Wireless router with range to cover 4500 sq ft house

[KaptKaos]

I have a project that needs a good wireless router to cover a large home.

Any recommendations?

[id10t]

Run extra wires and have multiple access points. Or get repeaters.

[spinner]

Any of the newer N routers centrally located (not basement) should be fine. I have a similar sized home and my (older) D-Link DIR-655 Extreme N router works great.

[RANDY P]

I installed a cheap N router in a 30K sq foot concrete BOWLING ALLEY and had good wi-fi in every seat.

rjp

[masraum]

Just about any router would probably do it, but specifics of the building may make certain areas worse than others. There is a certain room in my house that almost seems like it is shielded in one corner. Options to improve coverage would be a better antenna, or running a cable from the router to move the antenna to a better location. Another option is like what was mentioned earlier, multiple APs.

[mikester]

I can't believe you didn't ask me first - I thought we had something special.

4500 sq ft with walls and what not isn't going to be a challenge for any consumer class access point or wireless router.

they are limited to transmitting at less than 100mw and typically try to do so at under 75mw (so that they don't have to provide higher grade internals and can avoid using a fan because fan noise is bad).

The best bet I have done is a Linksys WAP-54G with an 'aftermarket' kernel loaded on it. Linksys doesn't actually make these anymore to my knowledge. You can find them on eBay and with the aftermarket kernel you can up the transmit values towards 80mw. This is how I got good coverage in my house.

You do need to elaborate though - is it a 4500 sqft house or is it just 4500 sq ft with some of that being house and some of that being the rest of the property.

My property is about 4500 sq ft and I do get wireless outside but it isn't great in my front or back yards. Side is okay but I don't really use it much out there. I use a Cisco 871 SOHO router which is a B/G radio. Probably not what you're looking for; I think your best bet is to see what AP/WRT the kidz these days are hacking and check it out to see what the hacks enable you to do.

Failing that - run some wires and drop more than one AP - you'll be glad you did.

[woodman]

And i can't believe you don't know the answer already...why don't you ask your IT guy dood.

[HardDrive]

[legion]

I have multiple access points. An added bonus is that wireless traffic is much faster as I have fewer devices attached to each access point (less sharing of wireless bandwidth).

[KaptKaos]

Originally Posted by mikester

I can't believe you didn't ask me first - I thought we had something special.

4500 sq ft with walls and what not isn't going to be a challenge for any consumer class access point or wireless router.

they are limited to transmitting at less than 100mw and typically try to do so at under 75mw (so that they don't have to provide higher grade internals and can avoid using a fan because fan noise is bad).

The best bet I have done is a Linksys WAP-54G with an 'aftermarket' kernel loaded on it. Linksys doesn't actually make these anymore to my knowledge. You can find them on eBay and with the aftermarket kernel you can up the transmit values towards 80mw. This is how I got good coverage in my house.

You do need to elaborate though - is it a 4500 sqft house or is it just 4500 sq ft with some of that being house and some of that being the rest of the property.

My property is about 4500 sq ft and I do get wireless outside but it isn't great in my front or back yards. Side is okay but I don't really use it much out there. I use a Cisco 871 SOHO router which is a B/G radio. Probably not what you're looking for; I think your best bet is to see what AP/WRT the kidz these days are hacking and check it out to see what the hacks enable you to do.

Failing that - run some wires and drop more than one AP - you'll be glad you did.

Thanks Mike. I prolly will call you.

It's a huge house in Beverly Hills. It's old, and three stories and has thick walls. There's a lot of outside space too.

There's an Apple Airport there on the 2nd floor now and it sucks. I think there is a repeater on the lower level, but I am not sure how it is connected.

I need to get back there.

Oh yeah - @Woodman - pfft!!

[slodave]

I did a 3 story building (thick walls) in Venice 3 years ago with higher end AP's running POE. Coverage actually overlaps between floors and probably exceeds 4500 sq ft. POE worked out really well, since getting power to them was not easy.

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by id10t

Run extra wires and have multiple access points. Or get repeaters.

+1 or really, maybe +3 or 4

[MysticLlama]

If you have something as a router (any wired one will do), get a 3 pack of these:
UniFi-AP-3 (3-Pack)-US - UniFi AP, 3-Pack USA

Or maybe try one of the -LR (long range) and add a 2nd one if you need one.

I have 5 in an 8500sqft commercial building. 3 Were covering it just fine, but we wanted to add the back stairs and double up on one area.

I have one of their really small APs at home and get good signal from the opposite side of the house, which is~50' and 4 walls.

[MysticLlama]

Or actually, if you can get it right in the middle, one of these may work fine:

PowerAPN-US - Indoor 802.11n Access Point USA

I picked up one for someone else at work, and he has it on one end of a 5k sqft house and it works great.

[rattlsnak]

I just upgraded to the new Cisco / Linksys. Linksys E4200 - Maximum Performance Wireless N Router - Cisco Home Products Store

I have a 3900 sq ft house and this router rocks... Full movie/tunes streaming from multiple devices all over the house...

[Bob Kontak]

Originally Posted by rattlsnak

I just upgraded to the new Cisco / Linksys. Linksys E4200 - Maximum Performance Wireless N Router - Cisco Home Products Store

I have a 3900 sq ft house and this router rocks... Full movie/tunes streaming from multiple devices all over the house...

+1

I have the legacy N version of this router. No need for a repeater.

[RWebb]

does the house have a stone or brick chimney in the middle of it?

[fuelie600]

Originally Posted by spinner

Any of the newer N routers centrally located (not basement) should be fine. I have a similar sized home and my (older) D-Link DIR-655 Extreme N router works great.

+1 on the DIR-655. Very happy with mine.

I will never do linksys again. I had 2 WAP-54G's die after 4-5 months use on each.

[linard]

Easy installation and setup. Long range coverage makes it an ideal for your situation. I would also urge you to visit this website for reference Best Wireless Router for Long Range