We are building a new home and the builder is allowing me to run all the cables for audio/video, etc. Been doing a lot of research and debating between Cat 6 and Cat 6a/e. Anyone have any experience with this and is it worth the extra cost to go to the Cat 6a vs Cat 6? I've read 6a is more difficult to work with but may allow for more options in the future as technology continues to evolve. Thanks in advance.
Cat 6 vs Cat 6a/e?
- Thread starter jonnyb21
- Start date
Are you really worried that new technologies will be carried over cables?
CAT6 is fine. I use it all the time and I work in commercial AV. I would suggest CAT6A only if you were worried about interference or if you want your home wired for 10G service (the distance limitation on that is around 175ft). I suppose another consideration was if you wanted to eventually get in to PoE (power over ethernet) for your devices but even then the distances in your home should be able to handle that over CAT6. If you just want to wire for 1G service with general AV applications, then standard CAT6 is fine and distance limitation is 330ft (but I tend to limit my runs to 275ft, just to be on the safe side).
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This is a good point as well. You could save yourself a ton of headaches if you just went with a mesh network. There aren't many home applications where you need it to be wired unless you are talking high-end matrix video routing (like playing video from your man cave to multiple TVs throughout your house).
Yea but if you can afford it, why not Cat6A? If this is a forever home when in 20 years we're streaming 32K resolution. You'll definitely want that extra 9G a second.
I always say do the highest you're willing to pay in a "permanent" scenario. I understand Wireless is amazing and will only get better but better to furture proof your home
Cat 6 is fine, unless you’re building a house the size of a football field.
CAT6A would be major overkill for an average home user, won't even remotely touch that level of power usage for years and years to come, if ever at all. Then again, when building a house, it's a lot easier to run cable once now than it is to re-run newer cable later.
It's just a matter of 'future-proofing', and deciding whether or not that cost is worthwhile to you. CAT6 will gladly and easily do normal tasks for a long time to come.
It's just a matter of 'future-proofing', and deciding whether or not that cost is worthwhile to you. CAT6 will gladly and easily do normal tasks for a long time to come.
CAT 6 is purdy old, any reason why you are not considering Cat 7 or 8?
One thing to remember. CAT 6/7/8 is not just a cable standard but also includes installation standards. You can spend a lot of money on high end heavily shielded twisted pair cable and then lose all the benefit with a bad installation.
One thing to remember. CAT 6/7/8 is not just a cable standard but also includes installation standards. You can spend a lot of money on high end heavily shielded twisted pair cable and then lose all the benefit with a bad installation.
In regards to future proofing, perhaps run some conduit that you can fish lines through later, particularly between floors or to give options such as hiding entertainment components . Cat 6a may not he needed now but you never know what you might want to run later. Easier to make those paths now than after things are done
Wireless is better than it used to be but wired is still the best option for things you aren't moving around. Any entertainment components that are pulling video in should generally be wired if possible.
Could not agree more. I'm in the middle of running Cat6 throughout my existing house. It's a complete PITA, but it's still more effective than wireless. Over the years, I've purchased many wireless AP units and recently 2 different mesh products and none of them are consistent enough for my taste.
Basic physics: the more data through the wire, the shorter the attenuation (ie the shorter the cable). In most homes you can still adequately wire the distribution with Cat5e and backbone with Cat6. More importantly, you need to consider simple basic wiring basics (ie do not run over baluns, do not run parallel to electrical, use connectors and patch panels equal to the cabling, consider the health ramifications, plenum where required, no kinks, avoid any electrical interference, hubs/switches worthy of the cable, etc).
The smart home design uses conduit, making it easy to swap out cabling as desired. I know it's more expensive, but look at what you're considering now vs 5 years ago. Tomorrow, might be plastic fiber. A decade from now glass fiber might be the most cost effective solution. We're a capitalistic society trying to convince you what's new is what's best. But do you really 'need' it?
The smart home design uses conduit, making it easy to swap out cabling as desired. I know it's more expensive, but look at what you're considering now vs 5 years ago. Tomorrow, might be plastic fiber. A decade from now glass fiber might be the most cost effective solution. We're a capitalistic society trying to convince you what's new is what's best. But do you really 'need' it?
I don't remember the different cord specs, but when I did my theater basement I had to run the video signal over a pair of CAT cables because the length was too long for HDMI. I initially had issues because I ran un-shielded cables (I think CAT6) along the bulk head in the basement that had a lot of wires running from my air conditioner outside to my utility room with my furnace. In the summer, every time the air conditioner kicked on it would cut the video signal for a few seconds. I fixed this by running shielded cables and haven't had an issue since. So at the least, I'd recommend thinking about where they cables will be located and you might need to upgrade to something that has the proper shielding.
Cat 6 will be fine. Hell a lot of guys would still use Cat5e and be fine.
Make sure to run plenty of it. It's never easier to do than now.
I second the conduit if you can. Or at least in certain spots.
If you are doing the wiring or like to geek out about such things, Coccoontech is a great forum. They have a fantastic guide for Wiring Homes but I believe you have to sign up to download
http://cocoontech.com/forums/topic/6700-guide-wiring-your-new-house-101/
Make sure to run plenty of it. It's never easier to do than now.
I second the conduit if you can. Or at least in certain spots.
If you are doing the wiring or like to geek out about such things, Coccoontech is a great forum. They have a fantastic guide for Wiring Homes but I believe you have to sign up to download
http://cocoontech.com/forums/topic/6700-guide-wiring-your-new-house-101/
I would go with the best option you feel good with as far as price. All you know for sure is rewiring sucks, and data usage is growing exponentially so future proof as best you can. And wired is always going to have advantages over wireless.
Honestly, can you ever see yourself a few years down the road kicking yourself for not going with the slower cables? That is like wishing you bought a smaller TV, it just won't happen.
Honestly, can you ever see yourself a few years down the road kicking yourself for not going with the slower cables? That is like wishing you bought a smaller TV, it just won't happen.
Appreciate all of the feedback. Yes, a lot of this is about future proofing. Some areas I will either have access to in the future and other areas I plan to run conduit but other areas I likely will not have future access. I'm also in the hard wired preference over wireless camp so if I'm ever going to run the wires, now is the time to do it.
