Need best router for multiple pc's....2.4ghz or 5.0ghz?

[neworldman]

Well I am getting ready to buy a top of the line router for my home to replace my WRT160N V3 Cisco. I have 7 wired pc's with cat 6 cable and some with Panasonic wall adapters http://reviews.cnet.com/adapters-nics/panasonic-hd-plc-ethernet/4505-3380_7-31940392.html?tag=also. Also have two laptops one with wireless G and other with N. Have two PS3's and one Wii , two iPhones. I just got a new HD media player that is connected with cat 6 and Panasonic adapter. So you can see I have alot to handle as far as connections. I have a 30Mpbs Internet connection right now. What one of these routers would you recommend for my set up? Or do you have a different one in mind. have really no spending limit. Also would the 5.0ghz make a difference for me? Does the pc or laptop or iPhone have to be able to use the 5.0ghz for it to work? How does the Simultaneous Dual Band work?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003B48UQ8/ref=s9_simh_gw_p23_d0_i3?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX...pf_rd_i=507846

http://store.apple.com/us/product/MC340/AirPort-Extreme?afid=p201%7C3952544&cid=AOS-US...FF-Launch_0309

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833127215&Tpk=D-Link%20DIR-655%2...eless%20Router

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833122326&Tpk=Netgear%20N600%20W...20Router%20WND

Thanks

[redwudz]

I have a similar setup, though not as many wireless devices. Mostly my laptop and my netbook. I've been using a Netgear WNR3500 for about a year after my third Linksys died on me. The Netgear has been dependable. I use it in N 2.4 mode most of the time as none of my wireless devices seem to want to use N 5.0. I also have 4 Gigabit switches running off the router. About 9 wired CAT 5e PCs at present, a WDTV Live, a HD Homerun tuner and a network printer. I've found that the wireless setup is the weakest part of the system, so I avoid using it for large data transfers. Additionally I have a second router running on a different subnet from a second ISP and it is tied back into the Netgear. I also have a pair of AP devices that link with a relative down the street tied into the system.

But I would look into the Netgear WNDR3700. I just ended up with the WNR3500 as that was all that was quickly available locally when my last router quit on me. The WNDR3700 would probably be an improvement, at least for N operations. The simultaneous G and N band operation would be a plus if you have a lot of mixed devices.

[neworldman]

I have a similar setup, though not as many wireless devices. Mostly my laptop and my netbook. I've been using a Netgear WNR3500 for about a year after my third Linksys died on me. The Netgear has been dependable. I use it in N 2.4 mode most of the time as none of my wireless devices seem to want to use N 5.0. I also have 4 Gigabit switches running off the router. About 9 wired CAT 5e PCs at present, a WDTV Live, a HD Homerun tuner and a network printer. I've found that the wireless setup is the weakest part of the system, so I avoid using it for large data transfers. Additionally I have a second router running on a different subnet from a second ISP and it is tied back into the Netgear. I also have a pair of AP devices that link with a relative down the street tied into the system.

But I would look into the Netgear WNDR3700. I just ended up with the WNR3500 as that was all that was quickly available locally when my last router quit on me. The WNDR3700 would probably be an improvement, at least for N operations. The simultaneous G and N band operation would be a plus if you have a lot of mixed devices.

Great thanks... that is the one I have been reading about. There are alot of ok reviews and some negative about it failing in the past few days on NewEgg. Also they talk alot of flashing to DD-WRT what ever that means. They say it works 100% better if you do flash. What is involved in flashing it?

[lordsmurf]

After my last Linksys router went dead, I also started to use DLink and Netgear instead.
I had a Linksys router AND a switch go bad on me. No time for that foolishness.

The DLink switches are gigabit: http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2F...reative=390957
Have a mix of 8-port and 5-port switches. All computers are setup with manual IP issued, not DHCP.
Easily the best switches I've used to date -- great speeds.
I also bought new Cat6 cables from Meritline for really low price. That helped.

These connect to each other to form LAN, and then one connects to Netgear router for WAN.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001AZP8EW?ie=UTF8&tag=thdifa-20&linkCode=as2&camp=17...SIN=B001AZP8EW

I stopped buying from Newegg -- took too long, too many "oops we're out of stock" emails, prices often higher, missed/bad rebates, etc. Amazon is cheaper and faster for me. Again, no time for foolishness.

[redwudz]

DD-WRT is a Linux firmware mod for wireless routers. http://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/Main_Page I have no experience with it.

I'm presently using Trendnet brand gigabit switches. They're cheap, but work fine for my LAN. I have three locations where I only have a single CAT5e cable, so I split off the data with the switches. One switch is actually a D-Link gigabit router used as a switch.

[tmorrow411]

The D-Link DIR-655 is the "Defacto" router to get. I know many people that have one, including myself, and it just always works. If you shop you can sometimes get them as low as $60. But it doesn't do dual-band. ALSO, since you mentioned you have a 30Mbps ISP, my DIR-655 would max out at 16Mbps down, but I need to revisit it.


If you want dual-band, then definitely get the Netgear WNDR3700. Just be willing to pay close to $100 more for it over the DIR-655. I have the DIR-825 for dual-band, but wished I got the WNDR3700.