Is there a way to improve Wi-Fi strength?

[smodha]

Hey friends,

So, after a few days tweaking and prodding, I've managed to fix my box. My only problem seems to be the Wi-Fi signal. It cannot connect at more than 20%. Is there any way of improving this without the use of home plugs?

Thanks.

Jay.

[echelon]

you mean like this in spiderbox - Guides & FAQ section ?

https://www.satpimps.co.uk/showthread.php?167977-spiderbox-6000-wifi-fix

3 options listed in there

1) adapting the box with an old router antennae

2) wifi signal extender

3) homeplugs

and there is of course number 4) method that I use for boxes , namely

4) Cat 5 cable from router to network switches, cat 5 cables to wall mounted cat 5 sockets , then ethernet from wall mounted sockets to the actual boxes and tv,s and dvd players etc

I tend to use wifi for tablets, phones , laptops and other similar devices , with cat 5 wired preferred to all fixed locations and cheap lan network switches to "split" the incoming cable to multiple devices using their inbuilt ethernet sockets

[jbvid]

Hey friends,

So, after a few days tweaking and prodding, I've managed to fix my box. My only problem seems to be the Wi-Fi signal. It cannot connect at more than 20%. Is there any way of improving this without the use of home plugs?

Thanks.

Jay.
Hi
Only way I found was to use a Wi-Fi extender, plugs into mains socket nearer your Spiderbox (Google Edimax 300)

echelon beat me, but mine just another solution
jb

[smodha]

Hi
Only way I found was to use a Wi-Fi extender, plugs into mains socket nearer your Spiderbox (Google Edimax 300)

echelon beat me, but mine just another solution
jb

How's the connection with the Edimax Wi-Fi extender? I like this solution better than the Home Plugs.

[jbvid]

How's the connection with the Edimax Wi-Fi extender? I like this solution better than the Home Plugs.
Hi
Its WiFi, just plugs into the mains, no leads, Google and read.
jb

[echelon]

seen a few non-major makes at about £10 to £12 on the usual site, with the major brand edimax a fiver more

all wifi extenders that plug into the mains

[smodha]

Hi
Its WiFi, just plugs into the mains, no leads, Google and read.
jb

That's not what I asked but thanks for the help.

[smodha]

seen a few non-major makes at about £10 to £12 on the usual site, with the major brand edimax a fiver more

all wifi extenders that plug into the mains

The Edimax N300 is £18 on 3b@y. I think I'll order that. There's no point going cheap.

[c31]

i had wifi prob all i done was to move my box away ftom my tv now it is fine

[blackdevil]

First check your router's settings.
Check the wireless settings, transmission power be to high level.

[heyho]

Whose your ISP with i.e. what router is it.

When I went with Sky I found their supplied routers wasn't brilliant so I replaced it with a cheap D-Link DIR615 and flashed it with some open source firmware. Made a big difference to my wi-fi reception. But I do have problem areas in my house mainly in the extension which is lined with Kingspan insulation (foil on it). So I use home plugs there

On Friday I decided to wire in Cat 6 to the lounge in readiness for BT (was with Sky). I did have a 3 port wireless extender homeplug in there but the BT router supports GB so I decided to hard wire seeing as I'm streaming a lot now rather than using Satellite links. Of course the bottleneck is still the broadband.

[smodha]

Whose your ISP with i.e. what router is it.

When I went with Sky I found their supplied routers wasn't brilliant so I replaced it with a cheap D-Link DIR615 and flashed it with some open source firmware. Made a big difference to my wi-fi reception. But I do have problem areas in my house mainly in the extension which is lined with Kingspan insulation (foil on it). So I use home plugs there

On Friday I decided to wire in Cat 6 to the lounge in readiness for BT (was with Sky). I did have a 3 port wireless extender homeplug in there but the BT router supports GB so I decided to hard wire seeing as I'm streaming a lot now rather than using Satellite links. Of course the bottleneck is still the broadband.

I'm with Sky too but it's not the router. I've got several mobile devices in the house and they are fine. I can stream video on my iPad when I'm sat in the living room. I suspect it's the Wi-Fi adaptor inside the box - cheap and cheerful.

[heyho]

I must say I have found the wireless capabilities of the 6000HD to be limited i.e. hard to connect and if you did get a connection it would drop out but I know that some on here have not had any issues. I went with a homeplug connection for mine which works flawlessly. Like most consumer electronic products its probably down to which production run you get or a slight change in components used for production.

[viduka]

I started to get issues of buffering whilst using IPTV via wifi. My solution was to use a wifi extender that I plugged into a wall socket near the sb6000. The extender is one that also has an ethernet socket which I use to connect to the rear of the sb. No problems now.

[The Man From Delmote]

Might be worth checking what other wifis in the local vicinity are using which channels. Sometimes moving your wifi channel on your router can improve resends and packetloss. If you have an android phone or tablet try a free app called Wifi Analyzer and see which channel is free and not overlapping with any others.

Generally channels 1, 7 and 13 dont overlap whereas the rest do and can slightly conflict.

hope this helps matey. Know what you mean about using those LAN power adapters though, they run far too hot for my liking! :)

[Detlef]

. . . . . . . When I went with Sky I found their supplied routers wasn't brilliant so I replaced it with a cheap D-Link DIR615 and flashed it with some open source firmware. Made a big difference to my wi-fi reception. But I do have problem areas in my house mainly in the extension which is lined with Kingspan insulation (foil on it). So I use home plugs there . . . . . . . .

If you use USA sites to get the latest software for a router you often find that the chipset supports higher power levels than that supplied with a device bought in Europe (or to put it another way, the US software allows a higher power).

And as The Man From Delmote stated, slow WiFi is frequently caused by interference from other routers in the vicinity.

[den123]

sorry if this is off topic but how do i improve if in a caravan on a site for wifi thanks

[hugh jardon]

The wifi on the spider is awful. I had in Back room next to my modem and it was fine. Took it in the room next door can't get a signal now.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[smodha]

UPDATE - I bought the Edimax N300 and it's fixed the problem. Wi-Fi is now at 100% constant and the picture is perfect for SD. If anyone needs any advice gimme a shout.

[echelon]

sorry if this is off topic but how do i improve if in a caravan on a site for wifi thanks

same way as the OP

buy a wifi extender and try it

you would also do the same trick if the box you are using has no wifi built in (like a 9000 or dreambox or vu)

[smodha]

sorry if this is off topic but how do i improve if in a caravan on a site for wifi thanks

Sell the caravan :D

[Detlef]

If you meet that situation often then it is worth investing in one of these: Picture 1

It is a high gain, directional aerial which you would need to point at the WiFi node. The only downside is that it needs a WiFi adapter that has a connector and not a fixed or internal aerial.

When I'm away in a certain ski resort that has WiFi max in the whole village I use one of these (Picture 2) with the above aerial, for my laptop.

Obviously my setup is only useful if you are feeding a Windows USB device and not an ethernet port.

I should add that in some countries (France is one) it may be illegal to use such devices as the local radiated power exceeds some limits - or if you do use one then keep it well hidden and only active when you really need it :D.

[smodha]

*** UPDATE #2 ***

I'm not sure if this is a coincidence but I've moved my Smart TV and box from a metal stand onto a Oak wood cabinet. The connection and overall experience is x 100 better. With the Edimax N300, my stream is perfect so give it a shot too.

[The Man From Delmote]

*** UPDATE #2 ***

I'm not sure if this is a coincidence but I've moved my Smart TV and box from a metal stand onto a Oak wood cabinet. The connection and overall experience is x 100 better. With the Edimax N300, my stream is perfect so give it a shot too.

No coincidence mate, your tv stand was probably acting as a temper shield and killing the wifi signal. A lot of modern buildings use this ploy to stop wifi signals escaping outside through wire meshing the cavity. All sorts can affect your signal even a dodgy unregulated psu for another device. Have a google at RF interference and see what it throws up :)

[heyho]

I've just set up my 6000 in the bedroom and using a feed from my 28.2 fixed, now redundant, astra dish.

The wireless router was only a matter of yards (and a rather flimsy stud wall) away from the 6000 yet I was only getting 2-7% signal strength. Other devices in that room were displaying maximum strength signal. Plugged in a homeplug and connected up the Ethernet and even before I changed from wireless to wired my signal strength jumped to over 40%. Will stick with the homeplug.

[smodha]

I've just set up my 6000 in the bedroom and using a feed from my 28.2 fixed, now redundant, astra dish.

The wireless router was only a matter of yards (and a rather flimsy stud wall) away from the 6000 yet I was only getting 2-7% signal strength. Other devices in that room were displaying maximum strength signal. Plugged in a homeplug and connected up the Ethernet and even before I changed from wireless to wired my signal strength jumped to over 40%. Will stick with the homeplug.

I'm actually hardwired from the N300 booster to the box. It's almost seamless although you do get the Scrambled Service message now and then. In a perfect world I would hard wire from the router itself but I'm lazy. I'm with Sky which does disconnect a lot too so I'm not sure if that's the cause of these outages. I'm looking at switching to Fibre Optic soon.