What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

Ok, ive heard about Cat5 and Cat6 ethernet cable but which one would everyone recomend getting?


I'm looking at 15 -20m, does this make a difference to speed?


Thanks.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

Cat6 and yes the longer the ethernet cable the more the signal will degrade.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

Cat 5e is fine for any speed up to a gigabyte. Cat 6 is only really any use for 10 Gig and up.

As for distance, that yes, the signal will degrade, but unless you have faulty cable, it should be fine for up to 100 metres.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

Its really really pointless spending the extra cash on cat6 for domestic use. Cat5e (hell, even cat5 will probably work fine) will work without problem.

Don't bother buying fancy cables with "super mega diamond impregnated oxygenated gold terminals", aka "Monster" cables. They are entirely pointless for digital applications. Cheap "Pound Store" cables will work fine.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

It's 100Mb 'net, CAT5e will do speeds well in excess of that

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

Dont worry about a loss in signal. Unless you are going for some long length of 70 to 100 metres then you will see a difference but anything less you won't notice it.

There is no point in CAT6 at the moment unless you really want to future proof your installation for the future but right now and for quite some time CAT5 will be absolutely fine.
I buy mine from CPC and sometimes from CableUniverse.

---------- Post added at 17:08 ---------- Previous post was at 17:07 ----------

You won't be able to tell any speed difference at 15-20 metres.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

cat5e will be absolutely fine, don't make the mistake though if plodding down to somewhere like pc world, asds or any other retailer, they are an absolutely rip off. You can get good quality branded cables from places like play.com or amazon dirt cheap with free delivery.

As an example, if you have a look at PC World, a 15m belkin cable costs £35

http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/belkin...19297-pdt.html

On Play.com it is £9. You can get a 30m cable for £16. It is a joke really, twice the distace and nearly £10 cheaper.

http://www.play.com/Search.html?sear...0M+Patch+Cable

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

I make my own up.. I use cat6 only because the reel I bought was only about a quid more expensive than the 5e, and I might want to go 10gig one day.

For 100mb, any old cat5 you find in the attic is fine :p

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

You have to remember that most hubs are now gigabit on the ports so although your internet connection is only 100Mb you're still communicating from PC<>PC or PC<>HUB at 1000Mb.

If the run is less than 50meters then 5E will be fine, ignore those that say that 5E will run 100m at gigabit speed as that's in a perfect world and a lot of devices can interfere with the signal when pushing the speed/distance to it's limits. If you do want 100meters then Cat6+ is best.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

dear dear Kymmy, how often we get criticised by mods for not reading posts properly


:LOL:

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

I read it perfectly well.. my post was in response to the usual general "100m cat5e" posts which are general perfect world scenarios..

So I'm puzzled as to your amusement and inability to realise that not all responses in a thread are pointed at the OP????

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

I am just playing with you :Peaceman:

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

cat5e is enough however when I last brought some cables cat6 and cat5e were very close in price so I got cat6 for future proofing.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

If you want what's best Cat6.

Cat5e is fine otherwise, I've had cabling guys do runs of it up to 97m long through data centres at gigabit for me with no issues, Cat5e that can't do that isn't Cat5e.

Only on this forum could such a basic question cause such debate. :)

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

yeah, cat6 seems less flexible in bending etc. so has that downside. But otherwise if the price is similiar I would go with cat6.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

Try running it anywhere near HT/EHT or RF equipment and cat5e falls over like a limp lettuce leaf ;) At least cat6 tends to have more image rejection properties. In the home environment anything like a microwave close by can severely degrade performance.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

Good point Kymmy.

If you are looking at cabling outdoors, etc, then you want cable with some better shielding.

This is where I buy mine from:
http://www.cableuniverse.co.uk/network-cables/

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

If you don't have specialist requirements (such as running near serious RF sources) then I would use CAT5e.

UNLESS...

You are wireing up a building in a very permanent way, such as fitting cables in the wall space and building in wall sockets etc. In that case I would use CAT6 to future proof the installation. The cable is not expensive, but the effort is so best to over compensate now.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

I'd suggest you get your microwave checked out or swapped out. Urgently.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

Yet someone else who assumes that it's just the 2Ghz from the magnetron that's the only RF output from a microwave. :rolleyes:

The control boards of most domestic appliances have unshielded oscillators at low frequencies and that's the issue with long ethernet runs especially when you start getting close to wavelengths and/or harmonics for standard unshielded oscillators..

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

I would certainly hope that the 2.4GHz leakage is very low indeed or you could be looking for a cornea transplant.

ADSL is far more susceptible to local noise pickup than ethernet as it operates at far lower signal levels yet that survives the domestic environment in millions of homes on similar cabling.

I have an amateur radio licence and have never spotted a hiccough with my own ethernet even when transmitting 400w of SSB on HF or VHF.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

You'll be fully aware then that a meter or two either way on any antenna can mean the difference between signal strengths. That's the main issue in that a long run in one situation can be fine where as another a bit longer/shorter can be the death of a network.

I was in no way suggesting that every run over 50m will have issues, but instead suggesting that longer runs can be more susceptible to issues caused by equipment that we generally think of being benign. The longer the run though the more likelihood there is in being interferred with. ;)

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

A longer run of cable will certainly stand more chance of picking up more common mode RF noise as it will pass more sources and will act as a better MW antenna. It will also be more susceptible to internal crosstalk and that is what CAT6 is designed to reduce. For the most part kit designed to work with UTP will also be designed to reject common mode interference at the sort of levels most normal environments would cause.

I accept that in industrial environments with high power kit in use such as arc and RF welding gear some special measures will need to be taken - and they will be well beyond using CAT6 which is still UTP although of a margially higher grade than CAT5E.

What I don't accept is your example of a microwave oven is going to have any effect whatsoever unless it is faulty. Same for just about any other household equipment. Most UK homes won't be using runs anywhere near 100m either unless some very indirect routing is used.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

Microwave was just an example that uses high voltage with some form of control board.. I could have said Flourescent light, BT Homeplugs, CRT Television..and any number of devices you find round the home. The whole point was that the longer the run the more susceptible ethernet is to interference from devices you;d never expect interference from. Being on HF you'll be perfectly aware of being able to tell when someone in your street turns on a household device that will then wipe out a band for the evening. An ethernet run might not be as sensitive to it as a HF reciever but it can still have an effect. Hence at the very beginning I did suggest that if running over 50m cat6 is preferable :rolleyes: :D ;) :p:

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

I wouldn't argue against using CAT6 for future proofing but it will not offer any significant immunity to interference over CAT5E.

Yes there is interference in virtually any home. Both grades of cable are designed to operate satisfactorily in normal environments and for the most part they do. If a cable passes the CAT5E spec then it has to be capable of running at a gigabit over 100m.

Throwing in terms like "image rejection" when you clearly don't know what it means weakens your argument.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

Yeah image rejection probably wasn't the correct term (especially when an IF isn't involved) but it's hard to put into simple words when I haven't slept properly for 72 hours.. ;) You know though what I mean...

BTW, cat5e specifies gigabit over a maximum of 100m (between active devices) again that is dependant on environment and is not a guarantee and could run longer or could have problems a lot shorter.

As for normal environment it begs the question what do you consider normal? Most household equipment (especially older stuff) isn't regulated by emissions laws like office/data/telecoms devices

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

I'll just fall back on my observation that ADSL operates at close to the noise floor of modems perfectly happily in millions of homes through lower spec cable than cat5e. The operating voltage levels on ethernet are many thousands of times higher which makes it vastly more immune to local RF noise pickup. Plus CAT6 is no more immune to noise pickup than CAT5E.

IMO future proofing would the only reason to choose one over the other. In any normal home running gigabit ethernet there would be no difference in performance.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

Yet our ethernet used to drop down and freeze the hub up a couple of times a week (100Mb Cat5, 80m run) mind you that was because my partner decided to move the welding bench to where the cable ran through the workshop.. Seems that the HF start on the TIG wasn't ethernet friendly :D

I totally agree though that cat6 is preferable for future proofing installs.. yet I still stand that not ever install is in a perfect environment and long runs can cause issues which is another reason to use the best spec commonly available...

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

Whichever grade of cable you go for, Cat 5e or Cat 6, make sure you fix it in position with ties or trunking. Avoid cable grips of the type you thump in with a hammer! The chances are you will compress the cable or even damage it. This will affect performance.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

In fairness, most houses don't have a welding workbench.

While I think that 5E is good enough for now (even in long cable runs), if you are talking about a permanant installation go for the best available.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

We've got a spare one if you want one ;) :p:

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

Guys, why not just use Cat6 STP and never have to worry about leakage, it's readily available and cheap as a donner kebab :)

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

As I found out when I was a kid, Hornby trainsets and welders are fantastic at interfering with your neighbours TV's.

And more recently, a neighbour with a cheap video sender for his cctv managed to nuke nearly every wireless signal in the street. ISP provided devices just gave up the ghost but 'proper' routers managed to struggle on with a bit of range loss. I managed to pick up the feed from his garden camera with an old tv, and he quickly stopped using it when comments were made about the colour of his wifes undercrackers currently blowing dry on the line.

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

:LOL:

Re: What Kind of Ethernet Cable is best?
 

No. 1 son found that Scalextric transformers make pretty good arc lamps/welders when connected to a couple of pencils. I'm not sure if it interfered with TV or not as I was far too busy putting out the carpet fire.....