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[Eluder]

So I currently have both (sealed) the DAP-1525 and the DAP-1533 that want to use as a bridge to connect my home theater devices (360, PS3 and WDTV Live).
I'm wondering which of these two access points would be better to bridge to the DIR-857?
Logically the DAP-1533 should be faster since it's up to 450Mbps, but I'm wondering if the (assuming) newer DAP-1525 would provide better results?

Thanks.

[FurryNutz]

DAP-1533 would be the suggested DAP to get since it can match the WiFi connection speeds the 857 supports. I believe the 1533 and 1525 are about the same age.

[Eluder]

Thanks Furry, I was just thinking the DAP-1525 was newer since it's part of the amplifi product line while the DAP-1533 doesn't appear to be according to the packaging.

[FurryNutz]

Actually the 1525 is older, came out last year 2011. The 1533 was released this past summer. 

Yes the 1533 is not apart of the Amplfi line.

[Eluder]

Really?  Interesting; any reason why the DAP-1533 is not part of the amplifi product line?  What does it generally take for a product to fall under their amplifi lineup?

Thanks.

[FurryNutz]

We are not privy to such DLink knowledge here.  I presume the Amplifi line was a limited product line with a set of certain class routers and a DAP model meant for this product line and product marketing for the next generation Gamefuel(QoS) engines and media streaming abilities. We can only speculate the reasons why the 1533 was not added.  I don't know why the 1533 was not included since it was, at the time, the only official DAP model to support the 450Mb connection. However it's possible the 1533 is and was apart of the DIR-835 product line since it also does 450Mb connections and has the same case body style as the 835. Other than all this, I presume the 1533 would work great with the 857. One of these days I should get one. 

[Eluder]

I just hope that the DAP-1533 is going to be faster than the DAP-1525, my main use will be HD streaming to my WDTV Live connected to either of these bridges/APs.

[FurryNutz]

Should be. Just be aware that some streaming of raw video files could impact performance as some video files are high bandwidth files and WiFi just can't handle these files. I tested this using 5Ghz with a 450Mb Bridged AP connected to my boxee box and using the 857, still, raw BD files would not stream seamlessly with out the boxee buffering. All other files like ISOs, VOB and NetFlix worked just fine.

Also be aware of other external conditions line other near by WiFi radios can interfere with some WiFi operations. 

I still prefer wired over wireless for video and gaming. My 2 cents. 

[Eluder]

Oh, I'd much rather be on wired, but that's not possible in my condo cleanly.
I've used powerline ethernet (currently using it), but I'll likely return it as the cost is double that of extending my network via the DAP-1533, and although it probably will be faster, will it be enough of a difference?  I dunno, guess I'll find out when I switch over.

[FurryNutz]

What is the distances between the router and the destination streaming device?
Any other WiFi routers in the area? Link> Use InSSIDer to find out. How many?
If are area if congested with other WiFi routers on 2.4Ghz, you'll want to use the 5Ghz radio range to get away from the crowded 2.4Ghz radios.  If there isn't any or only a few on 2.4Ghz, you should be ok.

I think the 1533 would be a good solution for you.

[Eluder]

I'd say 25 feet or so, not too far.
Lots of Wifi routers in the area being a condo sadly...

I'll try both bands and see which does better, but I'm going to assume the 5GHz band will likely perform better over all, and since the device won't be moving, it shouldn't have an issue of attenuation as I move away from the router.

Update: Just switched over from the D-Link DHP-541 powerline ethernet over to the DAP-1533 and so far so good.  The only hiccup I had is when I was setting up the DAP, which I had temporarily in the same room as my router and PC, the Wifi connection was causing my wireless mouse to lag, which is odd since I setup the DAP to connect to my 5GHz network.  Moved the DAP to the room with the TV, etc and so far so good.  No mouse issues and streaming performance is great, connection is quite strong so I see over 400Mbps connection according to the DIR-857, so this is good so far. No issues streaming a 1080p video right now...

[FurryNutz]

Awesome. What mode is the 1533 running in?
Keep us posted. Enjoy.

[AMPatrick]

I've been using a DAP-1533 in bridge mode to the 5Ghz band of the DIR-857 for about a year now.  I've been streaming 1080p content to my LG television, my Sony BDP590, and my Apple TV v3, and performance is great. 

However, about a month or so ago, one of my family members discovered a great series on Netflix and began streaming the content.  Well to make a long story short, the DAP-1533 failed - all the LAN ports went dead.  Replaced the unit (on warranty), and low and behold after a week of heavy streaming (maybe 6 to 8 hours a day), the second unit failed the same way - all the LAN ports went dead.  Again replaced the unit (on warranty), again after a week of heavy streaming the third unit failed again.  This time I had a thermometer placed on top of it and discovered that the more that it streamed, the hotter it got - until it failed and then it cooled off... 

In any case, I just got my fourth replacement (again on warranty - thanks D-Link).  Fortunately, school is back in session, so the heavy streaming (and the high temperatures on the D-Link) have subsided.

Another one of my older DAP-1533s is almost off warranty.  I popped the cover and saw that D-Link does not believe in heat-sinking the processor chips - they simply use real cheap thermal pads which barely dissipate any heat and those pads are simply stuck onto the chips using thermal tape (which eventually looses its stick after it gets too hot).  To make this story short, I have ordered some H29 and H30 heat sinks - the H30's for the two big chips and the H29 for whatever is under the internal tin cover that is getting very hot.  As soon as my old DAP-1533 goes off warranty, I plan to remove the cheap thermal pads and replace them with the proper heat sinks using J-B Weld Epoxy (which has good thermal transfer characteristics). 

With my newer DAP-1533s, as long as they are on warranty, I'll simply keep using them and as they burn out, I'll get warranty replacements (thanks D-Link).  BTW: The three proper heat sinks (two H30s and one H29) cost about 45 cents in total - so this is a cheap after warranty upgrade that should extend the life of the DAP-1533s if you are into heavy streaming.

Hope this helps someone else out there.  I went through three units before I figured out what was going on.  D-Link support wasn't terribly helpful (other than giving me an RMA).  I do wish D-Link would spend the extra few cents per unit and use proper heat-sinks, it'll save them money on returns and replacements. 

(Gee - I just put my hand on top of my DIR-857 wireless router while I'm streaming a movie and it is getting real hot!  It's still on warranty, so I'm not going to pop the cover yet - but this router might benefit from an after warranty heat sink upgrade as well  )

[FurryNutz]

Been wondering if there was anyone else with the 1533.

I haven't seen this with my one 1533 I got, only that in bridge mode, it fails to pass along an IP address to a couple of my devices from the main host router. I only used it a few times after coaksing it to pass an IP address for XBL gaming. Seem to work well. I'm wondering if there is a heat issue with these when under heavy load. Is the unit horizontal or vertical when in use?

Other than the 1533, there isn't any higher speed DAP available yet. However the DIR-868L now has bridge mode. Also the DIR-865L is bridgeable as well.

I'll pass this along to D-Link and see what the say. This isn't good if it's failing under heavy load.

[AMPatrick]

Hi Furry,

To answer your question, I run the unit horizontally (vertical is not a real good option for me).

I have never had DHCP resolution fail when using devices connected to my DAP-1533s in bridge mode and I use all kinds of devices (mostly non-computer - such as SMART TV's, SMART Blu-Ray players, Media Streamers, etc.).  Never had a problem, all these devices use DHCP and all acquired a good IP from the DHCP server on the DIR-857 (notably the DIR-857 sometimes looses track of what it has assigned, but the DHCP collision protocol prevents the same IP from being assigned multiple times).  I think we all know the DIR-857 is less than spectacular in tracking and reporting what devices are connected on the LAN side...

BTW: I always assign a static IP to my DAP-1533 bridges so I can easily find them from my main computer WEB browser.  Because the DIR-857 sometimes looses track of what devices are connected on the LAN side, using its table of connected devices wouldn't always find things that have been DHCP connected.  Unfortunately, the DIR-857 does not track any devices with static IPs assigned (many other routers do track), so you need to maintain the "Hosts" file or other some-such mechanism for both the statically assigned IPs as well as the DHCP reservations.

Note: You need to be real careful that you do not have more than one DHCP service enabled anywhere on your LAN.  That would cause problems!