Best place to buy CAT 5e cable: 50-75'

[n8dagr8]

Looking to see if you guys know a good place to buy about 50-75' of CAT 5e cable. This is what I have found so far. (http://www.ramelectronics.net/html/cat5e_cables.html#50)


and this (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16812105312)


What things do I need to know before buying?

What the diff. between crossover and patch?

500MHz better than 350 better than X?

Any benifits to CAT 6 over CAT 5?


How about this (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16812105311) ?

[Bogy]

I'll take the easy one. Crossover cables are used to link two computers directly, without using a router or hub.

[n8dagr8]

I'll take the easy one. Crossover cables are used to link two computers directly, without using a router or hub.

hehe....thanks.

Just noticed, it's in the way they configure the wires inside each. I want patch.

[DonLandis]

I buy it in bulk at Home Depot or Lowes and crip on my own connectors. The crip-ons are a bit tricky but once you get the hang of lining up the wires properly and trim the free ends together it goes rather quickly. All I needed was magnifying head gear and a good light so I don't make color mistakes. Buying the cable with connectors molded on gets expensive.


Also, there are two standards for arranging your wires in the connector. A and B Important to chose one and use it at both ends. :) I use A as it is easy to remember for me.

You got the correct info on the x-over. It is like the null modem cable. Nice to have one around to link two computers in a 1 on 1 network for transferring files but mostly you'll be using "patch cables" that as the same configuration at both ends.

If you do decide to build your own, make sure you trim the free ends back no more than 1/2 inch untwisted. That is the spec.

[n8dagr8]

Yeah, I built the last few and I think it was crappy cable. We couldn't get it to run at 100 so we had to set the computers on the long runs to 10. I don't have the crimping tool (borrowed from a friend but he doesn't work were he was anymore), either. Yes, the crimping can be a pain in the, welll, you know. Everything has to be lined up so nice and neat. This (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16812105311) looks like pretty good cable at a fair price, with an extra 25' - man, that's a lot of cable! $15 total.

[Cholly]

You can't go wrong with Newegg. Good products, great service.

[n8dagr8]

You can't go wrong with Newegg. Good products, great service.



yep, what I find amazing about this whole thing, $15 total for 100' of pretty good cable with RJ-45 ends (everything I need). If I went to some store here in town and just bought 100' of crappy cable from one of those 1000' strands, it would cost me a lot more than that. What's with the mark-up?

[SimpleSimon]

Note that (most? all?) newer Ethernet adapters have automatic polarity checking.

That is, they don't care whether it's a straight or crossover cable.

I'm not saying you should deliberately not care any more, just that you can no longer depend on the machine to tell you which cable type it is by whether it works or not. ;)