Finding the right cable (CAT5, CAT6, CAT7)

Zarif_S

Commendable
Jun 22, 2016
4
0
1,510
Hi, so I am trying to run internet from my modem in the basement all the way upstairs (basement, ground floor, 2nd floor layout) to my room in the 2nd floor with a 100ft ethernet cable. A quick search on Amazon however left me a little confused. Price isn't a factor at the moment as long as the prices is less than $50, so I came across a bunch of cables. Some were 250MHz (whatever that is) while others are 550Mhz, some are Cat5e, while others are CAT7. My internet is dual band in 2.4 and 5g, and my internet speeds while wired go upto 200Mbps on speedtest.

What cable should be my best bet for this distance and to get the best speed on my Computer upstairs?
 
Solution
That is a extremely deceptive add for cable.

First I don't think there is any flat cable that is certified cable and if you buy uncertified cable you only have the vendors statement that it will work. The wire size is too small in almost all flat cable and does not meet the minimum size requirements to be certified.

The statement that you can run 250mhz cable at 10g is not correct. That is the key difference between cat6 cable and cat6a. Pretty much if you are going to run 10g you buy cat6a if not you buy cat5e. Cat6 cable really has no purpose.

Unless you just have to have flat cable I would buy standard cable. If you were to take a meter used to certify cable I suspect no flat cable would pass all the tests.
First you will never go faster than your internet connection.

Likely your equipment has gig ports which means you only need cat5e. It is certified to run at 1g speed with no problems. You only would run better cable if you had or were planning to run 10g. Using better cable and connecting to gig ports will buy you nothing since the port not the cable controls the speed. Now sometimes you can get cat6 for cheaper and it will not hurt to use that cable it just will not gain you anything.

You have to be very careful with cable from amazon. They sell a lot of non rated cable. You need to look for the key words eia/tia certified. The big one you want to avoid is CCA cable (copper clad aluminum). It is not a certified cable and has all kinds of issues from poor connection on the ends to problems transferring data at longer lengths. You want solid copper cable.
 

Zarif_S

Commendable
Jun 22, 2016
4
0
1,510


Hi so is there no need for my concern on the 250MHz to 550MHz difference I see in some cables? Are these irrelevent in my case?

PS: I am looking at this cable right here: https://www.amazon.ca/Hexagon-Network-Ethernet-Internet-Connectors/dp/B010HKPLII/ref=sr_1_8?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1467047837&sr=1-8&keywords=100ft+ethernet
 
That is a extremely deceptive add for cable.

First I don't think there is any flat cable that is certified cable and if you buy uncertified cable you only have the vendors statement that it will work. The wire size is too small in almost all flat cable and does not meet the minimum size requirements to be certified.

The statement that you can run 250mhz cable at 10g is not correct. That is the key difference between cat6 cable and cat6a. Pretty much if you are going to run 10g you buy cat6a if not you buy cat5e. Cat6 cable really has no purpose.

Unless you just have to have flat cable I would buy standard cable. If you were to take a meter used to certify cable I suspect no flat cable would pass all the tests.
 
Solution