Modem & Router or Modem/Router?

General Discussion
1

Hi guys!

For the last year I have been using a Linksys WAG-320N modem router, not without its problems. At first the wireless would seem to drop out, even though the Internet connection was still there and the wireless was still enabled. More recently the Internet connection is being completely dropped, the only remedy is a reboot of the router.

I have searched various forums for help, and even though many people complain about the same problem, there is little in the way of a fix.

Last week I got bored of the hassle and decided to buy myself a new router. I opted for the highly regarded ASUS RT-56U Black Diamond Gigabit router with internal 2.4GHz and 5GHz wireless aerials… the dogs knackers.

It had 4 and a half stars on TechRadar.com as well as recommendations on various other sites. I was on to a winner, and at £80 I was happy.

First mistake… it is a router, not a modem/router. There is no mention on any of the reviews and on the website I purchased it from there is no mention of it NOT being a modem apart from the lack of the word in the description.

Maybe I am just naive but I didn’t really think that people still use seperate modems and routers until my delivery came and I couldn’t get it working! I set all the settings as per the old router, it was wired up correctly and double checked it but I could still not get an internet connection. It wasn’t until I furiously tried searching the web for help that everywhere said it is a router only, not a modem.

I have now used my old Linksys router as a bridge and my Internet is up and working, all is good.

I don’t really mind using two seperate devices for Internet access but does anyone else? Is it still common place to have seperate devices? I can think of various pros, if you want to use a custom built firewall or run a honey pot to hide your LAN, maybe even run a webserver inbetween the two devices to allow access but prevent access to the rest of your LAN. Cons however are just as evident, more things to go wrong, yet another step in getting to the Internet albeit a passive one and cost.

For the time being I’m happy but I was just wondering what your thoughts were…

2

I suppose a separate router gives you more configuration options, and modem/routers with gigabit ethernet are still not the norm (so still quite expensive) … that said, for most home usage patterns it doesn’t really make much difference one way or the other … maybe power consumption will be slightly higher, and you’ll use more power sockets.

To tell the truth, I need/want gigabit ethernet to my NAS (router only has 10/100 ports) so I’ve been weighing up the same options.

When you say it’s more things to go wrong … another way of looking at it is that if the modem dies, there are cheap as chips single port modems around such as:

or
http://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-Link-TD-8816-ADSL2-Modem-Router/dp/B002CAVRV2

Swings and roundabouts :wink:

3

Yeah I suppose it will only make a difference on the LAN, the connection to the Internet will be only as fast as the connection, which in this country is jokingly slow.

I have to say that the RT-56U is a really good Gig router from what I’ve seen so far, and the reviews are excellent. Just depends how much you want to spend!

One of the pros that was pointed out on a forum was that it is easier to switch between cable and ADSL as you just have to buy a cheap as chips modem.

4

Yup … ideal if you ever go with Virgin/BT Infinity.

and yeh, a 10/100 connection to a modem is plenty quick-e-nuff … even for infinity.

5

Quick question regarding my setup detailed above.

Please see here.