# WiFi+Bluetooth PCIe Card Recommendations/Question



## Durvelle27 (Aug 24, 2018)

I have a quick question. So my main pc is located in our newly built office but there’s no way to get a dedicated hard line into that room. I wanted to know if it would matter much between getting a 802.11n 300mbs or 802.11ac 860mbs PCIe card. I use my PC for gaming and a lot of streaming. PC is located about 20ft away from the router in the home.


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## Bill_Bright (Aug 24, 2018)

I guess that depends on your definition of "matter much". What kind of gaming? Online or local? What kind of streaming? Music only or full HD video with 5.1 surround sound?

Also, what are you connecting too? If your WAP (wireless access point - often integrated into a "wireless router") is only a 300Mbps 802.11n, a faster 11ac will adapter will do no good. 

Having said all that, if you have not yet bought the adapter, I see no point in buying a legacy adapter. Get an 11ac. And preferably one with external antennas.


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## BadFrog (Aug 24, 2018)

Whoever built the office definitely was not thinking with their head. No dedicated ethernet line in 2018 is crazy. I see alot of houses now wired with ethernet in all the rooms. 

Anyways, as Bill mentioned, it depends on your router first. Assuming you have both AC & N, I'd recommend AC as it's faster. Moreover, if you do not have alot of "heavy" appliances and metal in between the PC and the router, I'd try and connect to the 5ghz wifi instead of the 2.4ghz since you are only 20 feet. 5ghz is faster but the range is short. The 2.4ghz is good for long range but slower.


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## Durvelle27 (Aug 24, 2018)

Bill_Bright said:


> I guess that depends on your definition of "matter much". What kind of gaming? Online or local? What kind of streaming? Music only or full HD video with 5.1 surround sound?
> 
> Also, what are you connecting too? If your WAP (wireless access point - often integrated into a "wireless router") is only a 300Mbps 802.11n, a faster 11ac will adapter will do no good.
> 
> Having said all that, if you have not yet bought the adapter, I see no point in buying a legacy adapter. Get an 11ac. And preferably one with external antennas.


Online Gaming (Call of duty, Crysis, Battlefield etc...)
Streaming (Netflix, Hulu, Spotify, YouTube [1080p-4K])

I have a dedicated Router seperate from the Modem. It’s a 802.11ac Router with speeds upto 1750mbs (my ISP speeds is 250mbps down)


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## FreedomEclipse (Aug 24, 2018)

Use powerline adapters instead


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## bonehead123 (Aug 24, 2018)

Bill_Bright said:


> I guess that depends on your definition of "matter much". What kind of gaming? Online or local? What kind of streaming? Music only or full HD video with 5.1 surround sound?
> 
> Also, what are you connecting too? If your WAP (wireless access point - often integrated into a "wireless router") is only a 300Mbps 802.11n, a faster 11ac will adapter will do no good.
> 
> Having said all that, if you have not yet bought the adapter, I see no point in buying a legacy adapter. Get an 11ac. And preferably one with external antennas.



^^what he said^^

In other words, your network performance will only be as good as the *weakest* link in the chain.....you can by  802.11/*AC-6500* adapters all day long, but if your rourter/WAP only puts out an 11*n* /300 or 600 signal, it wont matter at all, your network performance will NEVER go above 11n, at best....  works the same in reverse too in case you are wondering


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## Durvelle27 (Aug 24, 2018)

bonehead123 said:


> ^^what he said^^
> 
> In other words, your network performance will only be as good as the *weakest* link in the chain.....you can by  802.11/*AC-6500* adapters all day long, but if your rourter/WAP only puts out an 11*n* /300 or 600 signal, it wont matter at all, your network performance will NEVER go above 11n, at best....  works the same in reverse too in case you are wondering


Check last post



FreedomEclipse said:


> Use powerline adapters instead


Need Bluetooth as well


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## FreedomEclipse (Aug 24, 2018)

Durvelle27 said:


> Check last post
> 
> 
> Need Bluetooth as well




Get a cheap USB dongle


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## Easy Rhino (Aug 24, 2018)

BadFrog said:


> Whoever built the office definitely was not thinking with their head. No dedicated ethernet line in 2018 is crazy. I see alot of houses now wired with ethernet in all the rooms.



Exactly what I was thinking. He had the office built... that was the time to run some cable...


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## delshay (Aug 24, 2018)

I have the GC-WB1733D-I, but I think I have a compatibility issue as it made for windows 10.

Bluetooth 5.0 & latest wi-fi speed.


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## Sasqui (Aug 24, 2018)

If you are playing over WAN*, wireless "n" will probably suffice**, and you could even get a USB 3 adapter to reach those speeds

Bluetooth USB dongles work great too as someone else mentioned

* LAN is a different story
**what's your ISP speed... speedtest over wire?


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## Bill_Bright (Aug 24, 2018)

"Newly built office" does not mean it is in a brand new building. It could be in a 60 year old house where an old bedroom was just converted into a "newly built office". I see no point in harping over the fact it was not pre-wired with Ethernet. And FTR, I am seeing many brand new facilities going up that are not pre-wired with Ethernet simply because more and more networks are using wifi instead. It is important to understand "fixed" PCs are a dying breed. More and more users are going with mobile devices. See The desktop is (finally) dead (But don't pay attention to the video. I don't know why it is there as it has nothing to do with the PC dead article). 

With only 20 feet between the PC and the WAP, I don't see distance as a problem, even if a thick wall is between.


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## Durvelle27 (Aug 24, 2018)

Sasqui said:


> If you are playing over WAN*, wireless "n" will probably suffice**, and you could even get a USB 3 adapter to reach those speeds
> 
> Bluetooth USB dongles work great too as someone else mentioned
> 
> ...


Over wired on busy days I clock around 180Mbps/24Mbps on not so busy I pull 200Mbps/24Mbps



delshay said:


> I have the GC-WB1733D-I, but I think I have a compatibility issue as it made for windows 10.
> 
> Bluetooth 5.0 & latest wi-fi speed.


Is this a recommendation 


Bill_Bright said:


> "Newly built office" does not mean it is in a brand new building. It could be in a 60 year old house where an old bedroom was just converted into a "newly built office". I see no point in harping over the fact it was not pre-wired with Ethernet. And FTR, I am seeing many brand new facilities going up that are not pre-wired with Ethernet simply because more and more networks are using wifi instead. It is important to understand "fixed" PCs are a dying breed. More and more users are going with mobile devices. See The desktop is (finally) dead (But don't pay attention to the video. I don't know why it is there as it has nothing to do with the PC dead article).
> 
> With only 20 feet between the PC and the WAP, I don't see distance as a problem, even if a thick wall is between.


You are correct. It was a unused room converted with no access to attic. 

And walls are thin by my standards so 20ft with not much in interruptions


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## jsfitz54 (Aug 24, 2018)

*Buy this:  *
https://www.intel.com/content/www/u...products.html/wireless?productIds=99446,99445

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod...tion=Desktop+Wireless-AC+9260&N=-1&isNodeId=1

Desktop Wireless-*AC 9260* NGFF Wireless Wifi Card 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Dual Band 2x2 Wi-Fi + Bluetooth 5 1.73Gbps Enabling DL MU-MIMO And 160MHz Channel for Windows 10


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## delshay (Aug 24, 2018)

Durvelle27 said:


> Over wired on busy days I clock around 180Mbps/24Mbps on not so busy I pull 200Mbps/24Mbps
> 
> 
> Is this a recommendation
> ...



No.

I think it only works if you have a Intel processor & windows 10. This is probably why I can't get it to work.


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## thebluebumblebee (Aug 24, 2018)

@jsfitz54 beat me, BUT I'M POSTING ANYWAY!

If you have to buy an adapter, I think it's "penny wise and dollar foolish" to buy old tech.  AC is so much better than N, and I'm not just talking speed.  I like the Intel based wireless.BT cards like Gigabyte puts out, but I can't find one at a decent price right now. (should be in the upper $30's)
You could also "build your own."
Something like: https://smile.amazon.com/NGFF-Wirel...37&sr=8-13&keywords=ngff+to+pcie+adapter+wifi
Then add an Intel wireless card like Intel 8260 IEEE 802.11ac - Wi-Fi Adapter or the even newer 9000 series with BT 5.0


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## Durvelle27 (Aug 24, 2018)

thebluebumblebee said:


> @jsfitz54 beat me, BUT i'M POSTING ANYWAY!
> 
> If you have to buy an adapter, I think it's "penny wise and dollar foolish" to buy old tech.  AC is so much better than N, and I'm not just talking speed.  I like the Intel based wireless.BT cards like Gigabyte puts out, but I can't find one at a decent price right now. (should be in the upper $30's)
> You could also "build your own."
> ...


He also stated it’s not working with his system 

You mentioned not talking speed but than mentioned nothing else


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## thebluebumblebee (Aug 24, 2018)

Durvelle27 said:


> You mentioned not talking speed but than mentioned nothing else


AC signal is stronger, has a longer range, is less susceptible to interference, _and_ it's faster


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## Ramo1203 (Aug 24, 2018)

+1 to the idea of buying a PCI-E card with an M.2 22x30 slot.
You can add an Intel AC9260. I have one, I upgraded my MSI WIFI card and it works perfect. Also you get BT as well! You can upgrade also down the road too.


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## Durvelle27 (Aug 25, 2018)

Ramo1203 said:


> +1 to the idea of buying a PCI-E card with an M.2 22x30 slot.
> You can add an Intel AC9260. I have one, I upgraded my MSI WIFI card and it works perfect. Also you get BT as well! You can upgrade also down the road too.


Not a bad idea


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## remixedcat (Aug 26, 2018)

Intel wireless cards have been pretty good for me. BCM is ok if you are going with 7 or 8/.1 and the server variants, however BCM stuff doesn't seem to get a long well in 10. on my tablet it forced updates and every update bricks it in some way or another. literaly almost every reboot I gotta finiggle with it. Very frustrating when I wanna take it in the bath with me, as it's a rugged waterproof tablet. Can't put 8 because the company is an amazon brand from china or whatever and they don't have much, if any support. 

Broadcom doesn't have direct drivers on its site. Those are u[p to the card makers. This differs from realtek's approach. Great RF but iffy on the software end sometimes.


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## Durvelle27 (Aug 26, 2018)

remixedcat said:


> Intel wireless cards have been pretty good for me. BCM is ok if you are going with 7 or 8/.1 and the server variants, however BCM stuff doesn't seem to get a long well in 10. on my tablet it forced updates and every update bricks it in some way or another. literaly almost every reboot I gotta finiggle with it. Very frustrating when I wanna take it in the bath with me, as it's a rugged waterproof tablet. Can't put 8 because the company is an amazon brand from china or whatever and they don't have much, if any support.
> 
> Broadcom doesn't have direct drivers on its site. Those are u[p to the card makers. This differs from realtek's approach. Great RF but iffy on the software end sometimes.


I'm running Windows 10 EDU X64


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## remixedcat (Aug 26, 2018)

Yeah intel is gonna be your best bet for now. Till either MS or BCM get their act together on those issues.


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