Home Tech What is Cat6 Plenum Ethernet Cable Used For?

What is Cat6 Plenum Ethernet Cable Used For?

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Pure copper Cat6 plenum cable is the best of all category 6 twisted-pair ethernet cables. It comes with communications multipurpose (CMP) plenum jacket. Bulk Cat6 features eight 23 AWG wires that are twisted in tight pairs to keep crosstalk and external noise out of the network. The cable is used in local area networks to handle heavy-duty data transfer applications. It is used to connect all kinds of devices from IP security cameras to smart TVs and computers to servers and ethernet switches. This blog explores different uses of the Cat6 plenum ethernet cable.

What is a Plenum Ethernet Cable?

Before we delve deep into the details and uses of the Cat6 plenum pure copper cable, let’s find out what a plenum cable is. It can be any ethernet cable that is wrapped in a communications multipurpose plenum jacket.

And needless to say, the jacket is the outermost sheath on any cable. It protects the cable from the outer atmosphere and ensures its proper functioning. Cable jackets are important parts of ethernet cables because they are responsible for not only their proper functioning but also for the safety and durability of the cable.

Cat6 Plenum Cable

The Bulk Cat6 Plenum cable is similar to other plenum cables meaning that it has the same jacket as the other twisted-pair plenum cables. But what makes it different is its specifications. It features the category 6 specifications which were introduced as an improvement over the previous category.

As per the category 6 standard, the conductors of this cable are twisted more tightly as compared to its previous categories. Consequently, it has more twists per unit length on the conductor pairs which ultimately results in a much better resistance against crosstalk and external noise.

Cat6 Plenum Performance

The performance of this cable is impeccable. With it, you can achieve data transfer speeds of up to 1 GBit/s over 100 meters. Over 50 meters, this speed can be increased up to 10 GBit/s. Cat6 plenum ethernet cable 1000ft offers a bandwidth capacity of 550 MHz which is ideal for all commercial and residential LAN applications.

Since it comes with bare copper conductors, its performance at long-distance transmission is incredible. Its speed does not lag, nor does it entertain external noise. If you use the solid copper cable outdoors, you will get the finest performance.

Crosstalk Tolerance

The 1000ft Cat6 plenum cable is more apt at handling crosstalk. Crosstalk is also known as electromagnetic interference which is the interference caused in one ethernet cable due to the transmission in a parallel cable. It causes the poor quality of signals which can be improved by using shielded cables.

Nonetheless, the tightly twisted conductor pairs of the cable are ideal for crosstalk tolerance. And even the unshielded versions of the Cat6 plenum pure copper are perfectly capable of handling crosstalk.

Uses of Plenum Cable 1000ft

The Cat 6 plenum cable is used in all kinds of LAN networks. If you are planning to build a wired data communication network at your home or office, you can use it to run almost all modern networking applications. It’s gigabit and 10-gigabit speed coupled with a voluminous bandwidth capacity are key to utilizing all high-speed ethernet applications.

For instance, you can use the cable for connecting PCs in your home or office. You can also use it to connect just about any device that can be connected using ethernet cables. For PoE (power over ethernet) applications, this pure copper cable is used widely.

Tip: Never use CCA Cat6 Cable for PoE. It tends to overheat and is a safety hazard for high-voltage applications. Additionally, local laws enforced by building inspectors do not even allow its use in some cases.

Moreover, Cat6 plenum cable can be used for the following ethernet applications: 10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX Fast Ethernet, 1000BASE-T (IEEE802.3), 550 MHz Broadband Video Voice, ISDN, ATM, PoE, PoE+/++.

Why is Cat6 Plenum More Expensive?

Well, let us first establish that the Cat6 plenum is expensive. As compared to its riser counterpart, this cable costs more. The reason behind its higher cost is that its plenum jacket is made from the rather expensive LSZH (Low Smoke Zero Halogen) materials. This material costs more which raises the costs of the overall cable.

In any case, this cable costs more but it also provides the safety and durable performance that is required for plenum spaces. It is designed to be highly resistant to heat, humidity, and other extreme environmental conditions. Although very unlikely, if it catches fire, it does not emit toxic smoke which is the highest level of fire safety in ethernet cabling.

Which Cat6 Plenum do you need?

Category 6 plenum bulk cable is produced in two major types. The shielded and unshielded bare copper. The shielded (STP) variant is used for long-distance transmissions and dense networks. And the unshielded (UTP) Cat6 cable is used in relatively less or moderately dense networks. Using the UTP plenum cable 1000ft over long distances is also an uncommon practice so you would see it being used in home networks and small-scale business networks.

Inferring from the uses of the two main variants of the cable, you need the shielded Cat6 plenum cable for outdoors and long-distance transmissions. You will also need the same cable for networks that have a high cable density. STP Cat6 plenum is ideal for server rooms as well. And for networks where crosstalk and external noise are not a major problem, you need to use the unshielded Cat6 plenum cable.

Concluding Thoughts

We hope this blog helped you in finding out the ideal use of the 1000ft Cat6 plenum cable. In a nutshell, it can be used in all kinds of ethernet LAN networks.

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