Ethernet cable questions

ChibiJosh

ChibiJosh

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So, my brother has discovered the beauty of netflicks on his 360 a couple nights ago, but he can't get his wireless connection above 2 bars (and apparently you need 3 bars for HD content). He asked if I could help him, and I told him the best solution would probably be to run a cable to the 360. He was worried about the price of a cable of that length. I looked it up on Monoprice, and it's about $12 for a 100ft long cat 6 cable.

Now, I don't know too much about this stuff, just that I connect a cable at the router and to a device at point B, and said device can then use the internet. So, I looked up the difference between cat 5e and cat 6, and apparently 6 is backwards compatible, but also the wikipedia article seems to show that the color of the cable means something.

So, basically, do the colors matter, and am I right in getting cat 6? Thanks
 
Whether you get cat 5, 5e, or 6, it doesn't matter. They all have a maximum length of 100 meters.

It really only comes into play once you're using gigabit ethernet, which you're not, but a good cat 5e cable will be just fine for gigabit anyway. Even if you were using gigabit ethernet, your internet connection isn't 1000mbps, and probably not even 100mbps.

Color doesn't matter. Just buy the cheapest one of whatever color, if possible pick the sturdiest, thickest looking one. If it looks thin and cheap it probably is, and id be iffy on a real thin 100ft cable, but it would probably still work.
 
I agree.. just get the distance cable you need from monoprice.com. I have to wonder why make/model router you're using that's giving off a poor signal as well?
 
if you're going for >100, it would be good to get one that has some bit of sheilding on it.

5e is fine like others stated.

Bet you could find one for 20 shipped.
 
at just under a hundred feet away with a crappy wireless connection, i'd guess he isnt connected to that router. he should double check.
 
He lives out in the middle of no where, so there's very little possibility that he could be connected to another router.

Do you have any other suggestion for making the signal better?
 
If he lives in the middle of nowheresville like one of my coworkers, he might have some physical interference like trees blocking the signal. Once my coworker had the trees surrounding her house trimmed, the signal was much clearer. If there are no physical obstructions, then it might just be a weak signal and you might also consider a high gain antenna (depending on whether your brother's router supports one and whether the router supports fast transfers using G or N protocols). But the cat5e is probably the most solid solution.
 
If there is no problem with the wire running through the house, use the wire. It's cheap, effective, and reliable. Getting all three of those qualities in a wireless setup is unlikely at best.

I do a LOT of network installations in my job, both wired and wireless. We always advise our customers to use a wire whenever possible and convenient.
 
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