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cat5e and phone cable
"Ignoramus23410" wrote in message I am wondering if all 8 wires on a cat5e cable are used for Ethernet purposes, and if that is not the case, is there a couple I could use for phone. That way I could save $$ and time by running one cable instead of two. No all 8 wires are not used. An Ethernet patch cable has only 4 conductors - there should be a hint in that. You mention a router... are you using only one port on the router? Not sure what your plans are. Rich |
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Cat5 only needs two pairs of wires, but make sure you reserve color pairs.
If you strip back enough of the outer sheath, you'll find that wire pairs are visible. Each color pair, like blue and white/blue is twisted and this is important for the cat5 spec. bill "Ignoramus23410" wrote in message ... I need to run about 100-120 feet of cat5e cable to connect our bedroom to the utility room where the network switch, DSL router etc is. I ALSO need to run a phone cable, from utility room to the same bedroom. I am wondering if all 8 wires on a cat5e cable are used for Ethernet purposes, and if that is not the case, is there a couple I could use for phone. That way I could save $$ and time by running one cable instead of two. i |
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Ignoramus23410, 6/6/2005, 9:58:12 AM, wrote:
I need to run about 100-120 feet of cat5e cable to connect our bedroom to the utility room where the network switch, DSL router etc is. I ALSO need to run a phone cable, from utility room to the same bedroom. I am wondering if all 8 wires on a cat5e cable are used for Ethernet purposes, and if that is not the case, is there a couple I could use for phone. That way I could save $$ and time by running one cable instead of two. i CAT5e cable is usually used for 100Mbit connections which require only four wires. However this cable has also been used for 1000Mbit connections which do require all eight conductors. If you don't plan on using Gigabit then you should be okay. -- No matter what happens, someone will find a way to take it too seriously. |
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Ignoramus23410, 6/6/2005, 10:35:11 AM, wrote:
On 06 Jun 2005 14:19:45 GMT, badgolferman wrote: Ignoramus23410, 6/6/2005, 9:58:12 AM, wrote: I need to run about 100-120 feet of cat5e cable to connect our bedroom to the utility room where the network switch, DSL router etc is. I ALSO need to run a phone cable, from utility room to the same bedroom. I am wondering if all 8 wires on a cat5e cable are used for Ethernet purposes, and if that is not the case, is there a couple I could use for phone. That way I could save $$ and time by running one cable instead of two. i CAT5e cable is usually used for 100Mbit connections which require only four wires. However this cable has also been used for 1000Mbit connections which do require all eight conductors. If you don't plan on using Gigabit then you should be okay. That's cool, I have no gigabit plans at the moment. Question of the day is, then, which wires are used. I understand that I could pick any wires as long as I connect them to the jack properly. I use Leviton jacks from Home Depot. i http://www.la-cable.com/telephone_te...ring%20guide%2 0(TIA%20568B%20or%20AT&T) or http://tinyurl.com/9yjwr -- No matter what happens, someone will find a way to take it too seriously. |
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100base-T uses two of the four pairs. However, if you're thinking of
upgrading to 1000base-T, you'd be out of luck - gigabit ethernet uses all four pairs and requires cat6. I'd choose one of two options: - Go wireless for both the phone (800mhz/2Ghz) and network (with encryption) - Run two separate cables (one being cat6) and be done with it http://www.zytrax.com/tech/layer_1/cables/tech_lan.htm AL "Ignoramus23410" wrote in message ... I need to run about 100-120 feet of cat5e cable to connect our bedroom to the utility room where the network switch, DSL router etc is. I ALSO need to run a phone cable, from utility room to the same bedroom. I am wondering if all 8 wires on a cat5e cable are used for Ethernet purposes, and if that is not the case, is there a couple I could use for phone. That way I could save $$ and time by running one cable instead of two. i |
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On 6 Jun 2005 14:35:11 GMT, Ignoramus23410
wrote: On 06 Jun 2005 14:19:45 GMT, badgolferman wrote: Ignoramus23410, 6/6/2005, 9:58:12 AM, wrote: I need to run about 100-120 feet of cat5e cable to connect our bedroom to the utility room where the network switch, DSL router etc is. I ALSO need to run a phone cable, from utility room to the same bedroom. I am wondering if all 8 wires on a cat5e cable are used for Ethernet purposes, and if that is not the case, is there a couple I could use for phone. That way I could save $$ and time by running one cable instead of two. i Cat 5 is fine for phone and Cat 5 is fine for Ethernet, but it is bad practice to mix the two on the same cable. If at any time you have phone or Ethernet connection problems, you will need to know what arcane way the system was wired and it can make testing difficult unless you have good diagrams. The problem becomes more severe as the complexity of your system grows. I'm not saying it won't work and it may be the cheapest way to go, but a Wiring Pro wouldn't do it that way. Beachcomber |
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#8
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- Run two separate cables (one being cat6) and be done with it http://www.zytrax.com/tech/layer_1/cables/tech_lan.htm Maybe I will end up doing that. One advantage to dedicating a cable to ethernet is that it could run two parallel ethernet connections. A lot of times there is more to Ethernet than meets the eye. It's very easy to mess up the connectors and put the wrong colored wire in the wrong crimp slot. Often more is needed than just a simple continuity check. Running the cable too close to electric conduits or fluourescent lamps can cause problems. The mere act of stretching the cable with 25 lbs of force during installation can dramatically degrade the performance permanantly. That's why they have guys going around with 5-10 thousand dollar Fluke meters going around certifying that the cable installation as meeting the performance standards for Cat 5, 5e, or 6. Many businesses require this. For a home installation, you may not have (or even need) the big bucks fancy meter, but it pays to take extra care in doing the installation correctly and not mix it with phone wiring, doorbell circuits, etc. Beachcomber |
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Thanks. I do not understand what's wrong with putting cat5e cables next to electrical conduits (we have metallic conduits), but the rest makes sense to me. i Here's a tutorial that perhaps might explain some of the restrictions. If you tied your cables to electrical conduits for any significant length, it might still work but it could fail certification. http://www.lanshack.com/cat5e-tutorial.asp From a physics standpoint, what you are concerned with is electromagnetic shielding. A grounded conduit provides nearly 100% electrostatic shielding, but the currents in the electrical conductors within produce a dynamic magnetic field that leaves the boundary of the conduit and is almost impossible to shield or contain. A few years ago, everyone was concerned about these low frequency magnetic fields but if was difficult to prove that they caused any health hazards. They can and do interfere with communications circuits, though, and this is why there is a specific prohibition about attatching cat5 to conduit. Beachcomber |
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Beachcomber ) said...
[about using a pair of wires in an Ethernet Cat 5 cable for phone] I'm not saying it won't work and it may be the cheapest way to go, but a Wiring Pro wouldn't do it that way. It would likely work, but at what quality? Even with twisted pairs, there will be some cross talk between them and the question becomes, "How much can you tolerate"? For phone users, this cross talk will show up as hiss and other noise in the call. Depending on how much is introduced, this may not even be noticable, or it might be downright annoying. For data, the cross talk will show up as data errors which will only be noticable as a slow-down in network traffic (as packets with errors are resent). -- Calvin Henry-Cotnam "Never ascribe to malice what can equally be explained by incompetence." - Napoleon ------------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE: if replying by email, remove "remove." and ".invalid" |
#11
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It is common practice to terminate both an ethernet jack and phone line
using one cat5 cable. "Ignoramus23410" wrote in message ... I need to run about 100-120 feet of cat5e cable to connect our bedroom to the utility room where the network switch, DSL router etc is. I ALSO need to run a phone cable, from utility room to the same bedroom. I am wondering if all 8 wires on a cat5e cable are used for Ethernet purposes, and if that is not the case, is there a couple I could use for phone. That way I could save $$ and time by running one cable instead of two. i |
#12
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Ignoramus23410 wrote:
I need to run about 100-120 feet of cat5e cable to connect our bedroom to the utility room where the network switch, DSL router etc is. I ALSO need to run a phone cable, from utility room to the same bedroom. I am wondering if all 8 wires on a cat5e cable are used for Ethernet purposes, and if that is not the case, is there a couple I could use for phone. That way I could save $$ and time by running one cable instead of two. i You can use the center pair of wires (I'm not sure what the color code is) for telephone. That's why a RJ45 ethernet connector uses pins 1,2,3,6. 4 and 5 were reserved by the old "Starnet" (Xerox?) standard for telephone. You can plug an RJ11 telephone line into a RJ45 socket wired this way to get a telephone signal. I have one jack in my basement wired like that, but I generally run a seperate CAT3 cable for telephone. Bob |
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Beachcomber wrote:
Thanks. I do not understand what's wrong with putting cat5e cables next to electrical conduits (we have metallic conduits), but the rest makes sense to me. i Here's a tutorial that perhaps might explain some of the restrictions. If you tied your cables to electrical conduits for any significant length, it might still work but it could fail certification. http://www.lanshack.com/cat5e-tutorial.asp From a physics standpoint, what you are concerned with is electromagnetic shielding. A grounded conduit provides nearly 100% electrostatic shielding, but the currents in the electrical conductors within produce a dynamic magnetic field that leaves the boundary of the conduit and is almost impossible to shield or contain. A few years ago, everyone was concerned about these low frequency magnetic fields but if was difficult to prove that they caused any health hazards. They can and do interfere with communications circuits, though, and this is why there is a specific prohibition about attatching cat5 to conduit. Beachcomber I may be wrong but, I don't think that's right. That's why ethernet uses twisted pairs of wires -- so it can reject common mode interference. A voltage caused by a stray magnetic field would be equally induced on both conductors of the pair and would be rejected. Bob |
#14
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On Wed, 08 Jun 2005 22:34:41 -0400, Unrevealed Source wrote:
It is common practice to terminate both an ethernet jack and phone line using one cat5 cable. Not in my house, it isn't. -- If you're not on the edge, you're taking up too much space. Linux Registered User #327951 |
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Ignoramus23410 wrote:
On Mon, 6 Jun 2005 10:13:10 -0400, RichK wrote: "Ignoramus23410" wrote in message I am wondering if all 8 wires on a cat5e cable are used for Ethernet purposes, and if that is not the case, is there a couple I could use for phone. That way I could save $$ and time by running one cable instead of two. No all 8 wires are not used. An Ethernet patch cable has only 4 conductors - there should be a hint in that. thanks. You mention a router... are you using only one port on the router? Not sure what your plans are. The intended topology of our home network is as follows: Wall - DSL Jack - DSL Modem - Network Switch - Linux box - Windows XP box - LinkSys wireless router - Laptop 1 - Laptop 2 DSL modem and network switch are in the basement utility room, and Windows XP box has been relocated to our bedroom on the opposite side of the house. That necessitates a 120 ft cable run. i Also RJ45 and RJ12 plugs are physically compatible. That is you can plug an RJ12 (phone) into an RJ45(Ethernet). And if you use the proper wiring convention (forget if its 568A or 568B) the center wires will be open and you can have both phone and ethernet in the same jack. Not that you would want too. At my old home I had 1 pair running up to my computer room that brought my ISDN line, 1 pair returning to the basement which was one of the house phone line that ran from my ISDN Adapter, and connected to the rest of the house phone lines, and 2 pair for ethernet that ran back to basement for my router in the basement. It was perfect. -- Respectfully, CL Gilbert |
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"CL (dnoyeB) Gilbert" wrote in message ... Ignoramus23410 wrote: On Mon, 6 Jun 2005 10:13:10 -0400, RichK wrote: "Ignoramus23410" wrote in message I am wondering if all 8 wires on a cat5e cable are used for Ethernet purposes, and if that is not the case, is there a couple I could use for phone. That way I could save $$ and time by running one cable instead of two. No all 8 wires are not used. An Ethernet patch cable has only 4 conductors - there should be a hint in that. thanks. You mention a router... are you using only one port on the router? Not sure what your plans are. The intended topology of our home network is as follows: Wall - DSL Jack - DSL Modem - Network Switch - Linux box - Windows XP box - LinkSys wireless router - Laptop 1 - Laptop 2 DSL modem and network switch are in the basement utility room, and Windows XP box has been relocated to our bedroom on the opposite side of the house. That necessitates a 120 ft cable run. i Also RJ45 and RJ12 plugs are physically compatible. That is you can plug an RJ12 (phone) into an RJ45(Ethernet). And if you use the proper wiring convention (forget if its 568A or 568B) the center wires will be open and you can have both phone and ethernet in the same jack. Not that you would want too. At my old home I had 1 pair running up to my computer room that brought my ISDN line, 1 pair returning to the basement which was one of the house phone line that ran from my ISDN Adapter, and connected to the rest of the house phone lines, and 2 pair for ethernet that ran back to basement for my router in the basement. It was perfect. -- Respectfully, CL Gilbert The whole point of 568A ( or B ) is to have 4 and 5 available for the telephone. 1, 2, 3 and 6 are the data lines. -- Herb Stein |
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I am wondering if all 8 wires on a cat5e cable are used for
Ethernet purposes, and if that is not the case, is there a couple I could use for phone. That way I could save $$ and time by running one cable instead of two. No all 8 wires are not used. An Ethernet patch cable has only 4 conductors - there should be a hint in that. Just to jump into the middle here... Gigabit ethernet DOES use ALL eight wires... Even if you only do 100mb networking, having phone on the unused pair will still introduce noise and degrade your network. Pull a separate line for telephone! Do NOT mix your networking with any other signals on the same bundle. |
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Noozer wrote:
I am wondering if all 8 wires on a cat5e cable are used for Ethernet purposes, and if that is not the case, is there a couple I could use for phone. That way I could save $$ and time by running one cable instead of two. No all 8 wires are not used. An Ethernet patch cable has only 4 conductors - there should be a hint in that. Just to jump into the middle here... Gigabit ethernet DOES use ALL eight wires... Even if you only do 100mb networking, having phone on the unused pair will still introduce noise and degrade your network. Pull a separate line for telephone! Do NOT mix your networking with any other signals on the same bundle. A phone line on 1 pair will introduce a lot less noise than a network line on 2 pair. Its negligible. I would mix. Hes not running an ISP anyway... Of course I am also one of those people that likes to have an extra pair, so if you can you might as well run 2. 2xcat 5 is preferred over 1xcat 5 1x phone line. -- Respectfully, CL Gilbert |
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