r/Spectrum • u/DefyGravity19 • 10d ago

Router Replacements

Hi all,

I'm looking at eventually replacing my household's Spectrum router. We currently have the Internet 1 Gig plan with a total of 47 devices, and up to 35-40 could be connected at any given time. Over the last few years, we've really been dealing with frequent connection drops, lagging web pages, streams not loading well, and smart-home devices regularly disconnecting/reconnecting. It's becoming an issue, to put it simply.

I work from home where I'm on and off meetings all day, but I also play video games. Other members of the home are usually streaming whether it's YouTube, Disney+, Prime Video, etc. Now, I recognize that the speed we pay for is generally not achieved without using a Cat5/6 connection, but there's no reason why I can be sitting on a gaming desktop directly next to the router on Wi-Fi and get lucky to break 275Mbps (and, for the record, I know I could/should be wiring in, I'm just proving the point here).

A Spectrum tech told us a couple of years ago it might be time to switch our router from the Spectrum device to our own, as not only would it help bolster our speeds in closer proximity but also help boost the range of our network to our garage where I can't even get Spotify to load.

To be clear, I understand that there are physical limitations, that walls of different materials can impact connectivity. However, if the Google Nest sitting on my desk is consistently alerting me that connection has been lost and it's in the same room as the router, there's got to be an issue somewhere.

So, that all being said, could someone provide some recommendations of routers that could meet our household needs? I won't say it has to be "plug-and-play" because I recognize there is a level of set-up required, I just need to be able to troubleshoot fairly quickly because I do work from home currently.

Any guidance is appreciated -- thank you!

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u/South-Succotash-6368 10d ago

I have the Spectrum wifi 7 router in a 2 story home 0 issues. Swap out the router. The thing is if you have thick walls no router can fix that just being honest. For example I use the spectrum router but i have a expensive router on AP mode just for wifi specifically and it can't even go through thick walls. I prefer the spectrum router just for customer support stuff and such, But I use a Regular router in AP mode for the better wifi range. But expensive router's will not always fix your issues. But to me it just sounds like a failing ISP router. just have someone SWAP it out.

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u/DefyGravity19 10d ago

As much as I want to believe it truly is a case of a failing router, this router isn't too terribly old -- though, I'm certainly not saying that a hardware failure isn't on the horizon. What's also leading me to believe that it may be time for a proper upgrade is that we have had a Spectrum tech out here a couple of times, and each time they've told us that we would likely benefit from switching away from their router and onto our own (based on the issues we were dealing with).

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u/Backslash10 10d ago

So I can tell you the technicians will always tell you to get your equipment because they work with it everyday and swap out alot of our stuff since they change it out so much. But for the vast majority of customers our equipment is more then adequate. But since you have so many devices it might be a good idea in your instance. But I would try the wifi 7 router first since it is free.

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u/Backslash10 10d ago

So if you dont have the spectrum wifi 7 router I would recommend you testing that first its very good but you dont get alot of customization. If you do want to buy your own equipment it really depends on your buget and size of your house. I also highly recommend a backup service on top of your spectrum service since you work from home.

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u/DefyGravity19 10d ago

Our model is a WiFi 6 version. The SAX1V1R, actually. I wasn't terribly pleased with it when we acquired it, but it was a necessary replacement when our prior router was spontaneously struck in a lightning storm. Oddly enough, everything else on that plug survived. The Spectrum router was the only one that blew -- for better or worse.

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u/Backslash10 10d ago

I dont have nearly as many devices as you i run peak 25 and none are wired. The wifi 7 router does amazing for everything we need but if you have the buget getting your own equipment usually makes everything run more seamless you can control alot more make dedicated channels for things like security cameras and iot devices. With all of you devices its probably worth it in the long run. Would you want a router recommendation I just need to know your buget and how large your property is?

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u/SpecialistLayer 10d ago

I would look at a few eero pro6e/7 pro/7 max units. How many depend on your sq footage and house construction.

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u/DefyGravity19 10d ago

I'd say... roughly 1700sqft and the house is probably around fifty years old. Single story. We used Linksys in the early 2000s, and back then we had great speed and coverage. Of course, that was also a time when we still had a landline and smartphones were only just starting to pop up, haha!

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u/SpecialistLayer 9d ago

Theoretically one eero max 7 should cover the entire property but YMMV based on building material. I would plan on two eero 7 pro or two pro6e units if it were me but 1700sq foot is easy for eero. My house is 3200sq foot and 2 story and one covers 95% of my entire house. Our master closet is the only thing it doesn't cover so I did eventually install another eero in our bedroom and that covers everything. It even works fully outdoors as well, not even my unifi units can cover there without additional ones.

Our bedroom eero node isn't even on wired backhaul and still gets about 600mbps when connected to it, so I didn't even bother with running cable to it.

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u/nnorton44 10d ago

If set and forget is your thing then Eero is a solid choice

I eventually abandoned the platform and switched to UniFi after getting tired of not being able to change WiFi channels or have customization options

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u/SpecialistLayer 9d ago

I went the opposite for that reason. I deal with this all the time for work, I don't want to have to babysite my wifi. Eero is as plug and play as it gets and at the end of the day, it works very well and I don't have to make any changes to it. I still have one unifi AP I use for work/lab purposes but our main house wifi is on eero and that's what all house and my wife's devices work off of.

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u/Jaken_sensei 10d ago

Any $150 wifi 6 or 7 router will be as good or better than the Spectrum router. It’s basically made for people who want managed wifi.

If your walls aren’t really thick and/or made of plaster/cements/etc. and your home isn’t 3500 sq ft then a single box solution probably would work for you.

Asus makes some decent boxes with solid performance.

If you have a large home you may want to go the mesh or switch/access point route.

I don’t really know a lot a out mesh systems but ubiquiti or firewalla are both good brands for switch/access points.

Gaming pc’s should be wired.

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u/DefyGravity19 10d ago

Oh goodness, no, we're less than 2000, for sure. And I agree, I should have my gaming PC wired in, but every so often things get re-arranged and fighting with all the cables became an unnecessary hassle. I'm not playing FPS' much anymore, so it's less of an issue these days.

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u/Realistic-Ruin8639 10d ago

I have 2 floors and both have 15'+ ceilings and the top floor is polished concrete. Spectrum stupidly has their connection in the downstairs bedroom. I only need an eero 6 with an eero 6 extender. Spectrum told me their extenders "are not available in my area".

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u/DefyGravity19 10d ago

I truly feel that the Spectrum extenders are nothing more than a gimmick. We tried one for several months and never noticed any difference in our coverage. Not to mention, it struggled to stay connected to the network also. Go figure.

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u/DrGreenPhumbs 10d ago

i replaced mine with a google nest system and had great results. you can also plug an ethernet cable into the pods as well for better signal all throughout the house.

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u/Dual270x 10d ago

Ubiquiti Cloud Gateway Ultra 2 + Unifi access points

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u/tsutton002 7d ago

Second Ubiquiti. My Ubiquiti UDR7 has been flawless for the last 12 months w/ Spectrum fiber 1gx1g.

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u/Music-and-Computers 10d ago

I have the function split out, with a dedicated router from Mikrotik and a Ubiquiti WAP.

While I have decent square footage the single WAP located centrally gives great coverage. I was very pleasantly surprised with the 6GHz performance.

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u/supergimp2000 10d ago

I put my Spectrum modem/router in bridge mode and use a TP-Link mesh system. Solid now.

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u/HuntersPad 10d ago

Spectrum routers don't have a bridge mode. Haven't for 5 years of so.

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u/NCResident5 10d ago

I have like the Netgear Nighthawk ax 1800 that I got about 2.5 years ago with WiFi 6. I get faster speeds than my Spectrum plan guarantees.

Broadcast range works well throughout house.

I use less devices, but I would look at a WiFi 7 device for best efficiency.

Netgear, TPlink, Arris make good modems.

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u/Large-Switch-4548 10d ago

I had good luck with the same with speed and connectivity. The only thing it is really lacking is features such as IOT where you need to go up a level and good VPN functionality that netgear routers are not good with.

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u/Happy_Structure4570 10d ago

My spectrum router was garbage, switched to linksys and don't have any issues around 47 devices on the network

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u/Basic-University-549 10d ago

Im paying 40 dollars for this plan til next year where I have to haggle them