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Review ASUS RT-AC86U, Feature-packed advanced wireless router

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PsychoJoe
post Dec 5 2018, 02:55 PM

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My RT-AC86U is just over a year old (from Gearbest). Last week, it started hanging (Internet lost, unable to connect to the admin page even via Ethernet), fixed via power cycle only to crash again a random time later. The logs were not clear.

Thinking it was a bad flash, I tried updating the firmware again etc but no dice. Finally when I tried Merlin FW as a last resort, the temperature page alerted me that the router CPU was running extremely hot (99 degrees C!) and I finally noticed in the log that the CPU shut itself down due to thermal throttling. I'm not sure why I never noticed the line in the logs earlier (could be a line that Merlin FW added).

Communicating with Gearbest for RMA has been a bit frustrating (because of the language barrier) but they finally offered me 3 options:

1. Return the item to China at my own cost for free repair (which doesn't sound like RMA - it's not clear whether I'll be getting a new device or a refurbished one).
2. Keep the dud and get USD 30 credit in the Gearbest Wallet.
3. Keep the dud and buy a replacement from them at a "special" price of USD 150.

It's obviously a hardware problem (I have no idea what failed to trigger this series of events - I was running stock previously), but some comments seem to indicate the RT-AC86U has heat issues which means I may encounter it again.

I'm wondering whether installing those fans from Lazada that someone linked would make the dud usable, in which case it might make sense not to go for option 1.

I'm interested in what my fellow AC86U forumers think, especially those who have gone for RMA before, what was your experience etc?

This post has been edited by PsychoJoe: Dec 5 2018, 10:49 PM
PsychoJoe
post Dec 10 2018, 12:56 AM

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QUOTE(Verblassen @ Dec 9 2018, 03:26 AM)
I hope your RMA goes smoothly and hopefully yours is an isolated case. I just got my AC-86U yesterday from Taobao.
I'm a non-Chinese speaker so I had to use Chrome's auto translate to buy.
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Decided to go buy the fan and go for the wallet credit. Didn't trust the RMA process could fix the issue (whatever the cause) and didn't want to risk buying another dud. Assuming the wallet credit doesn't expire (it shouldn't) I can wait until the hardware stabilizes before I fork out for another.
PsychoJoe
post Dec 12 2018, 10:31 PM

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Sad to hear about those having AC86U issues. I'm surprised you can't reset - I've been told (and read) many times that Asus routers are unbrickable because of the built-in recovery process. I'm wondering whether it's heat issue like mine (leave it off and alone for a while to cool down and try again. If that works, I recommend flashing Merlin FW, at least you can confirm whether it's heat related.

I just got my fans today, will install and report back.
PsychoJoe
post Dec 13 2018, 10:51 AM

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QUOTE(PsychoJoe @ Dec 12 2018, 10:31 PM)
Sad to hear about those having AC86U issues. I'm surprised you can't reset - I've been told (and read) many times that Asus routers are unbrickable because of the built-in recovery process. I'm wondering whether it's heat issue like mine (leave it off and alone for a while to cool down and try again. If that works, I recommend flashing Merlin FW, at least you can confirm whether it's heat related.

I just got my fans today, will install and report back.
*
Fans managed to keep the router running at around 82-84 degrees overnight. Success!
PsychoJoe
post Dec 13 2018, 12:30 PM

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QUOTE(JayceOoi @ Dec 13 2018, 11:39 AM)
Still too high by using fans. Should be around 60 (and lower) only. You might want to check the headsink contact if you willing to open up your AC86U.
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Considering it was at 99 degrees and then crashing, this is already an improvement. Now is not a good time for me to open up the router, perhaps I will do it in early Jan
PsychoJoe
post Dec 13 2018, 05:51 PM

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QUOTE(llk @ Dec 13 2018, 02:40 PM)
Not sure how you installed the fan, but mine getting around 59 degree
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Mine was overheating up to 99 degrees (and beyond) to the point the CPU shuts itself down, which is why 80 degrees is acceptable for now. I actually suspect the heatsink may have came loose or something.
PsychoJoe
post Mar 15 2019, 02:24 AM

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FYI peeps. A lot of folk got our ac86u routers from Gearbest. Their database was unsecured.

https://www.androidpolice.com/2019/03/14/ge...ily-accessible/
PsychoJoe
post Feb 6 2020, 06:12 PM

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If you want to avoid the speed drop, you need to get mesh routers that support a dedicated backhaul channel.

 

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