low cost ddwrt capable router recommendations?

JimS

Senior Member
Need to pick up a couple routers and like having ddwrt flexibility.  Don't need super fast as my incoming pipe is fairly slow.  But range is important.  It's been a long time since I bought routers and the prices seem a little crazy.  Not looking for super cheap but would like to keep it under $75 if possible. 
 
What's up with router pricing?  I see Asus RT-N10+ for around $300.  I have one that I have had for quite a while and am pretty sure it was under $50.  Sure didn't pay anywhere close to $300.
 
JimS said:
What's up with router pricing?  I see Asus RT-N10+ for around $300.  I have one that I have had for quite a while and am pretty sure it was under $50.  Sure didn't pay anywhere close to $300.
It's $169 CAD at amazon.ca. Maybe somebody thinks it has antique value? :)
Hope you aren't shopping on eBay where rhyme and reason for pricing is not an option.

COVID-19 is making people crazy with pricing if they appear to be scarce. The whole world is going stay at home gadget crazy.
 
Historically never had any issues with TP-Link routers.  Currently have been utilizing Ruckus WAPs having switched from Ubiquiti WAPs.
 
Here is a new TP-Link on Amazon for $50.
  TP-Link AC1200 Gigabit Smart WiFi Router - 5GHz Gigabit Dual Band MU-MIMO Wireless Internet Router, Supports Beamforming, Guest WiFi and AP mode, Long Range Coverage by 4 Antennas(Archer A6), Black
 
DD-WRT is no longer updated.  I personally like OpenWRT much better.  It is always updated.  
  TP-Link Archer C5 AC1200 / TP-Link Archer C7 AC1750 / TP-Link TL-WDR7500

Here is an Asus ASUS Dual-Band 2x2 AC1300 Super-Fast WiFi 4-Port Gigabit Router with MU-MIMO and USB 3.0 (RT-ACRH13)on Amazon for ~ $50.
 
LarrylLix said:
It's $169 CAD at amazon.ca. Maybe somebody thinks it has antique value? :)
Hope you aren't shopping on eBay where rhyme and reason for pricing is not an option.

COVID-19 is making people crazy with pricing if they appear to be scarce. The whole world is going stay at home gadget crazy.
I was looking at newegg.  I am thinking I bought mine about 5 years ago but my memory could be wrong.  Seemed like an entry level unit at the time...
 
With the new 5GHz band capable of 4,800 Mbps (WiFi 6), you may want to consider to be more future proof. I already have two VR headsets ordered that are  supporting the new WiFi 6 band and then do not require the usual USB cable required to connect to a PC VR system.
 
The ASUS routers supporting tri-bands run a little more money but have built in AiMesh capabilities if you purchase more than one. Mine new units also meshed with my older ASUS AC68u router. The third band can be used for the backhaul channel to mesh with non-wired LAN routers, also.
 
pete_c said:
Historically never had any issues with TP-Link routers.  Currently have been utilizing Ruckus WAPs having switched from Ubiquiti WAPs.
 
Here is a new TP-Link on Amazon for $50.
  TP-Link AC1200 Gigabit Smart WiFi Router - 5GHz Gigabit Dual Band MU-MIMO Wireless Internet Router, Supports Beamforming, Guest WiFi and AP mode, Long Range Coverage by 4 Antennas(Archer A6), Black
 
DD-WRT is no longer updated.  I personally like OpenWRT much better.  It is always updated.  
  TP-Link Archer C5 AC1200 / TP-Link Archer C7 AC1750 / TP-Link TL-WDR7500

Here is an Asus ASUS Dual-Band 2x2 AC1300 Super-Fast WiFi 4-Port Gigabit Router with MU-MIMO and USB 3.0 (RT-ACRH13)on Amazon for ~ $50.
I didn't find a version of openwrt for the TP-Link AC1200 Archer A6 you suggested...
 
Here is the OpenWRT link for the Archer A6
 
==>
 
hxxps://openwrt.org/toh/hwdata/tp-link/tp-link_archer_a6_us_tw
 
I recently sold a high-end TP-Link router on eBay. I just went a different direction and didn't need it. It was maybe 6 months old. I sold it for twice the price I bought it for new. Crazy.
 
pete_c said:
@JimS
 
What is your purpose for purchasing multiple routers?
Good question...  One will be used as an access point for extended coverage.  The other will be used for the main router.  Getting a router allows me some flexibility.  It could be used as a wifi repeater, access point, add wifi to equipment that only has wired connection, or even replace my router actually functioning as a router.  There may be other ways to do this but a fairly low end router that can use ddwrt or openwrt does all that.  There may be other solutions that I am not aware of and any feedback on that is welcome.
 
Many many years ago I used the Linksys WRT 54G as a wireless / wireless repeater and a wireless bridge to give the neighbors internet access.
 
The original DD-WRT implementation came from using the Linksys WRT 54G router.  
 
Before PFSense here utilized Smoothwall.  Both of these work fine with any computer with two network ports.
 
Relating to wireless speeds what are you looking for?
 
Have you entertained purchasing a single function wireless access point with a POE connection?
 
You can hang these on walls or ceilings and typically work well.
 
My pipe to the internet only runs about 6 M so I don't need anything super fast. POE would work.
 
Do I need to pull out all the old routers I have and sell them on EBay?  We are talking about Linksys WRT 54G era devices!
 
To the OP - are you looking for a router only, or do you need a router/switch/wireless access point all in one?
 
If you just need the router and can use your old device for the switch/AP, then you might want to look at the open source (or at least free) router/firewall solutions like pfSense, untangle (free basic version), sophros (free home version).  These will give you a lot more flexibility and control than dd-WRT ever did.  You will need some sort of computer/device to run it on, but there are plenty of options and you might already have something that you could use.

Another option is to look at the Ubiquity Unify Security Gateway which is about $130. This isn't open source at all, but a reasonably priced unit that is pretty feature rich. Of course it is designed to get you addicted to the Ubiquity infrastructure where the other devices (especially their larger switches) can be pretty expensive.
 
With Wifi 6 coming on strong, it would be good to consider that capability.

I have two VR headsets coming that use the high bandwidth WiFi 6 provides.

The best I have seen so far is 11,000 Mbps on an Asus router so far but I don't know where that will stop.

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