BPI-R4 WiFi range

[platanopi]

That’s the first thing that comes to mind, I know haha.

But I see that the BE19000 is much larger than the BE14, so I don’t think it would fit in the box that my BPI-R4 came in.

Also, I think the R4 Pro is much more over-engineered. Which already raises doubts because Banana Pi is already struggling with the current hardware…

[paladzin]

@platanopi

Mine came with a broken EEPROM, which makes it practically useless out of the box

its easy, patch eeprom and take this regulatory.db and regulatory.db.p7 to /lib/firmware then iw reg reload and start playing with wireless config. i tested patched be14 looks the same, good vs bad eeprom (-test) 20db power

[ssdnvv]

You use 10 antennas, did you include a 5G-modem?

[paladzin]

yes, im using Fibocom FM350-GL

[ssdnvv]

Ok, so I can confirm that with

• the plastic enclosure installed
• replacing that thin low-grade pigtailes by RG178-pigtailes, that are routed away from the mPCIe-connectors
• populating the unused SFP cage with a random module (the cheapest I could get were 2,5€ each)
• reducing bandwidth from 160MHz to 80MHz (in BE-mode)

I get a really satisfying throughput (/higher usable coverage) for the floor I installed this device for. Thanks a lot for your help!

[frank-w]

@ssdnvv

populating the unused SFP cage with a random module (the cheapest I could get were 2,5€ each)

Insert a (not used) SFP increases you wifi range (rx level on client/reduce noise)?

[SpectreDev]

Doesn’t for me, doesn’t do anything at all tbh

[ssdnvv]

I precised my feedback.

It reduces noise for me by 1-2dBi.

[matt1606]

I observe different noise levels across reboots:

• high noise values (seen in > 90% of the board boots)

root@bpi-r4:~# iw dev wlan0 survey dump | grep -B1 noise
        frequency:                      2442 MHz [in use]
        noise:                          -88 dBm
--
        frequency:                      5180 MHz [in use]
        noise:                          -75 dBm
root@bpi-r4:~#

• relatively (as for this HW) low noise values (seen in < 10% of the board boots):

root@bpi-r4:~# iw dev wlan0 survey dump | grep -B1 noise
        frequency:                      2442 MHz [in use]
        noise:                          -88 dBm
--
        frequency:                      5180 MHz [in use]
        noise:                          -83 dBm
root@bpi-r4:~#

worth pointing out:

• it applies to the 5 GHz band, the noise level for 2.4 GHz is constant between the reboots, I did not test the 6 GHz band as I do not have the antennas for that band,
• router stands still between the reboots (i.e. nothing changes regarding the router position nor element placement, antennas stand still, connectors and cables too)
• the different noise levels result in different Rx throughput of the router (obviously higher throughput is observed when the noise level is lower)
• it is less common to get low noise level value than high noise value (read it as: 1 per ~20 reboots I get low noise while all the others bring high noise value)
• I’m using the latest mt7996 firmware:

[   14.388511] mt7996e 0000:01:00.0: HW/SW Version: 0x8a108a10, Build Time: 20250904203308a
[   14.627003] mt7996e 0000:01:00.0: WM Firmware Version: ____000000, Build Time: 20250904203304
[   14.676271] mt7996e 0000:01:00.0: DSP Firmware Version: ____000000, Build Time: 20250904202814
[   14.717602] mt7996e 0000:01:00.0: WA Firmware Version: ____000000, Build Time: 20250904203218

• as for my understanding/knowledge the noise levels are being calculated and reported by the HW/FW, so it is a HW/FW issue

[Betonmischer]

A question to BPI-R4 Pro early adopters: did you try it with the BE14 NIC, and what’s your noise figures?

[matt1606]

@sinovoip does this qualify for a BPI-BE14 module replacement?
- the problem described in post 19418/349 persists.

[iczero]

@Betonmischer I get quite high (-77 dBm) noise values with the BE14 and the metal case/provided pigtails. I get -91 dBm noise on my previous router, so about 25x more noise or so. It makes the AP pretty much unusable. Pretty disappointing, all things considered, especially for how much it cost. I guess it’s on me for not reading the forum before buying.

I will try switching to the plastic case and better pigtails.

Edit: sorry, this is the R4, not pro.

[Lorem_amicus (Michael Fischer)]

BPI-BE14 Wi-Fi7 NIC module -> first picture of the upcoming revised BE14

I found something interesting on: https://www.bpi-shop.com [grafik] Looks like the first photo of an upcoming BE14 revision: [grafik]

Please do not buy this early …

[iczero]

Unfortunately I’ve bought the wireless module nearly a year ago. Haven’t gotten it to work well since. Hopefully I can get the board replaced…

[hyf (hyf9929)]

镜像名：mtk-bpi-r4-MP4_1-NAND-20241216.img（Downloaded from the BPI official website）

First, use the command to start Wi-Fi scanning: iw dev rai1 scan

Then use the command to find and record noise at in-use frequencies: iw dev ra1 survey dump | grep -B1 noise

Test environment:

Test Results:

	5G（device rai1）
	frequency	noise
First startup	5180 MHz	-88 dBm
Second startup	5180 MHz	-89 dBm
3rd startup	5180 MHz	-89 dBm
4th startup	5180 MHz	-88 dBm
5th startup	5180 MHz	-88 dBm
6th startup	5180 MHz	-89 dBm
7th startup	5180 MHz	-86 dBm
8th startup	5180 MHz	-84 dBm
9th startup	5180 MHz	-84 dBm
10th startup	5180 MHz	-88 dBm
11th startup	5180 MHz	-89 dBm
12th startup	5180 MHz	-88 dBm
13th startup	5180 MHz	-89 dBm
14th startup	5180 MHz	-89 dBm
15th startup	5180 MHz	-87 dBm
16th startup	5180 MHz	-87 dBm
17th startup	5180 MHz	-87 dBm
18th startup	5180 MHz	-88 dBm
19th startup	5180 MHz	-86 dBm
20th startup	5180 MHz	-87 dBm

I restarted it 20 times, and the low-noise situation didn’t occur amidst the noise of the 5G Wi-Fi. Perhaps I did something wrong?

[matt1606]

Hello @hyf,
You didn’t do anything wrong, that just confirms two things:
- your BPI-NIC-BE14 module is all fine,
- my module is faulty, which I try to prove since the very beginning.

[hyf (hyf9929)]

@Lorem_amicus

I found something interesting on: https://www.bpi-shop.com [grafik] Looks like the first photo of an upcoming BE14 revision: [grafik]

Please do not buy this early …

Okay, then it’s probably a problem with BE14. And I’m also looking forward to the new version too.

[ericwoud (Eric W.)]

Is there any news on the high noise of the be14000 card issue?

Is populating the SFP port really a solution that lowers noise to an acceptable level?

Does antenna cable routing in a certain way solve it?

Any real solution available? New version of R4 board and/or be14000 card?

[kvic]

@hyf

I restarted it 20 times, and the low-noise situation didn’t occur amidst the noise of the 5G Wi-Fi. Perhaps I did something wrong?

Yes, if you had carefully gone through the whole thread I presume. I recall from memory what @Betonmischer told me in a forum discussion elsewhere.

In your test, you have to close the case in its assembled shape, not open air like shown in your photo. The signal will drop to 80dBm or worse. Can’t recall the values exactly.

(Note personally I use R4 as a wired router. Can’t test or vouch for anything related to WiFi.)

[ericwoud (Eric W.)]

@ericwoud

Is there any news on the high noise of the be14000 card issue?

Is populating the SFP port really a solution that lowers noise to an acceptable level?

Does antenna cable routing in a certain way solve it?

Any real solution available? New version of R4 board and/or be14000 card?

Anyone @sinovoip have any news about this issue?