Is there any real advantage of using cat 3 for inside wiring for a DSL installation when the drop to the residence is only a POTS line? The baud rate would be limited by the drop, I would imagine, but would the added CAT 3 (or better) make real difference with signal quality? Underground drops aren't readily replaced by phone companies around here.
Thanks for replies! Greg
TIA 570B recommends a minimum of Cat3 for any residential installation. When I relocated mine, I used Cat5e just for the peace of mind knowing that the little performance gain was enough. Plus I had the cable on hand. I'm sure that there are thousands upon thousands of people using IW for their DSL without problems. It's a judgment call.
Skip CAT3. Use at least CAT5E for ALL your wiring, voice and data. This way you'll take advantage of the higher throughput if you re-allocate a voice drop and make it a data drop in the future. True, it will not improve your DSL, but in reality you should not even distribute your DSL throughout the house: you should terminate it on a DSL modem which will be sitting next to your patch panel.
Cat 3 cable is better than most of that, which the DSL signal passes over. It won't do much either way. However, if you're running new cable, go with Cat 5 or better, so that it'd be suitable for network use.
I agree. I hate seeing those filters, scattered around someone's home. Split the signals near the entrance and send them over their own pairs or cables. A good choice for DSL, would be the 3rd pair in a 3 pair cable, as most phones won't use that pair.
The reason the FCC recently required a minimum of Cat 3 is because of numerous reports of crosstalk between multiple phones when traditional quad-four wire is used. BTW EIA/TIA considers Cat 3 obsolete the minimum is Cat 5e or Cat 6. Technically Cat 3 is fine for POTS.
I'd use TIA rated structured wiring for all new installations. As others have posted if you are going to install new wiring use a whole house POTS/DSL splitter to separate POTS from DSL near the Telco NID.
/Tom
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