Single band, tri-band or quad-band mesh for streamer

@carlsbad is right, the extra band is a dedicated backhaul between the satellite access point and the main access point which is connected to your ISP. Having this dedicated channel increases throughput of the devices connected to the satellite since the satellite doesn’t have to contend with devices connected on the main access point. These days with 802.11ac and 802.11ax, speeds are fast enough for any hi-res file you’d want to play, whether connected through wi-fi or Ethernet.

I have an ASUS XT8 tri-band mesh LAN. The streamer (a Raspberry Pi running moOde) is hardwired to the main access point. The music library sits in a shared folder on a Mac mini connected via wi-fi to the satellite. I don’t have a problem with streaming hi-res Qobuz from my phone through the RPi using UPnP / wi-fi or listening to my music library. The sound I get is equivalent to disc-based playback through my Oppo UDP-203 with VanityHD digital output board.

I chose the XT8 802.11ax system because my internet connection is ~1 Gbps and wanted max throughput. Using 802.11ac, I usually get speeds around 580 Mbps over wi-fi. Note that even for uncompressed PCM 24 bit / 768 kHz sampling rate, the max bandwidth you’d need is ~37 Mbps. Even Fast Ethernet can handle that.

The only adverse effects you’d notice if you didn’t have enough network bandwidth or bit errors during transmission would be dropouts and glitches / pops during playback. Otherwise, the data is getting from point A to B intact.

I’d absolutely go with option #2 no question as it could likely offer not only the best sound for your main system but also may be your cheapest option. As mentioned earlier, a direct Ethernet connection to your router would provide the best sound through your streamer so moving your router to the basement makes a ton of sense from that perspective. Also, if the other remote areas in your house don’t require an uber-quality connection you may find relatively cheap — but still quite good — WiFi extenders will be more than sufficient and less costly than a Mesh system. TP-Link extenders get very good reviews, and I just got these (see below) for my two sons’ bedrooms — one of which is two floors away and on the opposite side of the house from the router and they work perfectly fine for only $35 each. Get them through Amazon and If they don’t happen to work in your situation just return them and go Mesh, but I think odds are good these will work just fine. Anyway, just my $0.02 FWIW, and best of luck.

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0971BBYSN?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1

Thanks all for your feedback.  I was looking at the Asus xt8 system.  If I get three units I can have one on each floor of my home and serve our main floor office and TV and streamer upstairs and the music and video streamers associated with my main system in the basement.  It may be overkill, but my wife is a designer and has to deal with large file downloads and uploads.  I can experiment on where the modem connection provides the best service overall for our needs.