Experts Please Step Inside [Ethernet, Routers, Modems]

[DaveTN]

Okay, maybe you aren’t an expert, but that’s okay also. 

Before I try to pursue this any farther with Xfinity I need some help. My Xfinity modem/router/phone (XB6) only had two ethernet ports. I need two more, so I got online to see what router is recommended to use with that modem. Then I see they have a new model (XB7) out that has four ports. Cool, that would do.

Its not been out long and they are telling me it’s not available to me. (On an Xfinity chat)

So I told them I needed a recommendation on a router that would interface with this XB6 Modem. I assumed I could add a router with more ports to their modem. I also assumed there would be interface issues and some would be better than others. I ask them to recommend one, also hoping they would send me one.

The first person I was chatting with said they weren’t familiar with that and suggested a web site to check. The web site they are sending me to doesn’t make any recommendations, it just lets you check on stuff you have in mind. So I asked if they would transfer me to a tech that could help me. They did. Here was that part of the chat:

Quote

 

Tech: Hi David . I am reviewing the previous conversation.

Me: Ok. I need to add ethernet ports, so I was checking that out when I saw you have anew Modem that has more ports, the XB7. They tell me that’s not available, so I need to buy a router. What do you recommend to interface with the XB6? The other person I was chatting with didn’t know about this equipment.

Tech: You can also buy  an additional Ethernet ports to the hardware store.

Me: Huh? Who's hardware store?

Tech: Any hardware store in your area.

Me: ?? The XB6 only has 2 ethernet ports.

Tech: Correct.

Me: So, how would buying ethernet ports at the hardware store help me?

Tech: You can connect it to your modem so you can have more Ethernet ports.

And if you want to buy a modem which has more ports, You can visit mydeviceinfo.xfinity,com so can check if it is approve by comcast.

Me: I don't need to add a router??

Tech: The modem is Modem/router capability so no need to buy a router.

Me: Oh, okay, so I just buy a connector with more ports in it?

Tech: Correct.

Me: Okay, thanks.

Tech: My pleasure. Do you have any other concern ?

Me: No thanks

 

So… he is saying I can simply use splitters??? Before I pursue this any farther is he clueless or am I?

 

 

[E4 No More]

5 minutes ago, DaveTN said:

Okay, maybe you aren’t an expert, but that’s okay also. 

Before I try to pursue this any farther with Xfinity I need some help. My Xfinity modem/router/phone (XB6) only had two ethernet ports. I need two more, so I got online to see what router is recommended to use with that modem. Then I see they have a new model (XB7) out that has four ports. Cool, that would do.

Its not been out long and they are telling me it’s not available to me. (On an Xfinity chat)

So I told them I needed a recommendation on a router that would interface with this XB6 Modem. I assumed I could add a router with more ports to their modem. I also assumed there would be interface issues and some would be better than others. I ask them to recommend one, also hoping they would send me one.

The first person I was chatting with said they weren’t familiar with that and suggested a web site to check. The web site they are sending me to doesn’t make any recommendations, it just lets you check on stuff you have in mind. So I asked if they would transfer me to a tech that could help me. They did. Here was that part of the chat:

So… he is saying I can simply use splitters??? Before I pursue this any farther is he clueless or am I?

 

 

Just add a switch: https://www.staples.com/NETGEAR-ProSAFE-FS105-5-Port-Fast-Ethernet-Desktop-Switch/product_446867?cid=PS:GooglePLAs:446867&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=446867&KPID=446867&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIuqae64v66AIVB56fCh0Jrgo0EAQYASABEgKYlfD_BwE

 

[TripleGGG]

38 minutes ago, E4 No More said:

Just add a switch: https://www.staples.com/NETGEAR-ProSAFE-FS105-5-Port-Fast-Ethernet-Desktop-Switch/product_446867?cid=PS:GooglePLAs:446867&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=446867&KPID=446867&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIuqae64v66AIVB56fCh0Jrgo0EAQYASABEgKYlfD_BwE

 

This. I have multiple switches at home and both offices. 

[DaveTN]

45 minutes ago, E4 No More said:

Just add a switch: https://www.staples.com/NETGEAR-ProSAFE-FS105-5-Port-Fast-Ethernet-Desktop-Switch/product_446867?cid=PS:GooglePLAs:446867&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=446867&KPID=446867&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIuqae64v66AIVB56fCh0Jrgo0EAQYASABEgKYlfD_BwE

 

Thanks. I was thinking router, but I guess I just need a switch. 

[btq96r]

48 minutes ago, E4 No More said:

Just add a switch: https://www.staples.com/NETGEAR-ProSAFE-FS105-5-Port-Fast-Ethernet-Desktop-Switch/product_446867?cid=PS:GooglePLAs:446867&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=446867&KPID=446867&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIuqae64v66AIVB56fCh0Jrgo0EAQYASABEgKYlfD_BwE

 

This would work, we've used a bunch in my office.  D-Link makes good ones too.  This model is running internet to the computer I'm posting from right now.

https://us.dlink.com/en/products/dgs-1005g-5-port-gigabit-desktop-switch

 

Also, I'd be remiss if I didn't make the pitch to ditch Comcast equipment.  I bought this model/router a few months back and love it.  After using it for about a year, maybe a year and a half, I'll be saving whatever I'd be getting charged in equipment rental.  Just needed to give the modem details to Comcast and let them open it to getting my signal.  It also has four ports if you want to keep it simple.

https://motorolanetwork.com/mg7540.html

 

 

Edited April 21, 2020 by btq96r

[Defender]

I was gonna say two things...one is yes a switch, the other is doncha get tired of companies outsourcing customer service overseas?  lol

[Defender]

Another thing...if you end up buying your own router and ever have connection issues, its automatically ypur modems fault and they cant troubleshoot that.  Thats their stock answer when i had my own modem. NEVER did the issue turn out to be my modem, but that was always their answer.

[DaveTN]

26 minutes ago, btq96r said:

This would work, we've used a bunch in my office.  D-Link makes good ones too.  This model is running internet to the computer I'm posting from right now.

https://us.dlink.com/en/products/dgs-1005g-5-port-gigabit-desktop-switch

 

Also, I'd be remiss if I didn't make the pitch to ditch Comcast equipment.  I bought this model/router a few months back and love it.  After using it for about a year, maybe a year and a half, I'll be saving whatever I'd be getting charged in equipment rental.  Just needed to give the modem details to Comcast and let them open it to getting my signal.  It also has four ports if you want to keep it simple.

https://motorolanetwork.com/mg7540.html

 

 

I have thought about replacing my Comcast stuff, but I have had several modems go out over they years. I just take them in and they give me new ones. I also have a phone modem. (Which, I never use the phone, but it reduced the price of a package)

My speeds on Wi-Fi really suck. I have a XB6 and was trying to get the new XB7, but apparently its only been out for a few days, and like always, they are giving the good stuff to new customers instead of those of us that have been giving them money for years.

I have a 300 Mbps plan and on ethernet I get 350 Mbps, on the same PC, or my phone I get 27 to 80 Mbps on Wi-Fi. I even added the PODS and they were a waste of money. I’m pretty much Okay with PC’s and TV on Wi-Fi, but my NEST cameras will go through times when they are constantly “hunting” or drop out altogether.

[DaveTN]

21 minutes ago, Defender said:

I was gonna say two things...one is yes a switch, the other is doncha get tired of companies outsourcing customer service overseas?  lol

Ha ha ha, that’s what I thought when I saw “You can also buy an additional Ethernet ports to the hardware store.” Besides English as a second language, I don’t think their “Hardware Store” and my “Hardware Store” would be the same place.

19 minutes ago, Defender said:

Another thing...if you end up buying your own router and ever have connection issues, its automatically ypur modems fault and they cant troubleshoot that.  Thats their stock answer when i had my own modem. NEVER did the issue turn out to be my modem, but that was always their answer.

That’s what I am going through now with cameras. Nest was bought by Google, so nothing is their fault; it’s Xfinity and the WiFi. Which may be true I guess.

[Defender]

Not wanting to hijack your thread, but here's a funny Comcast story.  A few years ago, I was having an issue attaining anywhere near the speed I was paying for.  Had a comcast modem and Blast speed.  The answer from the offshore rep was that I needed to upgrade the package I had to a faster package. I tried to explain that I wasnt getting the speed i was paying for now, so why upgrade to a faster speed i wouldnt get?  I simply could not make him understand the issue.  Well fast forward several months and even more CSR folks til I finally got one who was a tad smarter than the average bear.  He figured out that the modem/router that Comcast had rented me in my package simply wasnt  fast enough to get the higher speeds.  Unbelievable.  He arranged for me to get a faster router/modem, and presto, i got the speeds I was promised in the first place.  Comcast is one of those companies that I hate but keep using because the service  generally works better than their local competitors.

[DaveTN]

3 minutes ago, Defender said:

Comcast is one of those companies that I hate but keep using because the service  generally works better than their local competitors.

Same here. I pay them a lot, and always thought they were overpriced, but they have a product that doesn’t have much competition. But then my parents wanted to switch when their bill got to high and when I started pricing other carriers for them, I found they were actually the cheapest.

Lazy azz worthless customer support seems to be the norm anymore whether its Xfinity or Smith & Wesson.

[Capbyrd]

1 hour ago, btq96r said:

This would work, we've used a bunch in my office.  D-Link makes good ones too.  This model is running internet to the computer I'm posting from right now.

https://us.dlink.com/en/products/dgs-1005g-5-port-gigabit-desktop-switch

 

Also, I'd be remiss if I didn't make the pitch to ditch Comcast equipment.  I bought this model/router a few months back and love it.  After using it for about a year, maybe a year and a half, I'll be saving whatever I'd be getting charged in equipment rental.  Just needed to give the modem details to Comcast and let them open it to getting my signal.  It also has four ports if you want to keep it simple.

https://motorolanetwork.com/mg7540.html

 

 

 

Not really possible for some people to ditch the Comcast equipment.   Comcast now offers unlimited data again.  And the only way that you can get it to use the Comcast equipment.  

 

1 hour ago, Defender said:

Another thing...if you end up buying your own router and ever have connection issues, its automatically ypur modems fault and they cant troubleshoot that.  Thats their stock answer when i had my own modem. NEVER did the issue turn out to be my modem, but that was always their answer.

They've gotten better about this in my experience.  There are a lot of Comcast approved routers and modems on the market and if you stick to those, they offer great support.  




Everyone else is correct Dave.  You just need a switch.  My personal setup is the Comcast router and out from that I have a single cat6 cable run into the living room at my entertainment center.  All of that is hardwired through a 5 port switch.  A switch is like a dumb router or as you put it before, a splitter.   

[No_0ne]

If slow wifi is your problem, once you get your switch up and running you can also set up an additional router off it as a repeater.  To do this you have to go into the configuration settings, although a lot of the newer routers have a sort of "webpage" that will do most of that for you.  It's not uncommon for the supplied router/modems of most ISP's to suck at wifi ...

Edit, It's probably more correct to call this second router an access point than a repeater.  I often forget all the correct terminology when it comes to all this new-fangled interwebs stuff ...

Edited April 22, 2020 by No_0ne

[E4 No More]

Actual WiFi speeds are dependent upon many factors: 

1. Which 802.11 protocols/technology used by both devices (least common denominator)

2. Distance from the access point (the farther you are away then the weaker the signal and thus slower speed)

3. Proximity to the access point (are there other wireless devices between your device and the access point hogging up the throughput?)

4. Is there any electromagnetic/radio frequency interference in the 2.4GHz or 5GHz range? The following are common ones:

Interference causing devices:

• Microwave ovens
• Cordless phones
• Bluetooth devices
• Wireless video cameras
• Outdoor microwave links
• Wireless peripherals 
• PDAs, cellphones
• Zigbee - Wireless personal area network technology
• Fluorescent lights
• WiMAX
• Other 802.11 networks - this is known as co-channel and adjacent channel interference. Since other 802.11 devices follow the same protocol, they tend to work cooperatively – i.e. two access points (APs) on the same channel will share the capacity of the channel.
• Bad electrical connections can also cause broad RF spectrum emissions

 Here are some devices that interfere with 5 GHz radios:

• Cordless phones
• Radar
• Perimeter sensors
• Digital satellite

If it is a matter of distance then the most practical solution would be to use a repeater since the FCC frowns on boosting transmit powers on the devices. Second option would be to run a Ethernet cable to an access point in the room but is dependent upon your skill set at running cable and your wife's tolerance for "unsightly" cables.

 

Edited April 22, 2020 by E4 No More