Tag Archives: Copper cable

Horizontal Cabling: Choose the Right Copper Cable

Copper-based cabling has held the dominate position as the most prevalent horizontal cable medium for years. The reason of this can be partly explained by the fact that copper cable is inexpensive and easy to install. Additionally, the networking devices associated with copper cabling are less costly compared with their fiber optic counterparts. Copper cable comes in a dazzling array of types, and since cable type determines the network’s topology, protocol, and size, understanding the features of each copper cable is necessary for the installation of a successful and robust network.

Copper Cable Types at First Glance

By far the widely installed and most economical copper cable today is twisted-pair wiring. In this form of wiring, two conductors are wound together (“twisted”) for the purposes of canceling out electromagnetic interference (EMI) from external sources, and crosstalk from neighboring conductors. Unshielded twisted pair (UTP) and shielded or screened twisted pair (STP or ScTP) are the two primary varieties of twisted pair on the market today. Screened twisted pair (ScTP) is a variant of STP. Next, we will focus on the characteristics and possible applications of them.

Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP)

Unshielded twisted pair (UTP) copper cable has been used in telephone systems for many years. And it was also intensively applied in local area networks (LANs) since late 1980s. UTP cabling typically has only an outer covering (jacket), which covers one or more pairs of wire that are twisted together. The lack of shielding enables a high degree of flexibility and durability, lower cost and simpler installation of UTP. During the past years, the bandwidth capabilities of UTP are consistently being improved, making it popular especially in computer networking. Four-pair UTP cables are often used for horizontal cabling, while multi-pair (25-,50-, or 100-pair) UTP cable is more commonly seen in backbone cabling.

UTP copper cable

Features of UTP are listed below:

  • Four-pair cables are typically used for horizontal cabling. Higher pair counts are often used for backbone cabling.
  • Its conductors are not surrounded by a metallic shield to prevent electrostatic or electromagnetic coupling.

UTP cable

Shielded Twisted Pair (STP)

Shielded twisted-pair copper cable has a metallic shield which significantly reduces the instances of interference-related network problems. Though more expensive to purchase and install than UTP, STP offers some distinct advantages: it is less susceptible to outside electromagnetic interference (EMI) than UTP cabling since all cable pairs are well shielded. As with UTP, four-pair cables are typically used for horizontal cabling. When it comes to STP, four-pair cables are offered in two versions:

STP and ScTP copper cable

Four-Pair Screened Twisted-Pair (F/UTP)

F/UTP (also referred to as ScTP) copper cable has an outer metal shielding covering the entire group of copper pairs. This type of shielding protects the cable from external EMI; however, the shield and drain wire add cost as well as size. The shield and drain wire also require bonding and grounding. F/UTP is recommended for use in hospitals, airports, or government/military communications centers.

F/UTP

Four-Pair Shielded Twisted-Pair (U/FTP)

U/FTP (also referred to as STP) copper cable includes metal shielding over each individual pair of copper wires. Besides protecting the cable from external EMI, U/FTP provides better near end crosstalk performance than F/UTP. However, the multiple shields also add more cost and size. Like F/UTP, the shield and drain wire require bonding and grounding.

U/FTP

Should I Choose Unshielded, Shielded, or Screened Copper Cable for Horizontal Cabling?

Network managers and cabling infrastructure designers are constantly in the dilemma to choose between these copper cables. Here we offer a solution for your reference.

For typical office environments, UTP cable always serves as the best choice (until fiber network components drop in price). Most offices don’t experience anywhere near the amount of electromagnetic interference (EMI) necessary to justify the additional expense of installing shielded twisted-pair cabling.

As for environments like hospitals and airports, it would be more beneficial to apply a shielded or screened cabling system. The deciding factor seems to be the external field strength. If the external field strength does not exceed three volts per meter (V/m), good-quality UTP cabling should work fine. If the field strength exceeds three V/m, shielded cable will be a better choice.

Conclusion

We have illustrated the characteristics and possible uses of different types of copper cable in this article. When it comes to horizontal cabling, your choice should base on the specific cabling environment and condition. Hope what we discussed here could help you to make the right decision.

Advantages of Fiber Cable Over Copper Cable

Selecting the optimum solution for your cabling infrastructure is vital. Basically there exist two options: fiber and copper. Since both offer some unique benefits and superior data transmission, it is rather hard to decide which one to use. Generally, your choice should depend on your current network, your future networking needs, and your particular application, including bandwidth, distances, environment, and cost. Although in some circumstance copper may be a better choice, in other situations, however, fiber cable obtains much more advantages.

fiber cable vs. copper cable

The very first step before you making the choice is to figure out the distinct properties of fiber optic cable and copper cable. To make it clear, we make a comparison here.

Advantages of Copper Cable

Power over Ethernet (PoE)—This offers you many other devices right through the networking cable itself, including power phones, surveillance cameras, Wireless Access Points (WAPs). It means that you don’t have to schedule an electrician in to run power to your surveillance cameras. Another advantage is the ability to have an emergency power supply that will continue powering mission critical devices even if your electricity goes out.

Less expensive electronics—If you are going to take fiber to the workspace, realize that most PC’s come with copper NIC cards. Optical ones will cost you between $100-200 each.

More flexible—TDM environments are built to run on copper infrastructures. Fiber can be used, however the electronics that make it work are expensive.

fiber vs.copper

Advantages of Fiber Cable
1.Greater Bandwidth

Fiber cable provides far greater bandwidth than copper and has standardized performance up to 10 Gbps. Keep in mind that fiber speeds are dependent on the type of cable used. Single-mode cable offers far greater distance than either 62.5- or 50-micron multimode cable. In addition, fiber optic cable can carry more information with greater fidelity than copper wire. That’s why telephone and CATV companies are converting to fiber.

2. Low Attenuation and Greater Distance

Because the fiber optic signal is made of light, very little signal loss occurs during transmission, and data can move at higher speeds and greater distances. Fiber does not have the 100-meter distance limitation of unshielded twisted pair copper (without a booster). Fiber distances can range from 300 meters to 40 kilometers, depending on the style of cable, wavelength, and network. Fiber cable performs better since fiber signals need less boosting than copper ones do.

3. Better Reliability and Immunity

Fiber provides extremely reliable data transmission. It’s completely immune to many environmental factors that affect copper cable. The core is made of glass, which is an insulator, so no electric current can flow through. It’s immune to electrometric interference (EMI) and crosstalk, impedance problems, and more. You can run fiber cable next to industrial equipment without worry. Fiber is also less susceptible to temperature fluctuations than copper and can be submerged in water.

4.Thinner and Sturdier

Fiber is lightweight, thin, and more durable than copper cable. Meanwhile, fiber optic cable has pulling specifications that are up to 10 times greater than copper cable’s. It’s easier to handle due to its small size, and it takes up much less space in cabling ducts. In addition, fiber is actually easier to test than copper cable.

5.More Flexibility

Media converters make it possible to incorporate fiber into existing networks. The converters extend UTP Ethernet connections over fiber optic cable. Modular patch panel solutions (we’ve discussed before) integrate equipment with 10 Gb, 40 Gb and 100/120 Gb speeds to meet current needs and provide flexibility for future needs. The panels in these solutions accommodate a variety of cassettes for different types of fiber patch cables.

fiber cable

6.Lower Cost

The cost for fiber cable, components, and hardware is decreasing steadily. Installation costs for fiber are higher than copper because of the skill needed for terminations. Although fiber is more expensive than copper in the short run, it may actually be cost-efficient in the long run. Fiber typically costs less to maintain, has much less downtime, and requires less networking hardware. And fiber eliminates the need to re-cable for higher network performance.

fiber and copper cost

7.More Secure

Fiber cable enables safer data transmission. It doesn’t radiate signals and is extremely difficult to tap. Once the cable is tapped, it’s very easy to monitor because the cable leaks light, causing the entire system to fail. If an attempt is made to break the physical security of your fiber system, you’ll know it. Fiber networks also enable you to put all your electronics and hardware in one central location, instead of having wiring closets with equipment throughout the building

Conclusion

We have explained the basic differentiator between fiber and copper, and it is rather clear that fiber cable is quickly rising in popularity, and more favored by new cabling installations and upgrades because of the benefits that come along with it. However, do remember that your cabling decisions should better depend on your very specific circumstances.