Shure QLX-D Networking

[Brenden Friedel]

I am having an issue where I have about 20 networked wireless devices (10Q QLX-D, 10 UR4D) on one network and they tend to "Drop out" on wireless workbench. The frequencies don't drop but their screen on wireless goes grey. Any tips on what to do? 10 UR4ds and 5 qlxds are on one switch and 5 of the QLXds are on another. Switches are not daisy chained to each other.

 

[themuzicman]

If the switches aren't connected to each other, then what does the signal flow look like? Do you have two NIC's on the computer and are running a line from each switch to the computer?

 

[Brenden Friedel]

If the switches aren't connected to each other, then what does the signal flow look like? Do you have two NIC's on the computer and are running a line from each switch to the computer?

Each switch plugs into the 4-port switch on the back of the router. The computer is connected to the router via wireless

 

[themuzicman]

Each switch plugs into the 4-port switch on the back of the router. The computer is connected to the router via wireless

...Why not just go wired? Always go wired when you can.

 

[Brenden Friedel]

...Why not just go wired? Always go wired when you can.

I would go wired but I use Shure’s channels + on my iPad as well and I don’t have another switch lying around.

 

[themuzicman]

I would go wired but I use Shure’s channels + on my iPad as well and I don’t have another switch lying around.

...Does the problem also happen on your iPad? Go wired to the computer, you can still go wireless on the iPad. A decent switch is fairly inexpensive, there are decent <$25 4 and 5 port options available.

 

[FMEng]

Let's go back to network basics. Unless the router is acting as a DHCP server, and all devices on the network are configured for DHCP, there could easily be an IP address conflict. Either carefully set ALL IP addressed and subnet masks manually, or ensure DHCP for everything. I'm going to guess the receivers are set manually, and the wifi side of the router is using DHCP, with a range overlapping the receivers.

I would use a single switch that's big enough to do the job. Cascading old or cheap switches results in problems because one or more of them doesn't have the capacity for a large enough MAC address table. Consequently, switch #1 can't direct traffic to a device on switch #2 because it can't remember where to find it.

Another problem of cascading old or cheap switches is that they don't auto-negotiate when they are plugged into another switch or router. Instead, they had buttons to select that on one port, or they needed crossover cables. Oddly, connecting them the wrong way can work intermittently.

I would also eliminate the wifi router. That just adds a bunch of variables, especially when a bunch of smartphones walk into the room.

 

[macsound]

Without changing a bunch of hardware, assuming it is all ok, is it always the same units that disappear from Wireless WB? Could be a bad CAT5 cable.
Assuming there's no DHCP conflict because they wouldn't be intermittent, they wouldn't show up at all, is there a computer issue, like the software is hogging ram or the wifi is too slow to keep up with all the data?

 

[Robert]

Shure has had some manufacturing defects on some of their new units. Call tech support if they are recent purchases. We just sent back a rack of 8 for such a repair.

 

[mbenonis]

Hi Brenden,

It would be good to eliminate a few variables here. First, I would test with a wired connection to one of the switches alone (separated from the access point). Then test the devices on the other switch. If these work on their own, the issue may be with the wireless access point/router device (either how it hands out addresses, or some switching issue with the switches connected to the router). By default, the UR4D and QLX-D will look for an address via DHCP, and if there is not a DHCP server present, default back to a link-local address (169.254.xxx.yyy). Verify that all devices are on the same subnet and that you can ping them consistently from your PC. Ensure that Wireless Workbench is permitted in your Firewall settings (in Windows, go to Windows Firewall, then "allow an app or feature through Windows Firewall", then check all boxes for all instances of WWB). Just turning off Windows Firewall is not sufficient. Finally, ensure all devices are on the latest firmware (especially the UR4D). If all of this fails, I would try a new switch that all devices can plug into simultaneously.

Hope that helps! If you need more help, you can reach Shure Support at shure.com/contact/.