determining CAT Cable?

Node Man

Hi Everybody,
If there is no writing on a CAT 3, 5, 5e or 6 cable, is there a way to determine its rating? Speedtest?


Thanks!

it_consultant

CAT 6 has a piece of plastic that runs down the core which separates the pins to prevent crosstalk. You can usually tell CAT6 because it is stiffer and can often feel like it is actually braided. Between CAT5E and CAT5 I use the probability of install date. If it was cabled in the last 10 years, it is probably CAT5E. CAT 3 is rarely used anymore, when it is it will look skinnier than the other CAT's and it is most often used to connect digital [not IP] phones. Digital phones from Avaya can use either in their digital port.

RouteMyPacket

I go by the meow it makes, Cat6 has a louder meow and will hiss at you whereas Cat5 purs and is like a pussycat.

ptilsen

There are cable testers that can test this with pretty good accuracy, but as IT_consultant said, stiffness and the plastic core are the easiest way.

To "speed test" it, you would need 10GBASE-T or 1000BASE-TX (read: not 1000BASE-T) equipment to see the inability of CAT5e to perform comparably.

It is fairly uncommon to find CAT5 or CAT3 these days, and in the case of the latter, you'll know it when you see it.

swild

It should be printed on the sheathing. I haven't seen any spec that requires cat6 to have that internal divider. It just has to perform to the rated frequency.

veritas_libertas

If it doesn't have a label than it's probably cheap/junk. If it's CAT3 than you will be able to tell, because it bends and you can feel the cables moving if you try to press on it with your fingers.

Michael2

I wouldn't mess with a cable that didn't have that information written on it because it's probably not IEEE approved. Nice, thought-provoking question.

gc8dc95

CAT6 does not always have a core. I use a mixture of with and without. CAT6 is typically a bit more bulged looking and you can feel the twists typically in a UTP version. CAT5 variants usually have a the normal slim and slick appearance. CAT3 is basically obsolete unless you are pulling this stuff out of building somewhere and looks more like regular phone wire, IMO. It is going to be almost impossible to be sure without a label or the proper tools. There is just too many slight variations in manufacturing as well as a huge number of different manufacturers.

About7Narwhal

RouteMyPacket wrote: »

I go by the meow it makes, Cat6 has a louder meow and will hiss at you whereas Cat5 purs and is like a pussycat.

I, for one, appreciated this insightful and educational tip. I thank you, sir.

higherho

Lol RouteMyPacket, that made me laugh.

For this day an age, push for CAT 6 install. Seriously I see people ordering CAT 5 just because its cheaper.

it_consultant

You know...CAT5E is good enough. Most new builds will be 5E, it is less expensive and if you are wiring for desktops/printers/wifi access points, etc, then the cheaper cable is fine.

it_consultant

gc8dc95 wrote: »

CAT6 does not always have a core. I use a mixture of with and without. CAT6 is typically a bit more bulged looking and you can feel the twists typically in a UTP version. CAT5 variants usually have a the normal slim and slick appearance. CAT3 is basically obsolete unless you are pulling this stuff out of building somewhere and looks more like regular phone wire, IMO. It is going to be almost impossible to be sure without a label or the proper tools. There is just too many slight variations in manufacturing as well as a huge number of different manufacturers.

This is true, but if you feel the plastic core you know you have a CAT6 cable. You could also rip off the tip and look for the insert:

http://www.monoprice.com/manual/How%20to%20-%20crimp%20RJ45%20w%20inserts.pdf

That instructional shows a CAT6 cable with the plastic core.

ptilsen

On the one hand, I agree CAT5e is good enough, because I don't see 10GbE to the desktop happening in the next ten years. Most larger buildings are still doing mostly 100 to the desktops.

On the other hand, every time I've done a cabling project I've gone with CAT6 because the price difference was basically nonexistent. Maybe it makes a big difference when you're doing a whole building, but in the smaller projects I've done it has generally been a two or three-figure difference.

gc8dc95

We do the same. Pretty much all new installation is Cat6. The price difference is minimal in the scheme of things.

it_consultant

On a side note...is there a copper based NIC card that runs at 10GB on the market? I have tons of 10GB NIC cards and I get 3 options, twinax, single mode, and multi-mode fiber.

ptilsen

10GBASE-T - Google Search

nerdinhiding

If you have a picture of it with the sheath off that can help. I can usually tell by the twist rate of the pairs. Category 3 is very easy to distinguish the rate is very loose. I agree with the other posters that if it is not labeled and UL / IEEE tested then it could cause problems. There is alot of counterfeit cable hitting the market that is has very aluminium levels in it to replace the copper cost. When advising customers on cat5e vs cat6 vs cat6A I ask these simple questions and let them decide:

Do you have alot of motors or fluorescent lights that cause noise in your cable paths?
Do you anticipate replacing this cable before migrating to 10GbaseT in the future?
Will you have cable pulls more than 55 meters long?

If question one is yes = cat6 / If no cat5e
If question two is no = cat6A / yes cat5e / 6
If question three is no = cat6 if yes cat6A

Contrary to belief 1Gbase-T will do just fine over cat5e for 100 meters but the extra noise headroom can be beneficial.
10Gbase-T is only rated to 55 meters over cat6, and not rated for 5e at all.

higherho

it_consultant wrote: »

You know...CAT5E is good enough. Most new builds will be 5E, it is less expensive and if you are wiring for desktops/printers/wifi access points, etc, then the cheaper cable is fine.

This is true, but if your on a multi million dollar project or just a big project and wiring up a campus for example you would want to use CAT 6 so you don't have to worry about your back end for a good long while. Its bad when you're mixing CAT5e and CAT 6 your speeds will degrade. Also 1 GIG to the desktop, you would get better performance from your CAT 6 than your CAT5e.

it_consultant

ptilsen wrote: »

10GBASE-T - Google Search

Yes, but does anyone actually have a 10GB card (I found one on Dell's website) which delivers 10GB to the switch over UTP -- I have never seen this. I would like to see it because I want 10GB to my desktop and so far my boss has been against the idea of running fiber down to my office.

higherho wrote: »

This is true, but if your on a multi million dollar project or just a big project and wiring up a campus for example you would want to use CAT 6 so you don't have to worry about your back end for a good long while. Its bad when you're mixing CAT5e and CAT 6 your speeds will degrade. Also 1 GIG to the desktop, you would get better performance from your CAT 6 than your CAT5e.

Don't get me wrong, I like CAT6 because it is better, period. However, if price is an (or the) issue then CAT5E is usually OK. Realistically we all reduced our performance by a factor of ten when we decided it was a superior idea to use IP phones which are 10/100.

ptilsen

it_consultant wrote: »

Yes, but does anyone actually have a 10GB card (I found one on Dell's website) which delivers 10GB to the switch over UTP -- I have never seen this. I would like to see it because I want 10GB to my desktop and so far my boss has been against the idea of running fiber down to my office.

As in does anyone here, present on this site have one? The link I gave includes cards that deliver 10GbE ports on a PCI-E card. I don't personally have one, but I have no reason to believe they don't work or anything like that.

Apparently, on further reading, they even work on CAT5e up to 148ft, 180ft on CAT6, or the full 330ft on CAT6a.

it_consultant

I haven't seen a switch yet which has a 10GB copper interface. The fiber/copper converter optics I have only go at 1GB.

ptilsen

Cisco Nexus 2232TM 10GE Fabric Extender - Cisco Systems

Haven't used one myself, of course.

gc8dc95

Well, a CAT7 standard is in the works. Then you will probably see CAT5e drop off the market in the coming years.