Digital snake cable question

R

Randy Amos

Freshman
Jul 2, 2013
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0
1
Right now, I'm still an analog guy, but feel sure that a digital future will ultimately be mine. I look forward to a quicker load-in, but quiver at the thought of a mid-show reboot. All that notwithstanding, today's post is hopefully a simple question regarding the new cable that will replace my big ol' copper snake.

CAT5, right? Preferably redundant, ruggedized CAT5 that will stand being coiled, pulled, etc. over and over. What I haven't seen is are the conductors solid or stranded in these snakes? All CAT5 I've ever checked seems to be solid conductors, which I assume would be fine for installs and light use, but when it comes to rigors of the road, wouldn't stand up.

I also found this: http://www.lanshack.com/pdf/SolidVsStranded.pdf (linked per their copyright request)

which I think would apply to this situation, and seems to put forth stranded cable being unsuitable for longer runs.

So... Are these runs solid or stranded, and if solid, any long term problems related to conductors being flexed repeatedly?
 
Re: Digital snake cable question

Just do a search for threads/posts on cat5 and/or digital snake. You'll get links to the hundreds (if not thousands) of posts on your subject.
 
Re: Digital snake cable question

You'll want at least Cat5e, aka "Category 5 enhanced".

We've got a mix of solid and stranded, and haven't had any problems. These are very small wires... just like the very small wires that make up big stranded cable. Flexing isn't that big a deal for small conductors.
 
Re: Digital snake cable question

Sigh...

You want to use the cable recommended by the maker of your digital desk.
There is no single right solution for all purposes.

Some desks want cat5e UTP, some want cat6, and others want cat5. Some want shielded.

There has been much discussion on problems people have when using cables other than those specified for their gear. Somehow they want their choice, even though not what is specified, to magically work.

While an analog snake works fine for all brands of mixers, the digital world is not the same. At least an Ethercon snake cable is far less expensive than the equivalent analog snake so even if you have multiple mixers from different brands you can have a cable for each.

Sent from my iPad HD
 
Re: Digital snake cable question

Rob Spence said:
Sigh...

You want to use the cable recommended by the maker of your digital desk.
There is no single right solution for all purposes.

Some desks want cat5e UTP, some want cat6, and others want cat5. Some want shielded.

There has been much discussion on problems people have when using cables other than those specified for their gear. Somehow they want their choice, even though not what is specified, to magically work.

While an analog snake works fine for all brands of mixers, the digital world is not the same. At least an Ethercon snake cable is far less expensive than the equivalent analog snake so even if you have multiple mixers from different brands you can have a cable for each.

Sent from my iPad HD
Click to expand...

There is typically nothing wrong with going to a higher grade of cable than what is required. Cat 6 can be used in place of Cat 5e with no ill effects, for example, and STP can usually be used in place of UTP unless the additional cable capacitance brought on by the shield is an issue (more likely for long cable lengths).
 
Re: Digital snake cable question

Cat 5e and Cat 6 are quite different electrically. The number of twists and the accuracy of the rate of twist / per length is tighter on Cat6, and thicker strands are used. This means that Cat6 cable degrades performance quicker when flexed. That's not much of an issue for IT equipment, but it's definitely something to look out for when cables are deployed and stored every day. If you're only using Cat6 at 100Mbps speeds, you may not notice the degradation, but Cat6 is a more fragile design. Best to follow manufacturers recommendation wrt the type of network cable to use.
 
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