Powerline Networking is frickin' awesome!

I’ve found powerline networking hit or miss. If you’re in the right building and manage to have outlets on the same circuit, it can be great. But, especially if you’re in a multi-unit dwelling, I’ve found it can be flaky.

Now that we’re in a place where it’s much more convenient for me to conceal a 75’ ethernet run, I’ve retired my powerline adapters.

I have 4 XAVB101s (2 x this kit) which I’m looking to get rid of. I’m not sure what the policy on using this forum as a classifieds is, so I’ll just ask for a PM if you’re interested.

I went with the cisco linksys option via Amazon, but only when looking for extensions to the system did I check monoprice. Which, of course, has really inexpensive alternatives. Those prices would be comparatively cheap for a single one, let alone for a pair. Now I’m checking to see if they will be compatible as extensions for my PLK300’s, as being able to set them up in other rooms would be nice. This is really much better than wireless, if your house can do it.

I bought a starter kit and can’t get it to work. My computer just recognizes it as an “unsecure network” and i can’t get online. Frustrating, but some googling shows that i am not alone, and none of the obscure technical tricks listed works.

Man I never even thought to check Monoprice! I got a single one on a Newegg sale (thought it was a pair) so this is nice. They should all work together since the Powerline AV is a standard. HomePlug Powerline Alliance - Wikipedia

what are the reasons for inconsistent results? sometime it is awesome and sometimes it just doesn’t work at all. i got a pair of netgear 85mps and a netgear router. wire from the router to powerline plug. downstairs i got the other plug and it is wired to my computer. does switching outlets help?

Switching outlets CAN help, though it may or may not depending upon many factors.

The results you get can vary depending upon your building’s wiring, how new it is, how “up to code” it is, etc. As a general rule, if the outlets are on the same circuit breaker panel you’ll have much better results than if they aren’t, though even if they aren’t you still might get good results if the wiring at your place is decently laid out. It really all depends upon your house’s exact wiring configuration, but I do recommend trying different outlet pairs (if that’s an option) to find the ones that work best.

Yeah, that’s what the monoprice guy said. I guess the only concern would be if you’re in a situation where someone shares your circuit and could add in their plug, so you’d need the security features to be consistent. I guess my house will be fully wired now. This thread is great.

Woah, monoprice. I can just buy one ‘pair’ for 28.27, hook one up to to the router, one into an AC outlet, and it’s like I had an ethernet cable to the router? And hook up extra adapters to add more outlets? They charge >100 bucks anywhere else, there’s isn’t something else required?

I think Monoprice is selling the units individually, so it would be $27.34x2 = $54.68 for a pair of the 85Mb ones.

Well, they have “pair” in the description and you can see 2 adapters on the picture, so I think you get 2 for $27.32.

Oh and they also have the 200 Mbs adapters for $39.82, also a pair.

Somebody go buy the monoprice 200mbps ones and report back here how well they work. At that price I would just pick up a pair just to have around.

No, it’s in pairs. I’m going to get a pair of the 200mbps ones and add them on to the Cisco setup I have already, which won’t be an independent test but it should say something. Of course, even if they were being sold individually that would still be the best price I’ve seen. Just to remove other variables, I’m replacing the last few bits of ethernet cable of undefined quality (5? 6? who knows where it even comes from?) with cat 6.

I could’ve sworn I looked at the pictures yesterday before posting, but somehow missed all that. Sorry for the misinformation.

[edit]I’ll definitely be interested to hear how well it works. At that price I’d probably pick up a pair even if the throughput wasn’t that great.

I got my monoprice pair today. Works fine with no problems so far. Paired with a single NETGEAR XAV2001 (without using the security).

I bought a pair of 200 mbs Netgear ones from bestbuy and this whole thing doesn’t really work in my house. My router and PC are in the basement. For some reason I get only 45 mbs when I connect through 2 sockets right next to each other and I get the whooping 3 mbs when I take one of the adapters upstairs. And it’s a fairly new house build in 2001.

Go figure.

hmmm…after checking the wiki article i decided to gamble on the monoprice thingys since they got the most advanced spec: homeplug av, which supposedly filters out interference.

it seems to work! i am cautiously optimistic. the only fault i can find so far are the instructions for adding in a third homeplug:

i can only assume pb means power button, which is odd given the only buttons are one labeled “secure” and one recessed and labeled as “reset.”

in case you were wondering:

AV Logical Network (AVLN)
Network Membership Key (NMK)

neither defined in the pdf manual. having trouble adding the third one. will work on it tomorrow.

now i got to buy some more ethernet cables. i used up my two long ones. i got like 5 others but they are all too short.

I tried to order the Monoprice units on Friday. Over the weekend I got a shipment notice with a UPS tracking number.

At 9PM tonight, I got mail from them saying it was indefinitely backordered with “No Estimated Time Arrival” and offering to ship the 85Mbps units instead.

I am… not really impressed with Monoprice here.

EDIT: Okay, I just noticed that they already charged my fucking credit card for the adapters that they turn out not to have at all. Assholes.

That’s a shame. I got the monoprice 200mb ones yesterday after ordering on Friday with slow shipping, and they showed up today. Now my (formerly wireless) media laptop serves up streaming video instantly and fast forwards with no lag or audio desync. It also doubled the transfer rate to my NAS again from what wireless N had already improved it to.

Monoprice refunded my money and the Netgear 200Mb units showed up from Amazon today.

Installation was totally painless, they work fine on the first outlets I tried (on three different floors, even, and this is a 110-year-old house).

I’m getting between 100 and 150 Mbits according to their shitty utility, and HD shows are transferring between my TiVos way faster than they used to.

I’m pretty much completely happy with this.

Welcome to the Brotherhood!