airport express not extending network

I assume that the Express is connecting to the AirPort Extreme using a wireless connection, correct? Unfortunately, there will always be a significant loss of signal speed when you try to extend a network using a wireless connection.

The Express does not and cannot "boost" the signal speed, but it can provide a stronger wireless signal in the area where it is located if it is configured correctly. Another way to say the same thing would be to state that the Express can only "extend" or "repeat" the signal speed that it receives. It cannot make the signal that it receives go faster.

Chances are, the wireless signal speed has already slowed down quite a bit by the time that it reaches the AirPort Express. So, the Express is not going to provide any help as far as signal speed is concerned, but it can make the signal stronger.

Since there is no loss in signal speed when you use an Ethernet cable to connect AirPorts to extend a network, the best solution in terms of performance would be to wire the Express back to the Extreme using an Ethernet cable. Is that a possibility?

If not, we'll try to do a bit more troubleshooting on the wireless connection setup. Are both of the AirPorts current models, or are they older models?

I thought the express would extend the signal speed that the Extreme is providing.

It probably is. The problem is that the signal speed has slowed tremendously before it ever reaches the Express. As I said before, the Express.....or any other wireless extender or repeater.....can only extend the signal speed that it receives. It cannot make the signal go faster despite what the fancy advertising might imply.

If it is just boosting a slow speed, what does that actually do for me

At the present time, it is not really doing anything for you. I'm assuming that the Express is set up correctly.....and we can check that again if you want. The trick to getting decent performance with an extender is that it must be located where it can receive a faster signal from the Extreme.

Say the TV is 60 feet for example, from your main router, the AirPort Extreme. The Express needs to be close to the AirPort Extreme.....so it will pick up a much faster signal......AND.....yet the Express needs to be close to the TV, so the TV will pick up a faster signal. But you know that the Express cannot be in two places at the same time.

So, the best location for the Express in the simple example above would be to position it half way between the AirPort Extreme and the TV. Actually, it's a best compromise, since everything in wireless is always a compromise compared to a wired connection.

For good performance the Express needs to have a line-of-sight relationship with the AirPort Extreme and the TV. The reason for this is that any obstruction.......a wall, ceiling, heavy furniture, a large mirror, etc...... in the direct signal path between devices will really slow the signal down.

Walls. One of the big problems that wireless has with a lot of walls is that folks forget about the insulation inside the wall. A lot of insulation material has a metal foil layer on one or both sides of the insulation material. As you know, not much of a wireless signal is going to make it through metal.

So, you might only have one wall for the signal to pass through, or the distance may not be much, but the signal will still slow down tremendously.

That's why the only way to really get good performance when you need more wireless coverage is to connect two or more AirPorts together with a wired Ethernet cable connection and locate the AirPorts right in the area where they are needed.....so devices will have line of sight with the AirPorts as much as possible.

You may have a defective AirPort Express. Temporarily, power off the AirPort Express.

Move your Mac (do not use an iPhone or iPad to test WiFi speeds) close to the AirPort Extreme and run a few speed checks on the Internet connection using a site like www.speedtest.net Jot down the average speed

Hold down the option key on your Mac while you click on the WiFi menu at the top of the screen and look for the BSSID. Jot down the last few characters of the BSSID, which the device ID of the AirPort Extreme.

Power up the AirPort Express for a minute or two, then move your Mac close to the TV and run a few speed checks that way and note your average results.

Then, hold down the option key again on your Mac while you click on the WiFi menu at the top of the screen and jot down the last few characters of the BSSID.

If the Mac, which is near the TV, is picking up the signal from the Express, you will see a different BSSID than you saw on the AirPort Extreme. If you see the same BSSID as the AirPort Extreme when the Mac is close to the TV, then you know that the AirPort Express is not extending the network at all.....since the Mac is picking up the signal from the AirPort Extreme, not the AirPort Express.

Please report on your speed test results and the BSSID test.

As far a powerline adapters are concerned, I have tried a number of them and have yet to find a brand or model that I would recommend.

The speed claims for powerline adapters are theoretical. They always assume that both adapters are on the same electrical circuit and not far from each other as well. In practice, the adapters lose an unpredictable amount of speed when they are not on the same electrical circuit. I can give you the technical reasons for this as well, if you are interested.

That being said, some users report that powerline works OK in their home. But, if you want to try powerline, you won't know how well......or if.....things will work in your home until you try them out in your home.

If wireless won't work to extend your network, and you are convinced that you cannot run the Ethernet cable (an electrician can make the wiring disappear in most cases), you could try powerline.

If your TV has an Ethernet port, my advice would be to connect the powerline adapter to the TV and not even try to fool with wireless at all for the TV.

Normally, I do not use wireless to extend a network, but I have a spare AirPort Express handy and decided to set things up.

The AirPort Extreme is on my desk and checks out at about 100 Mbps on a few speed checks when my Mac is close to the router.

45-50 feet away in the kitchen with the signal having to pass through two walls, I get about 40-45 Mbps. My walls do not use insulation with any kind of foil backing.

If I install an AirPort Express about half way....at 20-25 feet and check the speed again in the kitchen, it moves up to about 60-65 Mbps. So, the Express is working OK. You should see similar results if your Express is working OK.

To add to Bob's comments on placement of your AirPort Express, you may find the following AirPort User Tip helpful.

AirPort - Optimal Base Station Placement