How to Extend indoor range of Linksys BEFW11S4 (original model)

What's the most inexpensive but still effective method of extending
the range indoors, especially for multiple floors. My house is on a
slab. Wireless AP on first floor. Laptop on 2nd floor probably 30-50
feet away has difficulty getting much reception. Using new LInksys
PCMCIA card.

Best to add: Directional antenna? Which/from whom?

Amp - e.g. the Linksys WSB24?

Would like to do this for under the $80 or so for most of the options
I have seen.

Bob

(E-Mail Removed) (Bob Alston) wrote in
news:(E-Mail Removed) om:

> What's the most inexpensive but still effective method of extending
> the range indoors, especially for multiple floors. My house is on a
> slab. Wireless AP on first floor. Laptop on 2nd floor probably 30-50
> feet away has difficulty getting much reception. Using new LInksys
> PCMCIA card.
>
> Best to add: Directional antenna? Which/from whom?
>
> Amp - e.g. the Linksys WSB24?
>
> Would like to do this for under the $80 or so for most of the options
> I have seen.
>
> Bob
>

Put the wireless router on the highest point in the house, if possible.

Duane

--
The protection of the machine is a process and not a given!

http://www.practicallynetworked.com/...cles_range.htm


"Bob Alston" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed) om...
> What's the most inexpensive but still effective method of extending
> the range indoors, especially for multiple floors. My house is on a
> slab. Wireless AP on first floor. Laptop on 2nd floor probably 30-50
> feet away has difficulty getting much reception. Using new LInksys
> PCMCIA card.
>
> Best to add: Directional antenna? Which/from whom?
>
> Amp - e.g. the Linksys WSB24?
>
> Would like to do this for under the $80 or so for most of the options
> I have seen.
>
> Bob

In message <9PC6b.6318$_(E-Mail Removed)>, CWatters
<(E-Mail Removed)> writes
>http://www.practicallynetworked.com/...cles_range.htm
>
>
>"Bob Alston" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
>news:(E-Mail Removed). com...
>> What's the most inexpensive but still effective method of extending
>> the range indoors, especially for multiple floors. My house is on a
>> slab. Wireless AP on first floor. Laptop on 2nd floor probably 30-50
>> feet away has difficulty getting much reception. Using new LInksys
>> PCMCIA card.
>>
>> Best to add: Directional antenna? Which/from whom?
>>
>> Amp - e.g. the Linksys WSB24?
>>
>> Would like to do this for under the $80 or so for most of the options
>> I have seen.

Get rid of your PCMIA card for starters. They don't have a proper aerial
(antenna) and the one that's there is horizontally polarised, when your
Wireless AP is vertically polarised (and is not even a
quarter-wavelength). Get yourself a Linksys WUSB11 (with it's proper
aerial) that will give you almost three times the signal strength/range
of your PCMIA card (at least it did for me).

If range/signal strength is still an issue, then cobble together a
parabolic reflector for your AP (http://www.freeantennas.com - thanks
David for that one). If you want to be really geeky, then you can use a
second parabolic reflector with your Linksys WUSB11 [1].

[1] Last evening I went down to my friends house nearly 2 miles away
(line-of-sight) with my laptop, WUSB11 and a second parabolic reflector
and had no trouble both going on-line via my desk-top/Netgear DG824M at
home and printing something out there.

This wireless thing is turning me into a geek :-)

For those in the UK BTW, many shops are now selling these office
waste-bins (available in either metallic grey or black) made of fine
metal mesh. My next project is to cut one up to make a couple of more
presentable professional-looking parabolic reflectors. A length of piano
hinge down the middle will allow me to arrange them to be foldable for
transport too.
--
Tony Morgan
Smile in the face of adversity - and adversity will probably
think you're taking the piss and kick the shit out of you.

I can vouch for the parabolic antenna on his website. Extreemly easy to
build with with better than expected results. I put one on my Network
Everywhere NWR04B router and where I got a small red marginal indicator I
now get 3 green bars. About a 20 to 30% increase. It is a directional design
and focus's the signal forward. I tried pointing it directly at me where I
was situated in the front patio through 2 walls and a brick wall, but that
didn't work as expected so I aimed the parabolic antenna out the bedroom
door and that was the ticket! I built one in 10 minutes with a pair of
metal shears out of one of my wifes cookie tins and a piece of wooden shim
shingle in the middle held on with wire ties to hold it on the antenna. Very
happy with it. Although my wife was concerrned about her cookie tin. I told
her, but honey you have so many I thought it would be OK to hack one up. : )

Good Luck,
Peter

"Tony Morgan" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:IEa716FWSyW$(E-Mail Removed)...
> In message <9PC6b.6318$_(E-Mail Removed)>, CWatters
> <(E-Mail Removed)> writes
> >http://www.practicallynetworked.com/...cles_range.htm
> >
> >
> >"Bob Alston" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
> >news:(E-Mail Removed). com...
> >> What's the most inexpensive but still effective method of extending
> >> the range indoors, especially for multiple floors. My house is on a
> >> slab. Wireless AP on first floor. Laptop on 2nd floor probably 30-50
> >> feet away has difficulty getting much reception. Using new LInksys
> >> PCMCIA card.
> >>
> >> Best to add: Directional antenna? Which/from whom?
> >>
> >> Amp - e.g. the Linksys WSB24?
> >>
> >> Would like to do this for under the $80 or so for most of the options
> >> I have seen.
>
> Get rid of your PCMIA card for starters. They don't have a proper aerial
> (antenna) and the one that's there is horizontally polarised, when your
> Wireless AP is vertically polarised (and is not even a
> quarter-wavelength). Get yourself a Linksys WUSB11 (with it's proper
> aerial) that will give you almost three times the signal strength/range
> of your PCMIA card (at least it did for me).
>
> If range/signal strength is still an issue, then cobble together a
> parabolic reflector for your AP (http://www.freeantennas.com - thanks
> David for that one). If you want to be really geeky, then you can use a
> second parabolic reflector with your Linksys WUSB11 [1].
>
> [1] Last evening I went down to my friends house nearly 2 miles away
> (line-of-sight) with my laptop, WUSB11 and a second parabolic reflector
> and had no trouble both going on-line via my desk-top/Netgear DG824M at
> home and printing something out there.
>
> This wireless thing is turning me into a geek :-)
>
> For those in the UK BTW, many shops are now selling these office
> waste-bins (available in either metallic grey or black) made of fine
> metal mesh. My next project is to cut one up to make a couple of more
> presentable professional-looking parabolic reflectors. A length of piano
> hinge down the middle will allow me to arrange them to be foldable for
> transport too.
> --
> Tony Morgan
> Smile in the face of adversity - and adversity will probably
> think you're taking the piss and kick the shit out of you.

In message <Y4K6b.3913$(E-Mail Removed)>, pete
<(E-Mail Removed)> writes
>I can vouch for the parabolic antenna on his website. Extreemly easy to
>build with with better than expected results. I put one on my Network
>Everywhere NWR04B router and where I got a small red marginal indicator
>I now get 3 green bars. About a 20 to 30% increase.

I suspect that the figure is much higher than that in dB since the
indicator is likely to be logarithmic.

> It is a directional design and focus's the signal forward. I tried
>pointing it directly at me where I was situated in the front patio
>through 2 walls and a brick wall, but that didn't work as expected so I
>aimed the parabolic antenna out the bedroom door and that was the
>ticket! I built one in 10 minutes with a pair of metal shears out of
>one of my wifes cookie tins and a piece of wooden shim shingle in the
>middle held on with wire ties to hold it on the antenna. Very happy
>with it. Although my wife was concerrned about her cookie tin. I told
>her, but honey you have so many I thought it would be OK to hack one up. : )

Yes, every WiFi cookie should have one :-)

And just think what one at each end will do for you? If you are getting
(say) a 6dB improvement with a reflector at one end you get four times
the power at the receiver (we are talking about power aren't we - or am
I getting mixed up with the 3bB points?), if you can do the same at the
other end, we're getting 4 x 4 times the power into our laptop (16x).
Same in the reverse direction.

In a different (but related) context perhaps someone can help me out.
More than 40 years ago I was, for a period, involved in aerial design
for VHF/UHF military equipment. ISTR that the thicker the aerial, the
wider the bandwidth - but lower the Q-factor (Q is synonymous with
gain). So for a particular spot frequency a very thin aerial gave you a
high Q (gain). This way we were able to maintain high Q while giving us
more bandwidth was to attach a quarter-wave shorted stub where the feed
met the aerial. I was talking to an RAF avionics guy the other day and
when I broached the subject he told me that they still use quarter-wave
shorted stubs on aircraft UHF comms equipment. If it works for aircraft
comms equipment - why shouldn't it work for WiFi?
--
Tony Morgan
Smile in the face of adversity - and adversity will probably
think you're taking the piss and kick the shit out of you.

Hi Tony, thank you for your reply. Yes I've checked the gain and it is about
6db more. I like your idea of using a second antenna but I am using a Pocket
PC Axim with the Truemobile 1180 Wi-Fi card. In reality, I guess I could
fashion another parabolic antenna on the back of my hand while I'm holding
my Axim : ) but , if my wife saw that I hacked up another cookie tin and had
this strange looking piece of folded metal around hand she'd probably think
I've lost my mind completely and file for divorce on the grounds of
disallusionment .. lol

Peter

P.S. Hmm... I could make a really small one, say, 2in X 2in. Yes! Off to the
garage I go!

"Tony Morgan" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:LUj7hUTz63W$(E-Mail Removed)...
> In message <Y4K6b.3913$(E-Mail Removed)>, pete
> <(E-Mail Removed)> writes
> >I can vouch for the parabolic antenna on his website. Extreemly easy to
> >build with with better than expected results. I put one on my Network
> >Everywhere NWR04B router and where I got a small red marginal indicator
> >I now get 3 green bars. About a 20 to 30% increase.
>
> I suspect that the figure is much higher than that in dB since the
> indicator is likely to be logarithmic.
>
> > It is a directional design and focus's the signal forward. I tried
> >pointing it directly at me where I was situated in the front patio
> >through 2 walls and a brick wall, but that didn't work as expected so I
> >aimed the parabolic antenna out the bedroom door and that was the
> >ticket! I built one in 10 minutes with a pair of metal shears out of
> >one of my wifes cookie tins and a piece of wooden shim shingle in the
> >middle held on with wire ties to hold it on the antenna. Very happy
> >with it. Although my wife was concerrned about her cookie tin. I told
> >her, but honey you have so many I thought it would be OK to hack one up.
: )
>
> Yes, every WiFi cookie should have one :-)
>
> And just think what one at each end will do for you? If you are getting
> (say) a 6dB improvement with a reflector at one end you get four times
> the power at the receiver (we are talking about power aren't we - or am
> I getting mixed up with the 3bB points?), if you can do the same at the
> other end, we're getting 4 x 4 times the power into our laptop (16x).
> Same in the reverse direction.
>
> In a different (but related) context perhaps someone can help me out.
> More than 40 years ago I was, for a period, involved in aerial design
> for VHF/UHF military equipment. ISTR that the thicker the aerial, the
> wider the bandwidth - but lower the Q-factor (Q is synonymous with
> gain). So for a particular spot frequency a very thin aerial gave you a
> high Q (gain). This way we were able to maintain high Q while giving us
> more bandwidth was to attach a quarter-wave shorted stub where the feed
> met the aerial. I was talking to an RAF avionics guy the other day and
> when I broached the subject he told me that they still use quarter-wave
> shorted stubs on aircraft UHF comms equipment. If it works for aircraft
> comms equipment - why shouldn't it work for WiFi?
> --
> Tony Morgan
> Smile in the face of adversity - and adversity will probably
> think you're taking the piss and kick the shit out of you.

The parabolic's are effective. I've been using some made from simple
cardboard + styrofoam + aluminum foil for 6 months. Seem robust enough to
me for indoor use. No reason to use the cookie tin yet.

--
Remove -NOSPAM- to contact me.

> parabolic reflector for your AP (http://www.freeantennas.com - thanks
> David for that one). If you want to be really geeky, then you can use a

Don't thank me, thank Michael.

> For those in the UK BTW, many shops are now selling these office
> waste-bins (available in either metallic grey or black) made of fine

Have fun, did you see my over engineered antenna modelled on Micheal's
reflector template?

http://www.nodomainname.co.uk/parabolic/parabolic.htm

David.

"Bob Alston" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed) om
>
> Amp - e.g. the Linksys WSB24?

I've had good luck with the WSB24.

--
John T
http://tknowlogy.com/tknoFlyer
_______________