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Anonymous User
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Can't Connect on 5Ghz

The tech spec for the new black box states the following under 'Networking';

 

  • 802.11 dual-band (a/b/g/n compatible) with WEP, WPA and WPA2 support

Dual-band means 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz. I have the new Virgin Superhub 2ac with a 100Mbps connection. We have several devices that utilise the 5Ghz connection without issue, however for some reason the Now TV box can only find the 2.4Ghz connection, even if the box is within a few feet of the Virgin Superhub. Have I been duped into purchasing this device with false advertising, or can the new Now TV box connect via 5Ghz? If it can, could someone please explain how?

 

BR

 

Des

20 REPLIES 20
Anonymous User
Not applicable

@Anonymous User my box is connected to the 5GHz SSID at my house. Do you have difference names for the two SSIDs? 

Anonymous User
Not applicable

Okay so I made a little progress on this. The box found the 5Ghz SSID only after a factory reset and only if the box is in the same room as the router. If the box is in any other room in the house, it finds only the 2.4Ghz SSID. The box was purchased to be used in a bedroom upstairs, so this is an issue. Now I know there's nothing wrong with the router and/or the range because my laptop obtains a 'good' signal on the 5Ghz SSID in the upstairs room furthest from the router. So, does this mean that the box is faulty or is the WiFi simply very poor on this box?

 

BR

 

Des

commanda6
Legend 5
Legend 5

@Anonymous User wrote:

Okay so I made a little progress on this. The box found the 5Ghz SSID only after a factory reset and only if the box is in the same room as the router. If the box is in any other room in the house, it finds only the 2.4Ghz SSID. The box was purchased to be used in a bedroom upstairs, so this is an issue. Now I know there's nothing wrong with the router and/or the range because my laptop obtains a 'good' signal on the 5Ghz SSID in the upstairs room furthest from the router. So, does this mean that the box is faulty or is the WiFi simply very poor on this box?

 

BR

 

Des



Hi @Anonymous User

 

That may not be an issue with the box. 5 gig Wi-Fi is known for not penetrating walls as well as 2.4 gig. It's also known for having a shorter range. Your laptop can probably pick up the 5 gig SSID because it is high up and  Laptops also typically have better Wi-Fi adapters in them. Then media streamers/set-top boxes do. It's not a fault does as such it's usually just the way things are.

 

But if you think about it, a decent laptop costs around £400, whereas a media streamer is typically no more than £100 , you would probably also find that the Wi-Fi adapter on your laptop is better than the Wi-Fi adapter in your phone.  In the case of the now TV black box. It only costs £15

 

If possible your wireless router should be in a high up position as well. The higher the better. But for many people. That's just not possible. But if you are able to do that. That might help you


I do not work for Now . I am simply a Now customer trying to help I am a Community Contributor This means that I know a lot about the service. But just like you I am still a customer. This means I cannot help you with issues that would involve looking into your account directly. A member of the now TV forum team or live chat will need to assist you with these issues.
Anonymous User
Not applicable

Thank you for you comments. While I understand the point you are trying to make, I have no issues connecting to the 5Ghz SSID from any room in the house with any other device, including two phones and a tablet, whereas the Now TV box only finds the 5Ghz SSID if it's in the same room. What is interesting is I've just hooked up my brothers Roku 3 box and that finds the 5Ghz SSID immediately with an excellent signal upstairs. Isn't the black Now TV box a scaled-down Roku 3? Hmmmm, the plot thickens.

 

BR

 

Des

commanda6
Legend 5
Legend 5

@Anonymous User wrote:

 Isn't the black Now TV box a scaled-down Roku 3? Hmmmm, the plot thickens.

 

BR

 

Des


@Anonymous User You are correct Smiley Happy


I do not work for Now . I am simply a Now customer trying to help I am a Community Contributor This means that I know a lot about the service. But just like you I am still a customer. This means I cannot help you with issues that would involve looking into your account directly. A member of the now TV forum team or live chat will need to assist you with these issues.
Anonymous User
Not applicable

@Anonymous User there have been different build versions of the Roku 3, so whilst our box is based on it, your brother's could be a completely different build version. Do you know what the model number is?

 

Have you tried watching on 2.4GHz with the box in the other room? Does it have issues on that network band?

 

Thanks,

 

Tom

commanda6
Legend 5
Legend 5

@Anonymous User . I keep forgetting that there are different variants of the Roku 3. Mine is a 4200X/4200 EUA  , which I think is one of the newer variants. If you look on Amazon. It's listed as first coming out in March 2015 (it's the one with the three month entertainment pass included)

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Roku-4200EUA-Streaming-Player-Entertainment/dp/B00UB0G4HM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1445345574&sr=8-1&keywords=roku+3

 

Interestingly enough, my Roku three isn't brilliant at picking up 5gig Wi-Fi and its directly underneath the access point the signal strength is quite low, according to the Roku, but I can still stream now TV 5gig Wi-Fi with no problems. But it can get top of the shop 2.4 gig which comes from the same access point. But it doesn't matter in my case as I can use ethernet.

 

I've also just noticed that @Anonymous User said they have a virgin media super Hub 2. Virgin media may call it a super hub, but I have heard it referred to as something else on several occasions for various reasons, including unreliability when it comes to Wi-Fi. In fact, from reading around. There are some who believe it's worse than the first super hub and that's saying something. (We use a super hub 1 in modem mode and have our own router. Even still super hub has to be reset regularly.) 

 

@Anonymous User I would suggest you give the super hub to fright (reset it) and see if that makes a difference.


I do not work for Now . I am simply a Now customer trying to help I am a Community Contributor This means that I know a lot about the service. But just like you I am still a customer. This means I cannot help you with issues that would involve looking into your account directly. A member of the now TV forum team or live chat will need to assist you with these issues.
Anonymous User
Not applicable

I can use the box with 2.4Ghz, however this can be a bit of a nightmare. At certain times of the day, due to interference from nearby WiFi networks, I have to run a WiFi site survey to find a channel not being used by a neighbour, then change to that channel on my router. Eventually, nearby networks that are set to AUTO will start using the once clear channel, and the whole process is repeated. Of course this issue is less likely to occur on the less congested 5Ghz band, hence my wish to use my Now TV box on 5Ghz. I guess there is nothing more I can do or say that will rectify this issue, I'll just have to live with the disappointment.

 

BR

 

Des

commanda6
Legend 5
Legend 5

@Anonymous User wrote:

I can use the box with 2.4Ghz, however this can be a bit of a nightmare. At certain times of the day, due to interference from nearby WiFi networks, I have to run a WiFi site survey to find a channel not being used by a neighbour, then change to that channel on my router. Eventually, nearby networks that are set to AUTO will start using the once clear channel, and the whole process is repeated. Of course this issue is less likely to occur on the less congested 5Ghz band, hence my wish to use my Now TV box on 5Ghz. I guess there is nothing more I can do or say that will rectify this issue, I'll just have to live with the disappointment.

 

BR

 

Des


Hi @Anonymous User 

I have to say, you seem to know your stuff better than most Smiley Happy I assume you have ran a Wi-Fi survey on the 5gig frequency just in case you're using the same channel as someone else near you? as this could explain the problem.

 

If you have an android device. There's an app called 'Wi-Fi analyser' which allows you to quickly survey both Wi-Fi bands

 

Hope that helps Smiley Happy


I do not work for Now . I am simply a Now customer trying to help I am a Community Contributor This means that I know a lot about the service. But just like you I am still a customer. This means I cannot help you with issues that would involve looking into your account directly. A member of the now TV forum team or live chat will need to assist you with these issues.