Category 1 cable
Category 1 cable, also known as Cat 1, Level 1, or voice-grade copper, is a grade of unshielded of unshielded twisted pair cabling pair cabling designed for telephone for telephone communications, and at one time was the most common on-premises wiring. The maximum frequency suitable for transmission over Cat 1 cable is 1 MHz, but Cat 1 is not considered adequate for data transmission.
Though not an official category standard established by TIA/EIA, Category 1 has become the de facto name given to Level 1 cables originally defined by Anixter International, the distributor. Cat 1 cable was typically used for networks that carry only voice traffic, for example telephones. Official TIA/EIA568 standards have only been established for cables of Category 3 ratings or above.
Category 2 cable
grade
Category 2 cable, cable, also known as Cat 2, 2, or Level or Level 2, 2, is a of unshielded of unshielded
for telephone for telephone and
data
twisted
pair cabling pair cabling
communications.
The
designed maximum
frequency suitable for transmission over Cat 2 cable is 4 MHz, and the maximum bandwidth is 4Mbit/s. Cat 2 cable contains 4 pair of wires, or eight wires total.
Though not an official category standard established by
TIA/EIA, Category 2 has become the de facto name given to Level 2 cables originally defined by Anixter International, the distributor. Official TIA/EIA-568 standards have only been established for cables of Category 3 ratings or above.
Anixter Level Anixter Level
2 cable 2 cable
was
frequently
used
on ARCnet and 4 Mbit/s token ring networks, it is also used in telephone networks but it is no longer commonly used.
Category 3 cable
Category 3 cable, commonly known as Cat 3 or station wire, is an unshielded twisted pair (UTP) cable designed to reliably carry data up to 10 Mbit/s, with a possible bandwidth of 16 MHz. It is part of a family of copper cabling standards defined jointly by the Electronic Industries Alliance and the Telecommunications Industry Association.
Unlike Cat 4 and Cat 5, Cat 3 is still recognized by TIA/EIA-568B, its defining standard. Cat 3 is still used in telephone wiring.
Category 3 UTP Cable
Category 4 cable Category
4 is
a
description
of
a cable that consists of four unshielded twistedpair (UTP) copper wires with a data rate of 16 Mbit/s and performance of up to 20 MHz.
It is used in telephone networks which
can transmit voice and data up to 16 Mbit/s.
For a brief period it was used for
some token ring, 10BASE-T, and 100BASET4 networks, but was quickly superseded by Category 5/5e cable. It is no longer common or used in new installations - and is not recognized by the current version of the TIA/EIA-568 data cabling standards. Category 4 UTP Cable
Category 5 cable
Category 5 cable (Cat 5) is a twisted pair cable for carrying signals. This type of cable is
used
cabling for computer
in structured networks such
as Ethernet. The cable standard provides performance of up to 100 MHz and is suitable for 10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX (Fast Ethernet),
and 1000BASE-T (Gigabit
Ethernet). Cat 5 is also used to carry other signals such as telephony and video.
The cable is commonly connected using punch down blocks and modular connectors. Most Category 5 cables are unshielded, relying on the twisted pair design and differential signaling for noise rejection.
Category 5 has been superseded by the Category 5e (enhanced) specification. Category 5 UTP Cable
Category 5e cable The category 5e specification improves upon the category 5 specification by tightening some crosstalk specifications and introducing new crosstalk specifications that were not present in the original category 5 specification. The bandwidth of category 5 and 5e is the same - 100 MHz.
Category 5e UTP Cable
Category 6 cable
Category 6 cable, commonly referred to as Cat 6, is a standardized cable for Gigabit Ethernet and other network physical layers that is backward compatible with the Category 5/5e andCategory 3 cable standards. Compared with Cat 5 and Cat 5e, Cat 6 features more stringent specifications for crosstalk and system noise. The cable standard provides performance of up to 250 MHz and is suitable
for 10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX (Fast
Ethernet), 1000BASE-T/1000BASE-TX (Gigabit Ethernet) and 10GBASE-T (10-Gigabit Ethernet).
Whereas Category 6 cable has a reduced
maximum length when used for 10GBASE-T; Category 6a cable, or Augmented Category 6, is characterized to 500 MHz and has improved alien crosstalk characteristics, allowing 10GBASE-T to be run for the same distance as previous protocols.
The heavier wire in some Cat 6 cables makes them too thick to attach to standard 8P8C connectors without a special modular piece, resulting in a technically out-of-compliance assembly. Because the conductor sizes are generally the same, Cat 6 jacks may also be used with Cat 5e cable.
Category 6 cable can be identified by the printing on the side of the cable sheath.
Cat 6 patch cables are normally terminated in 8P8C modular connectors. If Cat 6 rated patch cables, jacks and connectors are not used with Cat 6 wiring, overall performance is degraded to that of the cable or connector.
Connectors use either T568A or T568B pin assignments; although performance is comparable provided both ends of a cable are the same, T568B is a deprecated standard in the US and no longer supported by TIA.
Pin T568A Pair T568B Pair Wire T568A Color
1
3
2
tip
2
3
2
ring
3
2
3
tip
T568B Color
white/green stripe white/orange stripe
green solid
orange solid
white/orange stripe white/green stripe
Pins on plug face (socket is reversed)
4
1
1
ring
5
1
1
tip
6
2
3
ring
7
4
4
tip
8
4
4
ring
blue solid
blue solid
white/blue stripe
white/blue stripe
orange solid
green solid
white/brown stripe white/brown stripe
brown solid
brown solid
This is from left to right, with the plastic latching tab facing away from the viewer. Category 6 UTP Cable
Note:
Category 6a
The latest standard from the TIA for enhanced performance standards for twisted pair cable systems was defined in February 2008 in ANSI/TIA/EIA-568-B.2-10. Category 6a (or Augmented Category 6) is defined at frequencies up to 500 MHz—twice that of Cat. 6.
Category 6a performs at improved specifications, in
particular in the area of alien crosstalk as compared to Cat 6 UTP (unshielded twisted pair), which exhibited high alien noise in high frequencies.
The global cabling standard ISO/IEC 11801 has
been extended by the addition of amendment 2. This amendment defines new specifications for Cat. 6A components and Class EA permanent links. These new global Cat. 6A/Class EA specifications require a new generation of connecting hardware offering far superior performance compared to the existing products that are based on the American TIA standard.
The most important point is a performance difference between ISO/IEC and EIA/TIA component specifications for the
NEXT transmission parameter. At a frequency of 500 MHz, an ISO/IEC Cat. 6A connector performs 3 dB better than a Cat. 6A connector that conforms with the EIA/TIA specification. 3 dB equals 50% reduction of near-end crosstalk noise signal power; see 3dB-point.
Confusion therefore arises because of the different naming conventions and performance benchmarks laid down by the International ISO/IEC and American TIA/EIA standards, which in turn are different from the regional European standard, EN 50173-1. In broad terms, the ISO standard for Cat6A is the highest, followed by the European standard and then the American(1 on 1 matching capability).
Category 6a UTP Cable
Class F cable
Class
F
cable (or,
unofficially, Category 7 cable) is a cable standard for Ethernet and other interconnect technologies that can be made to be backward compatible with Class D and Class E. Class F features even more
strict
specifications
for crosstalk and system noise than
Class
E.
To
achieve
this,shielding has been added for individual wire pairs and the cable as a whole. Besides the foil shield, the twisting of the pairs and number of turns per unit length increases RF shielding and protects from crosstalk. Class F is recognized for all the country organizations members of ISO.
The Class F cable standard has been created to allow 10 Gigabit Ethernet over 100 m of copper cabling (also, 10 Gbit/s Ethernet now is typically run onCat 6a). The cable contains four twisted copper wire pairs, just like the earlier standards. Class F can be terminated either with 8P8C compatible GG45electrical connectors which incorporate the 8P8C standard or with TERA connectors. When combined with GG45 or TERA connectors, Class F cable is rated for transmission frequencies of up to 600 MHz.
As of November 2010, all manufacturers of active equipment have chosen to support the 8P8C for their 10 Gigabit Ethernet products on copper and not the GG45 or TERA in order to function on Cat 6a. Class F is not currently recognized by the TIA/EIA.
Category 7 UTP Cable
Class F
A
Class FA (or Augmented Class F or, unofficially, Category 7a) is defined at frequencies up to 1000 MHz, suitable for multiple applications including CATV (862 MHz). Each pair offers 1200 MHz of bandwidth. Simulation results have shown that 40 Gigabit Ethernet may be possible at 50 meters (164 ft) and 100 Gigabit Ethernet at 15 meters (49 ft). In 2007, researchers at Pennsylvania State University predicted that either 32 nm or 22 nm circuits would allow for 100 Gigabit Ethernet at 100 meters(328 ft).
However, similar studies in the past have shown that Cat5e could support 10 Gbit/s, but only up to 45 metres (148 ft) so these should be read with caution. Furthermore, the IEEE did not include Class Fa for 40 Gbit/s or 100 Gbit/s in the 802.3ba standard ratified in June 2010. It may in the future, but there is absolutely no guarantee that such applications will ever exist.
Class F is currently in ISO standards for channel performance in Amendment 1, recently component performance has been ratified in Amendment 2. The formal names are ISO 11801 Amendment 1 (2008) and ISO 11801 Amendment 2 (2010). Class Fa is not recognized in TIA/EIA-568.
CAT #
Cable Type
Bandwidth (MHz)
Data Rate
CAT1
UTP
Analog voice
CAT2
UTP
Digital voice
CAT3
UTP/ScTP/STP
16 MHz
4 Mbps
CAT4
UTP/ScTP/STP
20 MHz
16 Mbps
CAT5 CAT5e
UTP/ScTP/STP UTP/ScTP/STP
100 MHz 100 MHz
1 Gbps 1 Gbps
CAT6 CAT6a
UTP/ScTP/STP UTP/ScTP/STP
250 MHz 500 MHz
10 Gbps/55 m 10 Gbps/100 m
CAT7
ScTP/STP
600 MHz
10 Gbps/100 m
Central Colleges of the Philippines
College of Engineering Electronics Engineering
Assignment No.1 Seven Primary UTP Cable Classified by EIA/TIA
Submitted by: Marcelino, Nelsen J. Submitted to: Engr. Julieto Alano, ECE
July 16, 2013
