AX200 Drops PHY TX Rate and drops signal % under load

[koa132435]

I just purchased and install a brand new AX200 on my laptop and updated to the latest drivers.

Configured for 160Mhz and tested on multiple channels 36, 52, 100

  I am about 12 ft from AP  and as soon as  put traffic  e.g. speedtest.net  AX200 transmit PHY  tramsmit goes down and signal goes down e.g. from 2.4Gbps to 1.4Gbps and signals goes from 92% to 78%.  

I am using netsh command to get the values. The interesting thing is inSSIDer tool does not detect any drop of signal strength  is steady at -41dbm.

As soon as I stop putting traffic of the AX200 signal goes back to 92% per netsh command but inSSIDer reports no drop.

it seems this may be a AX200 card or driver problem.

Anyone experiencing this problem?

[Sebastian_M_Intel]

Hello koa132435, 

Thank you for posting on the Intel® communities.   

I would like to let you know that the installation or use of Intel® Wireless Adapters is subject to country-specific legal regulations. A wireless adapter installed in a system that is being sold on the market doesn't necessarily mean that same wireless adapter can be used or installed in any other systems; as each country may have different regulatory requirements, before you install/change the wireless adapter in a system, you must contact the system manufacturer (OEM) to determine if the adapter you plan to install is approved for use in your system and country. You are required to follow the OEM's post-approval requirements: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000005687/network-and-i-o/wireless.html 

The problem that you are reporting can be caused due to an incompatibility issue, or a problem with the installation of the adapter or its antennas. Did you check with the OEM before doing the integration?  

So we can better assist you, please provide the following: 

1. Run the Intel® System Support Utility (Intel® SSU) and attach the report generated:  

• Open the application, check the "Everything" box, and click on "Scan" to see the system and device information. By default, Intel® SSU will take you to the "Summary View".   
• Click on the menu where it says "Summary" to change to "Detailed View".   
• To save your scan, click on "Next", then "Save".   
• Use the option under the reply window to attach the report to the thread (Drag and drop here or browse files to attach). 

2. What was the previous wireless card that your system had installed? Did you face this problem with the previous wireless card? 

3. Please provide the brand and model number of your model/AP.  

4. Can you give a detailed step by step guide of what you do to get this problem replicated?  

Regards, 

Sebastian M  

Intel Customer Support Technician  

[koa132435]

Hello Sebastian,

A little more information. The problem with the signal dropped as shown in the screen captures I previously attached occurs only using 160Mhz channel. If I change the settings on the AP (Netgear RAX120) to 80Mhz the signal drops doe NOT occur. However and as expected, the AX200 does not connect at 2.4Gbps when using 80Mhz, only connect to 1.2 Gbps this is per design when using 80Mhz.

I obtained a different AP, ASUS AX88U, with 160 MHz channel and I ran the same test. In this case, I did not experience any signal drop. The signal remained stable at 90% and the PHY rate was steady at 2.4Gbps. 

In summary, AX200 does drop the signal when using Netgear RAX120 but it does not when using ASUS AX88U.

It seems an interoperability/integration problem ( software/firmware). Was there any interoperability/integration test made between Netgear and AX200?

Per your request.

1.- Attached.

2.- The previous card was the 7265AC so NOT a good comparison or reference since 7265 does not support AX mode / does not support 160MHZ channel. Also, the problem is only experienced when using 160Mhz channel on the AX200 when connecting to RAX120 AP.

3.-Netgear RAX120

4.- Connect to RAX120, I make sure I connected using 5GHz , channel 36,  PHY 2.4Gbps for TX and RX. Confirm no other signal using inSSIDer tool. Laung Edge browser, go to speedtest.net, and run a speedtest. Monitor using a CMD window with command netsh wlan show interface.

Last but not least, laptop purchase directly from manufacturer in US and made for US market. AX200 purchased in the US. HP does not  use deny/allow access list in the BIOS for several years now.

Per your request

[n_scott_pearson]

Over time, in order to be able to brag about being first-to-market, vendors will ship routers with firmware that is compliant with only a pre-ratification version of the Wireless specification. They usually make updated firmware available when the ratification is complete and the specification locked down. I thus suggest that you check into whether there is updated firmware available for this router. If there isn't any update firmware available, I suggest that you check to see if there is anything applicable in the published errata for this router.

...S

[koa132435]

Hi n_scott_pearson,

Thank you for the suggestion. However,  I have done that already, I tried the latest and greatest firmware,  downgraded to multiple versions,  factory reset every time I changed FW version with the same results. Also, I tried multiple configurations with no success. 

[holsen]

Ive got EXACTLY the same problem.   Brand New HP Spectre x360 with AX200.   Straight out of the box everything works fine.   28 mbps download.   Turn One Drive Sync to retrieve files to local machine and download speed drops between 1.2 mbps to 8.5 mbps.   Turn off OneDrive sync and it returns to between 24 and 28 mbps.    

This brand new computer is less than 24 hour hours old.   I've checked and updated all drivers / bios / os and nothing changes.

I've reset the device 2 x and clean install.   No Improvement

I've uninstalled the Wifi Card from Device Manager and deleted the drivers - No improvement

I've installed the Intel driver and support assistant and updated the Wifi 6 AX200 with latest driver direct from Intel - No Improvement

I've updated the firmware on my router (TP Link M5 Deco with 4 mesh nodes) - No difference
Every Other Device On My Network Achieves 28 mbps download

Not the HP Spectre x360 13.3"   I am literally sitting 4 feed from the router and I'm currently getting 28 mbps  on the new spectre (because one drive sync is paused)    I turn it OneDrive sync back on and I drop to 900kbps 

This is ridiculous - its a brand new machine and I havent worked in 24 hour because I've installing / uninstalling / Resetting etc.....

At this point with all this chatter both inside the intel forum and the web at large- THIS IS A KNOWN ISSUE .    

Please help me / us solve this

[holsen]

I just wanted to update this thread.  It struck me that perhaps OneDrive was the culprit as my bandwidth came back everytime i paused it.  It seems others have come to the same conclusion, so I decided to let patience rule and let the remainder of the files in the cloud (about 20 GB) finish downloading to the local drive.   Once that process completed I got full download speeds back again.    I dont seem to recall have this issue on other PCs but for sure, downloading multiple files on the HP Spectre x360 with the AX201 cuts the bandwidth.  Fortunately I only download en masse like this when I get a new machine or reset and old one.   For me the mystery, frustration and problem seem to be solved.  I'll update further if anything changes.

[Sebastian_M_Intel]

Hello koa132435,  

Thank you for the update. 

Based on what you are reporting, we can see the problem seems to be related to this Netgear* RAX120 AP. As you tested the ASUS AX88U* AP and it has no problems, I will highly recommend you to check this directly with Netgear* for further support.  

Regards,  

Sebastian M  

Intel Customer Support Technician   

[n_scott_pearson]

Considering the revelations regarding Microsoft's responsibility for wireless connectivity issues (see: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/microsoft/windows-10-kb4577063-update-fixes-internet-connectiv...), I would install the latest updates and then test again.

Just saying,

...S

[Sebastian_M_Intel]

Hello koa132435,  

Were you able to check the previous posts and follow our recommendations? Please let me know if you need more assistance.   

Regards,  

Sebastian M  

Intel Customer Support Technician  

[Sebastian_M_Intel]

Hello koa132435,  

We have not heard back from you, so we will close this inquiry. Remember that our recommendation is to work with Netgear* for further help on this.

If you need further assistance or if you have additional questions, please create a new thread and we will gladly assist you.  

Regards,  

Sebastian M  

Intel Customer Support Technician