Cat 5 Cable

Patch cables are used to connect two devices to communicate the signals. They are copper wire or fiber optic cables. These are basically electrical cables and are also called patch cord. They are normally shorter by approximately two meters and come in many colors so as to differentiate them easily.

The types of patch cable include headphone cable, microphone cable, XLR connector cable, RCA connector cable and TRS connector cable.

The circuits are connected on patch panel through patch cord. The patch cords are used to connect the stacked components and to pass signals through the patch panel. The cable becomes thicker with an increase in length and even more thick when shielded (in order to prevent attenuation). The patch cables are made up of coaxial cables and the signals pass through the shielded core. The ends of the cable are connected to the connector. The patch cord may be single-conductor, coaxial cables or Ethernet cables.

Normally when you buy the cable it is ready to use. But sometimes you have to patch it up on your own. The steps to make a network patch cable are:

* Purchase a good quality crimping tool suitable for RJ45 connectors. You should keep a backup of RJ45 connectors.

* The proper CAT 5 cable should be selected.

* Strip off the outer shielding of the cable about half an inch with the help of a good quality knife. Make sure that the stranded wires inside do not get affected.

* Untwist the twisted pair wires and arrange them properly. Once the wires are untwisted, there is no need to re twisted them again or to remove the insulation.

* The order in which the wires to be arranged is: white orange stripes-solid orange-white green stripes-solid blue-white blue stripe-solid green-white brown stripe-solid brown.

* Cut off the ends of the wire to an equal length.

* Insert the wires into RJ45 connector in the desired order. The wires should be extended up to the end of the plug.

* Crimp the plug with the help of the crimping tool.

A patch cable is used to connect the computer to a router or a switch whereas a crossover cable is used to directly connect two computers (i.e., a peer-to-peer connection). You are recommended to use cables with maximum length of 100 meters. A switch should be preferred over a hub as the former supports signals. Some switches or routers have a quality to detect the cable automatically and accordingly adjust the device.