Q. "We recently bought 250 ft. (76 m) of CAT5 cable for our home networking project. When it arrived, the box said that the cable was 'stranded.' We were wondering if we may have bought the wrong type and should we have bought solid instead?"

More Questions • Complete FAQ List    Join the Discussion "A patch panel located in a telco closet is where the copper conductor makes its transformation from solid to stranded conductor. Reason being, when you make changes on the patch panel (computer location changes, etc.) you are moving a wire that is stranded, and flexing it has no effect on the conductor. If you were to use the solid conductor, after awhile flexing will break the conductor... ." -ROGERS6648     Related Resources • CAT5 Cabling Resources

... . Solid CAT5 cables have their advantages, too. Theoretically speaking, solid CAT5 supports a higher level of performance due to its superior electrical properties compared to stranded cables, though the benefit can be negligible in practice. Businesses that are accustomed to wiring inside office walls or under floors to fixed locations, and are willing to pay more for the possibility of improved network performance, often prefer solid cabling.

Finally, when working with CAT5 cable, it's important to know that several different types of RJ-45 connectors exist. One type, designed for use with stranded cables, generally is incompatible with solid cable. Other types of RJ-45 connectors may work with both stranded and solid CAT5.

<< Previous Question -- Return to FAQ Index -- Next Question >>