Airport Express SCANNING all the time .. equals lousy performance

imobile · Jul 21st, 2008, 02:10 AM

I updated to an Airport Express 'n" from an older 'g'.
The new one is supposedly five times faster.
However it is much slower in real time as it spends more time 'scanning' than being 'on'.
The result - pages just hang.... my Shaw extreme cable modem becomes virtually dial up!
I'm ready to toss it out .. as there appears to be no way to 'adjust' the scanning setting.
Am I alone experiencing this problem?

chas_m · Jul 21st, 2008, 03:58 AM

I know the Airport card (not the base station) does a fresh "poll" of available options when I click on the icon in the menubar, but this doesn't impact performance for me.

In the Network control panel, try going into "advanced" and deleting all the "Airport" tab except for your own (or others you KNOW you need to connect to if any). That may help.

imobile · Jul 21st, 2008, 04:07 AM

	Quote:			Originally Posted by chas_m
	I know the Airport card (not the base station) does a fresh "poll" of available options when I click on the icon in the menubar, but this doesn't impact performance for me. In the Network control panel, try going into "advanced" and deleting all the "Airport" tab except for your own (or others you KNOW you need to connect to if any). That may help.

Thanks Chas.
Did some 'googling' ...
Here's something interesting ...freeware too!

AP Grapher is a freeware program for Mac OS X which searches for and displays nearby wireless (AirPort/WiFi) access points along with information about their percent availability, maximum signal strength, and last contact time. The grapher window allows you to graph multiple signal strength parameters for the base station you are currently connected to and optionally display them in the dock icon. Many user configurable preferences allow you to customize its behavior including refresh rate and optional display in the dock icon or menu extra.

AP Grapher - Mac OS X AirPort Stumbler and Wireless Graphing Software

and UPDATE~~!! there are interesting suggestions on this site....
it is late now, will try em in the morning!

OS X Leopard Airport Scanning Driving You Crazy? A Possible Fix

Leopard's Airport Scanning: a Crazy-Maker and Possible Fix | Beyond School

imobile · Jul 31st, 2008, 11:19 PM

	Quote:			Originally Posted by imobile
	I updated to an Airport Express 'n" from an older 'g'. The new one is supposedly five times faster. However it is much slower in real time as it spends more time 'scanning' than being 'on'. The result - pages just hang.... my Shaw extreme cable modem becomes virtually dial up! I'm ready to toss it out .. as there appears to be no way to 'adjust' the scanning setting. Am I alone experiencing this problem?

UPDATE :

Attempt #2.

Despite all tweaks the 'n' Airport Express is junk when relating to the 'n' card in the 2008 Core 2 , 3Ghz iMac.
CONSTANT drop offs... seems to spend 50% of the time scanning ... thus pages stop loading, mail ceases to go out!

Funny, was up on the old sailboat, using a four year old ibook with the old 'g' card ( courtesy of a signal from sailboat next slip) and the old one hit the G spot...... was puuurrrfect!

Sad to say, the latest is NOT the greatest!

chas_m · Aug 1st, 2008, 01:04 AM

Needless to say, this is not normal behaviour. I would take the unit in for repair/replacement.

imobile · Aug 1st, 2008, 01:26 AM

	Quote:			Originally Posted by chas_m
	Needless to say, this is not normal behaviour. I would take the unit in for repair/replacement.

Why might it be 'needless to say' .... it scans as is supposed to scan. Ferrets out the neighbours 'locked' network.
It works well some of the time.
It does seem to be the 'system' that does not recognize the device.
I am running, the latest, greatest ... yet if I do a 'show me yours. I'll show you mine, it does not always show MINE!!!
Of course, I'm upset....

So please explain why this MIGHT be a hardware rather than a software problem?

Lars · Aug 1st, 2008, 01:51 AM

If you're referring to the term 'scanning' as the Mac searching for available networks when you click on the Airport symbol in the menu bar, that has nothing to do with both your base station or performance. The problem with hanging web pages is coming from another source.

If your Mac isn't seeing YOUR base station, then reset it to factory-original and try again, or get the base station and/or Mac inspected by a technician. Did you setup the base station originally with the AirPort Utility?

imobile · Aug 1st, 2008, 01:53 AM

	Quote:			Originally Posted by Lars
	If you're referring to the term 'scanning' as the Mac searching for available networks when you click on the Airport symbol in the menu bar, that has nothing to do with both your base station or performance. The problem with hanging web pages is coming from another source. If your Mac isn't seeing YOUR base station, then reset it to factory-original and try again, or get the base station and/or Mac inspected by a technician. Did you setup the base station originally with the AirPort Utility?

yes

QUAL IF ICATION

Nothing to do with performance?
Then why, dear Lars doth the machine STOP loading whilst it 'scans'?

Hey, I'm paying Shaw top $ for speed....not the pause/wait/ ummmmmm system!

PS : Hope your new camera is working out!

John Clay · Aug 1st, 2008, 01:57 AM

	Quote:			Originally Posted by imobile
	yes

no

imobile · Aug 1st, 2008, 01:59 AM

	Quote:			Originally Posted by John Clay
	no

Ha!

Jul 21st, 2008, 02:10 AM	#1
imobile Full Citizen Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Victoria, BC Posts: 781	Airport Express SCANNING all the time .. equals lousy performance I updated to an Airport Express 'n" from an older 'g'. The new one is supposedly five times faster. However it is much slower in real time as it spends more time 'scanning' than being 'on'. The result - pages just hang.... my Shaw extreme cable modem becomes virtually dial up! I'm ready to toss it out .. as there appears to be no way to 'adjust' the scanning setting. Am I alone experiencing this problem? __________________ The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources. - Albert Einstein Check out my pics on here or on WEBSHOTS http://community.webshots.com/user/essencevictoriabc Last edited by imobile; Jul 21st, 2008 at 02:13 AM. Reason: clarification

Aug 1st, 2008, 01:04 AM	#5
chas_m Honourable Citizen Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Victoria BC Posts: 11,323	Needless to say, this is not normal behaviour. I would take the unit in for repair/replacement. __________________ Cheers chas_m Evangelist, ACDSee Pro for Mac: Get the beta! Join the community! Help us build the next great Mac photo manager! Our life in Victoria BC • Music blog • My Podcast • Film blog Victoria Macintosh Users Group

Aug 1st, 2008, 01:51 AM	#7
Lars Honourable Citizen Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: GTA Posts: 11,857	If you're referring to the term 'scanning' as the Mac searching for available networks when you click on the Airport symbol in the menu bar, that has nothing to do with both your base station or performance. The problem with hanging web pages is coming from another source. If your Mac isn't seeing YOUR base station, then reset it to factory-original and try again, or get the base station and/or Mac inspected by a technician. Did you setup the base station originally with the AirPort Utility? __________________ Apple Certified Technician ACMT\|ACHDS 10.3-thru-10.5\|10.6+ Mac mini (Early 2009) 2.0GHz\|4GB\|500GB\|NVIDIA Geforce 9400M\|AP\|BT\|Mac OS X 10.6.4 Sound System Audio Engine A2 2.0. iPhone: 3GS 16GB

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Jul 21st, 2008, 03:58 AM	#2
chas_m Honourable Citizen Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Victoria BC Posts: 11,323	I know the Airport card (not the base station) does a fresh "poll" of available options when I click on the icon in the menubar, but this doesn't impact performance for me. In the Network control panel, try going into "advanced" and deleting all the "Airport" tab except for your own (or others you KNOW you need to connect to if any). That may help. __________________ Cheers chas_m Evangelist, ACDSee Pro for Mac: Get the beta! Join the community! Help us build the next great Mac photo manager! Our life in Victoria BC • Music blog • My Podcast • Film blog Victoria Macintosh Users Group