I thought I would post back on here what we did and our results. These are preliminary.
Equipment: 1 x 320AP Configuration with only one sector: Power set to 19.9dB (per the manual for legal power settings) AP set to -65 power leveling Client signals at the AP were -65 (or thereabouts, this fluctuates from -65 to -70) for all clients. Client receive levels ranged from -61 to -75. Equipment: 1 x 320AP 4 x 16.5dB 90 degree sectors 2 x 4 way splitters from L-Com Configuration with only one sector: Power set to full 25dB (per the manual for legal power settings, assuming a -6.5dB of loss) AP set to -65 power leveling Client signals at the AP were -65 (or thereabouts, this fluctuates from -65 to -70) for all clients. Client receive levels ranged from -64 to -78. So essentially by adding a 4 way splitter the clients receive levels increased by about 3.5-4dB. Tower receive levels were unchanged, as most of the clients were power leveled down. Only one client is transmitting at full power now. That client is also the highest signal on both sides. Most client transmit levels are also running at a higher power now as well. Conclusion: I think that running 1 x 320AP x 4 sectors through splitters is a little aggressive. If the majority of your clients are going to have decent signal levels, then I see no problems with it. However, I think that our current situation is a little on the edge. I think that if you are looking for an inexpensive way to use 320AP's, I would recommend this solution. I think that this solution has a higher net gain over using an 8dB omni. My results show that it is pretty consistent on being about a total loss of about 8dB using a 4 way splitter. You can overcome 6.1dB of that loss in turning up the transmit power of the radios. Your net loss is about 2.5-3dB, however you are able to focus the sectors a little better. In the long run on future deployments, we will likely use 2 AP's and 4 sectors with 4x2way splitters (MIMO). Once they reach capacity, we'll add additional AP's. Regards, Chuck -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WISPA Wants You! Join today! http://signup.wispa.org/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WISPA Wireless List: wireless@wispa.org Subscribe/Unsubscribe: http://lists.wispa.org/mailman/listinfo/wireless Archives: http://lists.wispa.org/pipermail/wireless/
