OMEN 875-0034 WIFI 6 AX card upgrade

[skeats1]

Looking to upgrade my Realtek RTL8822BE 802.11ac PCIe Adapter to WIFI 6 AX card. Need to know which card to use. Intel ax200 or ax201. Keep getting a question from Intel if System Interface Type is:  M.2: CNVio2 (ax201)  or Wi-Fi(PCIe), BT(USB) (ax200). Ordered the Killer AX1650, but it appears it does not work with desktops. Any help would be greatly appreciated. thx

[Paul_Tikkanen · Accepted solution]

Hi:

If you are doing a direct swap for the Realtek card, you would want to order this one...AX 200 Non- vPro

https://www.amazon.com/Intel-Network-AX200-NGWG-NV-AX2002230-Retail/dp/B07ZVYKRW9

[skeats1]

Thanks for the quick reply Paul. I ordered the card and will reply when install completed. My guess is I should go to the Intel site and download the drivers for the AX200, prior to installation?  Should I download them prior to installing or just have them on my desktop and run them after the install?  thx!

[Paul_Tikkanen]

You're very welcome.

Yes, you can download the latest drivers for the wifi and bluetooth below...Do not install them until after you have installed the Intel card.  I think W10 will probably install default drivers as soon as it detects the card.

https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/29520/Windows-10-Wi-Fi-Drivers-for-Intel-Wireless-Adapters...

https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/29790/Intel-Wireless-Bluetooth-for-Windows-10?product=1893...

When your new card arrives, before you install it, go to the Windows control panel>Programs.

Uninstall any Realtek wifi or bluetooth software listed there.

Then go to the device manager and uninstall both the Realtek bluetooth and wifi devices and also check the uninstall driver box.

Then shut down, unplug the PC and install the AX200. 

Be very careful removing and reattaching the extremely thin and delicate wifi antenna cables.

I have a HP notebook with the AX 200 card, but am unable to realize its full potential because:

I only have an AC router (Linksys 3200 ACM).

I have dual band N devices on the 5.0 GHz wifi band, which forces me to set the router's 5.0 GHz band to Mixed mode, so the fastest speed any of my wifi cards connect to is limited to 867 MBPS, including the Intel AX200, and the Intel 9260 card I have that can connect at 1.7 GBPS

Also I only have 200 MBPS internet service, so even if they could connect at their rated speeds, that would only help me with moving files across my home network.  My internet download speeds would still be limited to 200 MBPS.

I need to upgrade to that new Linksys Linksys AX6000 Dual-Band Mesh Wi-Fi 6 Router one of these days, just to see the cards connect at what they are rated at.  😊

[skeats1]

Understood. Under the Device Manager>Network Adapters, there is also a Realtek Gaming GbE Family Controller. I believe that may be for the Ethernet, which I am not changing. Do I need to uninstall it also?

Background: Just upgraded to Gig speed thru Xfinity. Of course needed to upgrade my network: Motorola MB8600 modem/Netgear Nighthawk RAX80 router/Cat6 cables and now AX card. Note10+ is the only device I have that is AX compatible currently. "Should" be set for success.

I have my desktop running Ethernet (high 800's Mbps) so the card upgrade isn't a necessity. Unfortunately, if I unplug the Ethernet and run on WiFi, and back to Ethernet, I degrade down to around 90mbps and it stays there for quite a while. Even directly from the modem. Motorola says I should work with Xfinity as some logs show some issues.

When using WiFi I go from high 800's to the high 400/low 500's. I understand a 40/50% reduction is expected for WiFi. Hopefully, this new card will increase the speeds, as I have read it should. Just curious if I may have an issue with my Ethernet port. Oh well, always something to tinker with! 🤔

[Paul_Tikkanen]

You don't have to do anything with the Realtek ethernet adapter.

That is completely independent of the wifi adapter.

Just make sure you change the network connection to the AX card because the PC will always connect to the last device it connected to.

The Realtek RTL8822 card your PC came with is horrible.  I'm surprised you haven't been plagued with connection issues.

That card should be connecting with a max throughput of 867 MBPS with an AC router on the 5.0 GHz wifi band.

You can always check the actual connection speed your adapters are connecting at by going to the Windows control panel>network and internet>netwprk and sharing center.  Under the view your active networks section, click on your ethernet and wifi connections and it will show the actual connection speed there.