Home Wiring for AV Networking
 

Hi guys,

just getting the wiring done in our new property and I'm looking at a home network capable of standard video/sound streaming with internet etc.

Question is - cat5e up to the job or should I future proof and choose something else? If the latter - what??

I only have experience with cat5 and whilst I know a wired network will do what I need in terms of internet and file sharing and basic networking - what I don't want to do is rule out adding things like video and tv that doesn't rely on PC's etc? THings like the SLingbox etc come into mind.

Need some pushes in the right direction - the builders are putting up the plasterboards tomorrow !! :)

cheers, Jai

CAT5e will support up to gigabit connectivity
CAT6 will support up to gigabit connectivity
CAT6a will support up to 10 gig connectivity
CAT7 will support up to 100 gig (in theory) connectivity

All can be terminated with RJ45 and are backwards compatiable.

Choosing cat6a or cat7 all depends on how much cable you need to run and how long you plan to live in your new house. Right now you wouldn't need anything other than cat5e because 1 gig is the norm for desktops, however what about in 5-10 years time? 10G-BaseT will no doubt be the norm.

If it was me I would install cat6a or cat7 with RJ45 termination and then change the termination when needed :)

or you could be uber posh and go for Fibre Optic, but this needs a professional termination.

I know nothing of networks, but aren't wired networks going to be a thing of the past, if not already ? HD video, audio and internet can already be done wirelessly with simple gadgets such as Apple TV :wonder: I used to marvel at all the people on Grand Designs running 20 miles of cable to future-proof their home installations, and a couple of years later we get wi-fi, Bluetooth and Lord knows what else just around the corner rendering them obsolete and archaic.

You obviously haven't experienced the woes of trying to get a WiFi signal and TV repeater to work in close proximity to each other. The advantage of wire is lay more to increase bandwidth, the disadvantage of wireless is next door installs the same as you have and you're now competing for the same bandwidth.

I have reliable cat5 around the house and wireless that fails with the laptop and router set 3 foot apart. Ok for surfing but the link fails 100% of the time during the copying of a gigabyte file. Also would have taken several times long.

Wired for permanent, wireless for temp.

Can't beat a good old cable - for bandwidth, consistency and reliability.

100% with you on that. Wireless is ok as an interim connection.
I still prefer hard wire. With the right switches & router, you can do more than wireless. And XBOX 360 is so much more stable on wired.

incidentally if you want to run the native HDMI signal over Cat5e then you could do worse than look here: (you might want to shop around for best price)
Avrio Ideas Limited HDMI Extenders, Switches, Splitters and Matrix Switches

I was *going* to use this method, but found cheap 15m HDMI cables that provide a perfect picture and thought why complicate things? Still needed to run a coax cable as well just to control the bloody Sky Remote from another room (magic eye), although I could have done that wirelessly but I found it messy with a device at each end needing a 240v supply etc..