Twisted pair - Wikipedia
It should mention "UTP" on the cable
The AWG number as well (22 is thicker copper as is 24 etc.)
Taiko Audio SGM Extreme : the Crème de la Crème
- Thread starter CKKeung
- Start date
It should mention "UTP" on the cable
The AWG number as well (22 is thicker copper as is 24 etc.)
Blue Jeans Cable here in Seattle build unshielded cables, bench test them and send certification along with cable - prices are well within reason.
Most "high end" CAT cables are extensively shielded as this gives better performance in the field used...
So it depends on the usage and the way the hardware is implemented if shielding is required or even wanted. Even the twists in the cables can make a difference. As in CAT cables these are different for each pair causing different delays on each "lane"... This needs to be compensated in a life stream....no need if it can be buffered.
...I think there may be two relevant aspects of shielding at play here. Some cables have shielding, but the shielding is not tied to the connectors. While that might also impact SQ, it would not, as I understand it, pass ground/noise between devices. Taiko guys can comment on floating shields as they impact SQ, if at all.
Per Emile's comments/diagram, I'll have to revisit copper vs. fiber. I have MM and SM fiber, shielded (Cat6a) and unshielded cable run in my network. Approximately 35' run FYI. I have been on an audio-dedicated fiber line into Extreme from the beginning. Sounds great.
Per Emile's comments/diagram, I'll have to revisit copper vs. fiber. I have MM and SM fiber, shielded (Cat6a) and unshielded cable run in my network. Approximately 35' run FYI. I have been on an audio-dedicated fiber line into Extreme from the beginning. Sounds great.
...even a "floating shield" would provide some isolation from external radiation, right? In that regard, it is a shield. How/whether it impacts SQ is a more challenging investigation. In any case, the important point, as I read it, was to *not* allow a path for noise into the DAC.
Unfortunately not. You will have to connect at least one side to ground to have a shield of any kind.
For those confused by the too many choices of ethernet cables, here is a cheap cable you can try:
Maybe Taiko has an answer.... naturally any CAT cable can be tried just what for? It will only add to the confusion as differences can only be linked with grave difficulty as we do not know what errors to expect.
Does this also mean that an unshielded copper connection is the recommended way the network to the connect to the Extreme, and not Fibre (which I've been using all along)?
That is not correct. @MarkusBarkus is right that a shield will work even left unconnected but it will not work in the same way as if it is connected in both ends.
A shield left unconnected on both ends will still attenuate higher-frequency signals because of the low-pass filter formed by its resistance, distributed shunt capacitance, and series inductance.
Belden CAT6 with bonded pair is a good UTP cable.
I think fiber is great if all requirements are met ! So i would not worry unless Taiko has a different view on this...
Unshielded UTP is not the answer (at least that is my view). Shield need to be connected to either Tx or Rx but not both to be effective and then it will be of a benefit .... again i would like to know Taiko's reaction on this idea.
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To where? unconnected ground / air ? Eddy currents? Please evaluate your finding. As without any technical proof i cannot be with you in this... and pointing to a product does not help here. The only "physical" connection the shield has is with the signal cables within the shield (the ones you want to protect from noise) So all the noise that hits the shield will now be distributed over all cables within that shield unless it is grounded...
Additional info from a 3rd person (same info different choice of words):
".......If your cable has a shield, it is something else. Any shielded cable must be properly grounded. That requires connectors and equipment that properly ground the shield, at least on both ends. Improperly-grounded, shielded cable will be a problem because the shield will exacerbate the problems it is meant to prevent."
Conclusion: use UTP cable, then you do not need to worry about any grounding or follow the instructions above.
Best wishes,
Frank
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Steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
I have always connected to the Extreme by an UTP copper connection and have no desires to try anything else
Steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
FWIW, this is what I use. Made here in the USA by one of our members
triodewirelabs.com
“Freedom” Ethernet Cable | Triode Wire Labs
triodewirelabs.com
How long of a run is yours, Steve?FWIW, this is what I use. Made here in the USA by one of our members
“Freedom” Ethernet Cable | Triode Wire Labs
I was trying, perhaps unsuccessfully, to note a distinction between types of noise.
I live in a condo in a city in NE US. Very nearby is Harris RF. They make comm gear for the military. The antenna arrays on their roof are amazing. Guys walking around testing reception. Humvees. Mysterious vans. Also have a large array for TV and municipal comms to the south.
If I check my phone, I can see five or six WiFi radios from neighbors. I assume this, in conjunction with things inside my house, means I am in an EMI and RF rich landscape.
My network runs are in the ceiling, running past lighting cans/transformers, lots of Romex cable, and since it is difficult to stay away from all those things, I think fiber is a good idea. I also have a Cat6a run and a swanky, unshielded cryo-ed cable with Telegartner conns. To me, I like the fiber.
My thinking, perhaps incorrectly so, is having the ethernet "floating" shield (incorrect term) serves the same purpose as running flexible steel conduit for my dedicated 120v lines: keeping radiation out of the wires. This would be external RF and EMI in the environment.
If I wrap my phone in foil, no WiFi. And no ground dissipation, I don't think. Just blocking radiation.
I am not expert on how such radiation couples to the conductors and alien cross-talk/external radiation impacts signals, and hopefully the community was not interpreting my general comment as definitive. I am always willing to revise my thinking.
I actually only have about two feet of copper in my system...only what is required to connect fiber modem and WiFi router. Sounds great. Regards to all...
I live in a condo in a city in NE US. Very nearby is Harris RF. They make comm gear for the military. The antenna arrays on their roof are amazing. Guys walking around testing reception. Humvees. Mysterious vans. Also have a large array for TV and municipal comms to the south.
If I check my phone, I can see five or six WiFi radios from neighbors. I assume this, in conjunction with things inside my house, means I am in an EMI and RF rich landscape.
My network runs are in the ceiling, running past lighting cans/transformers, lots of Romex cable, and since it is difficult to stay away from all those things, I think fiber is a good idea. I also have a Cat6a run and a swanky, unshielded cryo-ed cable with Telegartner conns. To me, I like the fiber.
My thinking, perhaps incorrectly so, is having the ethernet "floating" shield (incorrect term) serves the same purpose as running flexible steel conduit for my dedicated 120v lines: keeping radiation out of the wires. This would be external RF and EMI in the environment.
If I wrap my phone in foil, no WiFi. And no ground dissipation, I don't think. Just blocking radiation.
I am not expert on how such radiation couples to the conductors and alien cross-talk/external radiation impacts signals, and hopefully the community was not interpreting my general comment as definitive. I am always willing to revise my thinking.
I actually only have about two feet of copper in my system...only what is required to connect fiber modem and WiFi router. Sounds great. Regards to all...
