I have a MF286D router with an option for external antennas to be used for the LTE / 4G connection. Signal in my house is pretty poor but about 20 feet away from the router there is a spot on the outside of the house where speeds jump from 20mbps to around 100mbps - I tested this by holding the device and running a speed test.
I'd much rather use 2 external antennas and route two cables to the router rather than wire up a power socket outside and rig a box on the wall for the router to sit in.
Did anyone know how how to switch to using the external antenna ports rather than in internal antennas? I can't see any options in LuCI for it.
My nearest mast only uses band 20, but occasionally I can pick up a more distant mast using bands 1, 3, 7, 20, 28 - the router can't pick this up anywhere indoors although my B535 router can if I use a small external antenna. When the router was on stock firmware there was a option in the settings to use external antenna ports and not internal antennas.
If there is no control manually or via software, I might try just plugging one in to see if it's automatically controlled and note if the signal changes. If it does I suspect I'll just rig up an outdoor socket and wooden case, then place the router outside in the case.
I think the antenna sockets are the type that pass through to an internal antenna and disconnect it when a plug is plugged in. Similar to how transistor radios disconnect the internal speaker when a headphone is plugged in.
Telling the modem in software that there are external antennas could somehow optimize its use of the RF ports for different bands, since the modem has five RF ports but only two can have external antennas.
Extending the Ethernet cable is much better than using a long coaxial cable. At microwave frequencies the loss in coaxial cable is severe.
You can use a PoE splitter to deliver power to the router outside through the Ethernet wiring.
That would make life a lot simpler than routing power cables outside too. I hadn't even considered this, power in the house with a PoE supply and just a long run of ethernet cable to where the signal is and a splitter to separate the power again.
Before taking any further steps, I would make sure that all the LTE bands are enabled on the modem and temporary put the router outside.
Then check what exactly the modem can see there by running multiple times
I'm going to install this router (MF286D) on a campervan.
Since the external antenna configuration is "funny" (one antenna for the high band, one for the low band, no mimo if you use external antennas) I thought of either modding it (e.g. like this or as decribed here) or to mount the router on the roof in a weatherproof box (but then I'd have to find a way to dissipate the heat and to avoid condensation).
Any suggestion for either solution?
Actually, this modem has really good internal antennas and the losses you will get from using external ones will almost certainly outweigh any gains. Heat also isn't really an issue, even when operating directly above a radiator my router internal temp rarely rose above 90c.
Personally, I would use a waterproof box and place the router inside it - you'll likely find the signal is almost the same if you just have the router mounted high inside the camper though.
Well, yes, I can try to mount it inside with no external antenna and see what coverage I get (currently I'm using an old phone this way), but keep in mind it is a metal cage.
Since the router is quite tall, if I go the weatherproof box way I think I should mount it horizontally and I'm not sure it will affect the performance with the antennas so close to the metal roof of the van.
In any case I still think I'd have to put some vents and perhaps a fan, and this will complicate things in case of rain while driving at 110km/h.
Honestly, it's a low powered router (only 2 amp draw) and heat isn't going to be the issue. Try it inside first before spending anything, mine has much better signal than my mobile phone on the same network.
There is always the option to band lock the router on to a specific band for better reliability depending on where you are.
Yep, I'll definitely try it inside, in any case I saw a couple of videos where they install routers in a waterproof box with no vents whatsoever, I even saw one where he fitted an atom motherboard with power supply, again, with no ventilation and after one year it was still working perfectly (not on the roof of a moving vehicle though ).
The consumption is even less than 2A, I measured less than 500mA (with cellular data and wifi active) and I'm currently supplying it with a 1A power supply (instead of the 2,5A one that came with the router) to see if it runs stable.
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