Need a good USB NIC for Asus RT-N66U

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Stiletto

Supreme [H]ardness
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Jul 13, 2008
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Ever since I upgraded to the Asus router, my desktop has had issues with some games stuttering and lagging. Every other device has a smooth connection. Desktop currently has a TP-Link AC600 for its wifi adapter.

I need a recommendation for a USB NIC that hopefully has a long USB cable so it doesn't have to be jammed in amongst cables in the back of my rig. Planning on spending $50-100. What would you recommend?
 
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Why would you get a USB NIC and run a cable to the USB port rather than just connecting an Ethernet to an onboard or add-in NIC?
 
I'm not connecting ethernet because that would require running a cable from the living room to the office. I want a USB NIC so that I can actually place the antenna in a good position rather than "back of my rig under my desk", which is not an ideal place. I guess I would consider an onboard NIC but I really don't like having an antenna back there.
 
Why not simply get a USB extension cord so you can plug in the TP-Link away from the rats nest?

Better still, are you using a USB hub? Plug it into that, it should work well enough especially if the hub is powered.

My main monitor has a USB 3.0 hub, check if your monitor has one - that way the TP-Link's external antenna is clear of the desk and if they are on the back of the monitor also out of sight.

You might want to consider running a Cat6a cable if you have a NAS and move lots of data around, 10gbe is looking to get a lot cheaper and no wifi signal is going to beat that anytime soon.
 
Yea, that's why I was confused. Normally when people say a USB NIC, I automatically assume wired.

I would just use a USB extension cable....
 
Or maybe PoE. Sometimes that works better than WiFi.

Err Whatever they call the networking through the electrical wires.
 
Stiletto said:
Oh wow. I had never even known this existed. Going to do a fair amount of research, but that looks like it might fit the bill for what I want.
Click to expand...
Probably better off with an AirMesh system these days since they are more and more popular. Powerline Ethernet has a very low limit on bandwidth, and it prone to a lot of interference/latency.
 
Agromahdi123 said:
Probably better off with an AirMesh system these days since they are more and more popular. Powerline Ethernet has a very low limit on bandwidth, and it prone to a lot of interference/latency.
Click to expand...

Stiletto said:
Oh wow. I had never even known this existed. Going to do a fair amount of research, but that looks like it might fit the bill for what I want.
Click to expand...

I went with a Powerline Ethernet setup a couple of months back using an old Asus router as an AP in my detached garage. It was a TP link setup for $35 from Microcenter, and the box stated it could get up to 500 Mbps. I'm getting about 35Mbps, but the electrical system in house is far from ideal as a 90 year old duplex. OP, YMMV, but it's not the worst solution in the world. Took all of 5 minutes to get up and running.

If you pull the trigger on the Powerline Ethernet, there's a little card in there that says don't use with a power-strip. They aren't kidding, it won't work at all with a power strip.
 
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