Hello everyone, today we’ll take a very quick look at a hardware mod I did a little while back on an old D-Link DIR-615.
This was initially an experiment in building a wireless repeater network to span some more of my workplace, so I wanted to fit large, high gain antennae. The DIR-615 seems an odd choice then, given it has fixed, non-removable antennae and is fairly famous for dodgy wireless performance out-the-box.
But I haven’t lost all my marbles because it also supports DD-WRT, the open source router firmware that gives you a worrying amount of control. Coupled with the fact that I was able to buy two DIR-615‘s for under £10, I think we have a winner!
The mod is simple really: I took a hacksaw to the existing antennae; cleaned up the leftovers with a file; soldered RP-SMA connectors on to the end of the original antennae cables; hot glued the new connectors to the rear of the case.
With DD-WRT performance and configurability is excellent, and with a pair of 12dB antennae this little box can really throw the signal around.
There you are, a simple and very cheap way to build a powerful WiFi repeater. If you want to do this yourself please check DD-WRT’s support list, as one of the hardware revisions of the 615 is *NOT* supported, otherwise have fun!
— Ben