Question 1

can you connect it to another router in another room?

Accepted Answer

Yes. I plugged one into the receptacle down in my basement and connected it to the router there using an Ethernet cable. Then I plugged the other into a receptacle on the second floor of my home and connected it to an apple Airport upstairs using Ethernet cable. That effectively creates two wifi networks- one up and one down, and now there are no dead spots in the house for wifi.  Very happy with this solution. Took only minutes to install and it works great. Ethernet cables supplied are pretty short though, so if it's more than about 3 feet from receptacle to where you locate the router, plan on buying a few new Ethernet cables to suit.

Question 2

If I buy 2 sets. Will that enable me to hook up 3 additional items?

Accepted Answer

Yes.  I purchased two sets (total four wall units).  One of them is connected to the router for the building so that it can distribute the multiplexed signal into the building wiring, and the other three ZyXEL units are located in various places to serve as receivers for a variety of online devices.  It is particularly impressive that the signal successfully "crosses" between the three standard circuit breaker boxes that serve the home.  Signal distribution through the fourth box, which is wired to automatically switch between power line input and a gas generator, is not adequately successful.

Question 3

Is this the two piece starter kit with an adapter for both the wireless router and another adapter for a single device?

Accepted Answer

Yes it is a two piece kit each with one port.  ie I have one connected to my Internet gateway in a room on my second floor, and the other to a wireless router in another room on my first floor supplying WiFi and Internet to the whole first floor.  Wire quality is important, I have some old wiring in my house so the connection can lag or drop out at times between adapters.

Question 4

can one have two 5405 kits in the same home off of one router?

Accepted Answer

Yes. I am not aware of any limits on the number adapters that can be on a network.

The limiting factor is that the adapters have to be plugged into receptacles that can "see each other" on the physical electrical network. This means they need to be connected to the same electrical panel and share some common wiring (e.g. Hot, Neutral).

Question 5

Can you use this with a adapter on European current (220VaC?)

Accepted Answer

I'm not sure if the US version would work with just an socket adapter, are outlets are rated at 110vac. You may need a power transformer as well. Then again with that acting as a voltage transformer to step down the voltage you will have a major effect on the signal peering of the device as well as having an effect on data transfer rate threw your building electrical circuit. I would try and contact Zyxel to see if they have a European compatible units. Hope this helps.

Question 6

If I get this kit, can I plug in an additional "ZyXEL PLA4225 4-Port 500 Mbps Powerline Gigabit Switch Up to 500Mbps" to my HTS?  Are the ZyXEL Powerline adapters compatible with one another if they are different models?  Some of the other brands say that you can add on extra adapters when needed, but I don't see that on the ZyXEL descriptions.

Accepted Answer

I honestly don't know.  Since this one is MIMO and the 4225 isn't, I don't know if there would be any incompatibilities between the two that would negatively impact performance.

Sorry I don't have a more helpful answer for you.

Question 7

Are both these unites identical? If I want 2 more adapters for other rooms, could I just by another kit and use each of the units? In other words, is the adapter which goes between my router and the wall socket the same as the one from my remote wall socket to my computer? Thanks.

Accepted Answer

Yes, the kit comes with 2 PLA5405 adapters, identical ones. If you need more adapter you can buy another kit that gives you another 2 adapters. It doesn't matter which adapter you connect your router to.

Question 8

Does this Adapter use all three phases?

Accepted Answer

It uses all 3 wires (line, neutral, and ground) of a grounded outlet, but has the typical problems jumping from an outlet on one phase to an outlet on another phase of the building electrical supply.

Question 9

In order to enjoy the high-speed networking by using 1200 Mbps Powerline, MIMO technology - PLA5405, one should use 3 pin connector (Line-Natural/Line-Ground).
On the other end the EU type plug has only two pins (EU 220 V) which could limit the speed (because there is no Ground connection). My questions are:
1. Can one use the PLA5405 US (three pin type) on 220 vac power line in order to have the benefit of the Ground connection (Change only the wall outlet type at home)?
2. Will the PLA5405 US version work properly on 220 vac power line?
3. Is there another solution? 
Thank you, Lior

Accepted Answer

Hi Lior,

You are absolutely correct that you need to use 3-pin grounded outlets between all units in order to get the full bandwidth of MIMO.  If you plug a MIMO unit into an ungrounded outlet (on either side), then that unit will be limited to SISO communication (normal 2-prong connection), or about half the bandwidth of MIMO.  It will still work, but you won't get MIMO bandwidth.

When you say "the EU type plug has only two pins", I presume you mean your residence only has the two-pin version, because the EU has  two  main types of grounded outlets (6 types altogether).  For reference, please see the pictures at "www dot worldstandards dot eu/electricity/plugs-and-sockets/".  I believe your ungrounded two-pin outlet is Type C, which will work for SISO.  You will need at least Type E or F on each outlet with a MIMO unit in order to support MIMO communication.

If you are changing the wall outlet at home from Type C to Type E or F, then you are really going from a two-wire electrical connection to a three-wire electrical connection.  Depending on your residence, you may need to install new wiring to each new outlet.  If you are doing this, please make sure you use a qualified electrician because your personal safety is at stake.  Improperly installed electrical wiring can lead to electrocution and/or electrical house fires.

If you want to use the US version of the PLA5405 in a grounded EU outlet (Type E or F), then you should be able to make MIMO work with a grounded adapter.  Really cheap adapters, though, may result in flaky connections and poor throughput.  Direct connection to an outlet is the most reliable in the long term.

For (2):  The box states 100V - 240V AC, 50/60 Hz so you should be fine.  The same PLA5405 design also has EU & UK plug options, in any case, so no worries.

For (3):  I'm only aware of the options I mentioned above.

Best of Luck,

-Steve

Question 10

Does it support other voltages like 240V?

Accepted Answer

the plugs on the back of the pair i bought are U.S. standard 115V Edison plugs.  since 240V uses a different plug they will not work because you will not be able to plug it in.  Also, the units are intended for 115V so a 240V supply would more than likely fry them.

many of the homeplug units do have European plugs which might support the 240V.   i am not sure if this brand does or not.

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