LynkSys BEFW11S4V3 tunning??

Is there any way to tune this Wireless Access Point to gain more strengh in its wireless signal? I live in a concrete house so, I have my Wireless AP downstairs but I can't get signal upstairs, I know that concrete is a great isolation for signals but I have heard that special antennas or booster can do the job, is it true?

Reply to
heldmar
Loading thread data ...

Better directional antennas.

Give up. You need seperate radios upstairs and downstairs. A 2nd radio, setup as an access point and not a router, installed upstairs will work. You'll need to run a CAT5 cable between floors. I do NOT recommend a repeater as you currently can't get a signal through the floor anyway. If you cannot run the CAT5 wire, there are power line networking repeaters available that can help.

formatting link

Reply to
Jeff Liebermann

Hi, thanks for your help, now I would like if you help me a little more telling me what antenna on that site could be good for me because I don't understand too much of the drawings. Thanks.

Reply to
heldmar

Very much true.

formatting link

Reply to
David Taylor

There's not much to tell, take a look at the pictures to see how the antennas are made up, that's all there is to it.

David.

Reply to
David Taylor

Assuming for now that the original question came from a none expert, we could be a little kinder. When you say you cant get a connection upstairs, I preseme that this is with a laptop card? If so then a little wandering around may help you. Is it possible for you to walk around and see just what signal you have using the freeby software that comes with most cards? We are not trying to see where the internet fails but to understand how much signal you have available. Often a laptop card will have an antenna of around 0.5dB gain. A repeater may have 2 or 5dB. If you get zero signal as soon as you start to move upstairs then the previous comments are probably correct. However if you have limited amounts of single available perhaps at the top of the stairs but not good enough to get the internet, a repeater with its buigger antenna may work. A repeater has to see some signal otherwise it has nothing to repeat.

One last thing if you do decide to go for the repeater option. You should look at you main AP. Does it support WDS? if so then your scope for products is fairly wide. If not then you should not only buy from the same manufacturer as the AP but also from the same range. Repeating was not standardised and so even inside one manufacturers products not all work together.

Tony

Reply to
Tony Field

Nope. That would ruin my reputation as an evil, arrogant, obnoxious, irritating, insulting, humiliating, tactless, and generally digusting person. Besides, I usually charge extra for being nice. Actually, I don't see where I was in any way unkind. I've worked with wireless inside poured concrete buildings. 2.4GHz wireless is not going to go through the concrete in any useable manner. My advice to get a 2nd access point on the 2nd floor, or get a wireless->powerline->wireless repeater, stands.

Most signal strength software that comes with the typical wireless card is rather crude and sluggish. Netstumbler works much better.

The typical laptop etched PCB contorted dipole has a gain of about

-2dBi which includes the circuit board losses. The USB PIFA antennas offer about the same or less.

A repeater doesn't have any gain. However, the antenna plugged into the repeater has some gain. The typical rubber ducky omni vertical dipole is about 2dBi. Replacements are available with up to about

5dBi gain. Anything better will probably require a directional antenna. (Note the "i" in dBi).

Agreed. It's worth trying first. However, simply getting a signal and getting a *RELIABLE* signal are two different things. Shooting through walls and floors tend to create multipath and reflection problems. It's possible to have a perfectly good signal and have it disappear when something in the room moves. The result is usually having to move the antenna around every few minutes to regain the connection. I don't think it's possible to get a decent and reliable connection through a concrete floor. It might be possible through a stair well, but then he will probably be dealing with reflections, unless the laptop is located at the top of the stairs.

The Linksys BEFW11S4v3 does not support WDS.

Reply to
Jeff Liebermann

Many thanks for the help, I'm kind of newbie on wireless......but not so newbie, in fact, I already know about tools like NetStumbler and I've used it to see my signal through my house.

What's happening is the far I get from the antennas.....the worst the signal becomes, I have started to think to move my router first to more centralized point so I can then start testing more with NetStumbler and then take my other choices....like a repeater.

Anyway thanks to all the people for their help, I appreciate it.

Reply to
heldmar

Cabling-Design.com Forums website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.