Ethernet LAN Cables vs Fiber Optic Cables

[Apparatus]

Nothing new here for the info can be found on the net

Ethernet LAN Cables

Pros

• CAT8/9 can support 40/100Gbps up to a max distance of 30/100m
• Cables are stronger and durable than fiber optic cables against physical damage particularly when protected by foils and braids during laying and installation.
• One of the key advantages of Ethernet is its simplicity. Ethernet is easy to install and maintain, and it is compatible with a wide range of devices and operating systems

Cons

• Copper-twisted cables affected by EMI. Need shielding especially from CAT 6a onwards
• Cat 8/9 cables are very thick and stiff. Difficult to bend around corners
• Conducts electricity so there’s a fire risk if cable wrongly selected
• LAN cables cost more than fiber optic cables
• Has highest power consumption per RJ45 connector

Fiber Optic Cables

Pros

• Can easily support up to 400Gbps for kilometers regardless single mode or multimode ie. has high bandwidth capacity
• Good for futureproofing. If you are starting to totally wire up your house this is a better choice than LAN cables
• Cables not affected by EMI so data integrity is there
• Cheaper than LAN cables
• Uses light for data transmission so no fire risk
• Lower power consumption per connector

Cons

• Overall costs need to factor in the optical transceivers
• Their terminator points, adapters, connectors, and the panels and devices they connect to, all need to have some measure of EMI shielding to protect the data once it is transferred from the fiber optic cable to an electronic device
• The glass core strands are brittle and prone to breaking so more care is needed during laying, pulling and installation
• Compatibility between optical transceivers and devices may be an issue in a mix brands scenario
• Need more maintenance than LAN cables against dirt and dust which can affect the light transmission

 

[pwongkk]

For my lan cables that were laid during my house reno, I wrapped them in aluminium foil, the shiny layer outside. These were in the ceiling all the way to near the patch panel and faceplate.

You can buy the RJ45 connectors with the metal shield. My patch panel has the grounding.

I have fiber patch cord laid as well. To strengthen them, I bundled the cables together. Similar to the concept of 1 chopstick vs 10 chopsticks in a bundle. Same as the lan cables, had wrapped it in aluminium foil with the leftovers.

 

[xiaofan]

The general comments in the forum seems to be like the following.
1) Now it is good to use CAT6 cable for 10Gbps, 10Gbps will be there for long time.
2) Post 10Gbps it is probably better to go to Fibre already. But we do not need 25Gbps/50Gbps any time soon.

 

[xiaofan]

I am the lazy ones and I do not want to go with either CAT6 cabling or Fibre any time soon.

As of now, I am still using Singtel 1Gbps plan. I have a small 2.5Gbps network in the ONT area (in the living room). Other than that I do not really have LAN ports in the bedrooms (4-room HDB flat with thick walls), not counting slow AV2000 Power line adapters. These power line adapters are only up to 100Mbps to 250Mbps and I only use them occassionally for testing purpose of some demo boards -- Raspberry Pi 2/3/400 and older Orange Pi boards. I can get >500Mbps WiFi speed for my two Windows 11 laptops and my Mac Mini M1 (in the living room and common bedroom where the three computers are located). This is good enough for me now.

I tend to think I will skip CAT6 cabling totally but I may have to go with FTTR in the end (say for 10Gbps plan) but not any time soon. As of now, FTTR is only offered by Singtel and expensive, yet with not so good setup using Huawei FTTR solution.

 

[Apparatus]

For my lan cables that were laid during my house reno, I wrapped them in aluminium foil, the shiny layer outside. These were in the ceiling all the way to near the patch panel and faceplate.

You can buy the RJ45 connectors with the metal shield. My patch panel has the grounding.

I have fiber patch cord laid as well. To strengthen them, I bundled the cables together. Similar to the concept of 1 chopstick vs 10 chopsticks in a bundle. Same as the lan cables, had wrapped it in aluminium foil with the leftovers.

Frankly speaking, for home use there's no need of shielding against EMI unless you are running a homelab or have devices producing a lot of EMI

Yes, wrapping and bundling are required if your cables are concealed. In my case all cables are run inside plastic trunking so no need of wrapping and bundling them

 

[xiaofan]

I have fiber patch cord laid as well. To strengthen them, I bundled the cables together. Similar to the concept of 1 chopstick vs 10 chopsticks in a bundle. Same as the lan cables, had wrapped it in aluminium foil with the leftovers.

How do you do that by yourself?

From what I read, you need certain equipment to lay Fibre cable which may not be cheap (eg: Fusion Splicer). Or are you buying ready made Fibre patch cord?

Reference:
1) The ULTIMATE Guide to Fiber Optic Home Networking
https://www.apalrd.net/posts/2023/network_fiber/


2) A nice video in Chinese from mainland Chinese Youtuber：including 隐形光纤、熔接、冷接


3) Another one -- using cheaper tools to DIY 光纤冷接, from Taiwanese Youtuber (Hokkien included)

 

[lunaraven]

are you using the fibre optic cable that came with ONT/ONR?

 

[Apparatus]

are you using the fibre optic cable that came with ONT/ONR?

Mine is RJ45 ONT. Will be using TP-LINK BE85 router later on. This has a SFP+ port and will connect to TP-LINK switch which has 16 SFP+ ports

ONT == RJ45 ==> TP-LINK BE85 router == SFP+ port ==> TP-LINK SFP+ switch ==> downstream

 

[pwongkk]

How do you do that by yourself?

From what I read, you need certain equipment to lay Fibre cable which may not be cheap (eg: Fusion Splicer). Or are you buying ready made Fibre patch cord?

Reference:
1) The ULTIMATE Guide to Fiber Optic Home Networking
https://www.apalrd.net/posts/2023/network_fiber/


2) A nice video in Chinese from mainland Chinese Youtuber：including 隐形光纤、熔接、冷接


3) Another one -- using cheaper tools to DIY 光纤冷接, from Taiwanese Youtuber (Hokkien included)

I bought ready made fiber patch cords. Used measuring tape to get the estimated length and add some additional length as buffer.

 

[pwongkk]

Frankly speaking, for home use there's no need of shielding against EMI unless you are running a homelab or have devices producing a lot of EMI

Yes, wrapping and bundling are required if your cables are concealed. In my case all cables are run inside plastic trunking so no need of wrapping and bundling them

Yes, I'm running a homelab as well as hosting some apps.

I did the shielding as my cables are run along the ceiling, with the aircon piping and electrical cables are running inside as well. Also at certain parts, especially near the termination points, the electrical cables run side by side with it. I treat it as a protective cover the cables as well.

 

[stanlawj]

Frankly speaking, for home use there's no need of shielding against EMI unless you are running a homelab or have devices producing a lot of EMI

Yes, wrapping and bundling are required if your cables are concealed. In my case all cables are run inside plastic trunking so no need of wrapping and bundling them

During thunderstorms, the extreme EMI from lightning can disrupt the transmission in unshielded cables and cause packet losses (reduce speed). The differential signal noise cancellation can only cancel out voltage surges below a certain level, because if it goes off-scale or becomes square wave (DC), it won't work as designed.

 

[stanlawj]

For my lan cables that were laid during my house reno, I wrapped them in aluminium foil, the shiny layer outside. These were in the ceiling all the way to near the patch panel and faceplate.

You can buy the RJ45 connectors with the metal shield. My patch panel has the grounding.

I have fiber patch cord laid as well. To strengthen them, I bundled the cables together. Similar to the concept of 1 chopstick vs 10 chopsticks in a bundle. Same as the lan cables, had wrapped it in aluminium foil with the leftovers.

how do you ground all your aluminium foil wrap?

 

[Apparatus]

During thunderstorms, the extreme EMI from lightning can disrupt the transmission in unshielded cables and cause packet losses (reduce speed). The differential signal noise cancellation can only cancel out voltage surges below a certain level, because if it goes off-scale or becomes square wave (DC), it won't work as designed.

In severe thunderstorm like very strong lightning and loud thunder nearby my unit will trip. Already many times over 30 yrs and my neighbors' units as well. On many occasions even the corridors of half the block will trip

So, just shut down for a while till the storm blew over lor

 

[pwongkk]

how do you ground all your aluminium foil wrap?

Touching the surface of the rack, which is grounded.

 

[xiaofan]

Touching the surface of the rack, which is grounded.

Interesting.

I have watched quite a few videos by Chinese telecom field installers. The recommendation is usually CAT6 cable unshielded, then optional Fibre.

A few of them mentioned none of home installation with shielding done by typical installers (let alone DIYers) can pass the Fluke network meter tests and claim these really need good professionals with good equipment to install. And they claim shielded installation is usually not properly done by the installers and can be worse than the unshielded installation. Basically they are saying CAT8 cable is useless for typical home installation by typical installers.

Not so sure how true these claims are.

 

[xiaofan]

Interesting video

 

[cyberet]

most "cat 8" cables are crap

 

[HiHelloBye]

cat-6 or even cat-6a is already sufficient...