CAT5e Cabling or CAT6a Cabling?

If you’ve been planning to install, upgrade, or extend the computer network in your home or office, you’ve probably been working with a data cabling engineer to help you work out what you will need. You’ve also probably been wondering why it would really need a specialist to lay down what looks just like fancy electrical wiring. Look at it from the point of view, that if the cabling doesn’t work, the network doesn’t work!

Choosing the right cable category

Using the right network cabling allows your network to send and receive data near the maximum speed that your data connections allow. If you have more than one computer or data device, using the right computer cabling will allow your machines to communicate as efficiently as possible.

You and the cabling service engineer have 4 options to choose from when it comes to the most up-to-date standards of data cabling: Category 5e, Category 6, Category 6a and Fibre Optic. Lets leave Fibre Optic out of the equation for now. Your decision will mainly depend on your network data transmission speed, the data type you are transmitting, and your requirements for speed and efficiency of data transfer.

Category 5 and 5e cables

The original Category 5 (CAT5) cables consist of 4 pairs of twisting copper wiring. They are rated at transmitting signals of up to 100 MHz. They were originally rated for use in Ethernet networks running at 100 Mbit/s. Newer Gigabit (or 1000BASE-T) Ethernets were designed to work with CAT5 cables as well.

In 2001, Category 5e (CAT5e) cables were introduced. These cables are basically the same as CAT5 cables except that there is less data signal loss. This data loss comes from electrical interference (called crosstalk) coming from neighbouring wire pairs, other nearby electrical wiring, or the devices the cable was attached to.

Category 6 and 6a cables

In 2008, a new standard for data cabling was established: Category 6. These are essentially the same as CAT5/5e cables except that they transmit at frequencies of up to 350 MHz. This allows for greater data transmission speed; up to 10 Gbit/s! An upgraded version soon came out with Augmented Category 6 (CAT6a) cables, which are able to operate at 550 MHz, doubling the efficiency of data transmission of CAT6 cables. CAT6/6a cables are also required to produce less crosstalk than CAT5/5e cables, meaning less data loss and less reduction in transmission speed. CAT6 cables are also back-compatible with CAT5/5e cables.

So what do you get?

Your choice of cables will really depend on your Ethernet network. If you’ll be or you are running a 10GBASE-T Ethernet network, CAT6a cables will be just the ticket. If your Ethernet is 100BASE-T or 100BASE-TX, CAT5e cables will probably be sufficient. If you’re on a 1000BASE-T network, you can go either way, providing you use the best quality cable & ends. If speed is of the essence, CAT6a cables are on top of your list.

Other considerations will include the layout of your equipment, the design of your home or office, and structures within your building. Confusing yes? Well that’s where the services of a data cabling engineer will come in. If you need one in Central/Greater London or the surrounding Home Counties, I’m just a ring away.

Why Do I Need Data Cabling Validation?

Data cabling validation is a service we offer for homes and small businesses running CAT5e and CAT6 computer networks. It ensures that networks are running at maximum performance from the setup of the cable connections. Maybe it doesn’t require professional help to connect computers together to a data network. But it will require IT professionals, including a data cabling engineer to make sure that the network is running efficiently and smoothly.

The right connection

Data networks like Ethernet are not connected with plain old copper wiring. Data cables consist of 4 pairs of twisted copper wires. Depending on the way the copper wires are twisted and the coverings of the wires, different categories of cables transmit data at different frequencies. Generally, the higher the frequency, the faster the data transmission speed. High transmission speeds are important if you want to be able to transmit lots of data. For example, if you’re handling large amounts of data, sending voice, or even video across your network, CAT6 is the way forward.

Data cables are also checked for other characteristics. Electrical signals tend to get weaker as they travel through the cable and bleed out from the twisted wire pairs. This is called crosstalk and leads to slower data transmission. They are also influenced by electromagnetic interference (EMI), that comes from external electrical wiring and electronic devices, including the data devices that the cables are connected to. Depending on your network’s requirements for transmission speed, the way your cables are laid out, and the devices that you use, different categories of cables will produce different results.

Does your network cut the mustard?

Unless you’re an IT professional yourself, you might not be fully familiar with how your data network runs. Sure, your Ethernet network could be up and running now, but is it working as efficiently as it can? Are you getting your data in and out as fast as your network should provide?

Or maybe you’ve already noticed that your network or your computers are running more slowly after you moved some equipment around. Maybe you upgraded your connections but you aren’t getting the promised data speeds. You might be thinking, “Are my computers on the blink? Am I getting the performance I have paid for?”

Time for the professionals

Attenuation, or the slowdown of data speed, can result from incorrect cables and improper placement of cables. Maybe the source of your data transmission problems isn’t your computers or devices, but your cable connections. But you’d never know if you don’t know the first thing about data cabling. That’s where professional data cable validation comes in.

A data cabling engineer can come in with specialist equipment and check if you are using the correct category of cable for the speed of your network. He can check the layout of your cables within your home or office in the proper way to ensure proper functioning. He can also connect all your devices properly and test your network to make sure that everything is running at top speed.

Before you change your equipment, have your data cables validated first. Within the Central/Greater London, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and Milton Keynes areas, call us for a free site survey. You will receive a detailed proposal, showing how effective improvements can be achieved, recommendations and associated costs.

Find a Structured Cabling Engineer in the UK

If you live in the areas of Central and Greater London, Watford, Luton, Stevenage, Bedford or Milton Keynes, finding a structured cabling engineer should not be a difficult task. Running a business is a lot of work as it is. You don’t have to install and maintain an IT data communication system for your business on your own. Of course, you’d want someone nearby who will always be available and be near at hand when you need the help. Data cabling is definitely something you’re better off leaving to professionals.

Starting the right way

If you’re just about to install a computer network, a structured cabling engineer will be your go-to guy. A cabling engineer will know what equipment you need for an effective and efficient data network system. Most especially, he will know what type of connections you will need to run your network at a transmission speed suited for the data you use and for your other work needs.

Remember that it is important to choose the right cable category depending on the speed of your Ethernet connection, as well as the data type that is to be sent over the cables. If your need is shared data, printer sharing and shared internet access, then CAT5e will be sufficient. The newer, faster networks running fast response applications such as database, video or even running high definition TV, CAT6 is the way to go. Super fast networks that run up to 10 Gbits/s will require the latest CAT6a or fibre optic cabling. Your cabling engineer should be able to help you make informed choices depending on your budget and needs, in the form of a detailed proposal, stating all costs and justifying choices and recommendations made.

Do things the right way

Finding a cabling engineer from your area also means that he will be familiar with local building codes. He’ll know how to install cables within your premises without violating building codes. He will also know how to lay out your equipment and your cables so that your network runs efficiently and does not look like a cluttered, tangled mess of cables and devices.

Data cables are made to standards that ensure fast and accurate data transmission. Any mishandling of the cables during their layout and placement will create problems for your network. A cabling engineer can ensure that everything is laid out properly and can test your network when it is set up to make sure everything is running as it should.

Keeping things going

Finally, after-service support will always be prompt and available if your cabling engineer is from within your area. Outsourcing your network maintenance problems will decrease the problems that you have to deal with on your own. Getting professional help can also help you reduce your expenses due to unnecessary repairs.

J. Barton, one of our satisfied customers, contacted us to inform us that they’d been able to save almost 2000 GBP on unnecessary computer upgrades. They had initially thought their slower networks were due to their three year-old fileservers. After a free site survey by one of our cabling engineers accompanied by a van load of test equipment, they saw that the problem was linked to some new electrical wiring, which was causing interference with his data cables.

Local professional help within Central and Greater London and the surrounding Home Counties is just a phone call away. Let our IT professionals handle your networking needs.

What Is Data Cabling Verification?

Data cabling verification is done to ensure that manufactured data cables are able to meet the required international and industry standards. Data cables are typically made of 4 twisted pairs of copper wires. The characteristics of the cable include the size of the wires, how they are twisted, their casings, and several other manufacturing characteristics. These characteristics then combine to give the cable its performance with regard to data transmission.

Speed ratings

Depending on the performance of a data cable, it is categorized by industry standards set by the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA). The characteristics and performance of a data cable are measured in several parameters, set forth in the TIA Standard 568-B.2-10.

One of the most important parameters is the frequency with which the cable is able to transmit data. In general, the higher the frequency of the carrier signal in the cable, the greater the amount of data that can be sent through the cable in a shorter amount of time.

For example, Category 5e (CAT5e) cables are rated to carry signals up to 250 MHz. This allows CAT5e cables to carry data at speeds of up to 1 Gbit/s. The newer Category 6a (CAT6a) cables, on the other hand, can carry signals at 550 MHz. This allows for data transmission speeds of up to 10 Gbit/s. Using the best quality cable and connectors, maximises your ability to achieve the fastest levels of performance.

Signal noise and slower data

Data cables do not just have to follow standards for data transmission speed. They also have to follow performance specifications for the loss of electrical signals from the wires. This “bleeding” of electrical signal strength from the twisted wire pairs is called crosstalk. The newer CAT6 and CAT6a cables have more stringent requirements for the amount of signal noise produced by crosstalk, both at the origin and at the destination of the data packets. These parameters also have to be verified before a manufactured cable is marked as meeting CAT6/6a cable standards.

Signal loss also occurs simply because of the physical properties of copper wire. Most data cables carry copper wiring that has a maximum impedance of 100 ohm. However, the process of creating the twisting pairs within the data cable and the actual length of the cable, among other things, contribute to inevitable weakening of the data signal. This is called attenuation.

Once again, the newer CAT6 and CAT6a cables have stricter criteria for attenuation. Higher signal frequencies mean more data travelling through the cable. Thus it is more important that less attenuation occurs with these cables given the volume of data they are supposed to carry.

What are you using?

Data cables should be verified by the time they get to you. The markings indicating their verification for performance and safety should be printed on the outer insulation of the cable. If you aren’t up to par with your technical know-how, then the professional help of a cabling engineer or technician will be invaluable to you. Call us for a free site survey and we can tell you if you’re running the right kind cables in your network and the maximum amount of data that your cables can carry (using validation equipment).

FAQs on Data Cabling Dos and Donts

Data cables for your Ethernet network are made with very strict specifications to allow fast data transmission speeds with minimal signal loss or attenuation. The use of incorrect cables will reduce the efficiency and the speed of the network. Attenuation also increases when cables are improperly manipulated and placed within the premises.

If you are going to attempt to install data cabling within your home or office it is important that you know how cables should be correctly installed. This information should also prove useful if you are supervising some hired cabling engineers and need to check if they are doing it correctly.

Intact cables = Intact data

We want to make sure that when we link two devices together, the data that is transmitted from one device to another is kept intact and transmitted rapidly. Attenuation can result from crosstalk, which is the bleeding of electrical signals from the twisted wire pairs. It can also result from electromagnetic interference coming from other electrical wiring or devices. It is important that the cables’ physical characteristics are not altered. This will keep the cables intact longer and reduce signal noise and alteration.

Cable layout considerations

• DO remember that the most efficient cabling layout for your network is the Star Configuration. All devices should essentially be connected to one central hub. This ensures that if one link goes down, it does not bring down all the other links.
• DON’T over extend your cables beyond 330ft (100m) between links. If you’re running a cable around your home or office premises, remember that you will have to leave a length of patch cable. Ideally, patch cords are kept at 30ft (8m), so your cable runs should have a maximum length of 300ft (92m).
• DON’T over-bend your cables. Data cables have a rated minimum bending capacity, which is 4 times the diameter of the cable, or a 1-inch radius gradual bend. More bend than that and the wire will kink and slow down data signals.
• DO make sure that when you’ve laid out the cables, there are no kinks or crimps from neighbouring structures. These will also cause data slowdown.
• DON’T tie your cables to existing electrical wiring. Electro magnetic interference (EMI) from the other wiring will cause attenuation of the data signal.
• DO use appropriate cable supports.
  

Proper Cable Handling

• DON’T crimp cables with over-tight staples or plastic ties for attaching them to walls or ceilings.
• DO use insulated staples and Velcro straps.
• DON’T pull on cables with too much force or keep them too taut when you lay them out.
• DO use appropriate cable lubricant if you have to pull them through structures.
• DO use appropriate connectors for your wiring scheme (568A or 568B). Neither has an advantage over the other.
• DON’T mix wiring schemes on the same installation.
• DO keep the wires twisted as close as possible to the termination point.
• DON’T skin more than 1 inch off the termination point of the cable.
  

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