Just curious if mine are typical. I have tried my Hub in a couple of different windows that have a view to the sensor. The sensor is about 150’ away with no obstructions. I get RSSI values anywhere from -90 to -73 depending on the window and placement of the HUB. It also appears to vary quite a bit, like +/- 6db without touching anything.
I took the HUB outside and powered it with an extension cord so it was within 50’ of the sensor in clear line of sight. Even then I got -85. That seems really poor to me. Given my experience with other radios I would have expected an RSSI between -35 and -75 at the absolute worst.
Stupid question - You’re looking at the Tempest’s RSSI correct, and not the Hub’s wifi RSSI? You would be surprised at how many times those two have been mistaken…
I have 1 wifi router, 3 hubs, 1 tempest and some Skys and an Air. Their rssi values have ranged from less than -5 to in the 90s before loosing connection over 5km away. The hub which I have in the most difficult location high above my roof lost connection to wifi a while back. I discovered after a few days of fault finding experiments that the wifi router had been moved 1 ft and changed its angle. That led me to experimenting with placing the router at different angles both horizontally and vertically so that its antenna produced the best connection to the hub. Its rssi is now -72. And I also simply change the angle of the hub to point better at the tempest or Sky to get the best rssi. While testing maximum distance for my tempest I managed 500m with no obstructions between tempest and hub returning an rssi around -90. At -90 when weather changes I loose some connections sometimes.
FWIW, I didn’t see any loss of data at RSSI values of -90, but it sure seemed as though the value was lower than it should be given the circumstances. The -85 outside was really a surprise. I did not stand around and do a lot of experimentation though.
What I have found is that it appears to not only do better with a particular angle pointing towards the sensor, but also if it’s elevated to be a bit more on the same horizontal plane as the sensor. So it’s now sitting on a ledge with the LED pointing towards the sensor which is still only about 140 feet apart and shooting through one insulated fiberglass door that has a glass window in it. It was initially showing -81 but has since appeared to settle down to -74 which I find more reasonable.
500 meters is quite a good result given what I’ve seen here. I don’t think my pair would support that range. I think owners should be aware that there certainly appears to be difference in how the Hub is oriented and much more than I would expect.
Similar issue with mine as well. I have my hub next to a window that’s closest to the station. Station has RSSI of -28 but my hub is -75 to -95 most times. I’m not sure as to why the signal is bad in most parts of my home. I’m starting to think my house is an interference haven.
If your station has an RSSI of -28 then I’d consider moving the Hub to see if you can get the Hub’s RSSI below -80. You have a lot of room to work with given a -28 value.
Hub on a shelf ~3 feet from ground. Not ideal but it’s a spot where I’d like to have it (not very visible).
I had my Tempest in my backyard, ~4 feet from the ground, testing out stability on the non-penetrating roof mount I put together. Even though it was just a single-pane window between the Tempest and hub, it’d easily go over -80.
Now that I have it up on the roof — solid wood and R18 foam — it’s usually around -70. Honestly the opposite of what I expected.
But as stated earlier in the thread the orientation of the hub itself seems to make a large difference. I should experiment more with how it’s pointed.
It’s interesting how the RSSI value varies over time as well as orientation of the HUB. I have seen mine now go anywhere from -73 to -80 within a 24 hour time period without touching anything.
What is the best orientation of the hub in relation to my router? My hub is in a shed about 220’ feet from my router, the RSSI values are in the 85-90 range. My hub has been losing its connection several times a week on average, some weeks more some weeks less if at all.
I have a hub that is focused at my distant Sky ( early model tempest) preventing it from being turned to suit my wifi router. And that hub is almost vertically above my router above my roof. I found the direction of my router with its internal antennas is important. I rotated my router around both axis until I had the best readings. There is a picture on this forum somewhere of a dismantled hub which might help see where the wifi antenna is. You may also use a reflector to help the wifi. And depending on where in the shed the router is then mounting it in a plastic box above the roof or where it can reflect off the shed wall may help.
Cheers Ian
Thanks. A picture of the inside of the hub would be very helpful if you can find it. The router is in a small house that I can’t access very easily, the hub is 220’ away in a shed that I can access. It would be nice to know the best orientation of my hub as it relates to the router so I can hopefully improve my connection.
Typically, the Wi-Fi range is not as good as the hub to Tempest sensor range, so if you can move the hub closer to the access point, that would be easiest.
As for hub antenna location, it is on the right side of the hub. The front is the end with the logo. If you view it from the LED/cord end, the antenna is on the left.
Hi @eric
My guess is that antenna is for the hub to Tempest frequency. Do you have a picture from the other side to find the wifi chip and antenna?
cheers Ian
That is the front of the hub, so the antenna is on the right side of the hub. In any case, you can rotate the hub and see if it gets better reception. Remember to leave it for a bit then check the RSSI. I’m not sure how often the RSSI gets updated, possibly every minute like other values.
