Cat 5e over 100ft

T

twistacatz

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jan 3, 2005
Messages
182
I'm having a little issue with Cat5e cables and at this point I'm about to give up but I wanted to throw it up to [H] to try and get some feedback. Originally I had two Cat5e cables one 100ft and the other one is 125ft. Regardless of what devices I use on either end when using the 125ft cable I can only initiate a 100Mbps connection. When I use the 100ft cable I have no issues getting a full 1Gbps connection. Assuming I had a bad cable I ordered a new 150ft Cat5e cable (same issue), I then ordered another 150ft cable and had the same issue again.

The last two cables I purchased on ebay so I figured this time I should use NewEgg or Monoprice. When searching for cables on both sites it seems like 100ft is the max they sell. I know the spec for Cat5e allow for 100m so why can't I find any cables on Monoprice or NewEgg? Am I missing something where the spec allow 100M runs but at a reduced speed?

Thanks in advance...
 
Are these cables plugged into a switch or a router or what? I'd check the port on the other end.
 
I have 5 switches and I've tried them all on both ends. I've also used MBP's on each end as well to no avil.
 
What about interference? Maybe it's run past a fluorescent light/transformer or some such noisy device?

Have you tried the cables strung through the house/shop? I am to understand that coiled up (like two PC's side-by-side) can incur problems from induction (more so with cheap cables).
Maybe lay them around the yard and test?
 
Also just curious, but are you testing all the cables on the same device? Thinking that if you're using a different device that maybe its not set to auto-negotiate or is set at the NIC level to be 100Mbps. Interference is also a highly likely given the Cat5/Cat5e standards are practically the same and are inferior compared to Cat6/6a/6e when it comes to shielding.
 
I've found that some cheap CAT5e cables wont work at 1gbit speeds when they are over 100ft+
 
Thanks for the all the replies guys.

oraldlight: The cables are running in places where they are exposed to any light really (my basement and hvac duct). And the cables are not really coiled up at all.

Liger88: As I stated above I used 7 different devices on both ends. I've also tried to force 1Gbps on two of the switches which are Layer 2.

Stoly: No Cat6 yet, but I might. I just need some definitive answers first before I buy anything else. I think your right about 100ft. It's very telling that NewEgg and Monoprice don't sell any Cat5/6 over 100ft.
 
@OP

Since the spec allows for 100M, then yes you are buying what are basically sub-standard cables. Also, check the longer lengths and make sure they don't have "2-wire" written on them. That by itself indicates 100Mbit/s speed.
 
parityboy L: That very well may be the case, as they were the cheapest cables I could find on eBay. Do you have any recommendation for a quality brand?
 
I've seen some cheapie eBay 100 footers not do gigabit and they actually had to be forced to 100/100 to be stable. It could just be shitty cables.
 
How are they terminated? gigabit is fairly picky about that as it uses all 4 pairs. I tried making cat6 patch cords and most would only register at 100. If I make my own patch cables I'm actually better off using cat5. I guess it crimps better, I don't know.

I would just get premade cat6 from Monoprice. Since I found out about that site I don't make my own cables anymore. Orders can take a very long time to make it to Canada and shipping + customs can be like 500 bucks, so I usually just make a huge order like 20+ cables of each size. I have a huge box at home of stuff from there.
 
@OP

I don't know any specific brands; here in the UK I will just get them from people like Videk. Unfortunately I don't know any NA stores that do decent quality cables. I'd still prefer Cat 5e over Cat 6, since it's easier to work with, but with Cat 5e you really need to watch the quality.
 
It sounds like all the pairs aren't terminated. Outside of a wiremap/cable tester, I can't think of an easy way to tell.
Tripp-Lite is an accessible brand at a decent price, Belden is all over the map on price but good quality. I use ICC for 4 meters and less, make my own and qualify them for longer lengths. I've never had an issue qualifying 5e for GbE.
 
Red Squirrel said:
How are they terminated? gigabit is fairly picky about that as it uses all 4 pairs. I tried making cat6 patch cords and most would only register at 100. If I make my own patch cables I'm actually better off using cat5. I guess it crimps better, I don't know.

I would just get premade cat6 from Monoprice. Since I found out about that site I don't make my own cables anymore. Orders can take a very long time to make it to Canada and shipping + customs can be like 500 bucks, so I usually just make a huge order like 20+ cables of each size. I have a huge box at home of stuff from there.
Click to expand...

I was doing that until I found 10packs of most lengths on Amazon for same price or cheaper and eligible Prime shipping...

For the OP, Pre-made cables over 100' really don't exist as that's the normal threshold that a proper inwall/ceiling cable run will be MUCH more common. If you need one that long, might hit the FS/FT forum, you might find someone to make you a quality cable that long.
 
Am I the only internet dinosaur that uses monoprice?


Cat5e on monoprice is crazy cheap.

Cat6 is very reasonable.
 
Mackintire said:
Am I the only internet dinosaur that uses monoprice?


Cat5e on monoprice is crazy cheap.

Cat6 is very reasonable.
Click to expand...

I'm an installer and buy from other sources. I get better quality and prices. The people I deal with have a 25-year warranty on cabling infrastructure, and I have multiple contacts in the company to deal with any supply, quality, or equipment needs. Monoprice literally is not worth my time.
They sound great for home or small office stuff, my concern would be whether their cable is actually UL listed or forged. I've never seen genuine UL listed cable at those prices. Some of their network cables are Al or CU-AL, which is just nuts.
 
Personally if I was you, I would just go to home depot, buy the RJ45 style crimper and some cat6 "crystals", cut off the ends of your existing 100ft cable and redo them.

Then you have the tools for the future.

Also what switches are you using? Cheap consumer stuff might not be up to snuff when doing these medium length runs.

3/4 bad cables at only <150ft really leads me to believe its your switches/computers.
 
I've seen Cat5e cables that were rated 100mhz that wouldnt do gig and replacing the cable with a Cat5e 350mhz cable fixed the issue.
 
Thanks for all the great replies guys. A know a few you guys said to just re-crimp the cable but if I did that and still had issues I would die. I went ahead and just grabbed some highly rating CAT6 from newegg and it did the trick.

Lesson learned: if you buy the real cheep shit on ebay you will get what you paid for.
 
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