The difference method of five types, six types and seven types of network cables

At present, our most commonly used network cables are Category 5 network cables, Category 5e network cables, Category 6 network cables, and Category 7 network cables. The five types of network cables have been replaced by super five types of network cables. Category 7 network cables are expensive and rarely used. In our daily life, the network cable refers to the twisted pair in the network cable.

Twisted pair is the most commonly used network cable in LAN. The network we come into contact with every day is basically a local area network, and the network cables used are mainly twisted pair cables.

The twisted pair is twisted together by pairs of mutually insulated metal wires to resist external electromagnetic interference, but more importantly, to reduce the interference of its own signal to the outside world. The interference signal generated by one wire of the twisted pair during signal transmission will be canceled by the interference signal of the other wire.

The difference between the most commonly used network cables

Category 5 network cable: The transmission bandwidth is 100 MHz, used for voice transmission and data transmission, and the maximum transmission rate is 100 Mbit/s. It is mainly used in 100BASE-T and 10BASE-T networks, and has been replaced by Category 5e network cables.

Category 6 network cable: The transmission bandwidth of this type of network cable is 250 MHz. The transmission performance of Category 6 network cable is much higher than that of Category 5e standard network cable. It is most suitable for applications with a transmission rate of 1Gbps.

Category 6e network cable: Category 6e network cable is an improved version of Category 6 network cable, which is mainly used for 10 Gigabit networks. The transmission frequency is 500 MHz, and the maximum transmission speed can reach 10Gbps.

Category 7 network cable: mainly used to adapt to the application and development of 10 Gigabit Ethernet technology. However, it is no longer an unshielded twisted pair, but a shielded twisted pair, so its transmission frequency can reach at least 600 MHz, and the transmission rate can reach 10 Gbps.

That is to say, if we want to build a gigabit network, we must use a minimum of five types of network cables, and it is best to use six types of network cables. However, when the transmission distance is long (more than 100 meters), it is necessary to use more than six types of network cables.

It should also be mentioned that in a 100M network, the network cable has only two sets of cores for data transmission, that is, 1236 four lines, so some people will only use one network cable with four cores, or divide it into two network lines, some Low-end switches and modules only have four pins, but all eight wires in a gigabit network will be used for data transmission, so it's impossible to connect only four wires.

The characteristics of the network cable

Different types of network cables have different appearances. Generally speaking, it is difficult to distinguish between five categories and super five categories in appearance. The difference between Super Five and Six is relatively large. Category 6 network cables will have a cross skeleton. Category 7 network cables are shielded twisted-pair cables. In addition to the shield inside the jacket, each pair of wires has a shield, which is relatively easy to distinguish. Different types of network cables are usually marked on the shell, cat.5e for category five, and cat.6 for category six.

In short, the network cables we often use have developed from five categories to seven categories. However, the network cables used in mainstream Gigabit networks are still Category 5e and Category 6 cables, and Category 6a cables (Cat6a) are mainly used in 10 Gigabit networks. As far as home use is concerned, Cat6e network cables are enough to meet the needs of any family, and it is really a waste to go higher.