Samsung LED TV and Aiport Extreme/Express Network Issues

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Level 1

39 points

Samsung LED TV and Aiport Extreme/Express Network Issues

I found a couple other similar topics but my setup is slightly different, so I thought I'd start a new one. Also I know very little about setting up networks, so bear with me...

I have a cable modem connected to an Airport Extreme with a MacPro hardwired to it in my computer room. Out in the living room I have a 1st gen Airport Express that is set up for Airtunes and connected to my home stereo system. Up until now I've just been using my wireless network for Airtunes and for my MacBook Pro, but now I'm trying to figure out how to get my Samsung LED TV on my network. Since my Airport Express is right behind the TV, I hardwired the TV directly to the ethernet port on the Express thinking it might just work- but it doesn't. There's a network test section that checks these things:

1. MAC address
2. IP Address, Subnet, Gateway, DNS Server
3. Gateway Ping
4. Internet Service Test

I left the network settings on the TV to auto detect and when I ran the test it would fail on #2. I then switched these over to manual setup and tried to enter all the info myself- I used the network settings on my MacPro for reference. For IP Address I put the router address, for Subnet Mask I used the equivalent settings, for Gateway I used the router address again, and for DNS Server I used the equivalent settings (which was the same as the router address.) This time when running the TV's network test it passed the first two but failed on the Gateway ping. So I tried changing the Gateway value to the IP address of the Airport Express, but that didn't work either. So at this point I'm not sure what to do...

Mac Pro 2.66 Ghz, Mac OS X (10.6.2), 7 Gb RAM

Posted on Jan 3, 2011 10:38 PM

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Answer 1

GNice4U

Level 1

10 points

Jan 4, 2011 7:00 PM in response to Ryanc44

Wish I had an answer. I recently purchased a Samsung LED TV and Blu-ray player. I can't get the TV on my wireless network despite trying virtually everything. After spending the last couple of days searching the net and trying all kinds of suggestions I've about given up. It appears this is a very common problem with Samsung TV's.

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Answer 2

Jan 4, 2011 7:09 PM in response to Ryanc44

Ryanc44 wrote:
I found a couple other similar topics but my setup is slightly different, so I thought I'd start a new one.

That's often a good idea, for several reasons.

I'm trying to figure out how to get my Samsung LED TV on my network. Since my Airport Express is right behind the TV, I hardwired the TV directly to the ethernet port on the Express thinking it might just work- but it doesn't.

For IP Address I put the router address

That's not what you want. If manual settings are going to work at all, you'll need to pick an IP address different from that of everything else on your LAN but matching in the first three groups of characters.

I'd first verify that the Ethernet port of your Express is live. Plug it into power near your Mac Pro, then connect the Mac Pro via Ethernet to the Express instead of to the Extreme. If the Mac Pro can connect that way, then the Express is configured correctly and you'll need to try again to configure the TV.

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Answer 3

Ryanc44 Author

Level 1

39 points

Jan 5, 2011 12:56 AM in response to William-Boyd-Jr

Thanks William. Per your suggestion I moved my Airport Express and plugged it in near my MacPro and connected the two via ethernet. When I did that there is no internet connection on my MacPro. I opened the network control panel and Ethernet 1 was showing with the "no connection" red dot.

So I'm guessing I can use the Airport utility to get my Express to give me a connection through it's ethernet port? I'll dig around in there tomorrow night (time for bed now...)

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Answer 4

Jan 5, 2011 8:03 AM in response to Ryanc44

Ryanc44 wrote:
there is no internet connection on my MacPro.

So I'm guessing I can use the Airport utility to get my Express to give me a connection through it's ethernet port?

Yes. Since that AirPort Express is an older one (model A1084 or A1088), you'll need to configure your network into a "static WDS" arrangement per the instructions in this thread:

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2355832&tstart=0

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Answer 5

Ryanc44 Author

Level 1

39 points

Jan 5, 2011 8:39 PM in response to William-Boyd-Jr

Thank you William!

I followed the instructions in the other thread and got the internet connection working through the Airport Express. Then all I had to do is plug my TV into the ethernet port and set the TV to auto-detect the settings and everything works!

I did have one other question in regards to the WDS network thing (was going to ask in that thread but it's locked...) My understanding is that because I have both my Express (802.11b) and Extreme (802.11n) in a WDS network, that my entire wireless network is now only at 802.11b speed? I set the Extreme set to allow wireless clients, but I have the Express set to not allow clients. So now when I'm on my MacBook Pro will I be restricted to 802.11b even though it's getting the wireless signal from the Extreme?

Maybe it's finally time to upgrade my Express to the new model...

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Answer 6

Jan 6, 2011 8:12 AM in response to Ryanc44

Ryanc44 wrote:
everything works!

Good. Thanks for the points.

because I have both my Express (802.11b) and Extreme (802.11n) in a WDS network, that my entire wireless network is now only at 802.11b speed?

It's actually running at 802.11g speed, which can be five times the speed of 802.11b. However, my references describe a "huge speed drop" imposed by a "static WDS" arrangement.

when I'm on my MacBook Pro will I be restricted to 802.11b even though it's getting the wireless signal from the Extreme?

I'm not sure.

Maybe it's finally time to upgrade my Express to the new model...

That's up to you to decide.

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Answer 7

cgreco16

Level 1

9 points

Jan 6, 2011 8:40 AM in response to GNice4U

I too recently purchased a Samsung LED TV and BluRay player that I connect to my Airport Extreme. The BluRay player (C6900) uses the internal wireless-N adapter. When I went through the network setup, there was a warning about TKIP and wireless-N so I was concerned about compatibility. I was pleasantly surprised that there was no problem connecting. Then I remember that I recently did a firmware update to the Airport Extreme (7.5.2). I went back to look at the changes in that firmware update ( http://support.apple.com/kb/DL1106) and saw:

"Disables TKIP security with 802.11n rates per the Wi-Fi Alliance specifications"

I figure the firmware update to the Airport Extreme is what allowed my BluRay player to connect without issues. Ironically, the update seems to have caused some range issues because my iPod Touch and iMac have since lost connections since I use them at the farthest locations in my house. I may revert back and just not use the BluRay player for Internet usage. (The TV supports all the same Internet stuff as the BluRay player.)

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Answer 8

Ryanc44 Author

Level 1

39 points

Jan 6, 2011 1:36 PM in response to William-Boyd-Jr

Ah yes, my Express is a 802.11g...

Yeah, it would seem from everything I read that my entire network is now running at G speed. I might start a new thread and see if anyone can clarify this...

Cheers!

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Answer 9

Ryanc44 Author

Level 1

39 points

Jan 6, 2011 1:40 PM in response to cgreco16

Ah yes I was actually prompted to install a firmware update on my Extreme while I was setting up the WDS network- I'm guessing that played no factor in my situation though.

Yeah, for me I think having my TV directly connected to the internet is more of a novelty at this time. I'll probably be getting an Apple TV down the road anyway...

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Answer 10

Bob Timmons

Level 10

185,042 points

Jan 6, 2011 1:40 PM in response to Ryanc44

WDS is pretty simple

1) The maximum speed on a WDS setup is "g" level wireless, even if you have other faster "n" devices on the network. Everything drops to "g".

2) Each "remote" or "relay" in a WDS will cut the bandwidth in half on the entire network. So if you have a relay and remote setup in WDS configuration, the first cuts the bandwidth by 50%. The second cuts that again down to 25%. So, instead of 54 Mbps "g" wireless, you have a network running at about 13 Mbps.

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Answer 11

Ryanc44 Author

Level 1

39 points

Jan 6, 2011 3:18 PM in response to Bob Timmons

Thanks Bob- I was actually reading your responses here:

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=12510851&#12510851

Just a few minutes ago 🙂

So it definitely sounds like a good idea to get a new Express so I can avoid a WDS setup...

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