In this interview we cover how the TIA T42 & ISO cabling standards are made, the testing of the cables and how the testing is done with the manufacturers. We also discuss some of the history of CAT5e, VS CAT6, CAT6A, CAT7 & CAT8. We also discuss POE and just how bad is copper clad aluminum cable is.
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Fantastic video, Tom!
Can anyone recommend a good PoE tester?
I just experienced my first PoE overload. I put one to many PoE devices on a Ubiquiti NanoSwitch and they basically started power cycling every 15 minutes. After a bit of trouble shooting I did the math on the power requirements of each device and figured out that the .5 Amp PoE injector that comes with most Ubiquiti stuff wasn’t going to cut it.
Seems like if I had an inline tester, I would have been able to diagnose the real world power consumption of the devices much quicker.
Great Information in this one!
Please, I hope you guys record all your ‘backyard science’ for videos!
Dan Barrera said the actual usage of frequencies is 80 for 100mhz and 200 for 250mhz (which they have 25% headroom for both). but’s what the actual difference if you gonna just use it for a 1 gigabit line ?
None really if you are only ever going to use it for gigabit.
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I would imagine, as Tom noted for gigabit, the only logical possibility would be for distance. You could in theory use 5E for 125m per spec, but perhaps get away using 6 at over 250m.
I found it interesting how the higher the frequency, the more interference for lack of remembering the correct term, is introduced, thus cutting certified distances down the faster the speeds.
Makes sense though, and until we’re able to get a 20G drop into our homes, doesn’t matter too much for consumers. I was a bit surprised by the current distance limit on Cat8 though, but they’ve got 10yrs left on it. 
A nice little reference for people who’re interested:
http://www.cablek.com/technical-reference/cat-5—5e–6–6a—7–8-standards
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Holy cra… There’s a Cat 8 now? I figured we’d seen the end of copper as we knew it by Cat 6/Cat 7.
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