Consider upgrading to a Wi-Fi 6E tri-band antenna for better performance.
Consider upgrading to a Wi-Fi 6E tri-band antenna for better performance.
On AX210 I'm pairing SMA pole antennas with the 6GHz band at home. The Ubiquiti U6 Enterprise AP is roughly 12 feet away on the ceiling in the hallway outside the room. I see my signal strength change when using the short (~6 inch) pole antennas on the motherboard back. Would it help to switch to an antenna with coaxial connectors (2T2R)? Which option performs better? For instance, ASUS had a similar design that’s no longer available, and many other brands offer various models. Plus there are many unknown options on eBay. Which choice would be the most effective?
I purchased one of these antennas thinking it wouldn’t be worse than the ones that came with the motherboard (they tend to come loose when I touch or move them, like during USB connections). Unfortunately, it appears to record lower decibels and slower file transfer speeds compared to my NAS. Although the external specs list 2.4/5.8GHz, the performance doesn’t meet expectations. I’m not surprised. I’ll give it another look with different models later. This outcome is disappointing.
I wasn't convinced by advertising, I promise. I understood that a random Chinese product might not work well. Still, when it comes to antennas, fewer can actually be better. There might be some signal loss in the coax, which means a pole antenna with direct mounting could be ideal—though it may have drawbacks like being hard to place and not firmly secured. This idea will be explored in the next post.
I first used ALFA ARS-WiFi6E-M2. It advertises tri-band capability. Back in the day, when WEP penetration was essential, this brand was quite notable—especially for its strong external Wi-Fi interface with packet injection support. That was roughly two decades ago. As a student at the time, I couldn’t afford the premium price; I had to settle for more affordable alternatives. The cable length is notably longer, around five feet compared to the three feet of the older Chinese antenna. I can't say for sure it outperforms the cheaper Chinese model at half the cost, nor does it match the measurements of the pole antennas included with the motherboard. However, its RP-SMA connection offers better stability than the loose pole antennas. This unit is the 5 dBi variant. Later I discovered the 8 dBi model under the APA-WiFi6E-M2 name on ALFA’s site, which isn’t available on Amazon. Would you be interested in testing it for improved results? It seems you’re asking whether value aligns with price. Personally, I’ve learned that sometimes less can indeed be more.
If it has gain then its going to be more directional, so aiming it at your router at the right angle to get a good signal will be more important. Even putting it higher/lower to be more on a level with the routers antennas may be important. Sometimes it even comes down to picking up the signal being bounced through parts of the building that are attenuating the signal less, so aiming at the router might not even be optimal for signal quality and speed. Its true that sometimes the cheap Chinese stuff is just as good as the overpriced stuff, but there's a much higher chance of it being a fake product than a known brand. Also the antenna above looks like it uses much thicker COAX than the cheap antennas, which is important as high frequencies are lost in cabling over very short distances. Just think of the size of the COAX used for satellite TV in order to minimise losses in the cable.
I never considered it that way, yet it really makes sense. Gaining an antenna requires a directional design. Of course, I tested various angles, but the thick, stiff coax made it difficult to position at every angle. The housing didn’t provide enough support. I settled on the optimal height where the signal was strongest and secured it with tape. Yes, the signal improved significantly when moved outside into the hallway—direct line of sight, just below the antenna—by about 3dBm. Although it dropped to -49dBm, that’s still a substantial gain. The difference wasn’t enough to justify the unsightly appearance. I noted the measurement, but I suspect the extra length more than offset the coax benefits, especially since it was roughly twice as long as the Chinese antenna (ALFA claims otherwise). Also, I’m unsure whether it was the conductor diameter or just the outer insulation that affected performance.
I experimented with budget 1" pole antennas, noticing cabled ones performed worse. I thought a short antenna without coax could match the signal while staying unobtrusive on the PC back. The readings matched -49dBm inside the room, confirming that cabled antennas lose some gain but suffer long coax losses. Speed tests also aligned. These antennas are great because they don’t block ports, reduce cabling, and fit easily without needing removal from the case. They’re actually shorter than expected, so I might try longer versions if they stay straight. Angled ones tend to loosen at the RP-SMA connector when rotated. With these outcomes, I’m convinced there’s real merit to what I heard.
I was curious about what lay inside the antennas included with the motherboard. So far, they still perform well in terms of size. It turns out there’s an extra 2 inches of plastic that doesn’t do anything but keeps getting in the way on the back of the PC. Seeing this, I might try 3D printing a plastic cover to make them shorter and sturdier. If none of the antennas I’ve ordered offer better specs than this, then I’ll go with this approach.