ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight router and EA-N66 adapter - dark knight and zen pyramid. High-performance dual-band wireless router ASUS RT-N66U

Rating: 5 out of 5

Pros: Best router. Very powerful, dual-band, gigabit. Large size built-in memory for firmware.

Disadvantages: None. Bright LEDs? They are disabled in the Merlin firmware. Does it get very hot? But no one has burned out yet, which means the operating temperature is normal. High price? Perhaps, but look at its filling! Low power? Don't tell me, one of the most powerful routers for home use. Read below.

Comment: Merlin firmware. Everything works perfectly. Low power - select 200 mW and press apply three times. Still low on power? Open the console and execute the following commands: nvram set wl_TxPower=500 nvram set wl0_TxPower=500 nvram set wl1_TxPower=500 nvram commit Voila, the router produces half a watt. Used it like this for a long time. It even catches in the yard (I live on the top floor) Oo Do you want to use the outer channels? (usually disabled in devices and therefore free). Please: nvram set pci/1/1/ccode=JP nvram set pci/2/1/ccode=JP nvram set wl0_country_code=JP nvram set wl1_country_code=JP nvram set regulation_domain=JP nvram set regulation_domain_5G=JP nvram commit This is how the region is selected "Japan", where channels up to 14 are allowed!! (usually the outermost channel 11 or 13). (Does not work on all firmware). Do you want to limit your speed? wireless network? - there is also a way: 1. Assign an address to the router, for example 192.168.1.1 2. Assign “Local network” >> “LAN IP” >> “Subnet mask” - 255.255.254.0 (exactly 254). 3. Go to “Local Network” >> “DHCP Server”. 4. Manually assign IP addresses to all home computers by MAC addresses. (required in the range 192.168.1.*). 5. Assign the starting and ending addresses of the DHCP pool 192.168.0.10 and 192.168.0.100 (exactly in subnet 0). 6. Go to “Traffic Manager” >> “QoS”. Let's activate QoS. 7. Create a custom rule: priority - Lowest, Protocol - any, Source IP or MAC - 192.168.0.* (exactly 0 subnet) 9. Now you can set any speed limits for the "Lowest" priority. This will be the speed limit for the guest subnet.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Pros: Quality, amazing ease of setup. Everything is as it is in the comments.

Disadvantages: I didn’t notice (I don’t use all the features, there’s no need!). Everything is as it is in the comments.

Comment: I purchased it 5-6 months ago, it works without problems. The firmware is from Asus (just updated), I didn’t install it from Merlin! I was too lazy to sew, I decided to see how it would work on it - the flight was normal. I rebooted once, and I’m not sure that the problem was with him and not with the provider. I will support the others - yes, the router gets hot, but this does not interfere with its operation. I bought the router with the hope of quality and the desire to avoid dancing with a tambourine when setting up. As the monsieur of their feature film “The Wish Maker” said: “Fulfilled...” ): D The router met expectations 100%. Hanging on the wall at the entrance to the apartment, wires already go out from it to the TV (Cisco set-top box) and computer. Since the arrival of the router in the apartment, there has been a constant distribution of torrents (now 28 of them), in the evening every day 2-3 devices hang on wi-fi (at 2.4, and I don’t use 5) + separately around the clock open wifi to the joy of the neighbors (no, it’s not a pity))). In addition to everything, Beeline TV goes through the router, and Beeline also provides me with Internet access. By the way, after removing the router from the original box, I had access to the Internet within 5 minutes. I didn’t connect anything to USB, there’s no need. I don’t complain about the speed at all (5 GB from torrets takes about 10-15 minutes; recently I downloaded 81 GB in about 4 hours... in the evening). According to the tariff, I have 45 Mbit, i.e. nothing special. Wi-fi picks up near the entrance on the street at 1-2 bars, I myself live at 5. I didn’t measure the speed of the waffle, but 720p movies on the tablet go without problems (at 3 bars). At work, my boss has exactly the same router, he also has no problems, I bought mine a month after him.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Alexander E.

Advantages: Excellent, powerful device with maximum functionality, simultaneous 2G and 5G (really works at maximum speed in N-mode!) with the possibility of up to 5 guest networks, a huge amount of built-in and Flash memory, intuitive functional software with wide capabilities , including a built-in torrent client and udproxy for IP-TV relays, high-quality service from ASUS, 2 USB with support for 2 printer connection options and an easy-to-carry 500GB USB HDD without external power, MicroSD connectivity, a bunch of alternative firmware . And the beautiful, bold design of the device will decorate any home/office

Disadvantages: It gets noticeably hot during operation - vertical installation with the included stand is recommended. Asus software is traditionally buggy - installing alternative firmware solves all problems and does not lead to loss of warranty! MicroSD slot inside the case - no problem for naughty hands Overpriced

Comment: ASUS engineers, traditionally strong in hardware, have not lost face - the device turned out to be surprisingly balanced and powerful, which is very problematic to load to the maximum. There are no speed “cuts” observed, incl. within a local gigabit network. Via WAN it gives 98.9 mb - a discount on the line/provider. About 2000 simultaneous sessions load the processor by no more than 15%. Also, traditionally, all this works by default on buggy, clumsy proprietary firmware, the functionality of which, however, commands respect. Perhaps someday it will be “licked”, but there is little hope. Those who don't want to bother are advised to look at http://forum.asus.ru/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=44107 and manually update to latest version(auto-update does not work), regardless of the beta status of the firmware. For those who want to fully unleash the potential of this wonderful piece of hardware right now, feel free to look for alternative firmware. I use excellent firmware from Tomato (the latest versions for today are here: http://tomato.groov.pl/index.php?dir=K26RT-N%2Fbuild5x-092-EN%2FRT-N66u, flash through the proprietary recovery utility) - it works stable and without failures, functionality is more than enough; incl. It is possible to set the max. Wi-Fi power (be careful, in large cities there may be problems with “organs” - according to the law no more than 150 mV, with firmware you can “catch up” to 400), this allowed me to calmly “cover” a 5-story building + yard and solve all the required problems

Rating: 4 out of 5

Advantages: - “good” hardware for “household” needs - dual-band WiFi with powerful transmitter(limit on off - 0.2W; custom - 0.5W) - nice admin panel with wide customization options - a lot of built-in features (double NAT, several guest networks, sharing, rocking, print server, parental and traffic control, DLNA, etc.) d.) - off. support is at a normal level (firmware updates are very frequent) - there are no problems with custom ones

Disadvantages: - high price for the brand / support - a not so “branded” router with similar hardware costs ~ 3k (such as TRENDnet TEW-692GR), - gets very hot under load, although this is so far visible problems did not work - does not support p2p at speeds > 70Mbit with an L2TP connection to an external device

Comment: I took the piece of iron back in the fall and am quite pleased with it. Off, there is no need to sew custom yet. There were no special problems with the setup (Beeline, L2TP), the 100Mb channel can handle it completely. There is a constant load in the form of mTorrent with 900 torr - problems arise with downloading from an external source: at speeds > 9MB, the router simply reboots after a while, you have to limit the download to this figure: (Otherwise - no special problems. From additional features I use a print server, IPTV and Sharilka (I plugged in an old 16GB flash drive for all sorts of things) - everything is also quite good: there are some bugs and “features” of the settings, but this is always and everywhere, and everything works well in the end; The flash drive gives 10/5 MB for reading/writing, which is enough for me. By WiFi - a laptop with an Atheros card and a PS3 is on 2.4, no problems, I connected a TV, smartphone and tablet to 5: connect at 150 Mbit, real speed up to 8.5 MB (i.e. up to ~ 80 Mbit).

Rating: 5 out of 5

Advantages: - Easy to connect - Signal strength. It catches better than the previous ASUS WL-500W - Speed ​​(channel 60/60 does not cut at all, ASUS WL-500W did) - Fast, beautiful, convenient router admin panel

Disadvantages: Haven't found any yet.

Comment: Provider Beeline (ex Corbina) channel 60/60 megabits per second. Everything flies. Thanks everyone. Goodbye everyone.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Pros: Excellent router. No complaints. Can download torrents, distribute connected disks and DNLA.

Disadvantages: I didn't find any. People complain that it gets hot. Well, let him warm up as much as he wants. It works very stable.

Comment: I worked for more than a year without any complaints on the Beeline l2tp Internet. It showed fair speed. Unlike Dlinks which ruined 20-30% of the channel speed. I replaced it only because I am upgrading the wi-fi network to new standard Wi-Fi 802.11ac - I bought its older brother RT-AC66U. You can attach SNMP (monitor via KHF or mrtg) and non-standard transmission. install Download Master ver in USB-applications router menu reboot router ipkg install net-snmp; /usr/sbin/app_set_enabled.sh net-snmp yes It earns its money. 5 GHz allows you to distance yourself from neighboring 2.5 GHz wifi networks in a house noisy with neighbors' Wi-Fi.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Advantages: 1. As has been mentioned many times - the design of the device. 2. Powerful hardware, 256 MB capacity RAM. 3. 2 frequency range. 4. Gigabit ports. 5. A huge number of settings + convenient menu. 6. Possibility of easy installation of alternative firmware.

Disadvantages: Overpriced.

Comment: I spent a very long time choosing a new router to replace the old DIR-615. I read reviews, testimonials, comments. I scoured the Internet looking for the necessary device, eventually settled on ASUS RT-N66U and ZyXEL Keenetic Ultra. I spent about a week looking at information on both devices and came to the conclusion to take ZyXEL. I came to the store and left with a brand new ASUS RT-N66U for 6.3 kilo rubles. I don’t know how to explain my action. There are bugs on both devices, but the ASUS RT-N66U was closer to the soul, and also fit very well into the interior. Immediately demolished official firmware and put Merlin. I picked up a 3 terabyte screw and left the whole thing for a couple of months. The main task for the router was to act as a torrent client and DLNA servers. And the router coped with this task perfectly. I liked the feature as additional software, which itself intercepts the torrent file and sends it to the router client. The moment a new file is added, the router starts to glitch terribly, hashing large files affects external drive, when the processor is fully loaded. There are no problems with the Internet at this moment. A hard drive connected to the router is easily detected by the system as a network drive and working with it is a pleasure. The only problem is that the transfer speed does not exceed 10 megabytes per second. In 2 months of work, I only made 1 reboot - the router froze when I sent 3 torrents with 20 gigabyte files to it. The Internet continued to work at that moment, but access to the router via the web interface was lost. There were no problems with DLNA, I added the file and watched it right away. I don’t take into account the problems with overheating and bright LEDs. Overheating does not affect the operation of the device, and the LEDs can be turned off in the Merlin firmware. Wi-Fi penetrates exactly as much as my old DIR-615 did. In the router settings, everyone will find something for themselves. In general, the device works stably, hopes are justified, but the price is very steep, it is for this reason that I give it a big minus.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Dmitry I.

Advantages: Great design, stability

Disadvantages: Noticeable heating of the surface, weak 5 GHz signal

In order to enjoy interacting with the Global Network, it is not enough to purchase a top-end tablet or laptop and connect to the fastest package from a local provider. Don't forget that between your device and a huge stream of interesting and useful information there is one intermediate link, saving on which is more expensive for yourself. As you may have guessed, we are talking about routers that take on the functions of a “home administrator” in creating and configuring a wired/wireless network, organizing shared storage, connecting a network printer, etc. Today we will look at the top-of-the-line IEEE 802.11n class device, the ASUS RT-N66U, with a stated data transfer speed of up to 900 Mbps, support for the 2.4 and 5.0 GHz bands, four Gigabit LAN ports and two USB connectors.

Equipment

Wireless router ASUS RT-N66U comes in a standard box for this brand, the main part of which is made of thick packaging cardboard, and the removable outer part is made of thinner black cardboard with colorful printing. The amount of information that fits on the packaging can only be envied; it not only lists everything technical specifications and supported technologies, but also provides several useful illustrations, including a photograph of the rear panel of the device with the connector topology.

The router and all accessories necessary for operation are placed in the compartments of a special pallet. In addition to the device itself, here you will find a stand for vertical installation, three removable external antennas made of black matte plastic, network cable RJ45, compact power supply, warranty card and brief instructions manual in paper and electronic form.

Appearance, connectors

The ASUS RT-N66U router is made in a proprietary design, which has been repeatedly used in models of this brand (for example, ASUS RT-AC66U). Interestingly, the device turned out to be heavier than the models we had previously gotten our hands on - 450 grams versus 375 grams and 400 grams.

The main visual feature of the design is still the nicely textured surface of the top panel. I'm glad that, unlike some other models, they use not glossy, but practical smooth plastic, which is quite easy to clean from dust. Most of the top panel is finished with the aforementioned plastic, which hides eight LEDs that indicate the activity of the router, each of the four LAN ports, a WAN port, 2.4 and 5 GHz wireless modules, and a USB port. The top bar traditionally contains a metal logo and model designation.

Body base ASUS RT-N66U densely dotted with holes for ventilation; only the front and back panels. On the bottom you can find four rubber feet, which are useful for horizontal installation of the router. To install the device in a vertical position, two cross-shaped holes are used. To mount the router on the wall, you will need two screws with corresponding heads, while to install it on a table, use the included stand. This option will save space and improve the cooling of the device, however, full wiring using all connectors (4 LAN, WAN, 2 USB) will not look very aesthetically pleasing.

Three external dual-band (2.4/5.0 GHz) antennas are screwed onto the sockets using threads. Each antenna has three fixed positions relative to the mounting axis (0, 45 and 90 degrees) and can additionally rotate a full 360 degrees around the socket itself, which allows you to choose the optimal position for any installation method. The manufacturer recommends a “trident” configuration, in which the middle part of the antenna is installed vertically, and the outer ones are tilted at an angle of 45 degrees in their direction.

All connectors and buttons are located on the rear (top when installed vertically) edge of the case ASUS RT-N66U. The leftmost connector is the power supply socket, next to it there is a push-button power switch with a lock in the active position. This is followed by two USB ports located one above the other and a miniature reset button recessed into the surface of the panel. Just to the left of the central antenna socket there is a WAN port, followed by a line of four Gigabit LAN ports and the wizard launch button completes the set quick setup WPS.

Functionality

Already from the designation of the device it is clear that the wireless router ASUS RT-N66U is a top model for the N-class, superior to the router we previously reviewed. With support for 802.11 a/b/g/n standards in the same two bands of 2.4 and 5 GHz, the hero of our review is able to provide a total speed of 900 (450 + 450) Mbit/s, and not 750 (300 + 450) Mbit/s with as a junior model. Such indicators will be useful for advanced users who actively use a wireless home network for online games, streaming HD video with high bitrate and/or 3D support, creating fast network storage and connecting a network printer.

Fans of Torrent storage will certainly appreciate the router’s ability to support up to 300 thousand simultaneous connections and the Download Master offline download system, which can download files to a connected USB port (unfortunately, only USB 2.0, although the ASUS RT-N65U has version 3.0 ports) hard drive without the participation of a computer. The built-in amplifier extends the range of the wireless network, and the intelligent ASUS system Ai Radar further improves the quality of data transmission by optimizing the radiation pattern in accordance with the location of signal consumers in space.

Users with stationary devices that need access to the Global Network are not forgotten either; using four Gigabit LAN ports you can connect a couple of desktops, a game console and a TV with Smart TV support. It is also worth noting the improved cooling system with massive aluminum radiators, the amount of RAM increased to 256 MB and an impressive set of proprietary technologies that simplify the setup and operation of the router ASUS RT-N66U.

Setup, operation

Initial router setup ASUS RT-N66U is very simple, just enter the PIN from the bottom panel of the case and you go to a standard dialog where you are asked to enter the network name, security level and key, as well as security type. Next follows the procedure for setting up the Global Network, for which you will need to know the access parameters of your provider and finally you find yourself in the proprietary web interface, where you can finally configure all the necessary parameters.

You can study the structure of the web interface in more detail using our screenshots, but we note that the setup process is very simple, and in cases where questions arise, you can use the pop-up tips. The interface is available in 20 languages, of which the typical domestic user will be interested in Ukrainian, Russian and English. Pay special attention to the traffic monitor, which allows you to track the situation in real time and the possibility manual settings wireless transmitter power (default 80 mW with 100 mW available).

During operation ASUS RT-N66U showed himself quite worthy. The router gets noticeably hot, but the aluminum radiators and a sufficient number of holes cope with their task - emergency reboots and freezes were not observed despite the ambient temperature of more than 30 degrees. As already mentioned, there is certain problems with wire switching during vertical installation, a bunch of cables sticking out between the antennas does not look very aesthetically pleasing. Flashing bright blue activity lights can also cause problems if you place the router in the bedroom, since practically invisible during the day, at night these lights may well interfere with healthy sleep. Both of the above problems can be easily solved by installing the router outside a residential area, because the device does not require regular maintenance or reboots.

A test test of the speed of access to the Internet in wireless and wired modes took place in an office environment with a significant number of connected clients and neighboring networks, so as expected, the maximum performance stated by the manufacturer could not be achieved. Home users rarely encounter such harsh conditions, so they are sure to get more attractive speed test results.

Video review of ASUS RT-N66U wireless router

Results

As a result, ASUS RT-N66U– top wireless router with support for 2.4 and 5 GHz bands in the Wi-Fi 802.11n standard, four Gigabit Ethernet ports and two USB connectors 2.0. This model It is worth choosing for users with increased requirements for stability and data transfer speeds who do not yet have client devices that support the Wi-Fi 802.11ac standard. Thus, according to the test results and the totality of indicators, the router ASUS RT-N66U deserves the sign “ Editor's Choice”.

I liked it
+ stability
+ high declared data transfer speed (up to 900 MB/sec)
+ work in the 2.4 and 5.0 GHz bands
+ four gigabit LAN ports
+ convenient web interface, maximum quantity settings
+ support for almost all popular technologies and functions

Didn't like it
- noticeable heating of the case
— USB ports version 2.0
- the cost could have been less

The product was provided for testing by ASUS, www.asus.ua

	ASUS RT-N66U 2,794 - 3,571 UAH Compare prices
Device type	Wireless router
Wireless standard	IEEE 802.11 b/g/n
Dual band operation	+
Maximum connection speed (Mbit/s)	900
Connection interface (LAN port)	4×10/100/1000
Login (WAN port)	10/100/1000
Firewall	+
NAT	+
VPN (virtual network) support	passthrough + PPTP VPN server
DHCP server	+
Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)	+
Antenna type (internal/external)	external
Number of antennas	3
Antenna Gain (dBi)	3
Transmitter power (dBM)	19
Information security (WEP, WPA/WPA-PSK, WPA2-PSK, WPA2/RADIUS)	+/+/+/+
Web interface	+
Telnet	+
SNMP support	—
Quantity	2
Connection (external drive/printer/3G modem)	(+/+/+)
Power(PoE/adapter)	-/+
Built-in ftp-server	+
Built-in hard drive	—
Outdoor installation possible	—
Bridge Mode	+
Other	Thanks to the opportunity simultaneous work in two frequency bands (2.4 and 5 GHz) with a speed of 450 Mbps each, the RT-N66U provides a total wireless data transfer rate of 900 Mbps. 2xUSB 2.0 for connecting HDD and printer, WPS technology, EZ UI easy setup mode
Dimensions (mm)	207×148.8×35.5
Weight (g)	450

Testing the new ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight router that came into our laboratory turned out to be very interesting. New design, different from the prototype, new platform and the test results are something to look at.

Equipment and appearance

The router package turned out to be quite standard: RT-N66U, stand, patch cord, power adapter, three antennas, warranty card, quick installation and configuration guide, and software disk.

The router itself is made in a black case with embossed top panel. There are bright blue indicators on the front panel network activity router interfaces, both wired and wireless, power indicator, Internet availability indicator, USB port indicator.

All ports and connectors of the ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight are located on the back of the device: five RJ-45 connectors for connecting to the Internet and local clients, all operating at speeds up to 1 Gbps. There are also two USB connectors for connecting storage devices, printers or 3G modems. The power connector is also located on the rear panel. We note three buttons: power, reset settings and quick setup of the WPS wireless network. Three connectors for connecting antennas (RP-SMA) complete the picture of the rear panel.

On the bottom side of the ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight there are many holes for ventilation, where you can also see a sticker with information about the device.

The sides of the ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight contain plenty of vents, which are vital for cooling the hot internals of the router. Note that in previous versions an active cooling system was used, which was eventually abandoned. However, the router gets quite hot during operation.

Internal structure

RT-N66U is built on a Broadcom DCM4706 processor running on clock frequency 600 MHz. The processor supports gigabit network interfaces, USB 2.0, and works in conjunction with Broadcom BCM4331 radio modules (450 Mbit/s 3T3R), BCM53125 is used as the switching core. As for memory, the ROM capacity is 32 MB, the RAM capacity is 256 MB.

Of course, we couldn’t resist and opened the ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight case. Inside we saw a board with a massive heatsink, which, despite the desire, could not be removed without the risk of damaging the board. In addition to the undistinguished components, we noticed a connector installed on the board, apparently intended for microSD cards. It may be intended to use the cards as a ROM extension to install additional packages.

Bottom side ASUS boards The RT-N66U Dark Knight is unremarkable and is covered with a metal plate - a radiator.

Setup and administration

The administration interface of the ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight router is already familiar to many. It is worth noting that it is quite convenient to use and it is unlikely that setting the basic parameters necessary ordinary users, will turn out to be unbearable. Below we will take a closer look at the RT-N66U web interface.

After entering the username and password required to gain access to the administration interface of the ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight router, you can begin configuration. First of all, the device status page is displayed, on which the current parameters of its operation are visible - the “General” section of the main menu

The ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight router supports the ability to create guest networks in both frequency bands with the ability to protect the wireless connection and limit Internet access according to a schedule.

In the "Traffic Manager" section of the ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight, you can configure the use of QoS and view information and statistics on traffic on the interfaces.

The ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight router supports parental control functions that allow you to limit the amount of time a specified computer can use the network. The restriction is configured by the MAC address of the computer and allows you to configure the schedule of allowed network access by hour for each day of the week.

As befits today's routers, the RT-N66U supports work with USB devices. For configuration, use the "USB application" section. The firmware provides the following capabilities for working with USB devices: general access to files, including via the Internet, access to multimedia files on disk using UPnP, print server, work with 3G/WiMax modems, downloading data using a torrent client.

That's it for this section general settings ends. As you can see, they are quite sufficient for basic router configuration in a typical home network. And we move on to the additional settings section.

The ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight wireless network settings allow you to delve quite deeply into setting parameters, some of which are not worth changing at all, and some have to be changed in many networks. Some parameters are named a little strangely, for example, "WPA pre-shared key".

In a separate subsection of ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight, WPS parameters are configured, which is convenient to use for quickly setting up a secure connection for clients.

The ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight router supports operation in wireless bridge mode, and the settings page contains a description of each operating mode.

To increase network security, in the next tab of ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight you can configure filtering of traffic from wireless devices by their MAC address. In this case, both the creation of a white and a black list are allowed.

It is pleasant to note that the developers paid due attention to protecting the ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight wireless network by implementing support for centralized authorization of wireless clients using RADIUS.

Parameters are highlighted in a separate section fine tuning ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight wireless network; the ability to create a schedule for turning on the radio module by day of the week has also been added.

The ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight LAN settings section also contains several tabs. On the first one you can set the IP address of the router’s local interface. On the second, the parameters of the built-in DHCP server, and also indicate static bindings of MAC addresses to IP, if necessary. Of course, the router also allows you to add static routes, which can be worked with on the Routes tab. To work with multicast traffic, a number of parameters are placed on the IPTV tab. The last tab in this section allows you to change parameters such as Jumbo Frame and hardware acceleration traffic processing.

The WAN section of the ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight is quite typical. Here you configure the settings for connecting to the provider’s network, the type of which can be selected from the available options. In the same section, you can configure static and dynamic port forwarding, a demilitarized zone, and DDNS with support for multiple servers, including own server ASUS. On the last tab of the section, traffic transmission through NAT is configured for various protocols.

The next subsection of ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight is responsible for the operation of IPv6; here you can actually only enable or disable its support.

The ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight VPN server section contains the parameters of the built-in VPN server operating via the PPTP protocol. The server supports up to 10 clients with the ability to use MPPE40 and MPPE128 encryption. By the way, this solution is quite good for home or office device, allowing you to provide virtually no additional costs remote access to the network.

A separate section is dedicated to configuring the ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight firewall. Everything here is quite traditional: restricting access to the interface from the external network, prohibiting response to ping, URL filter, filter by protocols and IP addresses.

In the Administration section of ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight, you can select the device operating mode from two options: router and access point. You can change the device access password, set the time and time zone, and also open access to the telnet interface in the System subsection. The firmware update can be performed either directly from the Internet or from a pre-downloaded image; for this, use the Firmware Update section. Also in this section you can reset, save or restore settings.

The last section of the menu is the ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight system log. All settings related to logging are collected here, as well as the event log itself.

Testing

For testing, we used a stand consisting of computers with the following configuration:

Velocity measurements were performed using an Ixia Chariot. For testing, we also used other wireless adapters: ZyXEL NWD2205EE, Netgear WNA3100, D-Link DWA-160 and ASUS EA-N66 which were connected to the laptop during the tests.

Routing Testing

First of all, we turned to testing the routing performance of the ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight. To do this, we assembled a stand from two computers, connecting a router between them. During testing, we checked the speed when connecting with a static IP, as well as via PPTP and L2TP. The results obtained turned out to be quite predictable for a router based on such a processor. Thus, the maximum speed in connection mode with static IP reached 914 Mbit/s, while the PPTP speed reached 192 Mbit/s with four data streams. The actual speed results can be seen in the diagram below.

Routing speed

Wireless network

Of course, we tested the speed of the ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight router on a wireless network. During testing we used several network adapters, including EA-N66, which we received for testing along with the router.

Maximum ASUS speed RT-N66U Dark Knight achieved with its own adapter using the 5 GHz band.

Wireless network speed

NAS testing

Most routers today support drive mapping, making the router a low-cost network storage option. Of course, the functionality and performance of such a solution turn out to be noticeably more modest than ready-made NAS solutions, but in some cases their capabilities are quite sufficient.

Intel NASPT

First of all, we carried out ASUS tests RT-N66U Dark Knight using Intel NAS Performance Toolkit 1.7.1, which unlocks the performance capabilities of the storage system. Testing was carried out using a Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex STAA500205 drive with a capacity of 500 GB with a USB 3.0 interface. The diagrams will tell you more about everything; we remind you that in NAS tests the results are displayed in megabytes per second.

Intel NAS Performance Toolkit Test Results

Copy

Of course, we conducted standard copying speed tests using the SMB and FTP protocols. Received ASUS results RT-N66U Dark Knight turned out to be very attractive, including for using the router as home NAS. Speed ​​of operation SMB protocol turned out to be higher than for FTP, and the values ​​turned out to be higher than the limit of a 100-megabit network, so when using this router as network storage, it is important to use gigabit connections.

Copy speed testing

Conclusion

“The Dark Knight” turned out to be quite a strong and hot guy, the results shown in our tests indicate excellent performance of the device. If we talk about functionality, it also turned out to be up to par. Support for UDP streams over a wireless network will be relevant for IPTV users. Support for built-in network storage, operating at a speed sufficient for most users, will allow several network users to work with documents and media files at once. Two frequency bands and guest networks will be very useful for users who want to provide Internet access to guests without additional equipment, while limiting access to local network. However, we can't say the same for its practical usability in a typical office or home environment with some clutter. In other words, he requires special treatment, he must openly stand in a prominent place, and this is not at all because of pleasant appearance, but because of the tendency to heat up.

Average ASUS price RT-N66U Dark Knight, according to the Yandex Market service at the time of publication, was 6270 rubles.

Advantages of ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight

• High speed
• Dual band WLAN support
• Guest WLAN support
• IPTV support, including for WLAN
• Built-in PPTP server

Disadvantages of ASUS RT-N66U Dark Knight

• Very hot during operation

In a sense, the new product turned out to be simply unique. Which, however, is not surprising, because it went through a thorny development path. The first prototype, with a completely different design, was shown more than a year ago at CES 2011, where it received an award for innovation in the field of home networking equipment. During this time, the router managed to radically change its design, change its hardware more than once, and there’s nothing to say about the firmware. Well, let's take a closer look at the finished “Dark Knight” in version B1 and the EA-N66 wireless pyramid.

⇡ Packaging, equipment and appearance

The device comes in a fairly large box. Inside it is the router itself, a compact 30 W power supply, a flat patch cord, a stand, three antennas, a disk with utilities, small instructions in several languages ​​(there is no Russian) and a warranty card. In general, everything is standard.

The design of the new product is made in the spirit of its predecessors, the 53rd and 56th models. Still the same angular-chopped shape of a black body made of plastic. On the top cover, which has now become matte and does not collect fingerprints, there is a recognizable relief pattern in the form of lines of varying thicknesses intersecting at right angles. Only in the far part there is a strip of slightly rough plastic with the name of the model and the company logo, designed to look like metal.

At the front of the bezel there is a row of not very bright blue LEDs. With their help, you can monitor the power status, LAN and WLAN connections in both bands, the availability of Internet access and the use of USB ports.

The router turned out to be quite large and massive - almost half a kilo of weight with dimensions of 207x149x356 mm. This is due to the use of a large radiator. One of the first prototypes used active cooling, which was later abandoned.

However, even now, for better ventilation, the router body is studded with grilles everywhere except the top cover and the front end.

On the bottom, as usual, there is a sticker with information about the device, four legs made of soft non-slip rubber and a pair of cross-shaped recesses for screws. The supplied stand is inserted into the same recesses to install the router in an almost vertical position.

All connectors and buttons are located at the rear end. Among them there are three sockets for antennas and one - very small - power socket. The antennas, by the way, are also not traditionally round, but hexagonal in cross-section. Four gigabit LAN ports are combined into one block, and the WAN port, also gigabit, is located a little further from them. There are only three buttons - power, reset settings and enable WPS.

The overall impression of the appearance and arrangement of various elements is very pleasant. This is truly not just a functional, but also a beautiful device for a home or small office, which will certainly fit well into almost any interior. For the design, the developers can be given a solid A+.

The EA-N66 adapter is slightly unusual both in packaging and design. A box in the form of an unequal hexagon in which the device rests as if on a pedestal. It comes with a power supply and a flat patch cord (interestingly, four-wire).

Well, the adapter itself looks, of course, very unusual and even stylish. A triangular pyramid with a cutout, inside of which a trace of a fallen drop is cast from black glossy plastic. And on the internal ribs there are blue LEDs that softly illuminate this entire structure.

On the bottom of the adapter there are ventilation holes, three rubber feet, WPS start and reset buttons, as well as a triangular cutout for mounting the device to the wall. Power and Ethernet connectors are located on one side of the base of the pyramid.

⇡ Technical specifications

The heart of the RT-N66U is Broadcom BCM4706/BCM53003 with a frequency of 600 MHz and built-in controllers PCI-E bus, gigabit network interface and USB 2.0. It is complemented by two independent BCM4331 radio units that support the 802.11n standard with speeds up to 450 Mbit/s (3T3R). Gigabit LAN ports are connected to the BCM53125 switch. The RAM capacity is 256 MB, and the ROM is 32 MB. Inside there is also an Alcor USB hub and a micro-SD card slot. Initially, it was thought that there would already be some kind of drive on which Optware could be installed without the need to connect external media. In the end, this was abandoned, but advanced users can open the case themselves and install a micro-SD. Overall, Dark Knight is currently one of the most powerful SOHO routers.