Cat 5 - 6 -7 or 8


Which is best to use for audio?

Thanks!

 

high-amp

I have dbillion cat8  at the in coming signal from modem to router and PC . In comparison vs that of Cat 6 flat unshielded to my gear the Cat 6 booted up faster even though the Cat 8 has the highest overall speed (up to 40g tested) but pixelated a bit when used to Nvidi shield before locking in fully but tested to the PC its rock solid with a substaial speed increas over cat 5 I previously had in place all cables are carefully  of course . In the end I went the safe route to my gear using a TP Link 2000mbs powerline adapter with unshielded Cat 6 to my shield and AVR . Why? Pontentialy the grounding scheme reqiured for Shielded applications can be tricky, if there is more than one grounding path from your home, you could be turning what you think is a shielded cable into an antena  behind your gear!

 

That's all I know about it for now!

Thanks all, one more question: Does the cable need to be shielded through the entire house or is it just the shorter that runs from the wall outlet to the router, switch, audio equipment, etc?

@eric_squires,

 

your answer applies in low density, rural areas. Anywhere else, and in particular near radio and telephone masts I'd stick to shielded.

@high-amp ,

If you are wanting the best quality sound, then use a grounded cable from the box into your house.

I found some nice Cat 7 cable for cheap and ran it directly from the Fios Box to my equipment. Having it grounded as far as I can possibly go, provides peace of mind.

Having Cat 7 allows for any future streaming demands.

B