Weak WiFi signal

K

KarLinux

New member
OK, what sold me on the TX was the wifi. It connects ok-ish but my signal's very weak (around 30%), dropping to red then up to yellow. Never green.

I have

1 Linksys router (channel 6) on the server rack
1 Linksys router (channel 11) in the very center of the house
1 Linksys range expander in the front of the house

It's about 15' between the two routers and about 15' from the channel 11 to the expander. Old wood house.

Now, as I walk around using WiFiWhere, I see 3 signals all around 30%. Going around the house shows the furthest from me dropping to 20% or so.

Unplug the expander and disable each router in turn, the one remaining shows about 40% when I'm a foot from it.

Is this a TX thing? With the laptops, I see and "excellent" signal where ever I am.

It's gotten so my TX connection is very unreliable. Hotsyncing takes 3 or 4 tries to complete. Do I need to afix a beer can to the TX? I think I have one somewhere.

Thanks,
John
 
Of course the signal aint gonna be a laptop. But in saying that depending on the brand and signal of each router they will be stronger. I was an the Starbucks T Mobile Wifi from across the street of a main road at least 25 to 30 ft +.
 
Some routers allow you to adjust the antenna gain (power out). Check the settings on the devices. Also, why are you setting different channels? Try setting them all to be the same channel. Finally, examine the network lists when changing channels. Many people (most really) buy the router/WAP and plug it in but never do any setup. With that in mind you might be suprised to find that everyone in your neighborhood is on the same channel. Try some different channels, there may be less noise/interfearance on other ones.

Finally, keep in mind that *EVERY* object between the transmitter and receiver impacts the signal. A signal passing perpendicular through a interior wall sees that wall as being 4 1/2" thick. But the same signal passing at a diagonal (20 degrees for example) will see that same wall as being almost a foot thick (and exterior wall are even worse). Most home routers only send a signal reliably about 50 feet. Beyond that, signals attenuate to the point where data transfer rate is very low or not at all.

Cheers,
John
 
I used different channels so they wouldn't interfere. I switched to the same channel and it doesn't seem to make a difference. I guess this way would be best if I'm walking around.

Thing is, I still have only 40-50% when I'm sitting at the desk in front of the thing. I get it about walls, but 3 feet of air should be better than that.
 
I can relate to your situation. I have been sitting in the same room with my laptop only 8-10 fett from the router and would get a weak signal. Going to the next room and now having a wall between the devices would actually give me a better signal.

I finally wound up moving my WAP to another location more central to my floorplan and it did increase my overall signal strength a little. The only thing I can figure is things like other electronic equipment (especially TVs, wireless phones, computer displays), metal filing cabinets and desks, water pipes, and electric wiring in the walls all do strange things to the WiFi signal (deflection, attenuation, canceling, etc.). These are after all pretty week signals, only a few milli-watts. You might want to consider a higher gain antenna. I don't know what Cisco/Linksys offers, but for Dlink, look at the D-Link Antenna Compatability Chart .

Hope this helps,
John
 
how did you get wifiwhere to work, everytime I go into it, it tells me that the wifi setup wizard must be run atleast once before using wifiwhere, I already have my wireless network setup....whats the deal?????

Rich
 
I found a Linksys signal booster on Ebay (they've discontinued them) and when it gets here I'll tell you if it makes a difference.

Rich, you must scan/setup in your Palm to link to a wireless network. I've always done my laptop setup manually. Basically you access your router/access point in your browser (default's usually 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1). In there you can specify your security. Try starting it with no security, connecting with your Palm/Laptop then give the router security. Type the encryption code into your laptop and you should be fine.

Confused? Let us know what you're doing. Someone who monitors this thread will help you walk through it.

John
 
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