What are RJ45 Patch Cords?
Dec 07, 2024
Leave a message
1. Introduction
What are RJ45 patch cords? The release of ANSI/TIA-568.2-D has made 28AWG CAT6 patch cords compliant, further complicating an already complex RJ45 patch cord market. What are the differences between 24AWG, 26AWG, 28AWG, 30AWG, and 32AWG gauges? What are the differences between hand-made RJ45 patch cords and factory-made ones? Can the various types of RJ45 patch cords available on the market, such as flat patch cords, right-angle cables, and ultra-thin cables, be used? What are the relevant standards for RJ45 patch cords? What is the most cost-effective choice for RJ45 patch cords currently?
With these questions in mind, we will thoroughly hash out the production process, principles, and performance of RJ45 patch cords from various angles, making the choose of RJ45 patch cords no longer complicated.
2. RJ45 Patch cords Overview
In a 100m copper cable link (channel), in addition to the 90m permanent link in the middle, there are also 5m RJ45 patch cords on both sides, which is the main subject of this article. At the beginning of the article, we will first confirm a few concepts:
01 The test standards for RJ45 patch cords are based on two criteria: "Fluke channel test" and "Fluke individual test."
02 The test standard for RJ45 patch cords is generally the Fluke channel test.
03 Channel tests are divided into two types:
A, adding the RJ45 patch cord to a 90-meter link. This test indicates that the RJ45 patch cord can match the tested permanent link, with the second highest pass difficulty;
B, testing the RJ45 patch cord itself as a channel link. This test has the lowest pass difficulty, but the range of permanent links it can match is the smallest, and some cannot even be compatible with their own brand's permanent links.
04 Therefore, the RJ45 patch cord channel test with a 90-meter permanent link is more in line with actual application needs than the individual channel test.
It is more difficult to pass than the individual channel test, and the cost is higher than the individual channel test.
05 Additionally, there is almost no difference in appearance between the two.
To tell them apart, you have to look at the third-party test reports and factory quality inspection reports provided by the manufacturer.
06 For American Wire Gauge (AWG) sizes like 24/26/28AWG, the larger the number, the thinner the copper core and the worse the performance.
However, from an engineering perspective, the results of the Fluke test should be prioritized, while minimizing costs (because performance has redundancy). Most Cat 6 patch cables on the market are 26AWG.
07 In addition to the thickness of the wire, twisting, overall twisting, untwisting distance at the ends, and plastic material also affect performance.
3. Why We Use RJ45 Patch Cords
Hand-made vs. Factory-made RJ45 Patch Cords Comparison
01 Many RJ45 patch cords are used in cabinets (0.3m), in large quantities, with frequent bending scenarios.
Factory-made RJ45 patch cords have faster construction speed and are less likely to cause problems after bending.
02 Each factory-made RJ45 patch cable has passed the Fluke test, so there is no need to worry about issues with the RJ45 patch cord in the link.
03 Weak current workers make RJ45 patch cables by hand slowly, with a high error rate in harsh (hot and humid) working environments, and many construction sites do not have Fluke to promptly test whether the RJ45 patch cord performance meets the standard;
04 The production efficiency of factory-made RJ45 patch cables is high, and the cost is lower compared to hand-made RJ45 patch cables by construction workers.
4. Why Flat Cables Cannot Be Used
Flat cables are usually sold on e-commerce websites. Compared to round RJ45 patch cables, flat cables have a higher aesthetic appeal, and many people use flat cables. However, flat cables do not twist between cores, and the four pairs do not undergo overall twisting; they have weak anti-interference, and when added to a 90-meter permanent link, their performance is not guaranteed. Additionally, flat cables are generally more expensive than round ones due to their unique shape, but their performance is not as good.
Below, we use two 5-meter flat cables + COBTEL 90-meter 0.52 Category 6 engineering cable permanent link, and two 5-meter flat cables + COBTEL 90-meter 0.57 Category 6 distribution-grade cable permanent link to form a 100-meter channel link for testing.
5-meter flat Cable + COBTEL 90-meter Engineering-grade 052 Cable Channel Test Report
5-meter flat cable + COBTEL 90-meter Distributor-grade 057 Cable Channel Test Report.
The following are the test results for the COBTEL 90-meter 0.52 Cat 6 engineering cable permanent link and the COBTEL 90-meter 0.57 Cat 6 distribution-grade cable permanent link.
5-meter flat Cable + COBTEL 90-meter Engineering-grade 052 Cable Permant Link Test Report
5-meter flat cable + COBTEL 90-meter Distributor-grade 057 Cable Permant Link Test Report.
From the above test results, we can see that the channel link with flat cables cannot pass the test. Therefore, using standard round RJ45 patch cords is very necessary.
5. Are the 7, 7A, and Cat8 Cables Sold on Amazon and Other E-commerce Platforms as Awesome as Described?
Viewpoint 1
The TIA/EIA organization does not recognize cat 7 cables. The ISO/IEC-defined category 7 cables use GG45 connectors or 600MHz TERA connectors. Therefore, all online claims of cat cables using ordinary RJ45 connectors are fake. The performance of super category 6 is similar to that of category 7 and can basically replace category 7.
Viewpoint 2
The TIA/EIA organization does not recognize category 7A cables. ISO 11801 Amendment 2 (2010) introduced the F A (Enhanced F) channel and category 7A cables with a frequency up to 1000MHz, suitable for various applications including CATV (862 MHz). The purpose of category 7A is to potentially support future 40 Gigabit Ethernet: 40Gbase-T. Simulation results show that 40 Gigabit Ethernet may be achieved at 50 meters, and 100 Gigabit Ethernet at 15 meters. In 2007, researchers at Pennsylvania State University predicted that 32 nm or 22 nm circuits would allow 100 Gigabit Ethernet at 100 meters. However, in 2016, the IEEE 802.3bq working group approved Amendment 3, which defined 25Gbase-T and 40gbase-T as category 8 cabling at 2000 MHz. Therefore, category 7A does not support 40 Gigabit Ethernet. As of 2017, there are no devices with connectors that support category 7A channels. This is as rare as a giant panda, almost unseen in the market, and quite useless for users.
Viewpoint 3
The TR43 working group approved category 8 based on ANSI/TIA 568-C.2-1. It is defined up to 2000MHz, suitable for distances up to 30 m or 36 m, depending on the RJ45 patch cord used. Type I channel (category 8.1 cable): minimum cable design U/FTP or F/UTP, fully backward compatible, interoperable with EA (Cat 6A) using 8P8C plugs; Type II channel (category 8.2 cable): minimum F/FTP or S/FTP, interoperable with F A (category 7A) using TERA or GG45. Category 8 cabling is mainly used for short distances between switches and servers in data centers, not suitable for general office cabling.
6. Can All-Copper RJ45 Patch Cords Be Used?
Currently, there are some very cheap RJ45 patch cords on the market, labeled as all-copper, with very low prices. The price of a 1-meter cable is less than 2 yuan. Like network cables, RJ45 patch cords need to use oxygen-free copper with a copper content of 99.95% or more. These RJ45 patch cords use non-standard materials. Their test data is also terrifying. The advantage of all-copper RJ45 patch cords is their low price, and all other aspects are disadvantages.
We used 3-meter all-copper RJ45 patch cords for channel testing, separately conducting individual channel tests, adding COBTEL 90-meter 0.52 Category 6 engineering-grade cable tests, and adding COBTEL 90-meter 0.57 Category 6 distribution-grade cable tests.
3-Meter All-Copper Single Wire Channel Test Report
3-Meter All-Copper Cable + COBTEL 90-Meter 052 Engineering-Grade Network Cable Channel Test Report
5-Meter Flat Cable + COBTEL 90-Meter 057 Distribution-grade Cable Channel Test Report
It can be seen that a poor RJ45 patch cord is catastrophic for the entire link, dragging down the link that has already passed the permanent link test, making the entire channel link unable to meet the transmission needs of category 6 gigabit.
7. COBTEL Category 6 Engineering RJ45 Patch Cord Performance
COBTEL CAT6 UTP Engineering-grade RJ45 patch cord
The standards passed are as follows:
ANSI/TIA-568.2-D
ISO 11801
IEC 60603-7
IEEE 802.3af, 802.3at, 802.3bt
UL 1863
CAN/CSA-C22.2, etc.
ISO 11801
IEC 60603-7
IEEE 802.3af, 802.3at, 802.3bt
UL 1863
CAN/CSA-C22.2, etc.
The performance test results are as follows:
5-Meter COBTEL RJ45 Patch Cord + 90-Meter 057 Distribution-grade Cable Test Report
5-Meter COBTEL Cat 6 Unshielded Patch Cable + 90-Meter Engineering Cable Test Report
COBTEL factory-made RJ45 patch cables have thoughtful designs in packaging:
• Bundling method: easy to open with a pull
• Packaging bag gear line: easy to open with a tear
8. Production Process of RJ45 Patch Cords
01 Cutting and Stripping
Automatic cutting and stripping machine
Automatic length setting, small error, fast speed;
Automatic stripping, CNC parameter adjustment, no damage to the wire skin affecting performance, stable and uniform.
Manual cutting and stripping
Large error in cutting length, slow speed;
Uneven stripping force, easy to damage the core and reduce performance.
02 Twisting
Automatic twisting machine
Pneumatic twisting, fast speed, uniform.
Manual twisting
Labor-intensive, slow speed.
03 Crimping RJ45 Connectors
Automatic RJ45 crimping machine
Two-piece RJ45 connectors, short untwisting distance, good performance;
Fast speed, good stability.
Manual RJ45 crimping
One-piece untwisting distance is unstable, performance is unstable;
Some crimping pliers are of poor quality, causing poor crimping.
The untwisting distance greatly affects the overall link performance. Generally, the maximum untwisting distance for category 6 links is within 13mm, which actually imposes high requirements on the RJ45 patch cord process.
Requirements for untwisting length of different cables
04 Injection Molding Process
Automatic injection molding machine
Soft PVC injection molding, improves head bending performance;
More aesthetically pleasing injection molding.
Manual without injection molding
Hand-made RJ45 patch cables do not have injection molding processes, and the weight of the cable is borne by eight fork pieces, easily causing poor contact between the core and the fork pieces. When connecting to patch panels and ethernet switches, the RJ45 connectors and wires of hand-made RJ45 patch cables almost form a 90° bend, which is ugly and greatly affects transmission performance, and may even fail the test.
05 Fluke Testing
Fluke testing before equipment shipment
Each one passes the test, no issues with wire sequence, no issues with performance.
Equipment only tests wire continuity
Tests continuity with wire sequence function, no issues with wire sequence, unknown performance results.
Tests continuity with wire sequence function, no issues with wire sequence, unknown performance results.
24/26/28/30AWG Gauges
| Gauges/AWG | inch | mm | Cross sectional area | 1.122932197 |
| 0000 | 0.4600 | 11.6840 | 107.22 | |
| 000 | 0.4096 | 10.4049 | 85.03 | |
| 00 | 0.3648 | 9.2658 | 67.43 | |
| 0 | 0.3249 | 8.2515 | 53.48 | |
| 1 | 0.2893 | 7.3481 | 42.41 | |
| 2 | 0.2576 | 6.5437 | 33.63 | |
| 3 | 0.2294 | 5.8273 | 26.67 | |
| 4 | 0.2043 | 5.1894 | 21.15 | |
| 5 | 0.1819 | 4.6213 | 16.77 | |
| 6 | 0.1620 | 4.1154 | 13.30 | |
| 7 | 0.1443 | 3.6649 | 10.55 | |
| 8 | 0.1285 | 3.2636 | 8.37 | |
| 9 | 0.1144 | 2.9064 | 6.63 | |
| 10 | 0.1019 | 2.5882 | 5.26 | |
| 11 | 0.0907 | 2.3048 | 4.17 | |
| 12 | 0.0808 | 2.0525 | 3.31 | |
| 13 | 0.0720 | 1.8278 | 2.62 | |
| 14 | 0.0641 | 1.6277 | 2.08 | |
| 15 | 0.0571 | 1.4495 | 1.65 | |
| 16 | 0.0508 | 1.2908 | 1.31 | |
| 17 | 0.0453 | 1.1495 | 1.04 | |
| 18 | 0.0403 | 1.0237 | 0.82 | |
| 19 | 0.0359 | 0.9116 | 0.65 | |
| 20 | 0.0320 | 0.8118 | 0.52 | |
| 21 | 0.0285 | 0.7229 | 0.41 | |
| 22 | 0.0253 | 0.6438 | 0.33 | |
| 23 | 0.0226 | 0.5733 | 0.26 | 057 052 Cat 6 |
| 24 | 0.0201 | 0.5106 | 0.20 | 050 Cat 5E |
| 25 | 0.0179 | 0.4547 | 0.16 | |
| 26 | 0.0159 | 0.4049 | 0.13 | |
| 27 | 0.0142 | 0.3606 | 0.10 | |
| 28 | 0.0126 | 0.3211 | 0.08 | |
| 29 | 0.0113 | 0.2859 | 0.06 | |
| 30 | 0.0100 | 0.2546 | 0.05 | |
| 31 | 0.0089 | 0.2268 | 0.04 | |
| 32 | 0.0080 | 0.2019 | 0.03 | |
| 33 | 0.0071 | 0.1798 | 0.03 | |
| 34 | 0.0063 | 0.1601 | 0.02 | |
| 35 | 0.0056 | 0.1426 | 0.02 | |
| 36 | 0.0050 | 0.1270 | 0.01 |
AWG Conversion Table
When purchasing RJ45 patch cords, you may see terms like 0.2BC/0.16BC/0.127BC. The 0.2 here refers to the diameter of a single copper wire in a 78 strand of copper wire after passing through the drawing machine, converted to the AWG gauge we are familiar with:
S (cross-sectional area) = 73.1415*(0.2/2)^2 = 0.2199 "Hey? This should be 23AWG, right?"
Don't worry, the 7 strands of wire in the RJ45 patch cord will twist into one copper core, and then the 8 copper cores will twist again and
will be stretched, reducing the cross-sectional area to about 0.2
which is the 24AWG we are familiar with.
S (cross-sectional area) = 73.1415*(0.2/2)^2 = 0.2199 "Hey? This should be 23AWG, right?"
Don't worry, the 7 strands of wire in the RJ45 patch cord will twist into one copper core, and then the 8 copper cores will twist again and
will be stretched, reducing the cross-sectional area to about 0.2
which is the 24AWG we are familiar with.
0.16BC is the same, finally equivalent to 26AWG.
0.127BC finally equivalent to 28AWG.
0.127BC finally equivalent to 28AWG.
The Comparison of 24/26/28/30/32AWG Gauge Cross Section Area
Currently, there are many Cat 6 patch cables with 28AWG gauges on the market. It should be noted that in the past standards, ANSI/TIA standards indicated that 28 AWG cables did not meet the requirements, and the standards required twisted-pair structured cabling to use 22 AWG to 26 AWG cables as horizontal cables, not 28 AWG. However, now the TIA-568.2-D normative annex has confirmed 28 AWG RJ45 patch cords. The diameter of 28 AWG cables is almost half of the typical 24 AWG Ethernet cables, which helps reduce congestion, improve airflow around active devices, and cable management. In addition, it can reduce the bending radius, providing flexibility for easier moves, adds, and changes. However, 28 AWG RJ45 patch cords have higher insertion loss, which is directly related to the length of the channel. Using 28 AWG cables requires reducing the total length of the channel. For example, when using 10 meters of 28 AWG cable, the permanent link total length is 82.5 meters.
For 28AWG RJ45 patch cords, TIA-568.2-D provides detailed test performance requirements.
First, TIA allows the use of 28AWG RJ45 patch cords. It also provides detailed regulations on the overall attenuation after adding 28AWG RJ45 patch cords to a 100-meter channel length.
ANSI/TIA sets the attenuation requirements for 100-meter channel links when using 28AWG RJ45 patch cords.
Using long-length 28 gauge RJ45 patch cords, the length of the channel link cannot exceed 96.2 meters. Moreover,
as the length of the RJ45 patch cord increases, the overall channel length should be shortened.
as the length of the RJ45 patch cord increases, the overall channel length should be shortened.
ANSI/TIA specifies that the maximum length for 28AWG RJ45 patch cord channel links is at 20°C.
In addition, there is also an individual test for RJ45 patch cords, which will not be expanded in this article, and we will discuss it in detail later.
9. Summary: Methods for Selecting RJ45 Patch Cords
01 Fluke test at least pass the Fluke 100m channel test for RJ45 patch cords
02 395 oxygen-free copper core, refuse copper-clad iron
03 Comprehensive cabling level
Previous:What is a LSZH Cable
