Category 6 cable, commonly referred to as Cat 6, is a cable standard for Gigabit Ethernet and other network physical layers that is backward compatible with the Category 5/5e and Category 3 cable standards.Compared with Cat 5 and Cat 5e, Cat 6 features more stringent specifications for crosstalk and system noise.The cable standard provides performance of up to 250 MHz and is suitable for 10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX (Fast Ethernet), 1000BASE-T/1000BASE-TX (Gigabit Ethernet) and 10GBASE-T (10-Gigabit Ethernet).Whereas Category 6 cable has a reduced maximum length when used for 10GBASE-T; Category 6a cable, or Augmented Category 6, is characterized to 500 MHz and has improved alien crosstalk characteristics, allowing 10GBASE-T to be run for the same distance as previous protocols.

Like most earlier twisted-pair cable, Category 6 cable contains four twisted wire pairs. Attenuation, near end crosstalk (NEXT), and PSNEXT (power sum NEXT) in Cat 6 cable and connectors are all significantly lower than Cat 5 or Cat 5e, which uses 24 AWG wire.The increase in performance with Cat 6 comes mainly from increased (22 AWG) wire size.The heavier wire in some Cat 6 cables makes them too thick to attach to standard 8P8C connectors without a special modular piece, resulting in a technically out-of-compliance assembly.Because the conductor sizes are generally the same, Cat 6 jacks may also be used with Cat 5e cable.Category 6 cable can be identified by the printing on the side of the cable sheath.Cat6 patch cables are normally terminated in 8P8C modular connectors. If Cat 6 rated patch cables, jacks, and connectors are not used with Cat 6 wiring, overall performance is degraded to that of the cable or connector.Connectors use either T568A or T568B pin assignments; although performance is comparable provided both ends of a cable are the same, T568B is a deprecated standard in the US and no longer supported by TIA. In Europe, however, EIA supports T568B only.

FiberStore.COM supply high quality low cost Cat5e/Cat6 Ethernet network Patch Cables, Cat5e and Cat6 UTP FTP Cable. Our Cat5e/Cat6 FTP UTP Patch Cables are suitable for all your data and networking requirements. Cat5e is typically used for networks using 100 Mbit/s or a gigabit network, with performance of up to 100 MHz. For networks that can handle up to 250 MHz, you would want to make use of Cat6 cabling, as it offers more than twice the performance of a Cat5e. Although Cat6 may be able to handle greater data loads than Cat5e, it’s always best to use the proper patch cord to match the cabling in your building; it pays to find out what is already in use at your location before installing the network.

Our Cat6 patch cables are available in a variety of options from the most popular standard flush moulded boot of the Cat6 UTP Patch Cables, Cat6 FTP Patch Cables,a Low Smoke cat6 patch cable option reduces poisonous fumes in the event of a fire, shielded cat6 patch cables that prevent electrical interference as well as a Snagless boot option that covers the latch. The latest addition is the Cat6a patch cables which run at 10gabits and are shielded as standard that run at twice the speed of standard Cat6 cables.