Performance Testing Update: Well, I have been doing a lot of additional configuration changes and testing since this video was released, and I now believe there is no problem with the 10G performance, and here is why, 1) My 'human-error' component - There is 'No Way' I can get any speed out of the testing configuration greater than 1G. For whatever reason, I forgot that the WAN connection to my local network is only using 1G, and that the fastest I could every achieve is 976 Mbits/s (based on my previous video showing the switch performance - foolish me), 2) Having the two routers daisy-chained the way I tested, I am performing Network Address Translation (NAT) twice on every connection, which is most like why I see the first testing burst from iPerf3 performing significantly worse than subsequent burst, and 3) I had not done any of the standard optimization modifications to the Router configuration that I usually do. In my latest test I am getting an average of 961 Mbits/s on all iPerfs testing bursts except the first (which averages about 750 Mbits/s). Also, I did find the Router option for 'Jumbo Frames' buried under the category of 'Router Control' (and not mentioned in the user manual), however using that actually reduced the performance by about 8% (a common issue with using Jumbo Frames when the transfer rate is under 1G). I will be either creating a follow-up video or a Live Stream showing all of this over the 7 to 10 days, so be on the look-out.
Enjoyed this video as well. Great to see Wifi 6, an 8 port switch, and (2) 10G ports on an all in one device. Asus makes solid products for the home user. Well done.
@@PE4Doers David, did you check to see if you can adjust the MTU for the 10G port? Usually 10G connections require an MTU of 9000 or greater, aka jumbo frames.
@@QuikTechSolutions I was looking for that, but I don't see it in the documentation. I am now thinking that there is a 'Network Loop' based upon the testing results. I may only need to actually replace my existing Router with this New one, however will find out.
@@QuikTechSolutions Tony, I found the 'Jumbo Frame' option hidden in the menus (and completely left out of the current ASUS manual for this Router). Turning it on actually reduces the performance by about 8%, so I will leave it off for now. As it turns out though, I must have had a flaky cable in-play when I tested performance for this video. I am leaving a 'pinned' comment in a few minutes explaining what I determined - including some human-error on my part...
@@PE4Doers interesting, could be cause you’re double-natted. Curious to see if the performance improves if you put the Asus in place of your current router.
Love the video :)) And now we get hopefully another video on top to find the issue with the 10G. I am sure it is a small setting in the panel that needs to be ticked to get the speed for 10G. or does the 10G card not wanting to play along with the Router? due to newtwork chipsets that are incompatible? Would you need to get a 10G Asus network card? I have a ton of questions and I can not wait for the next video about this Router :))
I do have another 'New' 10G adapter that I have not tied, however I do not believe that will make much of a difference, since all the adapters have to meet the minimal specs of the IEEE standards. I will definitely try another PC and adapter just to eliminate that as a possibility. Based on the iPerf output, I do strongly suspect there might be an inadvertent network loop. This is also a concern due to how ASUS integrated the 10G ports into the Router. It is actually possible to use those interfaces at 'either' end of the Routers switching logic. What I mean is that those ports can be used to connect with the WAN or with the LAN end of Router. I may need to create some hard-coded Routes within the unit - something that is very complex and rarely needed. I need to complete some serious research in that area, since that is the most likely fix. Time to get down into the network design 'weeds'. Thanks again Kathrin for you interest and feedback 🙂
@@PE4Doers I thank you utmost for the Interesting content :)) and the follow up video thereof. you know me I just ask "Stupid" questions :)) what ever the issues turns out to be it is very interesting as always :))
David, I own 2 x ASUS AC86U and one AC 68U. ASUS advertises mesh firmware that allow them to work in unison to extend coverage as a mesh network. Just a word of caution, I've had nothing but problems. Just so you know, the mesh routers need to backhaul directly to the main router, not via a switch if you want a wired backhaul. Once I solved this, the mesh access points would often be seen as distinct, rather than seamless and many connected devices, expecially on the 2.4ghz band such as lights and plugs, would often not connect. It seems it would get confused over which node it was connecting to or the connection would not backhaul to the main router. The point was these devices would not function. Reseting the router would solve for a while, but the problem would return. I abandoned the mesh and went with a single wifi point, but eventually both of the AC86U routers stopped working properly. The 2.4ghz band refused to transmit at all on one of them, even the 5ghz band would turn off from time to time. At some point the LAN connection to my switch would work intermittently. I use a VOIP service and I noticed when making calls, I would get drop outs in the voice communications. My voice would just stop for 5 seconds or so - it was a wired connection to the ATA, so wifi was not an issue. I even tried the Merlin third party firmware, but no improvement. . I was considering an upgraded ASUS router and the one you reviewed was on my list, but the price is a bit steep. Eventually i bought Google Wifi Mesh on sale, the older generation, and all my problems dissappeared. All my devices connect, the Voip works, good signal everywhere in the house. I really liked the ASUS for all the controls it gives you. It even has buiit in virus protection, VPN support. I've been an ASUS user for a long time, but my most recent experience has soured me. Google WiFi is very restrictive by comparision. They dont even allow control via a web browser, you must use the Google Home app which I find very cumbersome. But in the end, it just works and that's what is most important.
WOW, thanks so much for the information. I've had an ASUS AC3200 unit for many years and started to have problems with it myself the last couple of years - all Wireless related. From the day I first put it online I was worried that it had no cooling fan, so I put metal in-box underneath it with a small 5v fan that I connected to the Router USB, however the WiFi has to be reset when the room gets too hot. I was glad to see that this new Router has a very quiet fan built in. I guess time will tell if I have any problems.
Today I spend a lot of time with the Router options on this new 89X, and they are very impressive. A whole new section has been added to support the aiMesh functions, and there is a way to control the internal Fan very similar to how an ASUS motherboard supports. Also, I am placing a 'pinned' comment to this video to discuss the performance issues I thought I had while doing the initial testing (some human-error on my part)
@@woodysranch2690 Yes, my main reason for picking this one was the 10G. I am moving toward a 10G network core, so my next network purchase will be a new core switch that uses Layer 3 inter-VLAN routing and has at least 4 10G ports. That will probably lead to at least two videos and vastly improve the performance of my Home/Office network. Wireless is of secondary importance, and actually adds risk to my network. If you try to access my network using wireless you would need a security key that has an unbelievably large number of characters that could never be guessed 🙂 Yesterday I finally turned on the WiFi 6 that one of my newer systems has built-in, and it reached the maximum speed of my current internet (something I will be showing in one of my upcoming videos).
Did you ever consider making your own router? I gather it is easy enough to do using open source software such as PFSense or OpenWRT. It could consume more power, but apparently have more robust and configuration options. WiFi could be added as an access point. After my failure experiences with ASUS Routers (separate comment) I am considering doing this. I think most routers do not have, or need a lot of performance so even an old computer could exceed the performance of a commercial router. You can even use a Raspberry Pi (version 4 preferred)
@@PE4Doers From what I have read, security is not an issue. Your router is just hardware that runs software to controls network traffic. Using your own hardware can be faster and the open source software is supposed to have even more options and just as secure if not moreso. It might be worth some experimenting if you have an unused computer to experiment with. I plan on trying it out. I think the various router vendors are upcharging for the wifi portion. I can send some links if you wish?
@@PE4Doers I have to look at my modem's manual but I think so. It's a standard rj45 connection. Just bought this router and it is "future proof" and Asus tech support says that the 10spf+ isn't for modem connections. Just connections with computers for data transfers.
@@gnewt75 I have found most 10G connections - RJ-45 or SFP+ run hot. Also, an SFP+ gets very hot when you use an RJ-45 transceiver installed in it. Fortunately, this unit not only has a built-in Fan, but you can adjust it's speed through the configuration menses. It also helps to always keep something like this in a well-ventilated area.
Sorry but the shape and the 4 positional port hubs of this device are seriously undermining its practicality and to me this is so unimaginable as to how such a moronic and worthless design passed the 1st line of stakeholders let alone the directors that signed off for its funding, do these people even know a damn thing about their products and how shapes such as this do nothing aside from frustrate their customers?
Great points. I was concerned about its shape as well. I had some "challenges" get it positioned properly to conceal the cables. My main disappointment is that it does not support VLAN routing. If I had really looked into that, I may not have purchased it.
@PE4Doers, i have a ONT with 2,5 GB port as modem and i need a router with at least 2,5 gb ports, so i can use all of my throughput on a single device via ethernet (My PC). With this router, is it possible to configure the sfp+ port with a sfp+2,5 module as wan? Thanks
Unfortunately the SFP+ can only do 1gig or 10gig. However, you could connect the 10 gig RJ-45 port to the WAN, which could be configure to 2.5 gig (and most likely auto adjust when it sees the WAN is 2.5 gig). Then get a 2.5 gig switch that has at least one 10 gig SFP+ port on it (and I have seen those advertised), then that switch would easily pass the full 2.5 gig throughput to whatever system you connect to one of its 2.5 gig ports. in a quick search in Amazon, I found this switch that could do the trick at a relatively low price: amzn.to/3WVgkEt
Performance Testing Update: Well, I have been doing a lot of additional configuration changes and testing since this video was released, and I now believe there is no problem with the 10G performance, and here is why, 1) My 'human-error' component - There is 'No Way' I can get any speed out of the testing configuration greater than 1G. For whatever reason, I forgot that the WAN connection to my local network is only using 1G, and that the fastest I could every achieve is 976 Mbits/s (based on my previous video showing the switch performance - foolish me), 2) Having the two routers daisy-chained the way I tested, I am performing Network Address Translation (NAT) twice on every connection, which is most like why I see the first testing burst from iPerf3 performing significantly worse than subsequent burst, and 3) I had not done any of the standard optimization modifications to the Router configuration that I usually do.
In my latest test I am getting an average of 961 Mbits/s on all iPerfs testing bursts except the first (which averages about 750 Mbits/s). Also, I did find the Router option for 'Jumbo Frames' buried under the category of 'Router Control' (and not mentioned in the user manual), however using that actually reduced the performance by about 8% (a common issue with using Jumbo Frames when the transfer rate is under 1G). I will be either creating a follow-up video or a Live Stream showing all of this over the 7 to 10 days, so be on the look-out.
Enjoyed this video as well. Great to see Wifi 6, an 8 port switch, and (2) 10G ports on an all in one device. Asus makes solid products for the home user. Well done.
Thanks Tony 🙂 I just hope I can figure out what's wrong prior to putting that Router into service.
@@PE4Doers David, did you check to see if you can adjust the MTU for the 10G port? Usually 10G connections require an MTU of 9000 or greater, aka jumbo frames.
@@QuikTechSolutions I was looking for that, but I don't see it in the documentation. I am now thinking that there is a 'Network Loop' based upon the testing results. I may only need to actually replace my existing Router with this New one, however will find out.
@@QuikTechSolutions Tony, I found the 'Jumbo Frame' option hidden in the menus (and completely left out of the current ASUS manual for this Router). Turning it on actually reduces the performance by about 8%, so I will leave it off for now. As it turns out though, I must have had a flaky cable in-play when I tested performance for this video. I am leaving a 'pinned' comment in a few minutes explaining what I determined - including some human-error on my part...
@@PE4Doers interesting, could be cause you’re double-natted. Curious to see if the performance improves if you put the Asus in place of your current router.
Thank you, David, the well-explained video!
Thank you for the great comment
Love the video :)) And now we get hopefully another video on top to find the issue with the 10G. I am sure it is a small setting in the panel that needs to be ticked to get the speed for 10G. or does the 10G card not wanting to play along with the Router? due to newtwork chipsets that are incompatible? Would you need to get a 10G Asus network card? I have a ton of questions and I can not wait for the next video about this Router :))
I do have another 'New' 10G adapter that I have not tied, however I do not believe that will make much of a difference, since all the adapters have to meet the minimal specs of the IEEE standards. I will definitely try another PC and adapter just to eliminate that as a possibility.
Based on the iPerf output, I do strongly suspect there might be an inadvertent network loop. This is also a concern due to how ASUS integrated the 10G ports into the Router. It is actually possible to use those interfaces at 'either' end of the Routers switching logic. What I mean is that those ports can be used to connect with the WAN or with the LAN end of Router. I may need to create some hard-coded Routes within the unit - something that is very complex and rarely needed. I need to complete some serious research in that area, since that is the most likely fix. Time to get down into the network design 'weeds'.
Thanks again Kathrin for you interest and feedback 🙂
@@PE4Doers I thank you utmost for the Interesting content :)) and the follow up video thereof. you know me I just ask "Stupid" questions :)) what ever the issues turns out to be it is very interesting as always :))
@@KathrinHausermann Thanks Kathrin, I really hope so 🙂
David, I own 2 x ASUS AC86U and one AC 68U. ASUS advertises mesh firmware that allow them to work in unison to extend coverage as a mesh network. Just a word of caution, I've had nothing but problems. Just so you know, the mesh routers need to backhaul directly to the main router, not via a switch if you want a wired backhaul. Once I solved this, the mesh access points would often be seen as distinct, rather than seamless and many connected devices, expecially on the 2.4ghz band such as lights and plugs, would often not connect. It seems it would get confused over which node it was connecting to or the connection would not backhaul to the main router. The point was these devices would not function. Reseting the router would solve for a while, but the problem would return. I abandoned the mesh and went with a single wifi point, but eventually both of the AC86U routers stopped working properly. The 2.4ghz band refused to transmit at all on one of them, even the 5ghz band would turn off from time to time. At some point the LAN connection to my switch would work intermittently. I use a VOIP service and I noticed when making calls, I would get drop outs in the voice communications. My voice would just stop for 5 seconds or so - it was a wired connection to the ATA, so wifi was not an issue. I even tried the Merlin third party firmware, but no improvement.
.
I was considering an upgraded ASUS router and the one you reviewed was on my list, but the price is a bit steep. Eventually i bought Google Wifi Mesh on sale, the older generation, and all my problems dissappeared. All my devices connect, the Voip works, good signal everywhere in the house. I really liked the ASUS for all the controls it gives you. It even has buiit in virus protection, VPN support. I've been an ASUS user for a long time, but my most recent experience has soured me. Google WiFi is very restrictive by comparision. They dont even allow control via a web browser, you must use the Google Home app which I find very cumbersome. But in the end, it just works and that's what is most important.
WOW, thanks so much for the information. I've had an ASUS AC3200 unit for many years and started to have problems with it myself the last couple of years - all Wireless related. From the day I first put it online I was worried that it had no cooling fan, so I put metal in-box underneath it with a small 5v fan that I connected to the Router USB, however the WiFi has to be reset when the room gets too hot.
I was glad to see that this new Router has a very quiet fan built in. I guess time will tell if I have any problems.
Today I spend a lot of time with the Router options on this new 89X, and they are very impressive. A whole new section has been added to support the aiMesh functions, and there is a way to control the internal Fan very similar to how an ASUS motherboard supports.
Also, I am placing a 'pinned' comment to this video to discuss the performance issues I thought I had while doing the initial testing (some human-error on my part)
@@PE4Doers I'm guessing the only reason you didnt buy a WiFi 6e router is because it does not have a 10gb port?
@@woodysranch2690 Yes, my main reason for picking this one was the 10G. I am moving toward a 10G network core, so my next network purchase will be a new core switch that uses Layer 3 inter-VLAN routing and has at least 4 10G ports. That will probably lead to at least two videos and vastly improve the performance of my Home/Office network. Wireless is of secondary importance, and actually adds risk to my network. If you try to access my network using wireless you would need a security key that has an unbelievably large number of characters that could never be guessed 🙂
Yesterday I finally turned on the WiFi 6 that one of my newer systems has built-in, and it reached the maximum speed of my current internet (something I will be showing in one of my upcoming videos).
Been looking for exactly 2 sfp+ ports!!
This was the only commercial model I found with even the one.
Is is the best Ethernet cable to use to plug into your pc? Cat 6,7,8 ?
Cat 6A (and some Cat 6) work fine for 10GB. I personally like the Cat7 shielded cabling the best. Cat8 is overkill.
How about the noise? I put my router in the living room, would the noise be annoying?
Not at all annoying. Also, the Fan speed is adjustable through the menus.
Did you ever consider making your own router? I gather it is easy enough to do using open source software such as PFSense or OpenWRT. It could consume more power, but apparently have more robust and configuration options. WiFi could be added as an access point. After my failure experiences with ASUS Routers (separate comment) I am considering doing this. I think most routers do not have, or need a lot of performance so even an old computer could exceed the performance of a commercial router. You can even use a Raspberry Pi (version 4 preferred)
I will look into that. It does get a little risky however in terms of security. The Router should have a decent Firewall built into it.
@@PE4Doers From what I have read, security is not an issue. Your router is just hardware that runs software to controls network traffic. Using your own hardware can be faster and the open source software is supposed to have even more options and just as secure if not moreso. It might be worth some experimenting if you have an unused computer to experiment with. I plan on trying it out. I think the various router vendors are upcharging for the wifi portion. I can send some links if you wish?
Can the 10spf+ connection on this be connected to a modem or is it just for connecting to computers for fast data transfers??
I did not test it, but it is supposed to work both ways. Do you have a modem that goes faster than 1gig?
@@PE4Doers I have to look at my modem's manual but I think so. It's a standard rj45 connection.
Just bought this router and it is "future proof" and Asus tech support says that the 10spf+ isn't for modem connections. Just connections with computers for data transfers.
@@gnewt75 I will try and test with my 1gig WAN connection. The 10G RJ-45 should be able to connect to it one way or another.
@@PE4Doers please let us know how your 1 gig WAN connection test goes. I'm hearing the spf+ connection runs hot after a while. Let us know!!
@@gnewt75 I have found most 10G connections - RJ-45 or SFP+ run hot. Also, an SFP+ gets very hot when you use an RJ-45 transceiver installed in it. Fortunately, this unit not only has a built-in Fan, but you can adjust it's speed through the configuration menses. It also helps to always keep something like this in a well-ventilated area.
I have this one for sale 😊
Do you mean you are trying to move on to something else?
Sorry but the shape and the 4 positional port hubs of this device are seriously undermining its practicality and to me this is so unimaginable as to how such a moronic and worthless design passed the 1st line of stakeholders let alone the directors that signed off for its funding, do these people even know a damn thing about their products and how shapes such as this do nothing aside from frustrate their customers?
Great points. I was concerned about its shape as well. I had some "challenges" get it positioned properly to conceal the cables. My main disappointment is that it does not support VLAN routing. If I had really looked into that, I may not have purchased it.
The shape is Frokking Awesome …
@@merlands1 I agree 🙂
@PE4Doers, i have a ONT with 2,5 GB port as modem and i need a router with at least 2,5 gb ports, so i can use all of my throughput on a single device via ethernet (My PC). With this router, is it possible to configure the sfp+ port with a sfp+2,5 module as wan? Thanks
Unfortunately the SFP+ can only do 1gig or 10gig. However, you could connect the 10 gig RJ-45 port to the WAN, which could be configure to 2.5 gig (and most likely auto adjust when it sees the WAN is 2.5 gig). Then get a 2.5 gig switch that has at least one 10 gig SFP+ port on it (and I have seen those advertised), then that switch would easily pass the full 2.5 gig throughput to whatever system you connect to one of its 2.5 gig ports.
in a quick search in Amazon, I found this switch that could do the trick at a relatively low price: amzn.to/3WVgkEt