Cat 6 cable prices and quality

[Maineman]

Looking for advice on good cat 6 RJ 45 cables. I find 50 ft of unshielded cable for $6 something and 50 ft of cable that does not say it is shielded for $20. Prices vary for the 100 foot lengths as well. Have seen 5 mil gold plating on connectors advertised on some cables. Would prefer a shielded cable. What else do I need to look for besides the cable meeting the cat 6 standards?

 

[RealBeast]

You don't need CAT 6 for gigabit networking -- CAT 5e will work fine.

Unless you have really significant EMI sources you should not need shielded cable, but if you decide to go shielded use overall (ftp) rather than wired pair shielded (stp) cable and use proper grounded RJ45 jacks and receptacles or it won't really be grounded.

 

[Maineman]

Thanks. Will look and see if the jacks are grounded. I am working with 2 routers but not in the same network. Both are Linksys by Cisco and am assuming the jacks are grounded but will check with Cisco. Are NIC cards typically grounded?

The application at home is running 100 feet to a workshop at the back of the garage at my house. The cable will be run on the garage side of the interior wall that separates the workshop from the garage.

Do you think the cable will pick up significant EMI from the furnace, table saw and chop saw motors in the workshop?

The main question though is price and quality. Newegg has a Rosewell 100 ft shielded cable for $15 but Tiger Direct has a Cables To Go 100 ft shielded cable for $35. Both are cat 6. Which is the better deal?

 

[RealBeast]

Any cable that meets the Telecommunications Industry Association standard for the designation should be equal in quality at a minimum to meet the standard, so CAT 6 is CAT 6, all a matter of price. Same with most standards products, however you can get a USB 2.0 3 foot cable for $1 or $3000 that perform identically.

You will not need CAT 6 or shielding for that use, unshielded 5e will work fine. Also note that if any patch, jack or cable is not CAT 6 compliant the performance will be degraded to the quality of the least advanced part. Those are not significant EMI sources, but if you go with CAT 6, I would get the Rosewill.

 

[Maineman]

Thank you, that makes shopping hugely easier.

 

[Maineman]

Best answer selected by maineman.

 

[issabelnero]

Cat6 cables prices can vary depending upon the length of the wires. It generally comes in $20.00 and more. However, the quality of cat6 wirings are just amazing for networking. You will get high speed and security with these wires. This wires are also easy to connect using cat 6 connectors. The price available for these wires are good in return of the quality that you will get.