Powerline networking for fiber?

H

hereandthere

Active Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2017
Messages
31
Reaction score
0
Now that I've just installed fiber with a connection in my study (on openserve), what's the best way to get it to my TV? I'm told not to rely on wifi, so are there any good powerline adaptors/systems people can recommend and where to buy? A guy at work in the IT department told me there are issues and it's better to run a cable through my roof to my tv. What's the general consensus?
 
hereandthere said:
Now that I've just installed fiber with a connection in my study (on openserve), what's the best way to get it to my TV? I'm told not to rely on wifi, so are there any good powerline adaptors/systems people can recommend and where to buy? A guy at work in the IT department told me there are issues and it's better to run a cable through my roof to my tv. What's the general consensus?
Click to expand...

If you can always run a cable. Personally I don't use powerline adapters ever, I would rather install a good wireless access point i.e. Unifi AP AC which will resolve my problems.
 
Powerline works like a dream.

Router in office, POE to switch in lounge for AVR/Media Player/Blu Ray.
POE with wireless to garage
POE with wireless to childrens bedrooms upstairs
POE with wireless to main bedroom upstairs.

Have no problems are drama with them whatsoever.

Using TP-Link equipment throughout.
 
I also had tp-link power line adapters. When they work they are great. But mine had a problem of just rebooting on their own accord from time to time (typically once or twice a day). In addition, after several months of working perfectly, they just stopped working for a week and then started working again. This was likely caused by a noisy electrical appliance in the house, but I never managed to track down the cause.

Some people have these adapters for years and never have an issue. For others, it's one problem after another.

IMO they are better than wifi, but in the end, I replaced them by running cables and using a switch. My main issue with them was when they go wrong, there is no way to diagnose the problem. In terms of throughput though, they are great and the latency across them is very low.
 
Powerline works great. No problems in multiple configurations (when certain people want the house to look different).

Using lynksys (cisco) 400 and 500 models (lightning fried my router and the primary which was connected to said router, no damage to the secondary though)
 
I use all 3 (WiFi, Powerline and wire) depending on what is most practical.
No doubt wire is best, if possible. Powerline can work for years without problems, or even not at all. As you want to stream media, consider that wired LAN has by far the better throughput.
 
Always run a cable if you can. EoP works fine but bandwidth is quickly limited to a couple Mbps after a few meters. Should be fine for your tv though

Make sure your tv is on the same phase as your router - else it won't work
 
I use Tenda powerline devices, works perfectly. Wifi was not stable enough for streaming, and I wasn't prepared to fork out R3k for a proper router just for wifi.

EDIT: Obviously straight cable is better, but I have my media player connected via powerline, as well as my PC upstairs.
 
Trompie67 said:
Powerline works like a dream.

Router in office, POE to switch in lounge for AVR/Media Player/Blu Ray.
POE with wireless to garage
POE with wireless to childrens bedrooms upstairs
POE with wireless to main bedroom upstairs.

Have no problems are drama with them whatsoever.

Using TP-Link equipment throughout.
Click to expand...

Are you talking about Power of Ethernet or HomePlug ?
 
Run a cable, second choice wifi 3rd choice powerline. Wifi usually faster than powerline adapters if you have a decent AP and not too much interference. Unless you buy the R1000 plus powerline adapters, but then you should rather spend that money on a second AP in any case
 
The quality of your EoP will depend on the quality of your electrical wiring and whether there are any devices in your house causing interference on the power lines (inductive kickback or whatever it's called).

I have a house of over 400m^2, double volume, and electrical cables have to run a long way. I use four EoP devices in my house, and I get around 45Mbps over it. That's more than enough for streaming 2x UHD.

Obviously having a CAT6 cable is best, just not practical, and is definitely not an option for my house. Wifi is unreliable, as always, depending on where you need the signal to go. It has trouble penetrating a concrete slab with a steel mesh, as well as getting through more than one wall.

For my house, EoP was definitely the best option by far. I bought TP-Link, I hate TP-Link, but don't really have many issues with those and their price is more suited to my pocket. Ideally, if you can afford it, go for the Linksys/Cisco brand.

Also, don't mix brands, even if they are all working on the HomePlug AV specification. I did that between Linksys and TP-Link, and oh boy did that make me grow old.
 
irBosOtter said:
Run a cable, second choice wifi 3rd choice powerline. Wifi usually faster than powerline adapters if you have a decent AP and not too much interference. Unless you buy the R1000 plus powerline adapters, but then you should rather spend that money on a second AP in any case
Click to expand...

Tenda 200Mbps rated powerline at R240 each works 100%. Actual throughput on my side is about 170Mbps
 
All the powerline hatred? I have an Ethernet over power adapter in each bedroom in my house for streaming HD and it works like a charm! Why run cable? No way wireless compares to a stable cabled solution.
 
unskinnybob said:
All the powerline hatred? I have an Ethernet over power adapter in each bedroom in my house for streaming HD and it works like a charm! Why run cable? No way wireless compares to a stable cabled solution.
Click to expand...

I'd take powerline over wifi any day where possible.
 
Ping: 5ms
Download: 95.16Mbps
Upload: 93.65Mbps

power line, from my lounge to my home office, works a dream.
Edimax devices.
 
I think wireless N or better is fine for streaming to the TV if you have a good signal... otherwise consider whatever is easiest.

No point going wired if you're not hitting any issues.
 
Have used TP-Link power line home plugs for 3-4 years and never had an issue. As others have mentioned it may depend on the quality of home wiring etc and direct cabling is the best but more costly alternative. The only issue I have had is using them in a multiplug with other devices which can cause serious degradation so best to plug them directly into their own outlet.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X