Welcome to the FlexRadio Community! Please review the new Community Rules and other important new Community information on the Message Board.
Need the latest SmartSDR or 4O3A Genius Product Software?

SmartSDR v3.9.19 and the SmartSDR v3.9.19 Release Notes
SmartSDR v2.12.1 and the SmartSDR v2.12.1 Release Notes

The latest 4O3A Genius Product Software and Firmware
If you are having a problem, please refer to the product documentation or check the Help Center for known solutions.
Need technical support from FlexRadio? It's as simple as Creating a HelpDesk ticket.

Ethernet Interference how to filter

Trevor-EI2GLB
Trevor-EI2GLB Member
edited September 2019 in FLEX-6000 Signature Series
Hi All I seen a post somewhere recently explaining that it was a waste of time putting ferrite on either utp or stp Ethernet cables, I can't remember which, or where I read it, I am trying to remove some birdies on 2m caused by home network, Anyone have any pointers, I have a large amount of cat cable around my house so don't want to replace it with the wrong type, Thanks Trevor EI2GLB

Answers

  • Neal_K3NC
    Neal_K3NC Member ✭✭
    edited September 2019
    Trevor, how long is your ethernet cable? You might consider putting an optical link in the middle.
  • Ron / K4XRF
    Ron / K4XRF Member ✭✭
    edited September 2019
    DX Engineering sells one for $50
    https://www.dxengineering.com/parts/dxe-iso-plus-2
  • Mike-VA3MW
    Mike-VA3MW Administrator, FlexRadio Employee, Community Manager, Super Elmer, Moderator admin
    edited September 2019
    I had the same thing happen with the Cisco router I replaced the router. It solved the problem perfectly. 

    Ethernet cable is generally pretty good as it is twisted pairs that do a good job of not radiated signals.  

    Are you sure your cables are properly made with the connectors on correctly?  The twist is key and part of the design.

    In all seriousness, not all Switches/Routers are created equal.  In my Cisco case, the 64 port device as actually wiping out 2M.  You could hear it in a 2M handheld in AM mode. (VX7R).  

    I did replace it with a $50 device from TP-Link and the effect was amazing.  I suspect the switching power supply in the Cisco that had gone noisy as it was pretty old.

    Switching power supplies are a dime a dozen today and there is no thought given to RF immissions anymore.  

    Good luck and let us know how you make out.

    Mike 
  • Michael N3LI
    Michael N3LI Member ✭✭
    edited September 2019
    I had a router that would reset when I transmitted on 40 meters. I used a honking big ferrite on it at both ends of the ethernet cable. It cured the problem. So probably not a waste of time.

    Computers and their associated peripherals don't really like RF. I've graduated from troubleshooting out the problems, adding a ferrite here or there,  to simply putting a ferrite on every cable going into the computer, router and keyboard.
    Overkill? Perhaps. But after you troubleshoot the same problems over and over on several systems, it's really nice to have things work the first time, every time. 

    A huge number of "faulty' Flex radios are just RF getting into the wrong place on the other items. 
  • N2WQ
    N2WQ Member
    edited September 2019
    20 turns thru material #43 will cure your problem.
  • Lawrence Gray
    Lawrence Gray Member ✭✭
    edited September 2019
    I replaced all Ethernet cables with CAT 7, which solved my Ethernet noise issue.  As mentioned above, cheap switchers also cause issues.  I have a Cisco IP phone which had a noisy wall wart.  I also, as mentioned above, put ferrites on every cable.  Easier than trying to find noise sources, as pointed out above.

Leave a Comment

Rich Text Editor. To edit a paragraph's style, hit tab to get to the paragraph menu. From there you will be able to pick one style. Nothing defaults to paragraph. An inline formatting menu will show up when you select text. Hit tab to get into that menu. Some elements, such as rich link embeds, images, loading indicators, and error messages may get inserted into the editor. You may navigate to these using the arrow keys inside of the editor and delete them with the delete or backspace key.

Comment As ...

Categories