DGL-4500 or DIR-655?

[Kaldskryke]

I am a university student living at home. Our home network uses a WRT54GS or GL or something, using the default firmware, and it falls to pieces under any sort of torrent traffic. I'd flash it to DD-WRT, but my father won't allow it (he fears bricking the router). His house, his rules. However, he is not against upgrading to a new router as long as I pay for it.

I'm looking for torrent-handling and QoS. My PC is wired, and the rest of our PCs and devices are 802.11g, so the DGL-4300 would do it, but that offers no possiblity to upgrade to 802.11n devices in the future.

As I understand it, that leaves the DIR-655 and the DGL-4500 as popular choices. What advantages does GameFuel give over the 655's QoS? Will MIMO or 'dual-band' do anything to improve 802.11g connectivity? Is there still any reason to 'hold out' on wireless n?

 

[fluidimagery]

Not exacltly answering your question, but throwing another suggestion.

I absolutely love the Buffalo WHR-HP-G54 routers. I've sold roughly 500 of them to my clients and have only had 3 come back to me all from the same location that had bad power supplies. Since it's yours you can also upgrade it to DDWRT to handle your QoS needs and mimo.

Wireless N isn't all that it's cracked up to be IMO.

If you can't find a good price... PM me I just purchased 50 of them to have in stock since the company is going through that whole BS legal wifi routing and was forced to shut down sales. If you want I can even pre-flash it for you if you're unsure of yourself.

 

[TechLarry]

As great of a router it is, the DGL-4300 is at EOL and should be removed from your list unless you can get a killer deal on it.

The DIR-655 is not dual-band. It is 2.4GHZ only. It is a Draft-N router though.

The DGL-4500 is Dual-Band Draft-N. However, it is not simultaneous Dual-Band. You have to set it for either 2.4 or 5.8Ghz. The DGL-4500 has GameFuel. How much better GameFuel is over standard QoS is in real life is hard to quantify, but it does do a lot of packet shaping, and other optimizations for specific games, that standard QoS does not do. I can say that since I put my DGL-4500 in service I have never had a disconnect from XBL or lag caused by my end.

The DIR-855, which may actually be released some day I hear, is a Draft-N Dual-Band router that handles simultaneous Dual-Band (or so it's expected). However, it does not have GameFuel.

So, while I can't choose for you, there are the core facts on these guys and hopefully that will help you make your decision.

Oh, and don't forget the cool OLED display on the DGL-4500

I am a university student living at home. Our home network uses a WRT54GS or GL or something, using the default firmware, and it falls to pieces under any sort of torrent traffic. I'd flash it to DD-WRT, but my father won't allow it (he fears bricking the router). His house, his rules. However, he is not against upgrading to a new router as long as I pay for it.

I'm looking for torrent-handling and QoS. My PC is wired, and the rest of our PCs and devices are 802.11g, so the DGL-4300 would do it, but that offers no possiblity to upgrade to 802.11n devices in the future.

As I understand it, that leaves the DIR-655 and the DGL-4500 as popular choices. What advantages does GameFuel give over the 655's QoS? Will MIMO or 'dual-band' do anything to improve 802.11g connectivity? Is there still any reason to 'hold out' on wireless n?

 

[Kaldskryke]

Alright, I'm a bit confused. What's the point of having dual-band if it's not simulatneous?

I'm almost entirely new to networks; I've only set up a few friends' basic 802.11g routers because they were to afraid to do it themselves. So tell me if this is wrong. As I understand it, the 2.4GHz spectrum is rife with interference from 'g' products which hampers 'n' performance. Having two simultaneous bands allows wireless g and n products to operate at the same time at their respective speeds without issues. Since the DGL-4500 does not support simultaneous dual-band, that 5.8GHz spectrum is only useful if I have only wireless n devices in a neighborhood with enough wireless g products to cause interference issues on 2.4GHz. Is this correct or am I missing something entirely?

I figure if I'm going to consider "dual-band" I might as well know what it is.

As great of a router it is, the DGL-4300 is at EOL and should be removed from your list unless you can get a killer deal on it.

The DIR-655 is not dual-band. It is 2.4GHZ only. It is a Draft-N router though.

The DGL-4500 is Dual-Band Draft-N. However, it is not simultaneous Dual-Band. You have to set it for either 2.4 or 5.8Ghz. The DGL-4500 has GameFuel. How much better GameFuel is over standard QoS is in real life is hard to quantify, but it does do a lot of packet shaping, and other optimizations for specific games, that standard QoS does not do. I can say that since I put my DGL-4500 in service I have never had a disconnect from XBL or lag caused by my end.

The DIR-855, which may actually be released some day I hear, is a Draft-N Dual-Band router that handles simultaneous Dual-Band (or so it's expected). However, it does not have GameFuel.

So, while I can't choose for you, there are the core facts on these guys and hopefully that will help you make your decision.

Oh, and don't forget the cool OLED display on the DGL-4500

 

[TechLarry]

Not everyone has mixed networks. Personally, I keep all my devices the same technology, which tends to offer better performance and fewer complications.

Alright, I'm a bit confused. What's the point of having dual-band if it's not simulatneous?

I'm almost entirely new to networks; I've only set up a few friends' basic 802.11g routers because they were to afraid to do it themselves. So tell me if this is wrong. As I understand it, the 2.4GHz spectrum is rife with interference from 'g' products which hampers 'n' performance. Having two simultaneous bands allows wireless g and n products to operate at the same time at their respective speeds without issues. Since the DGL-4500 does not support simultaneous dual-band, that 5.8GHz spectrum is only useful if I have only wireless n devices in a neighborhood with enough wireless g products to cause interference issues on 2.4GHz. Is this correct or am I missing something entirely?

I figure if I'm going to consider "dual-band" I might as well know what it is.

 

[Raystream]

Wanted to bump this up because I can't decide between the two routers. What one is most stable? I keep reading about both of them rebooting or not connecting to the internet.

 

[Orinthical]

Wanted to bump this up because I can't decide between the two routers. What one is most stable? I keep reading about both of them rebooting or not connecting to the internet.

Search the internet for any router make/model and you will find horror story after horror story. The important fact you must realize in order to filter these results is that you will hear from 99% of the dissatisfied customers and only 1% of the satisfied ones. It's a sad fact of retail.

In manufacturing, there are duds - boards don't get soldered correctly or get beat up during the process and things fail or start behaving oddly. That said, the failure rate in mass production is usually so low it is hard to keep track of and because things like badly soldered ICs will likely manifest over time there is virtually no way to guarantee a product will behave the same way over time. This is why we have warranties against manufacturing defects.

IF you play a lot of games or have an Xbox and want to be on XBL all the time, get the DGL-4500. IF you like the OLED screen and the prospect of adding your own customized widgets to it over time - get the DGL-4500. IF you just want a router that will perform and you can stick in a closet somewhere and never look at it again, get the DIR-655. Both are great routers and, unless you get a dud, will offer great reliability over time and the stability you seek.