Does it matter...5 0r 6 cat cable ?

[trinaz]

Have a wired network with a gigabyte lan card and a Netgear WNR3500 "N" router...will switching from 5 cat to 6 cat on the hardlines make any difference in home network performance..throughput...etc ??

Thanks...TR

 

[zigzag3143]

Have a wired network with a gigabyte lan card and a Netgear WNR3500 "N" router...will switching from 5 cat to 6 cat on the hardlines make any difference in home network performance..throughput...etc ??

Thanks...TR

Cat 6 will give you better transfer speeds from computer to computer in your network. it will also auto sense devices. It wont make your internet any faster

Ken

 

[pparks1]

Technically cat 5e and 6 support gigabit speeds over copper. Therefore, there shouldn't be any speed difference between them. Standard Cat 5 is rated for 100 megabits per second....

 

[zigzag3143]

Technically cat 5e and 6 support gigabit speeds over copper. Therefore, there shouldn't be any speed difference between them. Standard Cat 5 is rated for 100 megabits per second....

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Absolutely true except he didnt say cat 5e. just cat 5.

 

[JonM33]

Absolutely true except he didnt say cat 5e. just cat 5.

He (the OP) didn't say anything about making his internet faster either, but you brought it up.

Overall, it's good to know about Cat 5e anyway.

 

[Adrian]

Have a wired network with a gigabyte lan card and a Netgear WNR3500 "N" router...will switching from 5 cat to 6 cat on the hardlines make any difference in home network performance..throughput...etc ??

Thanks...TR

Good morning Trinaz, cat 6 AKA as crossover wire is predominately used in switches, a switch is a piece of hardware that allows systems to connect into the switch, a switch provides no protection, ie: firewall etc. It simply allows several S/O systems to simaltaneously connect to an IP/Network.
Cat 5 AKA ethernet wire is predominately used to connect directly into any type broadband delivery device including network hardware, ie: router.

 

[pparks1]

Good morning Trinaz, cat 6 AKA as crossover wire is predominately used in switches, a switch is a piece of hardware that allows systems to connect into the switch, a switch provides no protection, ie: firewall etc. It simply allows several S/O systems to simaltaneously connect to an IP/Network.
Cat 5 AKA ethernet wire is predominately used to connect directly into any type broadband delivery device including network hardware, ie: router.

I'm sorry that is not correct. Category 6 does not mean a crossover cable. You could have a Category 6 straight through ethernet cable and you could have a category 6 crossover cable.

You can also have a category 5 straight through and a category 5 crossover.

The only thing that determines whether a cable is straight through or is crossed over is whether the wires going into the RJ45 end is straight end to end (same) or crossed over (different).

 

[ionbasa]

well it also depends on speed and lenght of the wire/run!! important. for long runs and max performance go with cat6a, but it will only improve transfers in your network!! for what I know there is no "Gigabit" to home connections yet, even with fiber so, it up to you. if its a large network go with cat 6a(long runs and max performance) or if you have small network( less than 20-30 nodes) go with regular cat 6. just my opinion.

 

[Adrian]

Good morning Trinaz, cat 6 AKA as crossover wire is predominately used in switches, a switch is a piece of hardware that allows systems to connect into the switch, a switch provides no protection, ie: firewall etc. It simply allows several S/O systems to simaltaneously connect to an IP/Network.
Cat 5 AKA ethernet wire is predominately used to connect directly into any type broadband delivery device including network hardware, ie: router.

I'm sorry that is not correct. Category 6 does not mean a crossover cable. You could have a Category 6 straight through ethernet cable and you could have a category 6 crossover cable.

You can also have a category 5 straight through and a category 5 crossover.

The only thing that determines whether a cable is straight through or is crossed over is whether the wires going into the RJ45 end is straight end to end (same) or crossed over (different).

I stand corrected, my apoplogies.

 

[trinaz]

Also...do you loose anything in the way of performance by using a cat 6e coupler to join 2 existing lenghts...rather than spending additonal $$ on a longer cable ?

Thanks...TR

 

[trinaz]

OK to use coupler in a cat 6e lan run ?

Do you loose anything in the way of performance by using a cat 6e coupler to join 2 existing 10' lenghts of Cat 6e cable...rather than spending additonal $$ on a 20 ft cable ?

Thanks...TR

 

[Dwarf]

There might be a slight drop in performance at the upper frequency end of data transfer rate (i.e. 1Gb as opposed to 100Mb). Other than that, probably negligible. It's always best, though, to use a length of cable that is suitable for what you need.

 

[Digerati]

I would not advise EVER using a coupler. Even with a cable of the highest quality and workmanship, anytime you add a connection, you add resistance and capacitance. And a coupler adds two connections. With that short of cable, resistance is probably not an issue (assuming no damage), but capacitance can affect high speed circuits. And with Cat-6, I am assume you are using a 1Gbit network, or might in the future.

But let's be realistic here. I know every penny counts, especially on a tight budget, but when you can get a 25 foot Cat-6 cable from a major maker for less than $5.00 at Walmart, forget about a coupler and go buy the cable.

BTW - you can run a 1Gbit network with Cat-5e just fine - just make sure it is 5e and not just 5.