UPDATE:

After testing several builds of DD-WRT I was unable to get port forwarding working. While uPNP did the job, it just wasn’t what I wanted. After fighting with DD-WRT I flashed Tomato. Tomato has been running stable ever since. I have yet to encounter a single issue. I highly recommend Tomato for this router.

After all of the troubles with the Buffalo WZR-HP-G300NH, I decided it was time to upgrade. After a bit of research, I decided on the Asus RT-N16.

Pros:

• Detachable, external antennas (x3). This is a major upgrade over the non-detachable  external antenna (x2) and internal antenna (x1) of the WZR-HP-G300NH. This should allow me to mount the router just about anywhere and still have the antennas in a prime location.
• Very powerful. Both CPU and Wifi
• Actively supported by DD-WRT, Tomato, and others.
• Wireless N Draft, and gigabit, since I use a NAS to transfer very large files this is a great feature. I could have gotten away with a cheap gigabit switch, but this is a nice feature.
• And, it just looks cool. Let’s be honest, there is always that cool factor.

Cons:

• Runs Hot. I have noticed that the router runs very hot, even under minimal load. I have yet to really put this thing to work, and had originally intended to mount it in an enclosure. But with the heat, this just wont be an option.

DD-WRT

It was extremely easy to upgrade the router to DD-WRT following the steps on the DD-WRT wiki. I flashed the mega build and while it is a step up over the stock firmware, it still has it’s flaws. Most specifically port forwarding is not working.  This resulted in having to run UPnP which I normally do not like to do.

Supposedly the brainslayer or eko builds perform better, and may well have the port forwarding issue fixed, I have just yet to try them.

Flashing DD-WRT: http://dd-wrt.ca/wiki/index.php/Asus_RT-N16#Installation_:

Tomato

The general consensus is that TomatoUSB runs better, and is more featured than DD-WRT on this router. But I have yet to use Tomato on any router. I will be testing it to see which runs better.

To-Do: 

• Test other builds of DD-WRT
• Test TomatoUSB
• Add some sort of cooling system to allow for more output power (heatsinks and fans)
• Add higher gain antennas (possibly remotely)