Will extending a wireless network using airport express cause weaker signal?

Hoping someone can advise on the following please....
I have installed an Airport Express to extend my wireless network and have confirmed with Apple tech support that it's connected and configured properly. I'm using an Airport Extreme base station as a wireless router.
The AX does not seem to be extending the signal range at all, and since the setup the signal strenght from the Extreme base station seems to be at half previous strengh.
Has anyone experienced this please and, if so, what's the fix?
Any replies gratefully received.
Regards

Let's check the settings on your Express. Temporarily, move it to the same room or an adjacent room to the Extreme and power it back up.
Open AirPort Utility - select the Express - Click Manual Setup
Click the Wireless tab below the icons and make sure that your settings look like this:
Wireless Mode = Extend a wireless network
Wireless Network Name = Same name as the Extreme wireless network
Check mark entered next to Allow wireless clients
Wireless Security = Same setting as the Extreme network
Wireless Password = Same password as the Extreme network
Confirm Password
Update to save settings, wait for green light.
Then move the Express another room or two further away from the Extreme....and restart both the Extreme and the Express. Then perform the BSSID test again.

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I have BT Infinity and I am using the Time Capsule with Airport Extreme as my router. Working well (even on wireless). I want to extend the wireless network with an Airport Express, but I cannot work out the settings necessary in Airport Utility. I am using Mountain Lion 10.8.2 on a Mac Pro. Please help!

BT,
I've read several of your posts, thanks for taking the time to share your wealth of knowledge.
I'm in a situation similar to the one described by 'scoutusmaximus'. Seeking the flexibility of a standalone router, I finally upgraded my 4-yr old ATT DSL gateway (modem+router) to a Comcast standalone modem + the ASUS RT-AC66U: http://www.asus.com/Networks/Wireless_Routers/RTAC66U/
Typically, I stick with all things Apple but the ASUS router seemed fairly superior to the current-gen base station (on paper, anyway; time will tell when it comes to performance) so, for once, I jumped ship. My plan was to extend the ASUS wired/wireless network using my TimeCapsule and 2 Airport Expresses in bridge mode, however, a google search turned up several unhappy customers that claim those devices don't play well with non-Apple routers, especially when it comes to 'extending' a network.
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1. Can I successfully extend the wired/wireless network created by the ASUS router using the 3 airport devices listed above w/out negatively impacting performance? I'd rather have 1 wireless network as opposed to creating a new wireless network with the TC and then extending it with the AP Expresses... though I'd consider that option down the line if it came to that.
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Hi,
Hi,
I have three Mac computers/laptops (iMac, MacBook Air and G4 PowerBook), all currently functioning via airport on a sky wireless network (Sky HD Sagem router) all backing up wirelessly to a Time Capsule 1TB which is also connected to the same wireless Sky network. At the top of my house signal strength is weak as you would expect. I would like to be able to extend the range of the sky routers signal which is on the ground floor (3 storey house). My original idea had been to setup a AirPort Express on the 2nd floor to extend the network, but I am unsure what steps I have to follow and whether I need to create a WDS network or not? I've seen some comments that say Sky & Apple hardware are not compatible and it's not possible to extend a Sky router/wireless network using a Apple Airport Express or Time Capsule. Can someone provide me with a step by step set of instructions on what I need to do to set this up? If a work around is required, again any advice would be very much appreciated!
Many thanks,
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Welcome to the discussions!
Sky and Apple products are not compatible for the purpose of extending your network using wireless only.
If you could connect an ethernet cable from your Sky router to the AirPort Express, or if it's not possible to run an ethernet cable...take a look at a pair of ethernet powerline adapters to accomplish the same task by using the AC wiring in your home to transmit the ethernet signal.
If you configure the AirPort Express to "create a wireless network", this would in effect, extend your network by adding an AirPort Express that would be configured with the exactly the same wireless network name, security settings and password as your Sky router. The AirPort Express would also need to be configured as a "bridge".
Post back if you need more details about something like this.

How do I extend an existing wireless network using airport express?

Hi all,
I am trying to extend existing wireless network using airport express, my main router is Belkin

Unfortunately, Apple's "extend" feature is designed to only work with other Apple routers if you are trying to "extend" using wireless only.
It is extremely unlikely that this feature would work with a router from another manufacturer using wireless only.

Extending wireless network using airport express

Greets all,
I'm trying to extend a wireless network in a two-storey apartment using TC and Airport Extreme.
The current setup is based on a Netgear N300 wireless router, which works fine upstairs but the signal is too weak to be useful downstairs. I have at my disposal a first-gen Time Capsule (TC) and a couple of Airport Express (AE) stations as well. I'd like to be able to extend the wireless network downstairs but of course the AEs won't talk directly to the Netgear router, so I'm guessing I need to use the TC somehow.
So far I've tried using the TC in bridge mode as well as a separate network via ethernet from the Netgear router, both of which worked but didn't extend the range - nor did it allow me the option of extending the TC network. In fact, all the searching I've done hasn't unearthed a solution to extend a wireless network using TC where TC is not the primary router.
Any help appreciated. I'm sorry if I haven't included all the necessary info off the bat.
Airport Utility 6.3.1 installed.

They are necessarily in fairly close proximity to each other (due ethernet cable).
If the Netgear and TC are in close proximity to each other, there is really no reason to have both devices providing the same wireless signal......and a very real possibility that there will be wireless interference between the two products.
My suggestion and instructions assumed that the Time Capsule would be at least a few rooms away from the Netgear. If the close proximity setup does creates some issues, then it will be necessary to turn off the wireless function on the Netgear router.
Unfortunately, the older A1088 version of the Express cannot be used to extend the wireless network since it has no settings for that type of application.
Locate the A1264 about half way between the TC and the general area where you need more wireless coverage.
Power up the A1264 Express for a few minutes, then hold in the reset button on the device for 10 seconds and release. Allow a full minute to for the Express to restart to a slow, blinking amber light.
Open up AirPort Utility
Click Other WiFi Devices
Click on AirPort Express
The utility will open up automatically and take a minute to analyze the products, then suggest that the Express be configured to "extend" the TC network.
Enter a device name that you want to use for the Express and click Next
The utility will set up everything for you. When you see the message of Setup Complete, click Done.
That's it.

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Here's what I have:
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I have an existing Airport Express that I use to stream music to my office stereo - named Jim's Office
I have a new Airport Express that I would like to use to extend my wireless network to my family room - named Jim's Extended. I have ethernet to my family room for my TV and Receiver and an ethernet switch with one available port.
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jP

Apple's instructions to "extend a wireless network" using wireless only are in the link below. Although the illustration pictures a 2nd AirPort Extreme, the setup for an AirPort Express is exactly the same.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4259
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Couple of thoughts here.......
The AirPort Express will only extend a wireless network if you have another Apple router providing the wireless network to be extended.
Is your "main" wireless router an Apple product? If yes, what model number do you have?
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I spent most of last night trying to extend my Sky Wireless Network using an Apple Airport Express. The Apple Store salesman told me that it would be simple to set up but he's either wrong or I'm completely stupid!
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I spent most of last night trying to extend my Sky Wireless Network using an Apple Airport Express. The Apple Store salesman told me that it would be simple to set up but he's either wrong or I'm completely stupid!
Unfortunately, the salesman may not have understood your question, or he may have given you incorrect information.
It's possible to have the AirPort Express provide more wireless coverage if you connect it using an ethernet cable permanently to your Sky router.
But, the AirPort Express cannot "extend" the wireless network produced by the Sky by connecting using wireless only. The "extend" feature will only work if you have an Apple to Apple wireless connection. This feature is not compatible with the products of other manufacturers.

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I would like to create a sub-network using my Airport Extreme for my suite only that uses the wifi signal from our office building and provides internet to the computers (both wired and wireless) in my suite but have it protected so that other suites in my building can't see my computers.
It is not possible to configure a single Apple AirPort router in this manner using wireless only, but it would be possible to do this with a single AirPort if you connect your AirPort Extreme to the "main" router using a wired Ethernet connection.
As for wireless only....you could probably do what you want by using two Apple routers....an AirPort Express to join the wireless network and provide an Ethernet signal to the AirPort Extreme's WAN port. Then the AirPort Extreme could then be configured to provide a separate network using a different subnet.
Users on the "main" network would not be able to "see" any devices on your "private" network and vice versa.
I use the two router set up all the time at hotels that only provide a wireless signal. The first Express "joins" the wireless network and feeds an Ethernet signal to the second AirPort which is configured to "create a wireless network" in router mode.
This way, I can connect multiple devices to my "private" network, but only pay the hotel for one connection since the hotel router only "sees" the AirPort Express that joins the network.

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highFly376

Let's see if I can get this straight.
You have an Airport Extreme base station that is set to "Create a wireless network" and you have the box checked for "allow this network to be extended"....
Then you have an Airport Express that is set to "Extend a wireless network" which you selected the name of your network in the box...
Correct?
See this Apple document:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4259?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US
The wireless unit on the right of the diagram can be either of the newer Apple base stations.
Extreme, Express, Time Capsule

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Oops, sorry I misread your post. That should work. Make sure that you disable the "Distribute IP addresses" option on the AX so that it acts like a wireless access point. On the AX, just enable the "Enable AirTunes over the Ethernet port" option on the Music tab.

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Will extending a wireless network using airport express cause weaker signal?

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