CAT 6 cable 75 foot run

mark1161 · February 2023

My router and modem are located on the upper floor of the house and my shack is in the basement. The router is used for WI FI and hardwire connections for the computers on that floor. I have always wired my 6400 directly to the computer. I have been thinking of installing a long run (75') of CAT6 from the upstairs to the basement so I can put the radio on my network and thus operate remotely. Will this long run cause any latency issues? Does the software allow me to turn the radio on and off when operating remotely?

73

Mark

KK2L

KD0RC · February 2023

Hi Mark, the 75 feet won't affect latency in any measurable way unless there is a problem with the cable or connectors.

That cable may become problematic with RF getting into it, so you may have to put ferrites on it. If the RFI persists, I would recommend using optical fiber. You can get adapters for each end that plug in just like a cable.

The software doesn't turn the radio on and off, but you can buy a cheap ($20 ish) 4 channel WiFi switch from Amazon that will let you power the rig on and off from a cell phone. This is what I do when I operate remotely. I use one channel for the REM ON jack on the rig and the other three switch among antennas.

https://www.amazon.com/MHCOZY-Wireless-Self-locking-Interlock-Compatible/dp/B07TDJG2GJ/ref%3Dpd_ybh_a_sccl_13/135-3162852-2335034?pd_rd_w=g22LI&content-id=amzn1.sym.67f8cf21-ade4-4299-b433-69e404eeecf1&pf_rd_p=67f8cf21-ade4-4299-b433-69e404eeecf1&pf_rd_r=H1QEP255DDNPEF16MD6C&pd_rd_wg=QndiG&pd_rd_r=f884048b-293f-472b-8c47-583b0c4cd99e&pd_rd_i=B07TDJG2GJ&psc=1

Val DM1TX · February 2023

Hi Len,

You basically switch on and off the power supply for Flexradio is it? And how do you actually switch between antennas remotely? Is there another piece of hardware (antenna switch) controlled by this Switch relay?

Appreciate.

73

KD0RC · February 2023

Hi Val, No, I connect the remote switch to the REM ON jack on the back of the radio. This gracefully powers the radio on and off. Just pulling the supply will prevent the radio from saving its current configuration, and may cause other issues if the radio was writing to the SD card at the time that the power was dropped.

For the antennas, yes - I have an antenna switch board that I also bought from Amazon. I built it into an aluminum box and connected to the WiFi switch using 4 conductor telephone cable.

mark1161 · February 2023

Thanks Len. I like your optical fiber solution much better than mine. Being a super newbie with that I would ask the **** question- Does optical fiber require a separate power source? What converts the signal from the router into an optical-friendly conduit and reconverts back to a signal that the radio will understand? CAT 6 fittings will simply fit on this type of cable? Can one get this pre-fitted with these plugs? Probably a very dumb question but I am curious if this is as simple as just plugging that type of cable into either end without further modifications.

73

Mark

KK2L

KD0RC · March 2023

Hi Mark, Look up Optical Ethernet on Amazon and you will find various solutions. Also look up Ethernet to Optical Adapter. You buy a roll of the fiber cable with the proper terminations, then buy a pair of the adapters and use short cables to connect everything together. Each adapter has a wall-wart supply for power.

All of this is a bit more expensive than copper cabling, but it should be much more resistant to RFI. Even the short cables can pick up RF, so you may need ferrites in the end anyway. RF is weird stuff...

mark1161 · March 2023

Thank you for your help. At least I was correct about the need for an external power source to keep this running. I just learned a new thing today.

73

Mark

KK2L

Keith WA0TXJ · March 2023

Instead of ethernet or wireless backhaul to the home router, I used an optical connection to an optical to Ethernet 8 port switch in the shack with an optical to ethernet converter at the router.
Bill of Materials:

An 8-port switch ethernet with 2SFP slots at the ham shack to connect radio, computer and other shack connections with Amazon.com: 6-Port Gigabit Ethernet Fiber Switch, with 1 Port Dual SC Fiber, 20 km : Electronics

An ethernet to SFP media converter at the (distant) home router Amazon.com: 10Gtek [Mini Size] Gigabit Ethernet Media Converter, MultiMode Dual LC Fiber to Ethernet RJ45 Converter for 10/100/1000Base-Tx to 1000Base-SX(with a SFP MMF 850-nm Module), UL Certified, up to 550-m : Electronics

A length of OM-3 fiber cable for length required Amazon.com: BEYONDTECH LC to LC Fiber Patch Cable Multimode Duplex - 15m (49.2ft) - 50/125um OM3 10G LSZH PureOptics Cable Series : Electronics

And a MultiMode transceiver for the 8-port switch Amazon.com: TRENDnet SFP Multi-Mode LC Module 4-Pack, TEG-MGBSX/4, Transmission Up to 550m (1804 Ft), Mini-GBIC, Hot Pluggable, IEEE 802.3z Gigabit Ethernet, Supports Up to 1.25 Gbps, Lifetime Protection : Electronics

This permits a switch at the station, the wired performance with some galvanic isolation without the jitter of wireless. The cost is not much more than acquiring a wireless media bridge.

Make sure your fiber and transceivers are MultiMode and all use the same connector, I use LC type.
Sorry, this will not let me copy in the links ...

Keith WA0TXJ

mark1161 · March 2023

Is this the cable https://www.amazon.com/FiberCablesDirect-Singlemode-0-5M-300M-Single-Mode-Zip-Cord/dp/B0099S4Z1Y/ref=sxin_16_pa_sp_search_thematic_sspa?content-id=amzn1.sym.948775b6-578a-48f0-9c1a-0b9de33753ab%3Aamzn1.sym.948775b6-578a-48f0-9c1a-0b9de33753ab&crid=3Q3Z1APFQUVQC&cv_ct_cx=optical%2Bfiber%2Bcable%2B100ft&keywords=optical%2Bfiber%2Bcable%2B100ft&pd_rd_i=B0099S4O10&pd_rd_r=c524b380-3121-4181-8f5f-816e245e50fe&pd_rd_w=r9cG1&pd_rd_wg=G2DDC&pf_rd_p=948775b6-578a-48f0-9c1a-0b9de33753ab&pf_rd_r=HE1120THBWZMQWZP36JG&qid=1677629302&sprefix=optical%2Bfiber%2Bcable%2B100%2Caps%2C95&sr=1-1-a73d1c8c-2fd2-4f19-aa41-2df022bcb241-spons&smid=A3KXHMB5SA7Q9Z&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUFBUjJSNVlVM1YwUUUmZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTA0MTU5MzUyUVpQUkoyVldKUE1VJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTAyMjI4OTFUQUhHSkNTSDBEUlAmd2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9zZWFyY2hfdGhlbWF0aWMmYWN0aW9uPWNsaWNrUmVkaXJlY3QmZG9Ob3RMb2dDbGljaz10cnVl&th=1 that I would deploy for this purpose?

mark1161 · March 2023

Is this the interface that would be applicable for the aforementioned cable to the ethernet connection for the radio and router? https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003CFATL0/?coliid=I2CS55WEKO5HV2&colid=1OA6PS72G9ZBZ&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it&th=1

Keith WA0TXJ · March 2023

May I send you an PM with the links?

mark1161 · March 2023

This one looks like a perfect fit for that converter. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BFVNPT9F/?coliid=I2D6H1C3QOCZZY&colid=1OA6PS72G9ZBZ&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it&th=1

Keith WA0TXJ · March 2023

I sent an email to address listed QRZ.

The first cable you sent will not work; it is single mode. The second cable you sent will work; it is multimode. The media converter you send will work if you add a MultiMode transceiver. You will need a transceiver at each end. In my case I used a converter that included an ethernet switch b/c I wanted to keep all the traffic in the shack instead of loading the switch serving rest of house.

Martin AA6E · March 2023

Interesting to note: The speed of light is abt 1 nanosec per foot in vacuum. Maybe 1.5 nsec in cat 6.

frc2302 · May 2023

Sorry to revive an old thread, but just wondering, why do you favor multimode? It _can_ be cheaper, but I didn't find that to be the case for the prosumer-grade stuff I have. Just wondered if you have some other reason besides price.

CAT 6 cable 75 foot run

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