08-18-2008, 12:27 PM

Ok so for some time now I have been having some trouble with my MacBook and its finally getting on my nerves. Its been happening for a year now. I have a airport extreme card and two airport hubs in my house, my airport status always says I have full connection. But when Im surfing the internet it seems soooo slow, taking forever to load pages and send emails, this cuts in and out, so one minute it will be fast as it should be and the next 10 mins it will go slow as crap!

Also I have speakers connected to both airport hubs and when tring to play Itunes wirelessly to them it cuts in and out.

Im thinking it has some thing to do with my airport extreme card, is this a right assumption?

Should I get a new one installed?

08-18-2008, 12:38 PM

Sounds like you may be encountering interference from another source.

Do you have any cordless phones nearby? Any microwave ovens? These are very common sources of interference.

Additionally, you might want to do a site survey with a tool like AirPort Radar. This will tell you what other wireless networks are operating in your vicinity and what channel they operate on. If they operate on the same channel, you may be able to fix the problem simply by switching channels on your AirPort router.

08-18-2008, 12:44 PM

We don't have a microwave or a cordless phone...

I downloaded the Airport Radar, our network is on Ch 1, everyone else's in the area is on 6 or 11, any other suggestions?

08-18-2008, 12:55 PM

Originally Posted by PhotographicMac

We don't have a microwave or a cordless phone...

I downloaded the Airport Radar, our network is on Ch 1, everyone else's in the area is on 6 or 11, any other suggestions?

Where is the Airport placed? In a two story home, it should ideally be centrally located, on the second story. If it has to be on the first floor, try to get it as central and as high up as possible - you don't want the signal to extend outward, away from the home. Also, it's generally a bad idea to install a wireless device inside of a cabinet, under a desk, near a cluster of wiring, a screen door or any other device that emits radio signals.

Also, even though it doesn't look like you have interference from other routers, it might not hurt to experiment with different channels. If it's set to 1, try 3 and see if that makes a difference.

08-18-2008, 04:07 PM

We live in a very small house, it is in the main room and not hidden or near any radio signal emitting devices.

I just changed it to Channel 3 still having the same problem. Would changing the Radio Mode make a difference? It is set to 802.11b/g compatible at the moment.

08-18-2008, 04:09 PM

Originally Posted by PhotographicMac

We live in a very small house, it is in the main room and not hidden or near any radio signal emitting devices.

I just changed it to Channel 3 still having the same problem. Would changing the Radio Mode make a difference? It is set to 802.11b/g compatible at the moment.

It might - providing that all of your wi-fi devices are at least g-capable (anything made in the last 3 years should be).