MX67C external LTE antenna

[robfromdetroit]

The MX67C really needs to support external LTE antennas.

Many data closets simply are in bad spots for LTE. Using an antenna will allow you usually to get to the roof of a building to max throughput. We see 10x increases in speed and latency. Meaning, the antenna upgrades LTE internet to "barely usable" to broadband speeds.

[ww]

yes. also with previous models and dongle. for now its best to use external 3/4G router and put it in the wan port then its also usable as active connection.

[jdsilva]

It sure is a good thing they put a couple of big honking antennas on it then eh?

[robfromdetroit]

Those antenna aren't even close to what I'm talking about.

I'm talking about something like this that is roof and mast mounted.

[jdsilva]

OK... I don't understand the problem here. Go ahead and connect one of those to the MX67C then if you like. But as @PhilipDAth said just watch your cable loss as I doubt the MX can drive that thing over too long a cable run. 

[robfromdetroit]

The problem is simple: LTE is often horrible in a data closet or in a rural area.

Having a roof mounted option for antenna is my feedback for future MX C models.

[AnthonyOwen]

Hi Rob,

Do you know the connector type that sits on the MX? We have a customer that is in a remote location who has requested external antenna for the LTE (VERY short run, and will be using good quality cable) but i cant get an accurate answer from Meraki as to what the connector type is to be able to source the relevant cable.

[CFreeman]

Did anyone figure out what type of connector is on the MX-67C?  It looks like an RP-SMA, but I don't believe that it actually is.

[GreenMan]

It is indeed RP-SMA

[jvielma]

You're kidding, right? I honestly can't tell; but those antennas are tiny as heck and Meraki doesn't provide a high-gain cellular antenna option for upgrade. We have a MX67C in test right now in a location is way better than anything we'd likely get in the field and I'm currently dealing with wildly slow speeds and ridiculous latency. AND THAT'S JUST COMPARED TO ANOTHER VENDORS DEVICE RUNNING ON THE SAME LTE NETWORK. This is bad and frankly, if the lack of SSL off-loading capabilities wasn't a deal breaker for us, this pretty much would be. It's really a shame too, since I personally am a Meraki fanboy.

[PhilipDAth]

The MX67C does use external antenna.  Refer to this picture:

https://meraki.cisco.com/products/appliances/mx67c#technology

Meraki only offer the one type of antenna (that ships with it).  You would need to source your own antennas seperately.

That note RF signal drops off pretty quickly, so you want the RF cable leads to be as short as possible, or you'll need to compensate by using lower loss cable (and the lower the loss the more the cable costs).

[Ben]

The official statement is that you can try out with external antennas on the MX67C but its not going to be officially supported by Meraki.

The connector of the MX67C is the default antenna connector.

Its not possible with the 68CW because the antennas for WIFI are shared with LTE.

Cheers,

Ben

[Rajesh-Hirani]

The official response from the documentation:

https://documentation.meraki.com/MX/MX_Overviews_and_Specifications/MX67_and_MX68_Overview_and_Speci...

Can I change the antennas to improve my performance?

The MX67C, only Meraki antennas are supported. Replacement antennas will be available for purchase.

Meraki only have the one antenna at present and there is no  official guidance.  That being said, using accessories to extend the antenna will not void the warranty, but support will just be unable to assist with any issues relating to the antennas specifically. In theory any LTE antenna with a RP-SMA should be fine. 

[Nicolab]

So if you need Wifi AND LTE with antennas for proper result, there's no model available. Is there any plan to have a MX67CW or to get external plugs on the MX68CW ? That's a shame. We needed 25 Meraki to replace legacy routers and we're stuck.

[AnthonyOwen]

Nicolab,

Meraki now have a solution for this. You can run an MX67W that will fulfil the wireless requirement, and then use the new Meraki Gateway (link below);

https://meraki.cisco.com/products/cellular

This is located externally for best coverage, and is an ethernet connection to your WAN interface on the MX. Problem solved! 🙂

[Uberseehandel]

Drum roll - lights up - 

[MerakiNorway]

The MX67C does not support external LTE antennas!!
The antennas you se on pictures are WiFi.

If you need modem with external antenna MG21E(POE powered) is the only option with external antenna.

Or you can go for MG21 with internal antennas to extend your 3G/4G option

[GreenMan]

Are you sure you're not looking at an MX68CW, @MerakiNorway ?
The MX67C does not support WiFi   (C stands for cellular)
The MX68CW supports both cellular and WiFi.   (W stands for WiFI).   Because the antennas fitted to 68CW serve both Cellular and WiFI and Meraki have to ensure customers stick to WiFi power rules, the antennas are fixed.
For the MX67C, however, you can unscrew the antennas that ship with the unit and replace with cellular antenna with RP-SMA connector(s).   If the antenna + cable combination you use allows you to get a better mobile data uplink, that's great, but Meraki will not support such a configuration.

[Zsombor]

Have any of you tried it with the MG21Es external antenna (MA-ANT-C1-B)?