Third party ASUS router suggestions that work with Sky Ultrafast FTTP?

[Weasel-in-jeans]

Good afternoon my Tech savvy friends.

I must first warn you that i am more than capable of asking lots of SFQ's as i am a novice at anything Broadband. For this i apologise.

I have recently upgraded to Sky Ultrafast Fibre and had a little white box placed on my internal wall. I belive this is an ONT box? With that in mind, i wish to upgrade my SKY Q Router 4 to a third party router, such as an ASUS, for more customisation in PC and Console Gaming. 

I currently have around 35 devices feeding off of my WiFi which i suspect i will have top trim down to avoid traffic jams. I collect Tech & Gadgets hence the ridiculous amount of devices. 

I read some of the threads about Flashing Merlin on new routers etc.......I was lost after the second paragraph so want to make this as painless as possible for all involved. If you could just point to a choice of 3 Routers that will defo work with my Fibre setup, then i will purchase the one that lights up the most. 

Thank you  in advance for any feedback.

[cookiemonsteruk]

@Weasel-in-jeans 

Asus rt ax56u

Asus rt ax 58u

Asus rt ax68u

Asus rt ax86u

Asus rt ax88u

Asus zenwifi xt8 mesh

All can be stock firmware updated to show dhcp option 61 (client identifier option 61) or flashed with merlin.

To narrow those down i would look at rt ax58u, rt ax88u or zenwifi xt8 all are wifi 5/6 with adaptive qos that priortise gaming over streaming etc and vice versa

[Weasel-in-jeans]

You @cookiemonsteruk are my new bestfriend!

I have a budget up to £400 so i will go and check these suggestions out and, hopefully, pick a winner. 

Thank you so much for such a rapid response.

[cookiemonsteruk]

@Weasel-in-jeans 

In that case 2 zenwifi xt8's (1 as primary router/mesh and 1 as ai mesh) should cover 4400 sq ft and for circa £400 

[jamesn123]

@Weasel-in-jeans 

If your gaming focused I'd stick to a single router rather than using the Asus Ai mesh as it can introduce unnecessary latency. 

[Weasel-in-jeans]

Good afternoon @cookiemonsteruk 

I opted for the Asus RT AX88U and have now recieved it from Amazon.  With regard to the Option 61 "situation", where do i find or activate this option? Would i have to power down my Openreach ONT before installing router? 

Ive searched through the forums but cant find where the option for activating Option 61 is on the ASUS  software. I know im probably sounding the stupidest person to ever write on these threads but i really dont possess the skills that, to most, seem logical and easy to figure out. Sorry.

[cookiemonsteruk]

@Weasel-in-jeans 

Ethernet it to the sky hub and firmware upgrade it until theres no more upgrades . The field will show as client identifier (option 61).

Enter <anything>@skydsl|<anything

And plug directly into ont via the asus blue wan port

[jamesn123 · Accepted solution]

@Weasel-in-jeans 

Good choice same router as me 😁

The setting can be found under WAN in advanced settings.

First change the connection type to Automatic IP then scroll down the 'DHCP Option' section.

You may need to upgrade the firmware first.

Also yes I would unplug the ONT for a bit before you connect the Asus router to it so you can allow it to 'forget' the Sky hub. 

[Weasel-in-jeans]

Thank you so much @jamesn123 and @cookiemonsteruk. Im all set up now thanks to you guys.

I really do appreciate the responses and in depth help you gave me. Im so pleased ive made the step up to the RT AX88U at last. Im now going to spend about a month reading the manual and trying to get my head around all its features!

Thank you once again and keep up this damn good work. 

[cookiemonsteruk]

@Weasel-in-jeans 

The ones to look at :-

Adaptive qos. Ability to switch packet priorities between gaming, streaming, browsing etc

Change your dns server on the router

Openvpn client allows you use vpn at router level

[jamesn123]

@Weasel-in-jeans 

No problem. 

Very nice setup 👍

[Weasel-in-jeans]

Thank you sir 😊

[tangoed]

After reading many posts I now have a AX58U and after a bit of time spend uploading the latest firmware, required downloading file from Asus support portal to MacBook and connecting localy to the Router with a cable, all is now functioning well. 

Used the DHCP and option 61 setting with 123skydsl|123

Sky box reaplced and wi-fi speeds jumped from around 150 Meg to over 400 Meg on Wi Fi. 

Thanks to all the earlier comments.

[tangoed]

After another 24 hours now seeing close to 500 Meg. The Asus seems AX58U seems excellent.

Have ordered some cat 8 cables to see if we can both the speed of the connected devices via a Power Line adaptor. Currently only 80 Meg in the garage via power line. 

Will see if batter cables makes any imporvement. 

[aberdeen19032012]

Hi folks

Just about to move from BT over to SKY are these settings still valid for keeping ASUS AX86U.