Podcast #1273: The Network Behind the New House: Why I Went Beyond Mesh Wi‑Fi

On this week's show we get into the inner workings of Ara's network at his new home and we discuss who else could benefit from a similar setup. We also read your emails and look at the week's news.

News:

ESPN and ESPN2 are rolling out 4K HDR in the US. Tom's Guide tested the Roku Pro Series OLED. Apple is testing surround sound from four HomePods. WiiM's first soundbar, the WiiM Bar, launches mid-October. Disney+ and Hulu raise prices again, the fourth hike in four years. HBO Max and Paramount+ will merge into one streamer under Skydance. Other:

Vol. 3: Can Your Speakers Disappear?  The Network Behind the New House: Why I Went Beyond Mesh Wi‑Fi When we moved into the new house, I had a choice to make about the network. For years I've used the same kind of gear a lot of you have: an ISP gateway, then a mesh system like Orbi or eero. Those systems are good. You plug them in, run an app, and most of the house gets Wi‑Fi.

For a lot of homes, that's all you need. But I wanted something that gave me maximum control down to the connected device and remote access to manage every little detail.  Since I had the chance to run Ethernet before the walls were closed. That changed the math. Here's what I wanted:

Coverage everywhere, including the theater, the backyard, and the garage, without dead spots. Wired backhaul. Mesh units talk to each other over the air, and that uses up some of the Wi‑Fi you'd rather give to your devices. When every access point has its own cable back to the rack, that problem goes away. Power over Ethernet (PoE). One cable carries both data and power to the access points and cameras. No power bricks hiding in the ceiling. VLANs and a real guest network. I wanted to keep the smart TVs, streaming boxes, and IoT gadgets separate from our computers and phones, and give guests their own network. One place to see it all. I wanted to look at a screen and see what's connected, what's using bandwidth, and what's offline. So I went with a "prosumer" setup: a UniFi gateway, UniFi access points, and two Araknis managed switches in the rack. Here's what each piece does, what I like about it, and where it falls short.

Ubiquiti UniFi Dream Machine Pro (UDM‑Pro)

What it is: The UniFi Dream Machine Pro is a rack‑mounted router and firewall that Ubiquiti calls a "cloud gateway." It also runs the UniFi software that manages the access points, so I don't need a separate controller box or a computer left running.  (Tech specs)

What it does in my network: