@Riley_S 

An AX3000 Pro is arriving tomorrow and have a few questions. The primary use of the router is a closed LAN system with no internet, so no concerns there. However, I will also be trying to connect it to my DSL Modem/Router through Transparent Bridge mode. (My existing WiFi functions on this old modem/router seem to be ailing, and I want to take advantage of 802.11ax on the new AX3000 router.)

I want to avoid TP-Link Smart Connect, but still use the AX3000 router in single network/SSID dual band mode. @Riley_S  is the only person that I have found, that states that one can achieve this by assigning both the 2.4 and 5 Ghz band to the same SSID name:

Quoted from from this TP-Link thread:

https://community.tp-link.com/us/home/forum/topic/607460?sortDir=ASC&page=1

(sorry, cannot get the hyperlink function to work posting this link)

“Smart Connect Disabled Same SSID - One Network will show in the list of available networks, your device will shift between the two bands automatically. This is often used if you find that the Smart Connect Feature is not moving the devices between bands in the way you want. Note that you will not be able to force devices to use a specific band when the same SSID is being used, however, if a device only supports 2.4Ghz it will have no problem.”

First, if I attempt this, I have to assume that I would also need to match the passwords on both bands?

Second, what actually is different from using it this way or using Smart Connect?

I can see from the AX3000 Pro GUI emulator on-line, that when I choose the Smart Connect function, 3 critical WiFi settings disappear: Channel Width, Channel, and Mode. These are the settings that I still need to control and why I am trying to avoid Smart Control.

Will I still be able to control these settings on each band, if I choose the “Smart Connect Disabled Same SSID” method?

I have 2 computers, 1 tablet, 1 phone (all Apple products), and then, 1 camera, and three other home devices that are stuck on 2.4GHz. The main reason I need to be on the same WiFi network/SSID is that most devices need to communicate with each other and to do this they require to be on the same network/SSID.

FYI, I have no WiFi interference concerns or WiFi traffic concerns. And not sure about the hardware version that I was forced to input above, as I do not have the product yet.