The Quality of the Cable is very Important
We have noticed that in certifying our cable installations, Cat5e cable has a tendency to have a higher delay and sku then Cat 6 cable. That means that even though both Cat5e and Cat 6 can do 1 Gigabit networks, Cat5e may have a longer delay for the signal to get from one side to the other. That delay will give the appearance to your end users, that your network runs slower.
Consider an example of a race car. If a race car was known to be really fast, however, there was a noticeably delay from the time you hit the Gas or the brake, until that function actually start working, that would be potentially catastrophic.
The same is true with your computer network. You want the network to be fast in top speed, but also be able to handle the full load of traffic when your network is seeing its heaviest points of traffic, not just when only 1 or two computers are connected to the network.
During COVID 19 Supply chain issues, many products changed in there make up. Perhaps you have noticed that after COVID, many products are just not made the same as their were prior. Network Cabling is no different. There are really low quality cables that technically have the ratings you might want to see printed on the jacket of the cable. However, when you actually run tests on these cheaper quality cables (lets say from big name discount retailers like amazon, or from big box stores like Home Depot and Lowes) these cables will not test out the same as cables from reputably manufactures.
The cat 6 Cable we use is 23 gauge cable by major brands. Before we start using new brands or models of cables, we not only look at the spec sheets, but we also purchase some as a test, and put it through various situations and see the results. We want to be sure that the cable we provide to our clients is the top most in quality, and that we can stand behind the network we build for you.
These are some good questions to ask while you are in the quoting process for your next project. What type of cable will you be providing for this price? Will you provide us with a Product Data sheet on this cable that your quoting. These are very important to ask, as some companies will provide you a quote for very inexpensive cable which, still bears the marking Cat 5e or Cat6
Charlotte Data Solutions would be happy to explore the cabling options for your current for future projects. Please give us a call or email to talk about what your next cabling project is. Give a chance to price your job out. I am sure you will be pleasantly surprised at our highly completive pricing while still using high quality products.