Extreme or Express ?

In order to provide an informed answer......could you let us know which version of the AirPort Extreme that you have?

If you plan to have a new Apple AirPort Extreme with "ac" wireless capability, then you would want to extend that signal with another AirPort Extreme with "ac" wireless capability.

The AirPort Express does not have "ac" wireless capability at all.

Ideally, you would want to connect both AirPorts using a wired Ethernet cable connection to maintain full bandwidth performance on the network.....but the upstairs AirPort might be able to extend the signal wirelessly....if it can receive a strong signal from the main AirPort Extreme.

Plan to lose about half of the network speed when you extend wirelessly, as that is the nature of the beast.

There are different wireless speeds that a wireless router can produce. "ac" is the fastest speed that is currently available. The faster the speed, the less time that it takes for a signal to move from one place to another.

But, "ac" is a two way street, meaning that both the wireless router and the computer need to be compatible with "ac" wireless speeds. A new Mac, or one that has been purchased in the last year are probably "ac" compatible.

You might want to look over this Apple information for more details about wireless routers:

Compare now

If you plan to get a new AirPort Extreme, then I would also use another AirPort Extreme to extend the signal if the budget allows.

The antennas on the AirPort Extreme are significantly better than the antennas on an AirPort Express.....even if you do not have an "ac" capable computer.

I'd like to connect one AirPort Extreme to my iMac with an Ethernet cable.

Connect the iMac to one of the three LAN <--> ports on the AirPort Extreme.

The second AirPort Extreme will be connected to the PC also with Ethernet cable.

Connect the PC to one of the three LAN <--> ports on the AirPort Extreme.

How can I connect these two extremes with AirPort utility in these two computers ?

AirPort Utility will suggest that the first AirPort Exteme be configured to "Create a wireless network". This is correct.

Once, that is done, when you use AirPort Utility to configure the second AirPort Extreme, the utility will suggest that the AirPort be configured to "Extend a wireless network". This is correct.

I found an article regarding extand wifi.

http://support.apple.com/kb/ht4145

This article is long out of date for most users. Your devices are already configured correctly, so you do not need to worry about this.

Bob, You seem to be the MAN on this stuff and I read all your posts about mixed mode etc. so hopefully this question will reach you... I made a similar reply on another post but after reading up over the holiday I am updating the post. I’m thinking about upgrading to the 105 Mbps service from Comcast but I may also have to upgrade some equipment.

I currently have an 2nd Generation Simultaneous Dual Band 802.11n Airport Express as my main router (Upstairs) and a 1st generation 802.11n Airport Express bridged/WDS (Downstairs, BIG older house). It would be very difficult if not impossible to run an ethernet wire downstairs to the downstairs Express where my AVR is (I need the audio output on the Express, see below).

I also have the 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz channels on different SSID's (especially since the older Airport does not support simultaneous dual-band). I believe I have the bridge/WDS only on the 2.4 GHz SSID. (I set this up originally way before “n” was available and I didn’t realize there was a newer type of bridging for “n”. I will check if I still have it set for legacy “g” WDS, if so I will change it to “n” bridged mode).

I understand when you are operating in Bridge mode that the bandwidth is cut in half. Is only the 2.4 GHz channel halved but not the 5 Ghz since it isn’t bridged? Are both halved? If there is this halving thing going on, my wireless network may be slower than a 105 Mbps Comcast connection.

I recently bought one of the new 802.11ac MacBook Pro's so if my wireless network configuration has less bandwidth than the 105 Mbps from Comcast, I think what I could do is get a new 802.11ac Airport Extreme the laptop in "ac" mode and bridge/WDS my Dual Band "n" Airport Express. The Express can then provide the longer reach for the network and still be connected to my older AVR that requires an analog input for the 2nd zone and I can listen to AirTunes controlled from my phone on the porch.

But this again begs the question is the wireless bandwidth of the "ac" and/or "n" halved because I am bridging? If so maybe even half of "ac" to my Laptop is more than the 105 Mbps from Comcast.

If you can make sense of this mess and let me know what bandwidth I can expect from my current setup and if upgrading would help I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks, Robert