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Powerline network adaptors
Mark Allanson - 9/3/13 at 04:56 PM

I want to set up a powerline network as my wifi is very slow due to cornish granite walls etc.

Has anyone used one? any pitfalls, recommendations?

A trawl of ebay has thrown up many Comtrend ones for spares repair so I think I will stay away from that brand

Any thoughts.......

britishtrident - 9/3/13 at 05:18 PM

Homeplug brand are good, a few years back I got a coupleof the earlier 85Mbs speed one and found they were so good I did away with my CAT5 wiring.
Since then I have fitted a few, they are great for hooking up upstairs wifi repeaters.

Make sure you set them up properly with the supplied software before installing as the out of the box the encryption is off.

JeffHs - 9/3/13 at 05:24 PM

I've used TP-Link 200 Mbps. One is connected direct to the router, then 3 satellites for Bluray, Sonos and 2nd router to extend the range. Everything works just fine.

Slimy38 - 9/3/13 at 05:30 PM

quote:
Originally posted by britishtrident
Homeplug brand are good, a few years back I got a coupleof the earlier 85Mbs speed one and found they were so good I did away with my CAT5 wiring.


I went the other way, my Homeplug adaptors were slower than the wifi that I was looking to replace and in the end just sent a CAT5 cable upstairs. It's all in the house wiring though.

Mark, without sounding negative are you sure a powerline network would be any better? I'm guessing your house is fairly old, along with the wiring? You could always give it a go without paying for a set. Argos have one, it's a bit cheeky but at least you'd get 28 days of evaluation before getting a refund. Not that I promote such behaviour....

[Edited on 9/3/13 by Slimy38]

jossey - 9/3/13 at 07:25 PM

Wouldn't it be cheaper to buy 2 or 3 repeaters?

I have my htpc hard wired with an access point behind tv

My Internet router is downstairs in hallway with a repeater in loft....

My house is old stone......

Dj

40inches - 9/3/13 at 08:10 PM

Got a pair from eBuyer a couple of years ago, for about £35, streams HD video from the PC to TV without a problem.
These are the ones, eBuyer. Read the reviews.

[Edited on 9-3-13 by 40inches]

Wheels244 - 9/3/13 at 08:28 PM

quote:
Originally posted by 40inches
Got a pair from eBuyer a couple of years ago, for about £35, streams HD video from the PC to TV without a problem.
These are the ones, eBuyer. Read the reviews.

[Edited on 9-3-13 by 40inches]


Those are the ones I use - cured my wireless streaming/buffering problem instantly.

gremlin1234 - 9/3/13 at 09:31 PM

quote:
A trawl of ebay has thrown up many Comtrend ones for spares repair so I think I will stay away from that brand

the comtrend ones originally supplied with bt vision were recalled because the cases hardened, and fell apart, exposing live mains...

MikeR - 9/3/13 at 10:01 PM

I recently got some from www.7dayshop.com. Got a pair of the 500mb ones (i think) for around 35 quid. Use it to connect my printer upstairs to the rest of the house. When doing a speed test it was the same as my 54g wifi.

I'm happy with them.

Thinking of building an office in the garden and will probably use them to extend the network into there.

Mark Allanson - 9/3/13 at 11:16 PM

Update! I have been doing a bit of testing. Although the house is fairly old, the wiring has been replaced in the last 10 years.

I have 60meg broadband, I have done a walk around with the new netbook and can achieve 54meg through wifi in most areas of the house, but the desk top with a new Edimax dongle can only get 12meg. The dongle is rated at 150meg and has the latest 'n' doofers, but isn't doing the job, I checked the desktop with a cat5, and got 58meg, so I am blaming the dongle.

I have the choice of getting a PCI wifi card or going the powerline route, both can be achieved for about £35.00 - which is recommended?

pmc_3 - 9/3/13 at 11:32 PM

I'd go for the powerline adapters every time, will be a much more stable connection. They work best plugged direct in to a mains socket rather than an extension but the software will tell you signal quality.

MikeR - 9/3/13 at 11:34 PM

www.7dayshop.com also do some usb wireless adaptors with a directional ariel. Costs about a tenner, may be worth a punt.

(i'll stop pushing 7day shop soon!)

Daddylonglegs - 10/3/13 at 07:43 AM

Just a note to remember on speeds of connections etc. Don't forget that there are megabits pers second and megaBytes per second (8 bits to a Byte). Something quoted at 150 Mb (megabits) is actually around 18 MB (megabytes). Can cause issues when choosing certain cables and devices.

Not particularly related to the issue raised here, but something to think about when checking speed ratings quoted on devices etc.

ash_hammond - 10/3/13 at 08:51 AM

I had exactly the same issue with an edimax dongle. Mine was the little nano one, so small the transmitter did not stand a chance of getting a good signal.

jeffw - 10/3/13 at 12:06 PM

Ethernet Cat5e cable it the best way to do it permanently. Wireless or powerline are not as reliable or as high bandwidth/low latency, but they are ideal on a temporary basis.

ed1801 - 10/3/13 at 12:13 PM

I have a desktop which had a rubbish signal, I replaced the aerial that screwed straight in the back of the card with a larger one on a wire and now get full rate, full signal. Cost about a fiver.