BATNA24 / DEVICE TESTS / Mikrotik hAP ac2 - performance test

Mikrotik hAP ac2 - performance test
Microtik hAP ac2 - a small router with great possibilities
Specification and performance Microtika hAP ac2
Antenna and transmitter measurements
AirSurvey signal map
Performance tests Microtik hAP ac2
Summary

Mikrotik hAP ac2 - performance test

Microtik hAP ac2 - a small router with great possibilities

Mikrotik hAP ac2 (RBD52G-5HacD2HnD-TC) is a small but extremely powerful router with "Dual-concurrent Access Point". (Dual Band). It is equipped with 5 1Gbps Ethernet ports and a USB connector, which can be used to connect a 4G/LTE/5G. modem. The device also features IPSEC hardware acceleration support. All these advantages make Mikrotik hAP ac2 an ideal choice for people working remotely and needing a powerful WiFi router with extensive configuration capabilities.

Previously we didn't plan to test MikroTik devices, but after reading some of the comments and accusations that MikroTik devices are so bad as broadcasting points that it is better to buy a TP-Link we decided to test several devices. Wojtek Repinski's many years of professional experience in administrating MikroTik based networks can be summed up in a few words:
MicroTik products are very interesting devices (routers or switches), which for many purposes can match devices of very renowned brands such as Cisco or Fortigate. However, as a typical 802.11b/g/a/n/ac 802.11b/g/a/n/ac transmitter, it did not stand out even compared to typical low-end devices like TP-Link (the exception being devices used in ISP networks where they work on their own Nstreame and NV2 protocols).
After testing recently several MikroTik devices as cAP ac, hAP ac2, RB4011iGS+5HacQ2HnD-IN, Audience must be said that MikroTik has somewhat caught up with the competition and once again their wireless solutions can be included in small home or office networks, and the CAPsMAN functionality is particularly interesting and appreciated.

Specification and performance Microtika hAP ac2

The router uses a high-performance 4 core ARM 32 bit IPQ-4018 processor with 716MHz. With a basic firewall configuration, the manufacturer declares performance for 1518 bytes at 1.9Gbps, while for smaller 64 bytes packets, performance is lower and oscillates at 180-500Mbps. The IPSEC performance oscillates around 400Mbps for 1400 bytes packets. For performance details please refer to the manufacturer's documentation. The device can work in wireless mode in the following configurations:

standalone WiFi transmitter or WiFi client
repeater
station and WiFi transmitter in MESH mode with dynamic WDS
station and transmitter in full mesh mode
WiFi transmitter under CAPSMan.

The device has a practical, attachable stand so that it can stand or lie on a table and with this stand we can also hang the device on the wall.

Antenna and transmitter measurements

The Radio Analyzer measurement shows that the wireless module does not generate noise outside the transmission channel. On the basic transmitter power of 17dBm also does not generate additional noise.

In the manufacturer's opinion, the maximum transmission power can be increased to 26dBm, measurement at this power also did not show any additional interference. However, signal analysis shows that in practice increasing power from 17dBm to 26dBm does not necessarily give the device a real "kick", which is confirmed by observations after more than a week of testing this device.

AirSurvey signal map

We used the AirSurvey software to make a reliable signal map. - well known to MacOS users.

To correctly read the levels of individual signals, please refer to the color legend at the bottom of the picture.
Location of the Access Point is marked with an appropriate icon.
The device on the "ground floor" was connected to a switch via Ethernet port 1Gbps.

Performance tests Microtik hAP ac2

Speed tests were performed using the WiFiPerf software, while the speed test server was running iperf3 software. A series of tests was carried out based on the TCP protocol and the duration cycle was 35s. Unfortunately, due to the standard lower transmitting power (17dBm), it was not possible to set up a MESH type link the same way it was in previous tests. Signal level of -87dBm was too weak to obtain a stable connection with satisfactory performance, the devices were easily connected, but the speeds were at 3-18Mbps and quite unstable. Therefore, for the tests of signal coverage and speeds we have given up running the second transmitter in MESH mode. Only one transmitter connected directly to the main switch via the Gigabit Ethernet port was used for testing.

Below, the results of the speed tests for individual measuring points.

measuring point No. 1

Download 469Mbps

Upload 564Mbps

measuring point No. 2

Download 429Mbps

Upload 396Mbps

measuring point 3

Download 395Mbps

Upload 304Mbps

measuring point No. 4

Download 349Mbps

Upload 249Mbps

measuring point No. 5

Download 15Mbps

Upload 2Mbps

measuring point No. 6

Download 46Mbps

Upload 82Mbps

Summary

In summary, it is fair to say that the Mikrotik hAP ac2 is an extremely efficient unit. With a 716MHz 4-core processor, hAP ac2 can even function as a PPPoE hub and we can create firewall rules without any limitations and add a lot of client sessions on it, without worrying that our processor will work on a 100% load. As for the capabilities of the radio module, we also have to admit that Mikrotik hAP ac2 stood up to the task and covered our test environment, providing bandwidth at a satisfactory level. And the most important argument is price! It is hard to find such a cheap and equally efficient device with such capabilities on the market. Advantages:

A small powerful device with hardware support for IPSEC acceleration
Very powerful configuration and features, allowing this device to create an advanced router with firewall and VPN server/client together with traffic shaping.
Very powerful performance thanks to 4-core processor.
Low price

Disadvantages:

Configuration requires general IT knowledge or strict adherence to the detailed configuration instructions given by the manufacturer.

We also invite you to discuss on our FORUM, where you can publish your comments and observations.

Authors:
Wojciech Repiński
Leszek Błaszczyk

Call us at (+48) 34 361 04 48 or write to [email protected]

Products from the article

MikroTik hAP ac2 tower | WiFi Router | RBD52G-5HacD2HnD-TC, Dual Band, 5x RJ45 1000Mb/s, 1x USB

57,56 GBP

with VAT

MikroTik RB4011iGS+5HacQ2HnD-IN | WiFi Router | Dual Band 1733Mb/s, 10x RJ45 1000Mb/s, 1x SFP+

205,06 GBP

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MikroTik Audience | WiFi Router | RBD25G-5HPacQD2HPnD, Tri Band, Mesh, 2x RJ45 1000Mb/s

119,87 GBP

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MikroTik cAP ac | Access point | RBcAPGi-5acD2nD, Dual Band, 2x RJ45 1000Mb/s

62,13 GBP

with VAT

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Mikrotik hAP ac2 - performance test

Microtik hAP ac2 - a small router with great possibilities

Specification and performance Microtika hAP ac2

Antenna and transmitter measurements

AirSurvey signal map

Performance tests Microtik hAP ac2

Summary

Products from the article