Technical expertise sought: multiple ASIair devices connected to one TP Link repeater/extender. - Forums

Topic starter

Mar 11, 2023

Good day, fellow light collectors. I have 3 ASIair minis and 1 ASIair Pro running 4 different rigs. I also have a TP-Link AC750 Wifi Extender (RE215)

What I am wanting to do is connect all 4 ASIairs to this single repeater in order to get more range from the device wifi while in the field. I already connect to each device with an ipad mini. I am guessing I need to set up station mode on each ASIair–which will be difficult as the Pro doesn't recognize any wifi networks when trying to set up station mode for some reason.

Does anyone have an idea on how I could go about getting this set up, or if it's even possible?

Thanks in advance!

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noon

Apr 5, 2023 · Edited: Apr 5, 2023

I started to suggest hardwiring them together via a 5-port ethernet switch before I realized the mini had no ethernet ports…

I'm guessing you are in the field field and not your backyard… so no actual internet hooked up to the TP-link AC750?

What about an actual router to set up a network and connect to instead of an extender? little Netgear router or something?
Set it up at home, when it is wired to the internet, as a new wireless network.
Connect all 4 ASIAIR to it.
Disconnect the internet connection.
Log into the WiFi with your tablet and see if you can see all 4 ASIAIR?
Then once you are in the field and power everything on maybe it will be more seamless?

Maybe you can do the same thing with the TP-Link and avoid buying another router.
If you mean backyard "field" instead of way-far-away field, you could hardwire the TP-link with a super long length of CAT 6 from the house, connect it to your home network and then you wouldn't have to switch to another network.

Sorry, I don't have more to offer.
Wireless connectivity ended up being the bane of my existence with ASIAIR… ended up getting a NUC and not looking back.

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Joe Linington

Apr 5, 2023

I don't know how far you want to extend your signal but what you really need is a small router near your telescopes. Many TPLink routers will run off of 12V or AC and by placing it near your mounts and using it to setup a WiFi network, all of your ASIAir's should have no issue connecting to it. The router should extend the range significantly over the ASIAir (your ipad would connect to the router) but if it isn't enough you can connect the extender or a Cat5 to the router.

The N300 is super cheap and should handle the 4 devices without issue. I can't seem to verify if it runs off of 12V. AC1900 is a very nice, long range option for a reasonable price and the specs say it can run off of 12V.

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AppalachianAstroworks

Topic starter

Apr 8, 2023

I started to suggest hardwiring them together via a 5-port ethernet switch before I realized the mini had no ethernet ports...

I'm guessing you are in the field field and not your backyard... so no actual internet hooked up to the TP-link AC750?

What about an actual router to set up a network and connect to instead of an extender? little Netgear router or something?
Set it up at home, when it is wired to the internet, as a new wireless network.
Connect all 4 ASIAIR to it.
Disconnect the internet connection.
Log into the WiFi with your tablet and see if you can see all 4 ASIAIR?
Then once you are in the field and power everything on maybe it will be more seamless?

Maybe you can do the same thing with the TP-Link and avoid buying another router.
If you mean backyard "field" instead of way-far-away field, you could hardwire the TP-link with a super long length of CAT 6 from the house, connect it to your home network and then you wouldn't have to switch to another network.

Sorry, I don't have more to offer.
Wireless connectivity ended up being the bane of my existence with ASIAIR... ended up getting a NUC and not looking back.

Thanks for the reply! Yes I was thinking this would be a good solution to get some more range out of them and possibly have a more stable signal. By field I mean upcoming star parties. There's an awful lot of wifi flying around at those so I was hoping to find a more stable solution. Yes those Minis are kind of holding me back without the ethernet port but I don't even use it on the Pro. The minis were cheaper too so I went with them. I'll look into a router, that's a good idea. I am currently running all 4 scopes off of their own ipads, as I want to be able to monitor all of them at once. That's why I was thinking I could just tether them all the the tp link, but I think the router is the way to go. Thanks again

AppalachianAstroworks

Topic starter

Apr 8, 2023

Joe Linington:
I don't know how far you want to extend your signal but what you really need is a small router near your telescopes. Many TPLink routers will run off of 12V or AC and by placing it near your mounts and using it to setup a WiFi network, all of your ASIAir's should have no issue connecting to it. The router should extend the range significantly over the ASIAir (your ipad would connect to the router) but if it isn't enough you can connect the extender or a Cat5 to the router.

The N300 is super cheap and should handle the 4 devices without issue. I can't seem to verify if it runs off of 12V. AC1900 is a very nice, long range option for a reasonable price and the specs say it can run off of 12V.

Thanks! I'll be looking into the N300 as an option. It's a little square router correct? I will be using this primarily at star parties where I'll have access to AC power. Out of curiosity do I put each ASIair into station mode and try to connect to them thru the N300? I've got an ipad for each ASIair but I'm not sure if what I'm thinking is even a possibility with that unit. I'm not even sure if I'll really need it or if it's overkill, I was just thinking it may be good to have a strong signal to connect to each one since there will be lots of wifi devices all over the place. I'd prefer not to have any interference/connection issues.

I appreciate the help--both of you!

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noon

Apr 8, 2023

That’s exactly right. Each ASIAIAR will be in station mode connected to the router. Each iPad will also be connected to the router’s network as well.

only confusion I can think of is getting the naming convention right/ remembering the network name/ip address of each ASIAIR.

I would recommend using a label maker and labeling each box with the ip address or network name so you can keep them straight when connecting the iPads since you will see multiple ASIAIRs on the network when you start connecting iPads.

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AppalachianAstroworks

Topic starter

Apr 9, 2023

That’s exactly right. Each ASIAIAR will be in station mode connected to the router. Each iPad will also be connected to the router’s network as well.

only confusion I can think of is getting the naming convention right/ remembering the network name/ip address of each ASIAIR.

I would recommend using a label maker and labeling each box with the ip address or network name so you can keep them straight when connecting the iPads since you will see multiple ASIAIRs on the network when you start connecting iPads.

I've got each device's wifi renamed already with the scope that they are running for ease of connection when I have all 4 ipads up and running. Ok this is sounding like it's possible now, I'm going to start looking into routers! Would you happen to know if it's possible to maybe invert the network the router is sending to the ipads in order to combat any interference? I seem to recall that it was possible to do that

noon

Apr 9, 2023

That starts exceeding my router IQ. I believe most decent routers automatically try to deconflict their broadcast channel depending on the environment but I’ve usually seen an option to manually set a channel as well.

you could use a 5g network but then you would have to hardwire the ASIAIR pro. Or a dual band 2.4/5g network and then you could put the pro on the 2.4g and the minis on the 5g

I had more luck with the pro hardwired than in station mode. That was one of the reasons I moved to the NUC.

Let us know how it goes

AppalachianAstroworks

Topic starter

Apr 9, 2023

That starts exceeding my router IQ. I believe most decent routers automatically try to deconflict their broadcast channel depending on the environment but I’ve usually seen an option to manually set a channel as well.

you could use a 5g network but then you would have to hardwire the ASIAIR pro. Or a dual band 2.4/5g network and then you could put the pro on the 2.4g and the minis on the 5g

I had more luck with the pro hardwired than in station mode. That was one of the reasons I moved to the NUC.

Let us know how it goes

Ok thanks, I don't know much about this stuff beyond the basics really--my career lies elsewhere in the technological world. The more I look into it I think the N300 will be the best bet for setting up the kind of network I have in mind. I will definitely get back to you about it, thanks again for all the help!

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