Power lines interfering with wired connection

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The Robo COP

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Aug 2, 2014
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I'm going to set up my PS4 in the basement of the house I am renting. I want to use a wired connection to prevent lag for online gaming. I had a 50 ft cat5 cable (unshielded) that I ran (the cable and modem are upstairs) and I wasn't able to get a connection. Using the Xbox 360 it would occasionally show that there was a connection but only for a second at a time and then cut out. I am assuming the interference is caused by the power lines that I have to run by (perpendicular). There are about 5 of them all running across the basement and running by them is unavoidable. They are also all ran together. Obviously rewiring the power lines is not a possibility at the moment.

My question is, will a 25 or 50 foot cat6 shielded wire work well enough to cut out this interference? I know that that is the whole point of the shield, but I am unsure of if a group of 5 power lines causes so much interference that the shield wouldn't be able to negate it.

Just want to make sure before I spend the $10-$15 on it (broke college student).

Thanks in advance.

EDIT: There may be some confusion. When I say power lines I mean the electrical power lines for the house itself (those that go to outlets). I've read that these electrical lines can and will mess with wired connections so I suspect that that is the problem. I also read that you should never run parallel with these power lines, which is why I noted that I am only running across them

DOUBLE EDIT: I am also curious if people have any suggestions on a certain brand? As of now on Amazon I can get cat6 shielded from a company called "Cable Matters." There is also a cat7 double shielded from "Tera Grand" (25ft for $20). I suspect that that one may be overkill but if it offers more shielding than the cat6 would it be worthwhile to spend the extra money?
 
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What is the difference between a power cord and the wires in the house they are wires that power flow though. The power has no idea what it is flowing in. It is all the same voltage, now if you climbed up the poles outside the house and ran them over those lines then maybe there is a difference. Try the simple solutions first before you decide it is some rare problem. Remember the cable manufactures are going to claim the boogie man is hiding under every table to get you to buy stuff. The only time I have even seen shielded cable used was when it was required to keep the data signals from getting OUT of the cable and interfering with sensitive lab equipment.

I work for a huge company that has more than 200,000 employees we...
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bill001g

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Aug 9, 2012
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It is unlikely the power cables cause issues. Generally it would have to be something like a motor or a ballast in a light. Shielded cable does not help unless it is properly grounded to the equipment. If it installed incorrectly it can make the problem worse.

The easy test if you can pull the cable back is to take the xbox and put it next to the modem and hook it up with the cable. If you put the ends on the cable yourself it is likely it is not properly done. It take quite a bit of practice to get them correct. If it is commercial cable that is a little difference you need to be sure you did not damage it when you run it.

The key reason I suspect it is not a problem with power cables is when you build server racks you have power cables and data cables all crammed into the wire management right on top of each other many times it there is not room for even 1 more cable. I have yet to see any issues with interference . That is not to say it can't happen but it would be unlikely. In most cases we use normal cat5e.

To use shielded cable you are going to have to hook the shield to the building ground on both ends. I would try everything else before you go that option.
 
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The Robo COP

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Aug 2, 2014
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There may be some confusion. When I say power lines I mean the electrical power lines for the house itself (those that go to outlets). I've read that these electrical lines can and will mess with wired connections so I suspect that that is the problem. I also read that you should never run parallel with these power lines, which is why I noted that I am only running across them
 
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bill001g

Titan
Aug 9, 2012
28,322
2,754
125,640
What is the difference between a power cord and the wires in the house they are wires that power flow though. The power has no idea what it is flowing in. It is all the same voltage, now if you climbed up the poles outside the house and ran them over those lines then maybe there is a difference. Try the simple solutions first before you decide it is some rare problem. Remember the cable manufactures are going to claim the boogie man is hiding under every table to get you to buy stuff. The only time I have even seen shielded cable used was when it was required to keep the data signals from getting OUT of the cable and interfering with sensitive lab equipment.

I work for a huge company that has more than 200,000 employees we never use shielded cable and only 1 time have I ever seen interference and the idiot had run the cable though a florescent ceiling light fixture which was a code violation in the first place.
 
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