What Category Cable is Suitable for Icron USB Extenders?
Due to the wide range of USB extenders available from Icron, it can sometimes be a bit confusing as to what category of cable is best suited for the device you are purchasing. That is why we have put together this simple guide to advise as to the best category of cable for the device you are using.
For Icron's Ranger CatX USB extenders, including the Ranger 2304 and Ranger 2211, we strongly recommend using Cat 5e or better cabling.
Category 5 cabling, also known as Cat5, is an older type of network cabling. Cat5 cables were made to support theoretical speeds of 10Mbps and 100Mbps.
Category 5 enhanced cabling, also known as Cat5e, is an improvement on Cat5 cabling. It was made to support 1000 Mbps “gigabit” speeds, so in theory, it is faster than Cat5.
With Icron's KVM extenders, the EL5353, and EL5363, these extend video and USB signals over Cat 5e or better cabling. However, we recommend using either Cat 6a STP or Cat 7 STP. This is because the Electrical Interference Susceptibility is lower than other versions of category cabling, which can reduce the chance of possible performance issues.
| Cable Type | Electrical Interference Susceptibility |
|---|---|
| Solid Core Cat 5 | High |
| Solid Core Cat 5e UTP | Moderate |
| Solid Core Cat 6 UTP | Moderate |
| Solid Core Cat 6a/7 UTP | Low (recommended) |
