MOCA vs. Powerline : G.hn (Comtrend) and Homeplug AV2 (TpLink AV1000) compared!

[@TenOfZero1]

Hi Lon. I actually got a MOCA adapter 2 weeks ago after seeing your videos (long time subscriber, sicne you did the Meegopad T02 I've seen all your videos) and I am very very happy with it. Thanks for the unbiased and real reviews !

[@edwiser]

The wiring in your home big difference. I found the Powerline 2000 gigabit works great.

[@jagardina]

I love your full disclosures. Wish more product evaluation video creators did that.

[@ginbim]

It's strange. I have the same TP-Link kit and it provides a stable 320-340 mbps bandwidth over powerline between two of my rooms. I tried your method of testing by plugging two devices into the closest wall plugs and the result was a steady 600+ mbps. I assume our powerline wiring is just more ideal for these devices over here in Europe.

[@yaoren3735]

Did you measure the speed by actually transferring big file between 2 devices at each end of powerline adaptors? Or did you read the speed that the adaptor page tells you? I believe the latter is inflated.

[@micglobal]

Having come from the days of 14.4k modems I purchased from paper route earnings as an adolescent, to a Telco 1.5Mbps T1 line shared with 200 fellow employees in an office building in the late 1990's to now listening to you describe how a 15Mbps network connection inside one's personal residence can be inadequate, is astonishing to think about how far personal computing has come.

[@EddyA1337]

I know right? I remember 56k and then being able to get ISDN (128k) and we thought that was screamin' fast!

[@XtremeConditions]

Man... Seems like MoCA is really the "God of Non-Ethernet". I tried some Powerline adapters to stream my Xbox One a few rooms over, without having to run an ethernet cable. Results have been lackluster to say the least. Powerline really does seem to be junk overall. I'm sure there are limited situations where it's useful, but your test really showed how bad it was. RIGHT NEXT TO EACH OTHER, and they're not even doing 20% their rated speed... Only thing is, how was latency? That seems to be the only good thing about Powerline vs wireless, because it matters a lot for streaming obviously. Was MoCA latency similar?

[@sudds50]

Based on your video I did some research and decided to try the MOCA solution. The Motorola MM1000 was a cheaper option than the Actiontec so I ordered 3. I had been previously using Netgear Powerline adapters throughout the house, but whether wireless or via ethernet, the max speed I would get with Powerline was 15-30Mbps even though my ISP speed is 200Mbps. This was due to the convoluted wiring in my house I suspect. After installing the MOCA adapters via my cable box coaxial connections I am actually getting 210Mbps on Android boxes both upstairs and downstairs!! It's insane!! I'm gonna get 2 more ASAP. (I believe the Motorola MM1000 had a feature or two that the Actiontec didn't, but I can't recall what they were right now) Anyway, thank you so much for bringing this technology to my attention!! You rock!!

[@greatpix]

With Powerline YMMV. Older homes tend to get lower performance. Also depends on what else is on that circuit in the home (i.e. stay away from refrigerators and AC units, different floors in a home sometimes are on separate circuits which can degrade performance also.) I have powerline in every room in a three bedroom home, also in the livingroom, even used it in the bathroom at times. Throughput varies from a low of 125 mbps to 500 mbps on a mix of TP-Link 500 mbps and 600 mbps models that are several years old. A couple of nice things available in powerline, some units have AC passthrough. Some units have 2 or 4 Ethernet plugs, which is great if you have multiple devices to connect like TV, AV receiver, HDHomeRun, Blu-ray player or printer. Yes there are other means to get that many or more ethernet connections but it leads to a real rats nest of cables and some methods require another wall wart for power.

[@HughD]

Very informative, Lon. Thank you. It's refreshing to know you're watching a paid review and I look forward to them as well as your unpaid reviews.

[@Valkirth]

2019 and i have honestly never heard of moca,obviously i've heard of wifi/ethernet/powerline/ap chaining.

[@shadow.banned]

They are excessively expensive. MOCA adapters. I wish they were more readily available and more affordable.

[@onemanshow4116]

Please talk about MOCA filter in the forthcoming install video. Seems like I heard you talk about it before, but I forgot. I really liked the disclosure this week... gave it a bit of suspense! I guess the MOCA folks weren’t at all worried about the competition lol

[@dukenerd6320]

Looking at your side by side results, I'd say there's something wrong with your electrical wiring. There's no way it should be that low, I have the same AV kit and I have no problem with 400-600 Mbps from room to room, never tested them side by side. Now I would naturally expect the majority of homes in the UK to have better connection speeds due to the fact we have different wiring standards. In our walls, its standard for 24 Amps Rated, while the US it is 20 Amps, or 15 amps if the breaker is 15A. Also, we use solid copper, while I believe in the US you have the choice of solid or Copper Clad Aluminum cable, so I would expect that to have some effect as well.

[@toldim79]

Maybe i am the luckiest person with tp-link, cuz i have a stable 800-900Mps connection with it in Ireland, however i have the pa-8010p model. I'm still planning to buy one of this moca adapter i fell more comfortable with communicating over coax instead of using electric wires for the same purpose.

[@ramanathansubramanian]

What type of power line adapter's used for testing SISO or MIMO?

[@ABCDE-kp4dv]

my test: - old av1000 homeplug: 80mbps - ghn 2400 zyxel: 45mbps (returned to shop)

[@marcbollinger1116]

I have really struggled to maintain a steady connection using power line adapters. The smallest surge in your house (microwave, ac turning on, etc) is enough to trip it up every time. I’m in a new 2015 home as well. Moca is definitely the way to go if you have the option.

[@thomaswoodford9511]

Great video, Lon! I used to use powerline but I kept running into issues when lights or other appliances in the house were used. I've since switched to MOCA and it works much better. I do find that I have to reboot the MOCA device once a week though.

[@ofriokladek3684]

You should try and update your moca's firmware (if there is an available update), maybe that will help with the restart once a week headache..

[@spuds6423]

If you have, say a 2 bedroom condo that is only 1100 sqr feet, is the cost of a new MOCA system worth it?. I have PL system albeit 8 yrs old but my wireless with a booster is suitable. The only reason I have PL is because my older DVD player does not have wireless.

[@TenOfZero1]

I would say it really depends on your use case. I often move large files around my home network and where I live there are a lot of WiFi signals, so for me it was very worth it for the MOCA. I would say ask yourself this. Are you sensitive to latency (for things like hardcore gaming and frequent video conferencing)? Do you need to move large files around often? If so then MOCA is for you. For steaming 1080P(Hd) or ever UHD(4K) content, I think powerline is fine unless you are having drop outs.

[@spuds6423]

Emmanuel Sanders thanks for the imput

[@Tcklprty]

Missing how you set up the modem and the moca connector, is it one single coax connection split or one in for internet and another out for moca out or splitter for coax connecting the moca and modem on the same coax line?

[@jagardina]

As someone with electrical engineering and ham radio knowledge, it's not a surprise that coax cable that is designed to carry high frequency signals vs. electrical wiring that is designed to carry large current of 60 Hz power, favors the coax. But since my house isn't wired with coax and I've cut the cable, I just use cat 5e everywhere.

[@terryrodbourn2793]

jagardina you should consider to use CAT 6 cable to update your internal network!

[@rephomeimprove]

I bought an actiontec WCB30000N WiFi extender with two Ethernet ports for $12 on amazon. why spend over $100 on these products??

[@LonSeidman]

That's the 1.0 version, only 100 megabits vs. gigabit on the new ones. But if that's all you need it's a good deal. I talked about the $12 one on the wrapup the other day. It's a liquidation of gear that I think came from a cable company.

[@StephenMatrese]

Please do a head to head of Ghn coax and MoCA coax

[@sudds50]

This is brilliant and timely! I have been using Powerline adapters in my house (which is built of steel and renders wireless dodgy). I have many Netgear PL adapters throughout the house and some devices connected to them via ehternet and wifi as well (some of the adapters have dual functionality). These are supposed 500Mb adapters and my ISP provides a reliable 200Mbps to the house. I have NEVER been able to get more than 30Mbps download speed on any of the PL units whether ethernet or wireless! I initially blamed the wiring in the house (it's an older house that was rewired when some additions were made about 10 years ago). I know there are a few breakers and junctions etc and we have a lot of devices connected electrically throughout the house. My IPTV performance via android boxes is usually quite unreliable and I have realized over time that it's no fault (usually) of my IPTV service providers...it's the unreliability of my PL signals. I also suspected that the PL devices were simply incapable of attaining anything near to their stated download speed capacities. I think it's a bit of a scam. All that being said, I can see where the relatively uninterrupted and direct coax cable connection would provide a much shorter and unencumbered connection which might very well provide my entire ISP speed provision. It just makes theoretical sense. I don't think I can wait for your upcoming video on the subject, as I'm too frustrated with my current setup, so I think I'm going to go ahead and try this current solution after a tad more research. Thanks so much for the information you provided in this video. Cheers.

[@hikeskool]

Look at Extollo adapters. I have had excellent success with their stuff.

[@F1neW1ne]

I have tp-link AV2000 kit bought recently. I have Shaw 300 (300Mbps) internet. Speedtest gives me about 105Mbps down and 11ms Ping. Plugged directly into the router cat 5e I get 300Mbps and 9ms ping. Over the tp-link I ping my router locally and I get 3ms to 4ms ping steady. Is MOCA 2.0 going to be an improvement to that latency? That is more important to me.

[@EvgeniX.]

its kinda comparing oranges to apples..

[@TheStevenamar]

Lon I just got a Moca kit EBC2500. I get the error message Wifi doesn't have a valid IP configuration and some error message for my Ethernet. I checked out some the tutorials on fixing the issue, but to no avail. Do you have any suggestion, or point me in the right direction? Thanks and love the vids.

[@mattlindsey]

For those that have slow web to begin with, might not see these severe detrimental effects. So for something like a TV needing reliable connection, maybe go with ethernet, but for multiple devices or extending a network, MoCA seems like the winner here! I'm surprised I am just learning what MoCA is...

[@CallumF878]

MOCA adapters are useless I purchased the Actiontec ECB6000 on 4th of Feb 2017 they constantly drop out and have to restart them 10-15 times a day. I contacted Actiontec support few months latter after a lot of trouble shooting I got told they can't do anything and since then lost all communication with them. WASTE OF $134USD.

[@Chocwish]

It's a moot point for me.. I get 3MB/s down from my ISP. That's Aussie NBN folks =/

[@tablackburn]

Darth Chocolate Even though your internet connection isn't great, higher LAN speeds can help with internal transfers, such as streaming locally stored media

[@cryptclown]

I worry about getting powerline for the same reasons you mentioned, but if I have FTTN 50mbps and only have 100mbps available in my area, should I bother with Moca? So question is will I get less speeds not matter the connection speed? Example; if I have 1gbps I would get 200mbps, But 50mbps would get me full 50 since power line handle up to 200mbps?

[@OldMan_PJ]

An interesting test would be to get some 100' RG-6 coax cables and M/M connectors to find out how performance holds up over distance and if the max distance really is 300'? Start with one 100' cable, do a test, add a 100', etc... I see 100' cables as low as $10 on Amazon, wouldn't be too expensive.

[@adem1980320]

I got MOCA adapters but could not get 940mbps. I only get 350mbps even when connect them side by side with cables in original package.

[@EddyA1337]

This is actually some pretty awesome technology. Powerline is cool too but since people are going away from Satellite and Cable TV the coaxial wiring in one's house is essentially having your house wired for ethernet. You can use this with a DSL and fiber modem/router as well, just buy two, connect one to a LAN port plug it in to the wall and plug your computer in to the wall in whatever room. You can get additional adapters at this point and just plug it in to the wall in whichever room and it will all go off of that one LAN port. Coaxial lines are actually capable of higher speeds than this too. Powerline has too much interference, go for this.

[@davidc-l9174]

Another great video, Lon! Any chance you can do a video (or add comments) about how us lay people can test home network performance? I see you're using WiFiPerf in this video, and I just downloaded that from the App Store. Seems simple enough, but maybe some enlightenment about how to test it in home? I'm using the Actiontec MoCA 2.0 Bonded adapters you have this video. Great so far, but I feel like perhaps they don't always connect together at the highest speed, and I only have two splitters in the whole house!

[@M150._.]

Please do a review and comparison between Comtrend GCA-6000KIT G.hn coax versus Actiontec MoCA coax. Thanks.

[@BrianCairns]

I also have the Actiontec Bonded MoCA 2.0 adapters and they worrk great in my apartment. My wiring is simple (just one splitter) and I regularly get over 950Mbps out of the adapters. I have never used powerline networking, but in my situation it doesn't look like it would do a lot better than wireless, since I am not in a large house.

[@Terynce]

Why didn't you show the live data from the comtrend or TP link as you did the moca?

[@hikeskool]

LOL, how terrible is your wiring? My God.

[@fartamplifer]

Would have been interesting to see the results using a AV2000 powerline unit like the ZyXel PLA5456.

[@aaronjohnson4681]

i really like the moca video, lon, though it would be interesting if you did more like this, i think there was a video involving the tivo bolt a while back that i enjoyed, but i think that since that video, it has evolved, the most current tivo bolt that i am on the fence about is this tivo bolt vox, and a discussion about the bolt vox could come into play about the moca stuff, also is there any updates soon about the hd home run 6 tuner,

[@allenfambro3082]

I purchased these MoCA adapters (Model ECB-6200) and oddly I'm only getting speeds of roughly 330-Mbps (average of 4-ms response times). I'm using iperf3 to test with. I have one adapter connected directly to the other adapter using the provided 3ft coax cable. I also have the iPerf server connected to a switch via Ethernet and I have one of the adapters connected to the same switch via Ethernet as well. The other adapters Ethernet connection is going directly into the iPerf client PC. **Perfect world scenario** When I disconnect the iPerf client Ethernet cable from MoCA adapter and plug it directly into the switch (bypassing the MoCA adapters) and perform the iPerf test I get the expected speeds (900-Mbps with an average of 1-ms response time). This feels seems like some sort of firmware issue. Do you know if there is a way to check / upgrade the firmware. I cant seem to find any sort of management utility for these devices on the MoCA website. Thanks.

[@allenfambro3082]

Found someone else that posted instructions on how to access the management GUI. Basically each MoCA Actiontec adapter has a static IP of 192.168.144.30/24 that you can only access if the coax cable is not connected... helpdeskgeek.com/networking/upgrade-actiontec-ecb6200-firmware/ However you still need to reach out to Actiontec support to get your hands on any of the firmware files.

[@johnherrington1110]

Why the comparison using tp-link boxes over a year old? Their newer boxes, released earlier this year, are AV2000 and run at roughly twice the speed as the AV1000 boxes which you analyzed.

[@LonSeidman]

I chose the least expensive option.

[@vicenzinu3668]

I was going to run ethernet through out my house until I stumbled upon MOCA on KZbin I saved alot of money but I was fortunate enough to have coax already through out my house

[@isaiahhollingworth2396]

Some Xfinity gateways have a MoCA adapter built into the coax connector and if enabled supports up to 1 Gbps. I don't understand how you are getting almost 50 Mbps with the powerline adapters but I can't even get 30 on the same circuit

[@LonSeidman]

That's the crazy thing with powerline - its performance is contingent on many factors including what appliances might be running at any given time, etc.

[@vonrizzo]

Thank you for doing this vid. I have been needing to move my HDhomerun box to where I can put the antenna in a new window for signal strength. The power line adapters will work perfect for it...

[@paneerlovr]

Hi, I wish you measured latency in addition to bandwith!

[@kellymerrell2611]

New to the channel. Great content. Quick question, we have coax thru out the house the previous owner had satellite. Which we don't use. Will this work for our home if I switch out the satellite amplifier to a standard coax amplifier?

[@LonSeidman]

You won't need the amplifier at all. In my house surprisingly it works everywhere even in rooms that would normally require an amp for CATV.

[@Dondeath]

Hey Lon those MoCA adapts are amazing! Helps a lot in a house with weak wifi signal

[@teddydabear8772]

Excellent video Lon. This test really makes it clear which technology of these two are better. 👍

[@PhillyDjHook]

So the only way to get wifi off of this is to connect some sort of wifi hotspot to it?

[@estusflask982]

A wireless access point or a spare wireless router you have lying around (just set it to bridge mode).

[@as10046]

Those results don't make much sense. I do expect for the MOCA to be faster, but I have a couple of the TP LINK powerline products accross my home and I never get those lower speeds. The lower speed that I get from them is around 250Mbps.

[@DigiKunt]

Did you test any with HDhomerun? I just get onscreen rubbish when using powerline

[@LonSeidman]

MOCA works fine, I found powerline has a hard time keeping up.

[@jcspamcan]

My HDhomerun uses powerline for 1 bedroom TV. It works without issues. The HDhomerun connects directly to a switch and the switch connects a TP-Link AV500 nano powerline adapter, which is on an outlet right next to the breaker box. The bedroom has it's own breaker.

[@guajirosalas]

Hi Lon, does MoCa work with DIRECTV ?

[@PhillyDjHook]

No nothing works with direct TV.

[@georgesteffensen6846]

Hi Lon, today I received a visit from the xfinity service person. They had called me earlier in the week and told me that I was losing signal from my modem. So they send someone out to check, apparently the technician said that sometimes the signal gets sent back into the system and interferes with the neighbors signal. I have a moca 2.0 system connected to my cable system. He said that was the cause of my problem and he disconnected it. Have you heard about this happening? I use all the filters and adapters that the moca people recommend. Any advise would be appreciated.

[@LonSeidman]

It should not be going out from the filter - did the problem go away after they disconnected it?

[@geordieny]

Great vid. Wonderfully informative and so concise. Thank you.

[@dannyboy42223]

Few creators on KZbin I know before even watching that it will be a quality show, yours sir is one of them! Thanks for what you do. Can you run multiple pairs of these in the house or is there a one pair limit?

[@LonSeidman]

Yes you can have multiple devices attached they’ll connect to each other and share the bandwidth

[@Montisaquadeis]

So basically one on the router then one in each room you want an ethernet jack

[@LonSeidman]

Yes!