Installed 802.11n Enabler but unable to get N speeds

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Level 1

84 points

Installed 802.11n Enabler but unable to get N speeds

Hi everyone,

Back when I was using Tiger, I installed the 802.11n enabler on my 2.33GHz MacBook Pro (late 2006 model).

I can't remember if I was able to get N speeds back then, but today I definitely seem unable to do so.

I can't remember if I had this same issue under Leopard either.

But with Snow Leopard I only seem to be able to connect at 54Mbps.

A coworker has a MacBook Pro that's one model newer than mine and he can get speeds up to 130Mbps.

His was the first to come enabled for 802.11n out of the box.

My Airport card does register as N capable.

Any ideas as to why I can't get N speeds on an N network?

Same at home. The router is set for B/G/N, and I can't get an N speed.

However, under Windows (via Bootcamp) I am able to get speeds greater than 54Mbps.

In every case, my Airport menu says PHY Mode: 802.11n.

Has anyone had this problem?

MacBook Pro 2.33GHz C2D Late 2006 Model, Mac OS X (10.6.2)

Posted on Nov 27, 2009 7:37 AM

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Answer 1

iVmichael

Level 6

13,740 points

Nov 27, 2009 3:46 PM in response to Heronymo

I'm not sure if I've read this correctly but,

If you have a mixed b/g/n network and have b or g devices on it then you won't get n speeds, if the network is not mixed (i.e. no older devices) then turn off b and g in the wireless router settings and see what happens ?

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Answer 2

Heronymo Author

Level 1

84 points

Nov 30, 2009 8:24 AM in response to iVmichael

Thanks for the reply.

Hmm... it is a mixed network, but the thing is that my co-worker's MBP says it's operating at 130Mbps, while mine is still 54?

Shouldn't they both be able to do 130?

At home I'll try setting it to an N-only network and see what happens.

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Answer 3

Dec 10, 2009 2:20 PM in response to Heronymo

Hi, I have the same problem. I have a early 2008 macbook running Snow Leopard with enabled 802.11n and I cant get speeds greater than 54Mbit/s.
I would very much appreciate if you could help me with my problem.

Thanks a lot

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Answer 4

Heronymo Author

Level 1

84 points

Jan 15, 2010 10:12 PM in response to Heronymo

I tried setting my home network to N-Only and I wasn't able to join it.

Hmm... in Network Utility my card reads as N capable, and it does say it's in N mode when the network is on mixed G/N mode. Of course the speed is limited to G.

Is it possible that the draft-N in the router isn't compatible with the draft-N in the MacBook Pro? The manufacturing dates would definitely be at least a couple of years apart. Probably more.

And if so, would a firmware update on the router theoretically fix this, or is it completely a hardware problem? I just don't want to upgrade the firmware on the router for no reason and somehow make things worse.

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Answer 5

Mar 3, 2010 9:31 AM in response to Heronymo

Having the same problem here. posted a topic as well

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=11162742&#11162742

I have a Billion 7800N network. My MacBook Pro refuses to connect at N others can but I can't. Really irritating, if I switch to n only it will not connect either.

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