Looking for a new router

CliffyG · 24-09-2006, 11:23

And have shortlisted the Speedtouch 585, USR 9108 and the Cisco 857W. Obviously the Cisco is top of the list but it's so expensive compared to the others. Anyone know a place to get hold of them cheap? Best i've found so far is just under £190.

Burble · 24-09-2006, 11:26

I'm a huge Cisco fan boy, but unless you know how to configure one then buy something else. Cisco stuff can be made to work using the web interface (called SDM - Security Device Manager) but you'll get better results using the command line and that isn't exactly intuative.

The Speedtouches are supposed to be good, but I wouldn't touch a USR with a very long bargepole.

Hmm, this talk of Cisco makes me remember that I really should eBay my 877 and spare Pix 501.

Mark · 24-09-2006, 11:34

If you're giving thought to spending that much on a Cisco, then these are also worth a look. They're kinda a half-way point between the Cisco kit and the Netgear/Speedtouch stuff. All web configured too and pretty reliable if you're careful about which firmware you use (hint: if it ain't broke, don't try fixing it).

Other than that, I agree with Burble. Avoid USR (and Belkin). Haven't heard anything too bad about the Speedtouch range.

CliffyG · 24-09-2006, 11:49

Not too worried about configuring them, have a cisco bod at work to ask if i get into any difficulty anyway. I had bad experiences with a draytek a few years ago and it's kind of put me off them.

I am really worried about getting the Speedtouch and finding it struggles under load as much as my current one.

CliffyG · 24-09-2006, 11:53

I've read somewhere about the Cisco being ADSL2+ compatible with updated firmware, is that correct?

Mark · 24-09-2006, 11:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by CliffyG

Not too worried about configuring them, have a cisco bod at work to ask if i get into any difficulty anyway. I had bad experiences with a draytek a few years ago and it's kind of put me off them.

Must admit mine went a bit knackered but their tech support sorted me out some custom firmware and it's been faultless ever since - regularly shove 10Mbps+ over the wireless and it's been known to do 40+ BitTorrent peers. I hope the new one I've got (upgrading for new features including VoIP) does as well.

CliffyG · 24-09-2006, 12:17

Well the 40 torrents sounds pretty good. How did it effect browsing and gaming etc?

I've gone off the speedtouch now, QoS is on wireless only.

Mark · 24-09-2006, 12:40

Must admit, it does suffer a lot if you max out the upload, and even if you get close to maxing it out, but that can be mitigated with careful setting of upload limits, and I was able to browse fairly normally. There's not a lot you can do about that without working QoS (I recently implemented throttling on my fileserver to stop it maxing out the upload pipe, and I can definitely say I noticed).

As for QoS, the router I have now has QoS settings, but I could never get them to work. Draytek has an unfortunate habit of putting half-finished functions into their firmware - that's definitely a bad point, though it's not caused me undue pain so far. Not sure if they did that with QoS, or I just didn't 'get' how to use it properly (the latter seems most likely from experience).

The new router appears to have functional QoS (turned on by default for VoIP support), but I've not tried it yet. Actually, I've not even unpacked the new router yet.

I accept that some people don't get on with/don't like them, so I won't be offended if you choose something else (why would I anyway, it's not my network

)

Oh, and it was 40 peers, not 40 torrents. Actually, I think it was about 3 torrents. I used my Mac for that job as I found a nice client (shame they stopped working on it).

Burble · 24-09-2006, 18:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by CliffyG

I've read somewhere about the Cisco being ADSL2+ compatible with updated firmware, is that correct?

I'd be surprised if the 857 doesn't ship with an ADSL2+ compatible IOS on it.

CliffyG · 24-09-2006, 18:25

I couldnt find anything saying definately yes or no but do remember the bit about firmware. I think i may hold out until for a bit and save for a cisco anyway, dont want to throw 50 away on something that is no better.

24-09-2006, 11:23	#1
CliffyG Vodka Martini Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Lower Cambourne Posts: 576	Looking for a new router And have shortlisted the Speedtouch 585, USR 9108 and the Cisco 857W. Obviously the Cisco is top of the list but it's so expensive compared to the others. Anyone know a place to get hold of them cheap? Best i've found so far is just under £190. __________________

24-09-2006, 11:49	#4
CliffyG Vodka Martini Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Lower Cambourne Posts: 576	Not too worried about configuring them, have a cisco bod at work to ask if i get into any difficulty anyway. I had bad experiences with a draytek a few years ago and it's kind of put me off them. I am really worried about getting the Speedtouch and finding it struggles under load as much as my current one. __________________

24-09-2006, 11:53	#5
CliffyG Vodka Martini Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Lower Cambourne Posts: 576	I've read somewhere about the Cisco being ADSL2+ compatible with updated firmware, is that correct? __________________

24-09-2006, 12:17	#7
CliffyG Vodka Martini Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Lower Cambourne Posts: 576	Well the 40 torrents sounds pretty good. How did it effect browsing and gaming etc? I've gone off the speedtouch now, QoS is on wireless only. __________________

24-09-2006, 12:40	#8
Mark Screaming Orgasm Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Newbury Posts: 15,194	Must admit, it does suffer a lot if you max out the upload, and even if you get close to maxing it out, but that can be mitigated with careful setting of upload limits, and I was able to browse fairly normally. There's not a lot you can do about that without working QoS (I recently implemented throttling on my fileserver to stop it maxing out the upload pipe, and I can definitely say I noticed). As for QoS, the router I have now has QoS settings, but I could never get them to work. Draytek has an unfortunate habit of putting half-finished functions into their firmware - that's definitely a bad point, though it's not caused me undue pain so far. Not sure if they did that with QoS, or I just didn't 'get' how to use it properly (the latter seems most likely from experience). The new router appears to have functional QoS (turned on by default for VoIP support), but I've not tried it yet. Actually, I've not even unpacked the new router yet. I accept that some people don't get on with/don't like them, so I won't be offended if you choose something else (why would I anyway, it's not my network ) Oh, and it was 40 peers, not 40 torrents. Actually, I think it was about 3 torrents. I used my Mac for that job as I found a nice client (shame they stopped working on it). Last edited by Mark; 24-09-2006 at 12:46.

24-09-2006, 11:26	#2
Burble Rocket Fuel Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 7,826	I'm a huge Cisco fan boy, but unless you know how to configure one then buy something else. Cisco stuff can be made to work using the web interface (called SDM - Security Device Manager) but you'll get better results using the command line and that isn't exactly intuative. The Speedtouches are supposed to be good, but I wouldn't touch a USR with a very long bargepole. Hmm, this talk of Cisco makes me remember that I really should eBay my 877 and spare Pix 501.

24-09-2006, 11:34	#3
Mark Screaming Orgasm Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Newbury Posts: 15,194	If you're giving thought to spending that much on a Cisco, then these are also worth a look. They're kinda a half-way point between the Cisco kit and the Netgear/Speedtouch stuff. All web configured too and pretty reliable if you're careful about which firmware you use (hint: if it ain't broke, don't try fixing it). Other than that, I agree with Burble. Avoid USR (and Belkin). Haven't heard anything too bad about the Speedtouch range.

24-09-2006, 18:25	#10
CliffyG Vodka Martini Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Lower Cambourne Posts: 576	I couldnt find anything saying definately yes or no but do remember the bit about firmware. I think i may hold out until for a bit and save for a cisco anyway, dont want to throw 50 away on something that is no better. __________________