Today we will review one of the most powerful network cards on the market, the PCE-AC68. It is a top of the range network card, designed to take full advantage of 802.11ac networks with its 3 × 3 configuration (up to 1300mbps), and the first to offer support for Broadcom's TurboQAM technology (offering up to 600mbps instead of the usual 450 in the 2.4Ghz band, when both devices support it).

This card becomes the companion of the successful router of the same company, the RT-AC68U, which we already analyzed on this website. Given its segment and price, very good performance is to be expected in any application within our home network, from online games to transferring large files at speeds that we hope will not be far from those obtainable over cable, at least over short distances. Let's see if it lives up to expectations.

Technical characteristics

ASUS PCE-AC68 FEATURES
Network standard	IEEE 802.11a, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, IEEE 802.11n, IEEE 802.11ac
Interface	PCI Express.
Antenna	3 x R SMA antenna
Operating frequency	2.4 GHz / 5 GHz
Operating channel	11 for N. America, 13 Europe (ETSI)
Transfer speed	802.11a / b / g / n / ac: downlink up to 1300Mbps, uplink up to 1300Mbps (20 / 40MHz)
Output power	Mode b: 22 dBm ac mode: 18 ~ 22 dBm G mode: 19 ~ 22 dBm N mode: 18 ~ 22 dBm
Modulation	64QAM, 16QAM, CCK, DQPSK, DBPSK, OFDM
Management	Wireless Settings. Connection manager. connection profile configurator.
Dimensions	103.3 x 68.9 x 21 mm (WxDxH)
Extra	Support CD Warranty card External magnetic antenna base Low profile bracket Wireless network adapter Dipole antenna x 3CD support Warranty card External magnetic antenna base Low profile bracket Wireless network adapter Dipole antenna x 3
Price in online store	€ 81 approx.

ASUS PCE-AC68 802.11AC

On the outside of the box we find what is typical in these products, the rigorous photos of the device, comparison with other equipment of the same brand, and a bit of marketing showing us the benefits of AC networks.

The first thing that stands out when opening the box is the included antenna holder, which we can use to position the antennas in a location with better reception than the rear of our equipment. Next to it, the installation disc, manual and documentation. Underneath is the network card in an antistatic bag. Nothing to object to the packaging.

We will detail below all the content included with our PCE-AC68U. First of all, a fairly complete manual, the installation disc (which we can totally do without, since we have the updated drivers on the Asus website, with numerous improvements), and the low-profile bracket, ideal if we have to use this network card in small form factor computers or HTPCs where these types of cards are the only option:

We also find 3 dipole antennas with SMA connectors (the usual), with a fairly good finish and very good range in our tests, although we have not managed to find any specification on their power, as other manufacturers do.

Finally, the base of the antennas and their extension. It is always recommended to minimize the cable run from the network card to the antenna, but it seems that Asus has found a good balance, with a reasonable distance to place them well without the extension cable causing little loss (our best results have been with this base). The base has magnets, to place, for example, on top of the PC case. It also has a self-adhesive in case you do not have a metallic surface at hand.

The aesthetic aspect is very good, with a really generous red heatsink (which due to the observed temperatures, which exceed 40ºC, seems totally necessary to keep the chip cool in periods of high and prolonged use) and the brand's logo. The connection used is a pciexpress 1x that gives us more than enough bandwidth so as not to compromise the performance of this excellent card.

Going a little deeper

Removing the heatsink we approach the Broadcom BCM4360 chip, similar to that found in most high-end routers (such as the RT-AC68U of Asus itself or the Netgear R7000), which is covered by a large metal block that is responsible for of conducting the heat to the heatsink, and next to it the rest of the logic for the pciexpress connection.

This SoC is already common in asus AC equipment, and supports 80Mhz per channel and 256-QAM 3 × 3 in 802.11AC networks at 5Ghz. Unlike the first drivers for this card, which did not allow TurboQAM to be used in supported 802.11N networks (that is, the advertised 600mbps), we currently have full support for this scenario, although it is certainly a rather small case, since We need a router with a Broadcom chip and supporting TurboQAM (which is reduced to 3 or 4 models on the market, all of them high-end and recent, in which we will probably also use the AC network and not the N network).

As we mentioned, despite the low profile adapter and the great work that Asus and Broadcom have done with the drivers, it is a network card that generates a lot of heat. It is logical given the performance it offers, but we must also be aware that its use in HTPCs may not be optimal, especially in very poorly ventilated boxes.

Testing equipment

To make the performance measurements we will use the following components:

• RT-AC68U router, firmware version 376.44 (RMerlin build)

  The channel bandwidth has been adjusted to 80mhz (to have the maximum possible performance, to the detriment of the range), the rest of the parameters of the wireless network are at their default values ​​(beamforming enabled).

  Computer 1, with Intel (R) 82579VJperf version 2.0.2 network card (a convenient graphical interface in Java for the use of IPerf)

Wireless Performance

This is, without a doubt, the most interesting part of this network card, since as we will see, the speeds achieved with an AC1300 connection allow to perfectly replace, with good enough conditions, a cable connection, both for reliability and speed. As is common with wireless connections, under ideal conditions, a good approximation to actual maximum performance is around 50% of theoretical maximum speed.

To carry out the tests, we will use JPerf 2.0.2, with a team in our network acting as a server and connected to the router by cable, and another as a client connected to the router through the PCE-AC68, in one sense at a time. We will also see how the number of streams affects the speed and if the 3 links are used efficiently when there is only one active connection.

The values ​​that we found are similar to those that we saw using an RT-AC68U router as a client, in fact, somewhat better, probably due to the better positioning of the antennas that the base of the PCE-AC68 allows us. Again, the values ​​are around half (even more, over short distances) than a wired Gigabit Ethernet link can give.

As usual in 5Ghz networks, the biggest enemy of high speeds are the obstacles on the road (walls, doors…). As we see the distance is not a great enemy for this router, logically there is a loss of performance, but it is still an excellent performance that does not harm the usability of the connection, not only for the internet, but to work with large files within our local network without any problem or slowdown. In other performance tests carried out, it could be seen that just the fact of adding a wall near the client router, at the same distance, drops the speed to around 200Mbps. It is still more than enough to take advantage of 100% of our internet connection, however the users of the fastest fiber optics must bear in mind that minimizing the obstacles of the router to the client is mandatory, and of course, any user who wants performance Similar to a cable connection you should consider this as well.

The range of the device is therefore very good under normal use conditions, and it can be optimized to the maximum by testing different positions and positions of the antennas. Of course, the antenna cable is of a limited length (this should be so as not to lose as little as possible in the cable), and the placement is not as flexible as that of an AC router used as a client, yet it has The best placement possibilities and the longest indoor range of all AC network adapters on the market at the time of this writing.

WE RECOMMEND YOU Use All Backup Home 11 Review in Spanish (Complete Analysis)

Included software

The management software included for the networks is quite complete, and the interface somewhat friendlier than in other similar products. It is appreciated to have at hand the options to enable beamforming and TurboQAM without getting lost in the advanced parameters of the device manager.

As a small complaint, although it is a purely aesthetic flaw, I would appreciate it if you had taken a few more details, such as the subject of the text being too big for the button it occupies, something that you should certainly have taken into account, especially when translating to languages ​​such as Spanish, which usually needs some extra space to correctly name the options.

A detail that has occurred to us at the time of this review, and of which we record to avoid headaches for future users of this device. In some cases, some 5Ghz networks may not appear on the list. This happens because in Europe in particular, the regulations for 5Ghz emissions are really strict, leaving only 4 channels free for AC networks, an amount that is clearly insufficient, especially at the time when this type of network becomes more popular. To overcome this problem, very recently several channels have been released that can be used if there is no traffic on them. That is why in recent firmware versions several routers have added options to use these additional channels (in the case of the RT-AC68U, it appears as Auto select channel including DFS channels). Now, as we have been able to verify, with the current drivers only the usual channels are visible, so if our router has chosen a channel outside the usual range (36-48) we will find that our network is not visible. We are confident that Asus will support these now usable channels in Europe in future driver revisions.

Final words and conclusion

We are facing an excellent choice for users who want to take advantage of a top router like the RT-AC68U, achieving the performance of a wireless AC network at the highest level that current technology allows. We can also use this adapter with older routers in the 2.4Ghz band, if we want to leave the way ready for a future update. Likewise, with the so-called “wave 2” of AC devices about to arrive, we do not see the acquisition of top-of-the-range products as especially recommended if it is not to start using them right now.

The price is higher than what many users will be willing to pay for a network card, hovering around € 80 in Spanish stores, however, it is probably the only option right now that offers these levels of performance and flexibility. Actually, the competition of this device, more than other pciexpress or usb adapters, are AC routers used as a client, and the cheapest models that mount this same Broadcom BCM4360 chip are around € 140, so we see the price quite adjusted for what offered by this network adapter.

The improvements compared to its predecessor, the PCE-AC66, are few, the biggest addition being the support of TurboQAM in 2.4Ghz, a band that is not the optimal option with a device of this level. In fact, performance on AC networks is identical. However, we must also highlight that the compatibility problems with haswell equipment that the previous PCE-AC66 had (which sometimes required deactivating the verification of the signature of the drivers simply to reach the desktop) have been completely solved.

ADVANTAGE	DISADVANTAGES
+ EXCEPTIONAL PERFORMANCE, SO FAR THE BEST AC NETWORK ADAPTER WE HAVE TESTED	- MODERATE TEMPERATURE WITH INTENSIVE USE
+ DOUBLE BAND 2.4 / 5GHZ
+ DETACHABLE ANTENNAS, ANTENNA BASE WITH EXTENSIONS

For its performance at the highest level, choice of components, and overall quality, the Professional Review team awards you the Platinum Medal:

5Ghz performance

2.4Ghz performance

Scope

Price

9.5 / 10

Simply the best choice for AC adapters. Price according to performance.