Since they have Comcast/Xfinity, make sure the wireless mode is set to b/g/n and not g/n.
Bomber501 What model Roku do you have? Not all support 5 GHz.
The problem you're having sounds suspiciously like your router is using a channel unsupported by Roku devices. On 2.4 GHz, Roku can only see channel 1 through 11. If your router is set to channel 12, 13 or 14, it won't appear in the WiFi window, just like you're seeing. Comcast doesn't permit the user to change the channel, so you will need to ask them to do it.
I have an Express model 3900x. This wasn't a problem really until this morning and I got a hold of Xfinity to add the 5 GHz. Which as I said isn't connecting, but then again the 2.4 that I had been using won't let me connect either now. I don't know what you mean by channels but I've had Roku Express for 3 years
atc98092 wrote:Bomber501 What model Roku do you have? Not all support 5 GHz.
The problem you're having sounds suspiciously like your router is using a channel unsupported by Roku devices. On 2.4 GHz, Roku can only see channel 1 through 11. If your router is set to channel 12, 13 or 14, it won't appear in the WiFi window, just like you're seeing. Comcast doesn't permit the user to change the channel, so you will need to ask them to do it.
with access to everything on there and I've never had this problem before. I can get to the Roku menus and see all the apps there. it simply won't connect to my Wi-Fi.
Bomber501 wrote:Right on thanks.... It's never occurred to me to get my own modem. Wouldn't you be risking compatibility issues if Xfinity made some kind of signal change that your modem doesn't support?
Certainly possible. But unless something drastically changes to their method of providing their services, that would be an enormous expense for them to replace everyone's modem, even if it's just the ones they provide. I looked into buying my own, but I discovered it would cost me $5 per month less for unlimited Internet data to rent their modem than to buy my own. Unlimited data comes at a lower cost when you rent their Gateway modem (which by the way doesn't have a problem with Roku connections with only Mode G/N) rather than providing your own modem. So I saved about $150 by not buying my one, plus $5 each month. Seemed like a win-win to me. And some months I do exceed their data cap, so it's smart for me to have unlimited data.
Not really the leased vs. owned router affecting the configurability. It is the custom firmware being installed on the particular router by the ISP. Currently, the leased Arris TG1682 and others should still be able to be user configured on Xfinity/Comcast. On Cox, this same router has been locked down, though.
Some Xfinity/Comcast leased routers are still user-configurable, some are not. Dependent on model number (which in turn determines version of firmware installed).
You are correct though regarding owned. As long as you purchase your own router, (and it does not have the ISP branding on it), it should be configurable. This is in contrast to CenturyLink routers. No matter where you buy those, if it says CenturyLink on the packaging, it will come with the CenturyLink firmware pre-installed.
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Normally, the ISP router is really both a Modem and a Router. Modem is for the internet. Router is for the network and organizing your connected devices. The preferred setting is that mentioned by atc98092. You leave the ISP router in place and set it to Bridge Mode. This means it will only act as a Modem. (your internet signals). You then connect your own router (usually via an ethernet cable) to the ISP router. Your new router now controls all your connected devices and and free to use whatever settings you want.
The ISP likes to control the settings because then they can manage all the bandwidth and speeds through their preferred settings to users. No matter how they try to market it, this is for their benefit, and not the end-user.
Personally, Bridge Mode of the ISP router, and using your own router is the way to go for most setups. However, you will need to learn a little about setting up a router and some ISPs are not very helpful to customers with their own equipment when an issue arises. FYI, setting up your own router is not very difficult.
My Xfinity modem is the TG3482G. The only controls I had (if it's not in bridge mode) was the SSID name, the ability to use different SSIDs on each radio (which I do), turn the WiFi radios off, and a couple of minor things I can't remember. I was locked out of Mode, Channel, and bandwidth, along with some others that again I can't recall. And port forwarding never, ever worked, even when their tech insisted they had resolved the issue. Fortunately, being set on Mode G/N was never an issue with my Roku devices. Much simpler to just bridge it and install my own Linksys.
Oh, and bridge mode disables the WiFi completely on the modem, so Ethernet is the only way to connect the modem to your own router. :D
atc98092 wrote:By the way, before I changed my modem to Bridge mode, I did use the app as well as the web page to make changes. I found the same limitations to changing things like channel and mode with the app as I did on the web config page. My understanding is that Comcast doesn't allow access to some settings on rented modems. If you purchased your own modem (instead of renting theirs) then you should have full access.
THANKS ATC-- I'll look into getting my own modem and get bvackif I need further assistance. MUCH appreciated.
Bomber501 wrote:I have an Express model 3900x. This wasn't a problem really until this morning and I got a hold of Xfinity to add the 5 GHz. Which as I said isn't connecting, but then again the 2.4 that I had been using won't let me connect either now. I don't know what you mean by channels but I've had Roku Express for 3 years.
OK, the 3900 is 2.4 GHz only. It doesn't support 5 GHz, so don't worry about those settings.
The WiFi bands are broken into channels. On 2.4 GHz there are 14 channels, but Roku only supports the first 11. What happened is that the Xfinity modem is set to Auto for channel selection, so it has apparently made a channel change to one of the unsupported channels. The reason it suddenly worked again is because it changed the channel again, this time back to a supported channel.
By the way, before I changed my modem to Bridge mode, I did use the app as well as the web page to make changes. I found the same limitations to changing things like channel and mode with the app as I did on the web config page. My understanding is that Comcast doesn't allow access to some settings on rented modems. If you purchased your own modem (instead of renting theirs) then you should have full access.
Right on thanks.... It's never occurred to me to get my own modem. Wouldn't you be risking compatibility issues if Xfinity made some kind of signal change that your modem doesn't support?
