After more than half an hour on the phone with Apple support, ending up with the conclusion from a senior support consultant that it is not possible to setup an Airport as an extension to a third part Wi-Fi router, actually I should give up and find another solution. But unfortunately I am too stubborn for that.
What I want is to use my old (gen. 2) Express as a client to stream music from my MacBook to a DAC.
Should I give up ?
You can normally set up the AirPort Express to "join a wireless network". It will not "extend" or "repeat" the WiFi signal from a third party router using this type of setup, it will simply join the network, just like any other WiFi device that connects to a network. AirPlay will work in this type of setup if the Express receives a strong WiFi signal at its location.
However......the AirPort Express was designed almost 10 years ago, so it will likely have trouble trying to "join" the WiFi network of a newer WiFi 6 or mesh router that is using recent wireless security settings like WPA3.
My guess is that the Apple folks were trying to get the AirPort Express to "join" the WiFi network, not repeat it. But, if you want to give things another shot,, post back.
We'll need to know whether you will be trying to set the Express up using a Mac or an iPhone / iPad.
If all else fails, you still may be able to connect the Express using an Ethernet cable back to your main router, but that cable will need to remain connected at all times.
You can normally set up the AirPort Express to "join a wireless network". It will not "extend" or "repeat" the WiFi signal from a third party router using this type of setup, it will simply join the network, just like any other WiFi device that connects to a network. AirPlay will work in this type of setup if the Express receives a strong WiFi signal at its location.
However......the AirPort Express was designed almost 10 years ago, so it will likely have trouble trying to "join" the WiFi network of a newer WiFi 6 or mesh router that is using recent wireless security settings like WPA3.
My guess is that the Apple folks were trying to get the AirPort Express to "join" the WiFi network, not repeat it. But, if you want to give things another shot,, post back.
We'll need to know whether you will be trying to set the Express up using a Mac or an iPhone / iPad.
If all else fails, you still may be able to connect the Express using an Ethernet cable back to your main router, but that cable will need to remain connected at all times.
Airport Express as an AirPlay client
