AzureWave AW-CB160H: 3x3:3 Wireless-AC in a non-Apple laptop

Going to be experimenting with putting this in my Razer Blade 14 soon. In laptops, there are no 3x3:3 AC setups outside of Apple that I know of.

Wireless card is an AzureWave AW-CB160H, which unfortunately sports three MHF4 antennas, and I intend to re-use two of my computer's internal U.FL antennas. So, I made two little adapter pigtails. The third antenna pictured is a dual band PCB antenna from eBay with an MHF4 connector already.

Will post results in a few days.

 

So I managed to get this into my computer and the drivers installed and working fine.

Only problem is I can't find a location for the 3rd antenna. The hinge where the other two are localed seems to be kind of sealed/out of the way; there's no room for the antenna to fit inside. If I leave the third antenna inside the (aluminum) laptop I hardly get any signal from it (867 Mbps with my ASUS RT-AC87U at a few feet, it can only manage 1000 Mbps with the router right next to the computer... If I leave the laptop open and the antenna exposed I can easily get 1300 Mbps). Another problem is that the Bluetooth seems to use the third antenna in the middle, so the signal I get from Bluetooth devices is horrible with the antenna left inside.

Any ideas?

I originally did this because of issues I was having with the Intel 7260AC in many situations. I have an AzureWave 2x2:2 Broadcom AC card in there right now (which does fix all my WiFi issues) but I would *love* to get 3x3:3 working. So close.

 

Do you have a 1750 0r 1900 AC router?

If I remember correctly those Broadcom wireless cards were inside adapters on Asus desktop motherboards.

This was discussed about a year ago and due to no MH4 antennas available no one bothered

The 3rd antenna wire seems very short so you are very limited to where it can go.

I'm not familiar with your notebook model.

Is there a bezel around the screen that comes off?They are usually just snapped into the lid.

 

Hello. The card sounds interesting. Did you get it fully working (1300 Mbps + Bluetooth)?

Some write the card is only 300Mbps, like here http://www.ebay.com/itm/Broadcom-BC...0Mbps-802-11ac-WIFI-Card-BT-4-0-/251969999335 or here http://www.photoshopchop.com/store/...c-1300mbps-Wifi-Card-Bt-4-0_251969999335.html

Do you know why? Is there any limit?

Did you try MHF4 antennas like those http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/3Pcs-Lap...60HMB-BCM94360CSAX-BCM94360CS2-/261929385213? ?



My new laptop has just a 2x2 WiFi ac/BT combo card. That's why I'd like to upgrade for even higher performance.

 

Well, I got it to say 1300 Mbps within Windows, and Bluetooth worked fine..... if I had my laptop open and the third antenna sticking out. No idea why those eBay sellers say 300 Mbps, the performance seemed fine (with the laptop open) and I definitely could connect to 5GHz networks, and the performance was at full 11AC levels. Since I could not find any place for the third antenna, I've switched back to my old wireless card for now.

I have a theory, maybe the one you linked is factory defective and only the 2.4GHz radio is working on those?

The third antenna I got looked very similar to the one you posted. If you can find a place for it in your notebook, and you buy the same one I did, I'm pretty sure it'll work.

 

Wow I was looking at this the other day, glad to see somebody else tested first! Where did you get your card from? I'd like to get 2-3 of them. Where did you find drivers? Broadcom seems to be closed source, unlike atheros. You said you got full wireless AC/5ghz performance? I also read that 300mbps only/no 5ghz performance on ebay.

 

there is some floating around on ebay pulled from the asus board, little bit pricey though.

That ebay seller also sold some on aliexpress, and the feedback was all 5 star, though no 1 say if the 5ghz work or not. I guess just some wording thing so he don't get caught selling those stuff.
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/For-...om-BCM94360HMB-1300Mbps-Mini/32354876192.html

I search on tabao and only find one seller with the apple variant with a desktop adapter.

 

hmm... get the same seller from china putting more a ebay, 30 a pop is still hard to sallow though, although 7260s are 20ish per... already have enough wifi card to put like 2 per machine at my house~~~

short range wireless nas, say 40 MB/s for 10ft?

meh Ethernet cables are $1 per...

 

Yesterday I bought my new laptop, the Lenovo Y700-15ACZ. I currently try installing everything but can't install the drivers from Lenovo as they work only up to Win8.1 and I use already Win10. Bad

Tomorrow I will get my WiFi combo upgrade the AzureWave AW-CB160H including MHF4 antennas

Hope I find good place for 3rd antenna and get good results. The MHF4 look some bigger than the original. We'll see ...

I found someone who will start dealing this as set for just 35 €. So if we get it running and solve the driver issue could be interesting for others, too

 

Hi All,

I am trying to put this card into my Asus UX31A, but similarly cannot find a proper place for the third antenna. Any hints?

Was this third antenna is actually responsible for, just Bluetooth (in which case I could probably ignore it) or WiFi as well?

 

It's for Wi-Fi. Without the third antenna it's gonna be a two spatial stream card like an Intel 7260.

 

Has anyone tried this upgrade in either the Clevo P150EM or P150SM? I have one of the older HM models as well as a newer SM-A and I'm planning to do the upgrade, I just want to figure out the best option for making it happen. There are U.FL to MHF4 adapters that I think I'm going to try first. I already have 3 antennas, so that makes it a little easier. I just wish it had MHF4 connectors.

Alternatively, I'm curious if it's possible to desolder the MHF4's on the WiFi card and swap them out with U.FL connectors. It wouldn't be too difficult as long as the footprints match close enough.

 

To OP: Which Driver did you use? Where can I find it?

I got the card, and popped it in with the adapters that came with it and it works out-of-box with Ubuntu and OSX 10.11.6 on my hackintosh, but I'm having a tough time locating drivers for windows 10. I'm about to try the AW-CB161H driver with it.

 

Hi. I came across this review ( http://www.hardware-boom.com/review-motherboard-asus-rampage-v-extreme-extremism-radicals/) of the Asus Rampage V Extreme Motherboard which state's this:

"Wireless card is made on the basis of the module Broadcom BCM94360HMB (badged AzureWave AW-CB160H) for Mini PCIe slot in a metal housing with connectors for external antennas. Three spatial streams supported IEEE 802.11ac aggregate bandwidth with 1300 Mbit / s, as well as Bluetooth 4.0."

That is the same card. So I headed over to Asus driver support page and I found this Beta driver for Win10 64bit: http://dlcdnet.asus.com/pub/ASUS/mi...23_5.zip?_ga=1.23577978.1524222716.1478402451

You can check the full driver page here: http://www.asus.com/uk/Motherboards/RAMPAGE_V_EXTREMEU31/HelpDesk_Download/

Let me know if this works! I also ordered one from AliExpress, waiting on it to arrive.

 

Actually, taking a look at Asus Rampage V Edition 10, I can see it is also using the AW-CB160H, and on the Asus support page they have a newer driver, Wi-Fi Driver V7.35.317.3 for Windows 10 64bit.

Direct Link: http://dlcdnet.asus.com/pub/ASUS/mi...173.zip?_ga=1.261096397.1524222716.1478402451
Support Page: http://www.asus.com/uk/Motherboards/ROG-RAMPAGE-V-EDITION-10/HelpDesk_Download/

Hardware Info: https://nl.hardware.info/reviews/68...rt-jubileum-asus-rampage-v-edition-10-vervolg

 

I can definitely confirm that even on my AW-CE123H which is AC 2x2 stream (max 867 mbps), the latest 7.35.317.3 driver has given me a significant boost in WiFi speed! Here are results from yesterdays speed test after I purchased a new TP Link C3150 router to make the most of my 1 gig internet connection:

This was the highest I could reach after many tests and averages.



and here is after the driver update




I should be able to hit 930+ over WiFi when the 3x3 AW-CB160H arrives!

 

I'm still looking for the drivers for AW-CB160H ac wifi/bt chip... Where did you get your drivers... Can I download some from you..????? Please...????
lentmain

 

See the driver page for the Asus Z97-Deluxe motherboard. It has drivers for all Windows versions.

Something else; can anyone see networks on channel 12, 13 or 14 with this card? I've set location to 'Japan' already, but that made no difference, so it looks like it is simply incompatible with non-US bands. Had to resort to switching all our access points to channel 9, but I'd prefer one of the non-US bands since hardly anyone in the neighbourhood broadcasts on those.

 

@lentmain - Check the pre-last post and tell me if they work for you.

 

Hi guys, reviving an old thread.

I have a 7yo ux32vd with unfortunately a faulty Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6235 wifi card.
Looking for a replacement I came across this1AzureWave AW-CB160H 3x3:3 Wireless-AC, apparently one of the few with MHF4 connectors.

Now, in regards to the 3rd central antenna, quoting downloads....

...I can literally leave it out and have the same performance as the intel 6235 correct?
Do cards with two antennas but a 3 spatial stream even exist or is it just physically impossible (like one antenna > one stream only)?

is there anything else newer that you guys would recommend?

Regards!

 

Yes you can leave out a connector and will just act as a regular 2 antenna 2x2 card without issues.

Some general info, hopefully I'm not too confusing:

Each connection for an antenna is for a single stream. 2x2 (2 in x 2 out) cards generally only have 2 connectors. 3x3 cards like your new one will have 3, it's just a rebranded Broadcom card.

There are some weird ones like 2x3, 3x2 where you have 3 antennas but less active streams in one direction either uplink or downlink. A great example is the 2nd gen or 3rd gen Chromecast which is a MiSo WiFi device 2x1, 2 physical antennas but only 1 upstream connection. Its upstream switches to the best antenna depending on positioning for upstream. Also 1x1 cards like Intel's 3165 and other have 2 connectors as the single up and down streams can switch between either antenna for optimal connectivity. So basically the extra antenna is still useful for antenna diversity.

Another great example of less streams and more antennas is the Linksys WRT1900AC series routers. They are 3x3 units but have 4 antennas basically any antenna can be used but only 3 used at any time. This allows the 3 streams to optimally use any combination antennas to better connect to clients at various angles.

 

Thanks Aivxtla that makes sense now.
Another silly question: my router TP Link TD-W9977 is not AC compatible.
Is there any correlation between the central antenna and AC technology or are two separate things altogether?
I rephrase it. should I buy an AC router in the near future, should i also find a way to connect this central antenna or the AC "mode" is built in the router regardless of the number of antennas?
Makes sense lol?
thanks

 

Ended up buying the AzureWave AW-CB160H.
Hopefully it wont take to long for it to arrive.

Now, since my asus laptop has only got two antennas and I am thinking of leaving the 3rd one disconnected....which of the three connectors should I use?
Does it make a difference? Is each connector responsible for something different?
Thanks

 

Connect the white and black marked ones and leave the middle one open. It shouldn’t make a huge difference if you mix up the white and black though.

 

So the AW-CB160H has finally arrived today . Few minutes for the installation and then finally wifi again!

Seems pretty damn stable for now which is really good. using some asus wifi linked in this thread.

The only issue I have is, Bluetooth not detected. Now, as per my post above, in my Asus UX32VD I only have two antenna.
I have connected them to the external mhf4 connectors, leaving the middle one to get dusty.
Is this the reason why bt is not working? Is the middle "channel" responsible for bt as well?

Thanks

 

Ehi guys, any advice on my bluetooth that is still not working as per above?
is this central antenna responsible for it??

 

Could be the middle connection doubling as Bluetooth/WiFi combo. Then try just the first and middle connectors and see if it solves the issue.

Other than that make sure there’s no exclamation mark in Device Manager, in which case you’d need to hunt for drivers.

 

No exclamation mark, drivers side it's all looking good.

I will try and swap those antennas thanks.
It seems impossible that I can't find any details RE what each antenna/channel is responsible for..

 

If Bluetooth portion of the card is indeed not detected, Cover pin 51 on the card itself with electrical tape, should work.

 

Thanks man. This weekend ill open the laptop again.
You are saying to leave the antennas as they are and then cover it? Would would it do?

 

https://www.google.com/search?q=pin+51+bluetooth&rlz=1C1GCEU_enUS871US871&oq=pin+51+bluetooth

 

Cheers man did not know about this little trick.
I'll let you know as soon as I do it

 

@signo3d first we need to fix your Bluetooth not detected problem, then you can experiment with antennas to find which one is for Bluetooth in addition to wifi.

 

I am after the same problem. Any luck with getting Bluetooth? WiFi works perfectly...

 

Hi, sorry I was meant to post the other night when I did the trick but I forgot.
It took me a while to do it because of (or thanks to) Xmas holidays lol.
Anyway, the bt came to life yes, it is not the strongest but it definitely works.
It still drives me nuts though that I'm trying to pair a el cheapo bt speaker without success.

I manager to pair my phone and my wife's one, but it took few attempts and several minutes to do it.

Is it normal?
Should I try to muck around with the antennas?

 

@signo3d sure, give it a try.