MR86 with MA-ANT-25 antennas

[antmich]

Hi everyone,

I'm looking to buy MR86 APs with MA-ANT-25 antennas. These antennas are said to be dual-band. Does that mean that I can connect only one antenna to my MR86 with one connector in 2.4GHz and one in 5GHz ? Would that be an issue ?

Thank you for your help,

antmich

[Inderdeep · Accepted solution]

@antmich MR86 APs have four dual-band antenna ports (and therefore do not have 2.4 or 5GHz labels).  None of these ports should be left unconnected because all four ports will always be active even if one radio is disabled. MR86 APs should have all four antenna ports connected, and with the same type of antennas with the same orientation.

[antmich]

@Inderdeep thank you very much ! It totally answers my question.

[Mohit_Chauhan]

@Inderdeep  "same orientation" means both antennas should be installed in the same location pointing in the same direction? Or you can use them in different directions as each port would be running in dual mode..?

[Bruce]

@Mohit_Chauhan, the antennas attached to the MR86 should both cover exactly the same area. The MR86 is a 4x4 MIMO device and so for it to operate correctly all four of the antennas must have the same coverage. If you’re attaching patch or sector antennas to a MR86, then within the physical enclosure are effectively four antennas, 2x 2.4GHz, and 2x 5GHz. Attach one to the top connectors, and another to the bottom connectors on the AP, and that gives you your 4x4 MIMO on both radios.

[Mohit_Chauhan]

@Bruce  thanks for your reply here. But I am still confused here. When we are attaching MR86 with say patch antenna MA-ANT-25, we have two antennas to connect. Each antenna will have two cables.

So cant we have one antenna at one angle facing one aisle and the other antenna facing the other aisle, imagining we are trying to cater for coverage in two aisles.

Each antenna will provide both 2.4 and 5Ghz.

Am i missing something here?

Thanks for your time in advance!

[Russ_B]

@Mohit_Chauhan  There is good information here:  

Frequently Asked Questions for Cisco Meraki Access Point Antennas - Cisco Meraki

That document addresses the question of using multiple antennas to increase range:

Can I Aim Directional Antennas in Different Directions on the Same AP to Increase Coverage?

No, this is not recommended.

On a 4x4:4 access point, such as MR84/86, all antennas should be the same type and have the same orientation. If, for example, there is an MR86 with two ANT-25 patch antennas connected, do not attempt to aim each antenna in different directions in order to increase the coverage area. This will send two spatial streams in one direction and two spatial streams in another direction and will have unintended consequences.