Cat5/5e, Cat6/6a, Cat7 and Cat8 Cable

In the era of information explosion, almost everyone needs to access the Internet, and almost everywhere is equipped with networks and network cables, but you may not know that although network cables look the same, they actually have different categories. Here, this article will compare the widely used Cat5e network cables (category 5e network cables), Cat6 network cables (category 6 network cables), Cat6a network cables (category 6e network cables) and Cat7 network cables (category 7 network cables) in the market to help you choose the right network cables.

Overview of Cat5e/Cat6/Cat6a/Cat7 Network Cables

Network cables, also known as network jumpers and twisted pair cables, are the most common transmission media in integrated wiring. They are widely used in local area networks because of their low prices. The following table simply lists the four most common types of network cables currently available.

● Cat5e network cable has a transmission speed of 1000Mbps and a frequency bandwidth of 100MHz;

● Cat6 network cable supports a transmission speed of up to 10Gbps (only for short distances) and a frequency bandwidth of up to 250MHz;

● The frequency bandwidth of Cat6a network cable is twice that of Cat6 network cable, and the transmission distance in 10GBASE-T network is longer than that of Cat6 network cable;

● Cat7 network cable has the same transmission speed as Cat6a network cable and a frequency bandwidth of up to 600MHz;

● Cat5e network cable, Cat6 network cable and Cat6a network cable all have RJ45 connectors, but Cat7 network cable connector is special. Its connector type is GG45 (compatible with RJ45) and TERA (launched in 1999)

Cat5e vs Cat6

Although Cat5e and Cat6 cables have the same connector (RJ45) and working principle and can be plugged into any Ethernet jack on a computer, router or other similar device, there are some differences between them. For example, due to the different application environments mentioned above, Cat5e cables can only be used in Gigabit Ethernet with a maximum transmission distance of 100m; while Cat6 cables can be used in both Gigabit Ethernet and 10 Gigabit Ethernet, but in 10 Gigabit Ethernet, the maximum transmission distance of Cat6 cables is 55m.

In addition, the transmission performance of Cat5e and Cat6 cables is also different. Cat6 cables have internal splitters to reduce interference or near-end crosstalk (NEXT). Compared with Cat5e cables, it also improves far-end crosstalk (ELFEXT) and has lower return loss and insertion loss, so Cat6 cables have better performance.

Cat6 cable VS Cat6a cable

As can be seen from the above, Cat6a cable has a higher frequency bandwidth than Cat6 cable. When used in 10 Gigabit Ethernet, the transmission distance of Cat6a cable is farther than that of Cat6 cable, with a maximum transmission distance of 100m, while the transmission distance of Cat6 cable ranges from 37m to 55m; at the same time, Cat6a cable is more power-saving than Cat6 cable.

In addition, there are differences in their transmission performance. Compared with Cat6 cable, Cat6a cable has a larger conductor diameter, dense core twisting, and adopts a double shielding method of aluminum foil shielding layer + metal braided mesh. It has good heat dissipation and resistance to external electromagnetic interference and crosstalk between pairs, which can effectively improve the signal-to-noise ratio.

Cat6a cable VS Cat7 cable

In fact, Cat7 was proposed before Cat6a and is a cable for 10 Gigabit Ethernet. Compared with Cat6a cable, Cat7 cable adopts the structure of shielding each pair + total shielding (that is, each pair of wires has a shielding layer, and the four pairs of wires have a large shielding layer together), which has a strong anti-electromagnetic interference effect and can effectively suppress electromagnetic interference between wire pairs (NEXT, etc.) and electromagnetic interference between wire pairs (ANEXT). In addition, there are differences in the connectors of Cat6a cable and Cat7 cable. Usually, Cat7 cable uses GG45 connector, which is slightly different from RJ45 of Cat6a cable, but this connector is compatible with RJ45.

In addition, according to relevant experimental verification, the transmission rate of Cat7 cable can reach 40Gbps, 50Gbps and 100Gbps, which is higher than Cat6a cable. In other words, the transmission performance of Cat7 cable is better than that of Cat6a cable.