Network recommendation for room signs roaming

[shortstopk]

Current network is 8 APs (MR36H). Router is MX64. 

We have 7 fixed-location room signs (Joan 6 model) that connect to wifi. 6 on our third floor and 1 on second floor. 

I used to have these on a dedicated hidden 2.4Ghz network, only being served by 3 APs, two on 3rd floor and 1 on first. All of these are within 20 feet of a base station and at worst one has to go around a corner. 

I pulled these off the separate network because I wanted to reduce the number of networks and also the use of 2.4Ghz - partly to simplify, but also because I suspect we have a bluetooth interference issue and I've read 2.4 can interfere with bluetooth (have read mixed opinions on this). Also simplifies wifi site surveys and planning not to have so many networks. 

I put them on our main network, but the result is that a couple are jumping to far away APs, even to first floor APs with a weak signal. These charge up periodically, so a weak signal can drain the battery faster. 

What's the best way to force these to a close AP? I could revert back to the old 2.4 network and let them roam within that as before. I could also make that network 5Ghz, just to keep 2.4 minimized.

I've also thought about making a few SSIDs that are "regional" within the building so they must go to a specific AP. 

The battery/signal issue is what I'm really trying to solve, so the last option seems best to me, but that means 2-3 added SSIDs vs just one added (as before). Would that create a problem with too much channel overlap?

[alemabrahao]

The decision of which AP to connect to is up to the device, you cannot force the device to connect to a specific AP.

However, there are some settings you can try.

Try disabling Client load balancing in the RF profile.

https://documentation.meraki.com/MR/Other_Topics/Client_Balancing

[shortstopk]

Thanks. I'm aware of the devices managing the roaming, that's why I'm looking into localized SSIDs. 

I'm not necessarily interested in disabling load balancing for all devices unless that's just a general recommendation for everyone. Do most people find that works better? It's common for users to move around in our office, so maybe it would be. 

[alemabrahao]

Some devices simply do not behave well when Client load balancing is enabled, in most cases depending on the type of environment I always try to disable it.

I believe many will agree. And what I'm suggesting is a test just to validate whether there will be an improvement.

[cmr]

We use SSIDs that are only active on APs with the relevant tag.  It works well and honestly having more SSIDs doesn't cause a ton of issues unless you go mad.  We generally have 5-9 per site, but some are single band only meaning we have 3-7 per band.

[K2_Josh]

I had previously helped to address Wi-Fi issues for Joan devices. They were not easy to work with, in general.

We had some success with one separate 2.4GHz SSID for Joan devices on Arista WAPs. We limited which WAPs had 2.4 GHz radio enabled, which was very helpful and is best practice anyways since there are only three 2.4 GHz channels. In your case, separate SSIDs for different WAPs might help.

At that time I ultimately recommended installing the Joan 6 Pro, which was the only model that supports a wall-mounted PoE dock.