it is extremely hard to get any useful info out of the current airport utility.. If you have a machine running older OS or even windows so you can run 5.6 utility it will show you the link speed with signal strength.. and you can use that to locate the airport in the best location.. small changes can make huge differences.. because the material it has to travel through changes.
Here is what my links look like in v5 utility. The centre one is the main router.. the ones on each side are the extenders.

How to boost wifi extreme signal

My brother has a 2007 model Airport Extreme that I got for him back then. He's updated the firmware last autumn - and when he's in the same room of his long single-story home the signal is excellent for things like SKYPE audio, but only fair for SKYPE video.
But if he hikes about 50 feet to his living room -- the connection drops out quickly.
What would be the best way to "boost" this signal without an ethernet cable? Is there a solution whereby he can install another extreme or an express? Would he install that in his living room? Would there be problems getting the signal to the new "Express" (or other non-Apple product) - i.e. if he can't get his iPad to connect in the Living Room now, why would a wireless "Express" be able to connect any better is my concern.
He's not technical at all so I'm trying to study-up a bit here before recommending anything to him.
Thanks for any comments and possible configurations.
Sunday 26 May 2013

You can use any repeater, but the AirPort Express is the easiest to configure. You just run the AipPort Utility to extend an existing network, connecting it to the AirPort Extreme.
The trickier part can be placement of the Express. What I do is take a laptop or smartphone and watch the bars of WiFi strength as you walk away from the area of good coverage. Once starts to dip, that's the area you want to plug the Express into the wall outlet. Here's a way to visualize it:
==========================================================
|Good coverage| |Decent Coverage| |Bad coverage|
|Airport Express Goes here|
==========================================================
Also you menioned that Skype Video calls were poor. That could be the internet connection. I would plug the cable/DSL modem from the AirPort Extreme and go directly into a desktop/laptop and run this test. http://www.speedtest.net
If that reads below 2mbps, then your internet speed is too low and you might have to bump up to the next level with your ISP (if available).

Best way to extend Airport Extreme signal

Like most folks, I had no idea what a poor choice it was to let my internet service providor install my DSL connection in the far corner of my home. So until I install a phone or cable jack in the middle of my place, half my signal is wasted in the back yard, while the other end of my house is out of range.
(iPad 2, iPhone 4S, Macbook, etc)
My question is... what's the best way to extend my Airport Extreme wireless signal? I tried using my Airport Express as an extender but recently read that this actually weakens the signal. If that's wrong, how should I configure them to work?
Does anyone know of a better way to extend my wireless signal to the rest of my house? Short of moving my router?
Thanks in advance!

Please check out the following Apple Support article for details on the various options available to you with using multiple base stations for extending a wireless network. If you have any questions or need further assistance please don't hesitate to post back.

Airport extreme signal with SDL

Hey guys, My friend has DSL with SBC in california and everything was fin. He just got an airport extreme base station to hook up a box that browse and stream music from Rhapsody (i forgot the name of that box) to play in the speakers around the house but I coudnt set it up properly.
From the DSL modem I went to airport extreme base station to the one with the little symbol, then I went to airport utility and I set up a network with pass for the house, right? after that the three computers in the house and the music box see the new network, so I selected in all of them but neither the computers or the box can go online. I see full signal everywhere but it cannot connect to the network. Also, in airport utility he has version 7.3 and 7.4 was available but everytime I tried to download it didnt do it.
what am I doing wrong?
can anyone please let me know how to finish this for him?
thanks a lot guys!
Edit: his dsl modem is speedstream 5100 from sbc
Message was edited by: demariai
Message was edited by: demariai

demariai wrote:
Hey guys, My friend has DSL with SBC in california and everything was fin. He just got an airport extreme base station to hook up a box that browse and stream music from Rhapsody (i forgot the name of that box) to play in the speakers around the house but I coudnt set it up properly.
From the DSL modem I went to airport extreme base station to the one with the little symbol, then I went to airport utility and I set up a network with pass for the house, right? after that the three computers in the house and the music box see the new network, so I selected in all of them but neither the computers or the box can go online. I see full signal everywhere but it cannot connect to the network.
In AirPort Utility's Internet panel, "Internet Connection" tab, did you set "Connect Using" to "PPPoE" and fill in the login details?

Increase Airport Extreme's Range?

I keep getting low signal strength when I am out on the patio and everything is extremely slow then. In looking into extending the range of my Extreme, I saw that a good way might be to use the Apple AirPort Express with Air Tunes (M9470LL/A)
Any thoughts on this please?
Thanx In Advance!!!

What do you mean by: reduce the throughput of the overall wireless network by one-half?
I mean that if you have a 802.11g (54 Mbps) wireless network, and you add a single remote base station as a part of a WDS configuration, the overall wireless network throughput would be 54/2 = 27 Mbps.
Would the AirTunes not be as good as an antenna? Or what about using both?
Audio/video streaming quality is dependent on throughput, with greater throughput = better quality. In turn, throughput is based on signal strength. Anything (poor antenna coverage, WDS, Wi-Fi interference, etc.) that would reduce either signal strength and/or throughput will reduce your streaming quality.

Airport extreme signal

I don't know if anyone has had this problem ---
but I have a new powerbook with an airport extreme card.
If the computer is near the base station, I get a good signal.I have a widget that gives the strength from 63 - 71, and that is with the computer no more than 12 inches from the router.
When I take the computer down to the basement in a split level house, the signal drops to almost nothing. The signal drop is sudden, not gradual. and doesn't return to full strength until the computer is close to the router.
My daughter, who has a G3 ibook, with the older airport card does not seem to have this problem.
Is is the airport card? Is there something I could do get a good signal throughout the house - or at least in the lower level?
Thanks in advance for suggestions,
nl

I am glad to see there are other people who are having the same problems as I have. My signal on my imac is extremely poor since installing the last airport update. before that i had full 4 bars and fast transmision speeds, now i have one bar and very slow download times. I have moved my base station closer to my computer, but to no avail. this is most definitely somethign to do with the update. is there a way to uninstall it?
I have the same problem. The farther away I am from
my wireless router, the weaker the signal on my
AirPort becomes. The funny thing is that this only
started happening after I downloaded the most recent
airport update last week (11/10/05). Can anyone help?
Apple, can you fix this for us asap? Thanks.

How to increase Airport Extreme signal strength

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