Has wireless improved with the WRT3200ACM?

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Kahenraz
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PostPosted: Sun Jul 31, 2022 17:19    Post subject: Has wireless improved with the WRT3200ACM? Reply with quote
I've had problems with the wireless on this device for years, and it's always been attributed to some kind of hardware fault. I've run DD-WRT on it for years and also tried OpenWRT without any improvement. For some time, I hobbled along by plugging a second router into it to at least get some semblance of wireless.

I finally got fed up and replaced it entirely with a Netgear R7000 and all of my wireless problems went away. It's of a similar vintage and has less features on paper than the WRT3200ACM, but it "just works".

Now that I'm no longer using it for anything important on the network, does anyone know if there is any way to modify the device to fix the problem? Has this issue ever been addressed or is the consensus to junk it?

I see that there are a lot of "firmware" updates for this device:

https://downloads.linksys.com/support/assets/releasenotes/WRT3200ACM_Customer_Release_Notes_1.0.8.199531.txt

If I flash this, will any changes to the wireless component carry over to DD-WRT?
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kernel-panic69
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PostPosted: Sun Jul 31, 2022 17:24    Post subject: Reply with quote
There have been driver updates and patches more recently for Marvell that have improved things. The key factor is using configurations that the driver supports vs. what the driver does not support. If you're that fed up with it, I am always open to donated hardware for testing or deployment.
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Kahenraz
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PostPosted: Sun Jul 31, 2022 18:40    Post subject: Reply with quote
I have a couple of questions. Are these updates for DD-WRT or the OEM firmware? Is the wireless more stable with the OEM firmware or the same?

I've read that the issue is with the hardware, something about Marvell, and can't be solved with software. But because the problem is intermittent and the router needs to be left on for symptoms to develop, I've found that it's very hard to test for. It's also frustrating that this has been an ongoing problem, despite the WRT3200ACM being several years old now.
kernel-panic69
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PostPosted: Sun Jul 31, 2022 18:59    Post subject: Reply with quote
If you read that it was the hardware, then you misread. It has to do with driver support and the acquisition of Marvell by NXP. Despite this, BrainSlayer and nbd (OpenWRT, madwifi, mac80211, mt76) have made some progress in making things better. You must've stopped reading somewhere along the way in the past year or so. I believe that one of the firmware updates for the wifi hardware chipsets was recent, but don't quote me on status of which one is in use. There's only been one Marvell device get any love from Linksys proper with a stock firmware update that I know of.

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=marvell+nxp

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Kahenraz
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PostPosted: Sun Jul 31, 2022 20:14    Post subject: Reply with quote
I checked the last version of DD-WRT that was flashed and it was sometime back in 2020. So at this point it's quite old.
Gameman Advanced Kid
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PostPosted: Sun Jul 31, 2022 20:49    Post subject: Reply with quote
I do recall when I first got the WRT1900acV1 routers, the wifis latency was not great.

But a few years later when I tested again with the newest dd-wrt build, WiFi Latency WAYYY better than it was before. Even better than stock OEM firwmare.

just make sure you get the LATEST build and not some firmware from the router database.

newest build you wanna look for, as of 7/31/2022, is build 49599.

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kernel-panic69
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PostPosted: Sun Jul 31, 2022 21:39    Post subject: Reply with quote
Kahenraz wrote:
I checked the last version of DD-WRT that was flashed and it was sometime back in 2020. So at this point it's quite old.

And before the drivers were given some love by BrainSlayer, nbd, et. al. last year.

[SOLVED-T] Running 44048 for all Apple Devices?

Is this the reason for the wireless problems on Apple...?

Time to live in the now and test to your heart's content and figure out your optimal wifi settings. OR, my offer still stands if you'd rather give someone else the burden Wink Cool

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blkt
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PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2022 2:00    Post subject: Reply with quote
Linksys firmware support mostly ended in 2018, but early 2020 a few surprising but final firmware updates.
Open source driver mwlwifi dev ended about the same time, or maybe better to say slowed down to trickle.

TLDR in early December 2020 a mac80211 patch by nbd fixed a major issue plaguing Marvell after r44048.
Eight months later, there are too many updates overall to mention so at this point try current build r49677.

During webUI Firmware Upgrade, or webflash, leave dropdown option alone, keep "Do not Reset" selected.

Remember to avoid old configuration on current builds, nvram erase && reboot after a successful upgrade.
Or, use Factory Defaults from webUI Administration to avoid a command-line interface (CLI) Telnet or SSH.
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