This is a problem I think a lot of people have, including some smart hackers I know:
Your internet connection is at location X, and you want it at location Y. Wifi router at X and receiver at Y is okay for some applications, but the signal can get week if you're passing through lots of walls or floors. Also, if you're, say, streaming to an X-Box or a desktop PC used for gaming or streaming movies, a hit in speed is really noticeable.
Using a hard wire is great, but hard. Who wants to dig into walls or have lots of wires around?
Setting up wireless routers to act like repeaters or access points seems arcane, with questionable benefits.
So I thought I'd ask the smart folks here: how should I do this? If I really just want the X to Y speed maximized, is there good specialty hardware for this? Any hacks to take off the cap on broadcast strength on an easily available router?
[edits:
- Ethernet over power is horrible in my experience. I don't even think there is a connection between the two spots
- Laying down line is untenable currently because it is a rental, and the situation is dire: separate back office (converted garage) to a living room in the house. I won't dig into concrete and most certainly won't drape wires.
- Why isn't this just a product? Two routers with directional antennae + N repeaters long the route?
]
Yes, with certain firmwares you can. This adjustment is like turning up your stereo: it might get a bit "louder" but beyond a certain point it begins to clip and distort. The big difference is that unlike a stereo, the default radio gain is usually set fairly high -- there's rarely much more headroom to get.
A radio tuned for 100mw might have 200mw in it, if you're lucky. While this sounds like a lot, it's only 3db, which is a small fraction of any signal meter "bar" reading.
If you really want to increase your effective transmission power, your best bet is a high-gain antenna:
http://tinyurl.com/client-antennas (no affiliation)
These will increase your effective signal strength by focusing the beam of the antenna in the direction you wish to transmit/receive it. The down side is that the antennas have to be pointed at each other, and the higher the gain the closer they have to be aligned.
However, please keep in mind that increasing your effective radiation in one direction above the initial design limit is likely to run afoul of your government's (the FCC in the USA) rules about RF emissions.
In summary, yes you can do it, but it will take expensive, fidgety antennas, is probably illegal, and at the end of it you still might not get the amount of gain you need. I recognize your desire to use wireless but generally IMO it's not worth the work.