ALFA AWUS036ACHM — Budget Dual-Band AC433

Quick Summary: The AWUS036ACHM is the budget dual-band ALFA — a MT7610U AC433 adapter with two 5 dBi antennas and, crucially, an in-kernel driver (mt76x0u since Linux 4.19). It is the cheapest way into dual-band monitor mode on Linux, full stop.

Specifications Overview (Spec overview)

Item	Spec
Chipset	MediaTek MT7610U
Wi-Fi class	AC433 (150 + 433 Mbps)
Interface	USB 2.0
Bands	2.4 + 5 GHz
Antenna	2 × external 5 dBi, RP-SMA
Linux driver	mt76x0u — in-kernel since 4.19
Monitor mode	✅ good
Packet injection	✅ good

Overview

The ACHM is the "little brother" of the AWUS036ACM. It uses the 1×1 MT7610U radio, so its AC433 speed ceiling is about half the ACM's AC1200 — but for the two things university students actually need it for, it competes hard:

1. It is in the kernel. No DKMS, no compilation, no "broke after an upgrade." Plug it in on Ubuntu or Kali and wlan0 exists.
2. Monitor mode + injection work through the standard mac80211 path, thanks to the MediaTek mainline driver.

If your coursework is "capture and analyze Wi-Fi management frames" or "demonstrate packet injection," the ACHM does it at the lowest price in the ALFA line. Buy the ACM instead only if you want double the 5 GHz throughput for heavy captures.

Install & drivers

Because the driver is in the kernel, there is nothing to install — see the MT7610U driver page. Verify with:

lsusb | grep -i mediatek
iw dev

Expected output:

Bus 001 Device 005: ID 0e8d:7610 MediaTek Inc. MT7610U
phy#0
	Interface wlan0
		ifindex 3
		type managed

Advanced usage

Monitor mode (no install needed)

sudo airmon-ng start wlan0
sudo aireplay-ng --test wlan0mon

Expected output: wlan0mon created; injection 30/30: 100%.

Antenna upgrade

The RP-SMA ports accept ALFA antennas if you outgrow the stock dipoles — with the caveat that a 1×1 radio cannot use two antennas for MIMO, so run a single high-gain antenna for range.

Compatibility

Platform	Support	Notes
Kali Linux	✅	In-kernel mt76x0u
Ubuntu	✅	Plug & play on 20.04+
NetHunter / Android	✅	In-kernel chipset
Windows	✅	Official driver
Raspberry Pi / Jetson	✅	In-kernel

Troubleshooting

Symptom	Cause	Fix
Not in lsusb	Power / cable	Different port / powered hub — troubleshooting
No interface	Driver not loaded (rare)	sudo modprobe mt76x0u
Throughput ~half of ACM	1×1 hardware limit	Not a bug — AC433 class
Injection fails	Empty channel	sudo iw wlan0mon set channel 6

Related resources

• MT7610U driver page
• Ubuntu setup guide and Kali setup guide
• AWUS036ACM — the faster sibling
• Adapter comparison