Computer network wiring in new construction

[robby]

My new home is almost framed and I wanted to ask a question about computer ethernet wiring.

I plan to install our computer and printer in a small alcove/room at the top of the stairs on the second floor. I’m putting a telephone jack and a cable TV jack in that location so that we can either continue using our DSL modem or have the option of switching to a cable modem in the future. My DSL modem, computer, and an ethernet laser printer are connected to a LinkSys router, which has two free ports.

I have two other bedrooms on the second floor that I want to put in computer network jacks so that they can connect to the router and have an internet connection.

My builder offers this: “COMPUTER NETWORK JACK (CATEGORY 5e): INCLUDES RJ45 CONNECTION ON SINGLE GANG PLATE & RJ45 TERMINATION IN BASEMENT (OR OTHER HUB LOCATION).”

I don’t think I want to mess with a basement hub, when I already have a central computer on the second floor.

So, I guess I want to have them install one of these RJ45 network jacks in each of the two bedrooms that connect to my central computer alcove, right? Will the central computer alcove then have a two-port RJ45 port that connects to the ports in the bedrooms? Do I then use two short patch cables to connect each of the two ports in the wall to the free connections in the router? Finally, what does “RJ45 termination” mean?

Am I missing anything? Thanks!

[giddonah]

Ok, lemme get this straight. You have one computer and a printer on the second floor. You want to network that with two computers in the bedrooms.

You can put the router anywhere in the house. Ideally, you want the router as central to ALL potential connections. This is referred to as "Star Topology". Every computer needs a line to the router. If you're considering installing ethernet, I would seriously consider installing it in EVERY room in the house (maybe even the bathrooms :lol: , you never know). Definitely the garage, kitchen, family room, den/office, and all bedrooms. If I were you, I'd ask about Cat6. Cat5e is the minimum these days and will give you the ability to do Gigabit networking speeds, but Cat6 is twisted more and provides better signals, and potentially allowing higher speeds when they make the next speed jump. Having the phone jack and cable outlet next to the router is absolutely the way to do it. Even if your router only has two free ports, you can always add a switch to connect all the other rooms to the network (or just get a router with 8 or 16 ports). RJ45 is just the standard ethernet connector, it looks like the phone jacks, but has 8wires instead of 6 (and it's a smidge wider). They are what plug into the router.

I'd like to see every room with a plate that has four connections in it:
Cable, ethernet, phone,

Ok, three.

What you end up with is a wall plate that looks like a phone jack and you plug the computers into it just like you plug in a phone.

http://www.leviton-lin.com/catalog/BuildPage.aspx?BuildPageID=625

How much is he charging for the installation? Also, be sure he's got the right equipment to test the lines, it is VERY easy to short cat5 cables and if it's not identified right away, you have to replace the line (yes, open up walls and physically run a new line).

If he hesitates at all when you ask about cat6, I'm going to bet he's not on top of this as he should be. Also, where are you located?

[giddonah]

Oh one last detail. It says "in basement (or other hub location)". I'm guessing that means he'll put it anywhere. Also, nobody uses hubs anymore, switches have come down in price so much that it doesn't make sense to use hubs. Ok, a couple last details. Also, say you have 3 bedrooms, garage, kitchen and a den. that's 6 lines. At the router you'll have a wall plate with 6 rj45 connections on it (hoepfully each one labeled as to which room it goes to). I've done this in an old house and absolutely drool at the though of being able to do it in new construction before sheetrock goes up.

[Mepop]

giddonah:

I need to be doing the same thing soon but was looking to do wireless and skip all the Cat6 wiring to each room. Is this a good or bad way to go?

[giddonah]

It's good in that you don't have to bother with all the wiring. It's bad because you have to secure your network, you have to fit every computer with a wireless adapter, standards keep changing, reception may or may not be a problem, and maintenance is harder.

You can see that I prefer wires. Plus, if you plan on doing anything other than internet access (i.e. file sharing) then wires will give you 10x the bandwidth (gigabit vs. 104kbps with superG). The wireless adapters can be pricey, especially if you get the latest and greatest. Ethernet is pretty much standard on all computers, and if it's not gigabit, the gigabit adapters are pretty cheap. The last three motherboards I bought had gigabit onboard. And 10gigabit is starting to come on the radar.

It comes down to how many computers you're going to be networking, how far apart they all are, how long you plan on using that network, and what you'll be using it for.

Edit: and you'd be fine with cat5e, but cat6 would be good if you're going for a more future-proof network (I'm going to guess 10gigabit will want cat6).

[rodster]

I would put the router in the basement and run the cat5 or 6 to each room where you want it. If you put the router on the second floor, you will need to have a plug for each destination.

I agree that it would be best to wire every room.

You may even consider doing it yourself and save some money. It is really not very hard.

Just my 2 cents.

[giddonah]

If you put the router on the second floor, you will need to have a plug for each destination.
Which is exactly what you have to do if you put it in the basement. The good thing about having it in the basement is that it can get a bit unsightly if you don't have a closet to put it in. Having it on the second floor will use less cable, but with 1000' costing $70 that's not such a big deal.

You may even consider doing it yourself and save some money. It is really not very hard.
If you know what you're doing it isn't hard. If you don't, and one thing goes wrong, it becomes something you'll wish you had never thought about doing yourself. Can you imagine poking holes in walls, fishing cable all over the place, and having a crossed pair? Or a short? I certainly wouldn't call this an easy project. Even if it all goes right, it's not an easy project. Rodster, do you do this sort of thing often?

[rodster]

No, not very often. I did the wiring in my own house when it was being built. I ran the wires for the computers, phones, tvs, home theater system and was the laborer for a friend that wired and set up my security system. There are a couple of things that I would have done differently if I were to do it again, like wiring every room instead of just a few.

I did do quite a bit of research and consulted with the 'technology expert' at the electrical supply house before I started the project.

Since I have Hieneken taste and a Budweiser budget, I end up doing quite a bit myself.

[montytx]

Save yourself the money and go wireless. Wired is a big waste of time and is old Technology. All you need is a wireless router and maybe 2 repeaters, one for each floor.
I used to put wired in all my houses but it really is just a waste. Rememer, most of what you are doing is browsing the net and printing both occur below 1Mb. So the new 108Mb wireless routers will fill the bill.

[giddonah]

Rod, I envy your opportunity to do your house during construction. I've only done retrofits so far. Retrofits are a lot of work. Congratulations on running your own lines, I'm sure you're proud of them. Too bad you want more rooms though. Time for some retrofit work? :lol:

Monty, I don't know how strongly I can disagree with you. Waste of time? 42% of new construction is having this done. Wireless is what you do if you can't do wires. I would never look to wireless first. Old technology? Hardly. The ethernet standard has been around for a while, but it has grown from 10baseT to 10/100mbs and lately gigabit has become the standard. That's 1000mbps compared to the 108mbps you can get with wireless. Yes, that's nearly 10x the bandwidth. And the cabling has evolved from cat3 to cat5 to cat5e and now cat6 (and in europe they use cat7 which will eventually make it's way here). And I expect 10gigabit speeds to come around using cat6 or cat7. You still think it's old and outdated? 10,000mbps compared to 108mbps. Try transfering large files over each network.

You say internet is 1mbps (edited to reflect what I figure you meant)? The original implementations of DSL and Cable started at 1.5mbps. I've been moved through the upgrades from 1.5 to 3 to 5 and now I connect at 7mbps because the top is 10mbps. This isn't an argument for wired vs wireless because as you can see internet access is at most 1/10th of wireless. I figured I'd throw this in too so you know.

If all you do is surf the internet and want to do it in the garden, then go for the wireless stuff, but if you intend to transfer any sizable files (like having a server full of movies and music) then wired is the only way to go for the sake of sheer speed.

Plus, when a new wireless standard comes out, the upgrade is more expensive for wireless equipment than it is for wired.

I think I covered everything :wink:

[montytx]

Mark my word, Cable will be gone in 5 years. Everything, at least everything new, will be wireless and youll be anooyed you have to plug in to get there. All the wireless standards will be fully compatible..Ohh well this is an arguement for another forum. Im just speaking from 10 years of Tech background and my MCSE.

[rabadger]

I did wireless in my home. Works great. 4 computers, one router. The router can be also hard wired. It is located in my sons basement bedroom. his computer is hard wired and the rest or wireless. One of them is on the second floor.

Go shopping for routers, look at the ranges and options. Also if you are going with wireless phones make sure they work on a different freq. You don't want a 2.6 gighz router and 2.6 gighz wireless phone.

[giddonah]

Mark my word, Cable will be gone in 5 years.

hahahahahahahaha :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

[montytx]

I see I have non believers. Look here, see the future. It will revolutionize the wireless world within the next several years. It is why Intel has already rolled out wireless chips.

802.16 (http://www.wimaxforum.org/technology)

:shock:

[giddonah]

hahahahahahaha

50mbps? That's fine, but for the internet, I have yet to use even all of my 7mbps connection. And how much is that service going to cost? WiMax looks like it's for people who can't be reached by broadband and have the money to shell out for it. For file transfers, I'm moving to gigabit in the very near future and later to 10gigabit. Screw wireless, it's too slow and too expensive for me to even bother. Waste of money unless you absolutely can't have wires. Hell, I'll run direct burial if I want to use a computer in my garden. Wireless is cool, but I got over it. I'll wait until it is either better than ethernet, or necessecary for some reason. I like speed.

[montytx]

We will always have the dinosaurs among us. :D

Maybe you can set up arcnet while your at it.

[giddonah]

you can keep dreaming of some technology that isn't even available yet and I'll keep working with something that is currently 10x faster at the consumer level, 100x faster at the enterprise level, and continually getting faster. 10GBase-T isn't some standard they're still working on, it's out now, and 40Gigabit is around he corner on the way to 100gigabit. Thinking wires will disappear is like people 20 years ago saying we'd all be driving flying cars 10 years ago. Keep dreaming. :roll:

[maarass]

An interesting thread here. I've worked in the computer field (mostly graphics) for over 15 years. First computers were a Tandy model 1 and Epson QX-10. I've noticed technology has yet to slow down, with advances in every aspect of electronics. But old school rules. House are still being built with standard pots quad red/green/yellow/black wire to this day. Although I have cat6 and coax in every room in my house with chases ready to run fiber, I also implement wireless devices (i.e. laptop pcmcia card, tivo, phones, and even x-10). The reliability of wireless IMO is not up to par with wired devices, YET. I'm reminded of that everytime I pop some popcorn in the microwave while on the phone or when my cell drops a call, not to mention when my driveway alarm goes off for no apparent reason. Their speeds are exagerated as well, 54mbps sure. Authentication and security issues need to be resolved as well. And I would never trust my home security system with wireless devices either. For piece of mind I go with wired, for convience I go with wireless. They both have their places.

[montytx]

Ahhh, but the question I have is this. 10 years ago who would have considered running their business off of Cell phones. I personally have no land line for my business or home. It is all run wireless and as you acknowledge, its is not perfect. And as far as the screaming bandwidth giddonah keeps refering to, I bet he doesnt use it more than once in a while. As of yet movies cant even be piped over wires, MP3 is inferior to CD sound, DIVX is caught up in politics and MPEG21 is still off on the horizon. So that leaves video games and who has time for those....

[giddonah]

And you have an MCSE? Oh brother... :roll:

I ran the topic of wires vs wireless through a computer forum I use. Not one person agreed with your view. What makes you think I don't use my network every day? Assumptions will get you even less than nowhere. Can't get movies over wires? Where do you get this crap? I watch movies over wires all the time. And what the hell does mp3, mpegwhatevernumberthey'reupto, or divix have to do with anything? Your supposition was about the network medium, not multimedia formats. What's next, you're going to start talking blue ray vs hd-dvd?

[bkrahmer]

I'm definitely behind giddonah on this topic... I'm trying to clean off my second computer to promote my AMD64 3400+ to alpha status. Just trying to move 20 gig at a time over my 100mbit switch is painfully slow. I had a wireless network set up about 2 years ago, and it's kind of fun for certain apps, but sorry, it does not compete with wired for me.

Also, movies are currently being piped over wired networks. If we only had wireless networks, we wouldn't see that come to fruition for 20 more years.

MP3 is inferior to CD sound? That's a wonderfully obvious statement. MP3 was designed to create a tradeoff between file size and audio quality. Now, think of it in this context: wireless was designed to crate a tradeoff between mobility and speed. On one hand you promote wireless as all one ever needs, then on the other hand you denegrate MP3 and pretty much infer that you wouldn't listen to it on your home stereo. And they called Kerry a flip-flopper... :P :)

[montytx]

But you alll keep arguing about today's wireless, not 5- 10 years from now. THat was the orginal thread. I will definitely agree that today's tech is not ready for all of the above multimedia. BUt in the next 5 years that will change dramitically, at which point wired is obsolete. That is my only point. I only mentioned formats b/c IMO the qualtiy just isnt there yet to bother to pipe it over anything, wired or wireless. But that may be just me.

[giddonah]

My new home is almost framed and I wanted to ask a question about computer ethernet wiring.

That was the original thread. Which you turned into this preposterous argument about wireless killing wires. I can't believe you're still trying to prove your point. Ok, then today wires aren't going anywhere. And tomorrow? Some 50mbps with 30mile range is going to kill wires? (which was your original argument) That's just not going to happen. Ok, then let's talk about 5 years from now, when ethernet will be running at 40gbps or even 100gbps? And the crunch on the frequency ranges that are even available for any kind of new wireless? Security? Ease of maintenance? Speed? Cost? You're arguing a losing case. And for someone who claims to have an MCSE and 10yrs in IT I would expect better.

WiMax will fill a void that right now isn't being serviced by anything or anyone. It will bring broadband internet access to rural areas. That is it. It won't even kill current wi-fi technology. It will have a place, and that place has nothing to do with hard wired networks. The problem with your argument is the possibility that someone is going to believe you.

[rabadger]

Wireless will not replace wires until the building materials manufactureers and engineers come up with construction materials and lighting that enhances wireless signals. Look at DSL, there are still many areas in the country that the phone companies can't cover because of signal loss. The new 2.4 gig phones have a shorter range than the 900 meg. Thats why you see them with one base station, several hand units, and receivers. Until the industry can prove no loss of signal in commerical buildings, old and new, it will not happen.

If I am wrong correct me.

[montytx]

If you all only had my crystal ball in fornt of you. I cant argue the future b/c it isn't here. So I guess you can claim to have it figured out. But if you look at the curve on Tech, it doubles every 18 months and then some. I can only point to technology on the horizon, if you choose to igonore it that is your choice. But IMO you are ignoring the future. When Satellite TV came out there were lots of people who said "no way this will last", then there was satellite radio, Linux, Wifi and so on. They have all proven that they work and work well and do the job afforded them. Wimax and the follow ons will more than happily push movies and music down peoples throats easily.

[giddonah]

Richard, you're correct.

Monty, your arguments make less and less sense. I'm tired of trying to bring you into reality.

[98softail]

Since we are on the topic of wired vs wireless...

When are we going to see any of that "Free Wireless Electricity" Tesla was working on years back?

I got my antenna in the backyard ready to go!

Seriously now...We all like to plan for retirement, but not too many of us have the extra dough.

Currently I have wireless for my 2 laptops. I use wired for the tivo and home computer. Wired provides 100Mbs and wireless about 25Mbs after overhead.

The house I am building is going to have both. At 5 cents per foot, I'm running the wires. But I will also have the option for wireless in the whole house. Why can't we have both??

I do not have ANY computers which will use the NEW wireless, nor will my TiVo. Also currently cellphones and PDA's don't use it either. I worry about what is being used NOW. About 5-7 years ago (maybe more...) I jumped on the WiFi bandwagon. Boy was that a mistake! I now have network cards and this gateway thingy (over $1000) invested, just sitting in a box. The best I can do is get it to Ad-hoc with like cards (woo hoo!)

Until WiMAX is more mainstream, I'll stick to my wired and 11G setup.

[giddonah]

That's cool. You running them yourself? In new construction? That sounds like fun.

[What the?]

I'll throw in my 2 cents. I'm finishing up my log home, and that presents some, well, 'challenges' when it comes to wiring. And since I'm buried in the woods in the middle of nowhere, "wireless everything" is my motto.

I have satellite TV, Internet, and Radio. I have wireless networking, and wireless phones with one (wired) base. The only wired cat5 lines I have are in the kitchen (base phone), Great Room (TiVo), and the spare room. I wired the spare room in case I wanted to make that an office with a fax. But even that was a waste, because I have a scanner and internet fax service.

Unless you're transferring extremely large amounts of data between home networked PC's, wireless is really the best option IMO. My last house I wired the crap out of it. Then I got wireless devices and all of that work was a waste of time. Keep your walls clean, go wireless!

[giddonah]

Unless you also want security. And as softail is an example, wireless technology is constantly changing. An ethernet network from 15 years ago will still work with current networks. Plus it's cheap. If it's new construction, there are few instances when wires wouldn't be better. A log cabin in the middle of nowhere is not the norm. Wiring it would be hard, and you don't really have to worry about neighbors and war drivers. Wires are here to stay, and are much better than wireless. Why do you think huge companies go through all the trouble to wire their buildings? Do you have any idea how much money they'd save if they went wireless? Even for small businesses and larger home networks, wires are where it's at.

[What the?]

Unless you also want security. And as softail is an example, wireless technology is constantly changing. An ethernet network from 15 years ago will still work with current networks. Plus it's cheap. If it's new construction, there are few instances when wires wouldn't be better. A log cabin in the middle of nowhere is not the norm. Wiring it would be hard, and you don't really have to worry about neighbors and war drivers. Wires are here to stay, and are much better than wireless. Why do you think huge companies go through all the trouble to wire their buildings? Do you have any idea how much money they'd save if they went wireless? Even for small businesses and larger home networks, wires are where it's at.

You've made some great points, but I think for home use, there is no right or wrong, just a preference. True, wireless technology is constantly changing, but the prices keep getting lower also. I have no problem replacing the wireless router at the same time I get a new PC every 3 years or so.

Wireless security is not really an issue anymore (home use). Simply reading the instructions and following good advice can make the network incredibly secure using today's equipment. Most war drivers look for the easier unsecured targets anyway, there's enough people who don't bother to enable the security settings.

Finally, companies are a whole different ball game. I will disagree with you that wireless is a cheaper option for them (most cases). But I will agree with you that a wired network is usually a much better choice for companies. I have a pretty good idea about the cost/benefit on this one.

[Dragon]

Wireless N is almost here. Actually its already available but compatability standards haven't been set yet (they will be within the next 6 months). Linksys, Netgear, etc are already selling it.

With wireless N there is no appreciable speed advantage to going wired.

[giddonah]

Gigabit is still 5x faster than 802.11n.

One job I had recently was for a guy who had a home office. His wife would bring her company notebook home and plug into his connection. He wanted her out of his office, but the company disabled the wireless on the notebook, so he needed a run from his basement office to a room on the opposite end of the house one floor up.

Wires will always have a place. Wireless is a wonderful option for networking.

[Dragon]

Wouldn't it have been simpler to either:

1. enable wireless on the notebook again or

2. buy a removeable wireless card for the notebook?

And yes, some some users with unique circumstances wired will always be a requirement. But for your average user wireless n is more than adequate for a home network.

[Vector]

Wouldn't it have been simpler to either:

1. enable wireless on the notebook again or

2. buy a removeable wireless card for the notebook?

And yes, some some users with unique circumstances wired will always be a requirement. But for your average user wireless n is more than adequate for a home network.

Depending on the corporate IT policies, either of those could get you fired. Not kidding.

[Dragon]

Sounds like another notebook might have been a wiser investment then.

[giddonah]

Hmmm, $150 for an ethernet connection or $2k for another notebook + the wireless router + the hassle of having two computers?

[Vector]

Depends. If the computer was being used for business purposes, then the business should have covered the cost of the network cabling (in my opinion, which counts for absolutely noting at anyt company's accounting department).

If the notebook was being used at home for personal reasons, then it should only be used in accordance with the company's policies, and most likely shouldn't be used at all. But that's the IT network manager in me talking.

[Dragon]

Hmmm, $150 for an ethernet connection or $2k for another notebook + the wireless router + the hassle of having two computers?


Yep.

You can't have too many computers. ;)

Which reminds me. I really need to get going on building my network server.

[David]

The more wireless become prevelant, the more wireless hackers will too. Wires will always be around for those who can appreciate security.

[rodster]

And you assume that wired networks can't be hacked? I guess if it is not connected to the internet.

[HDNord]

Wireless networking between computers can be hacked even if not hooked up to the internet. Wireless phones also are much less secure.

[giddonah]

And you assume that wired networks can't be hacked? I guess if it is not connected to the internet.

This is how I wired a lawyer's office recently. They have a wired network for all computers, and will be adding a wireless connection (not connected to the current network) for a notebook for internet access that they can take to anyone's desk. To hack in, you'd have to break a window :)

[David]

And you assume that wired networks can't be hacked? I guess if it is not connected to the internet.

I agree, if you are on the internet and a hacker is trying to get you, it doesn't matter. But what wired DOES prevent is hackers who drive by looking for wireless networks. Don't assume they don't exist.

But just to add this...when I build my house, I'll be installing dual wired networks, maybe 3 or 4 wired networks. Network 1, the extranet, will be connected to the internet, while 2-4 intranets will not connected to the internet.

The intranet(s) will host Halo-type games which don't require the internet to play. It may also be used to host a MythTV server (cat6 gigabit will be cheaper than RG6 while providing the same bandwidth(no?), but that will depend on if TV configurations will come with RJ45 video inputs). It may also network my PC which has personal data on it that I do not want connected to the internet.

[Crash13]

For what it's worth (probably not much) I'll toss in my opinion as well. Wired will ALWAYS be the way to go for enthusiasts. I would never set up my house network with wireless. Way too flakey and slow. It's not hard to do a hard-wired network anyway. Look around on ebay for an RJ45 crimp tool and there are places online that will explain exactly how to organize the 8 wires. As for the arguement that you need cat6, I don't know about that. 1 gigabit transmission is ridiculously fast. You can stream just about anything you want through cat5e. So if you want to set up a server bank in the basement full of movies on harddisk, it would be no problem to watch movies through your media center pc in your living room through a cat5e cable. I can't understand why you'd ever need to transfer faster than that.

[David]

For what it's worth (probably not much) I'll toss in my opinion as well. Wired will ALWAYS be the way to go for enthusiasts. I would never set up my house network with wireless. Way too flakey and slow. It's not hard to do a hard-wired network anyway. Look around on ebay for an RJ45 crimp tool and there are places online that will explain exactly how to organize the 8 wires. As for the arguement that you need cat6, I don't know about that. 1 gigabit transmission is ridiculously fast. You can stream just about anything you want through cat5e. So if you want to set up a server bank in the basement full of movies on harddisk, it would be no problem to watch movies through your media center pc in your living room through a cat5e cable. I can't understand why you'd ever need to transfer faster than that.

For the near future, cat5e will be just fine. In 10 years, though, it will be outdated. Streaming movies will require more bandwith. Intel will be making wireless CPUs that have lasers instead (and I know there was some other recent, significant development in CPU technology). Since CPU can do more, so will the other components, especially video cards, but also boards and drives.

Something else will become the standard in homes, something other than CatX cable. Maybe fiberoptic? Point is, cat5 for near term. Something else after that. Either way, I hope it's wires.:cool:

[MCC]

I Would Go With Putting Your Router In The Basement,attic [if Easily Accessed] Or Laundry Room. This Way It's Easy To Add In The Future Without Having To Go To The Alcove Also As Others Have Said It Keeps The Unsightly Wires In The Basement. Wireless Is Nice But Wired Is Better And More Dependable.

[HDNord]

In a few years Cat6 will make Cat5e outdated. When I pulled my wires 1 1/2 years ago I pulled a bundle of 2-RG6 quads, 2-Cat5e to every room. Then pulled an extra RG6 & Cat6 along side that bundle to the main location in every room. On opposite walls I pulled at least a Cat5e and RG6.

In all total I pulled over 7000 ft of low voltage wire for current and future use. Pulled all wires as home runs to central location including wires for networking, phones, alarm (35 zones), security cameras, video, speaker wires (to all rooms including garages), and whole house sound IR controllers to appropriate rooms.

[David]

Sounds expensive. Did you buy the wire online? How much did you spend in wire alone? Did you install wires using smurf tube or pvc pipe? What type of speaker wire did you use?

[HDNord]

Was able to buy the wire wholesale directly from the distributor. Own a business (Appliance) and until a few years ago we sold and installed satellite dishes so I was able to buy the wire at very good prices. Think I spent only about $1000 on wire alone not including a spool of RG6 used that was left over from my business.

Did not use conduit or smurf tube, just pulled in wall-rated wire two or three at a time. Made sure I stayed away from 110 V wires. Did run a 2" empty conduit to the attic from the room where the wires terminate for future wire needs.

Speaker wires used were made by "Structured Cable Products" and used either 14 or 16 gauge depending on where and how far the wires went. Just zig-zaged most of them between two trusses that I will hopeful find later when I trim out the sound system. Stapled a two foot wide piece of plastic on top of the truss board above the zig-zag so the blown in insulation will not fall down when I cut the holes to install the speakers.

The home is two levels and about 4500 sq ft. I got a bid for what I did and they wanted $2 a sq. ft. not including wires for speakers, alarm and security cameras. With the tools I had to purchase and trim out materials I figure I have spent about $1500. Pulling all those wires by myself in a two level home took me over 2 weeks. We had a delay with the dry wallers of about a week so in that time I also trimmed out most of the alarm contacts (window, door switches).

[David]

Why would they charge by the sq ft? That's ridiculous.

Two weeks saved you $7,500, plus cost for security and speakers. Very good ROI if you ask me!

[giddonah]

Cat5e will be around for a long time. Tell me when 1000Mb/s is going to be outdated. Congrats on doing that yourself though, I've seen too many houses built without it.

[Vector]

Cat5e will be around for a long time. Tell me when 1000Mb/s is going to be outdated. Congrats on doing that yourself though, I've seen too many houses built without it.

I remember when 2Mbps ARCNet was pretty damn nice. Now I run gigabit at home. That's a 49,900% increase in speed. Cat 5e will seem slow 5 years from now, and archaic in 10. That's why my house low-voltage is all in smurf tube :)

[Mike44]

I personally have no land line for my business or home. It is all run wireless...

So that leaves video games and who has time for those.

Yeah, and Montytx, you'll be the guy getting a brain tumour from all that 'extra' radiation your sitting in, while all the rest of us using wired connections will still be fine.

BTW, completely agree with giddonah - for a good reason. Used to have my computer hooked up wirelessly to my router. When playing video games (yes...there is still time for them!!) there was such bad lag for the multiplayer games. After using a direct connection to it, NO LAG!!! What do you know!??? The only reason I've kept the wireless option enabled is so that I can still use my laptop on the porch during the summer.

[Stony]

Mark my word, Cable will be gone in 5 years. Everything, at least everything new, will be wireless and youll be anooyed you have to plug in to get there. All the wireless standards will be fully compatible..Ohh well this is an arguement for another forum. Im just speaking from 10 years of Tech background and my MCSE.

Just reading through this forum tonight and came across this. Thought it was funny. The best systems take advantage of both. Structured Cabling isn't going anywhere for a loooong time.

[peterselby7]

I agree with all the comments about wireless being the way to go but - if you are in new construction anyway what could it hurt to wire every single room with CAT 5 or 6? The stuff's not that expensive and it's there if you need it. I would even wire the bathrooms with it. Who knows what it could be used for down the road.

[Mike44]

Ha, do you guys believe this!?? Just wired up a new construction house the other day. When it came to running the low voltage, the homeowner INSISTED that no low voltage be pulled to any of the bedrooms (with the exception of 1 RG6 feed to the master bedroom). His reason was that his children shouldn't have any TV's in their rooms (okay, acceptable), and that when they got their own computer in their bedrooms, they'll just put in a wireless system. My heart nearly stopped there for a sec while I tried to understand what he just told me!! He didn't want ANY low voltage upstairs!! I couldn't believe it! What a mistake that'll be - not only for network/cable capability, but also for resale value!

Some people, eh?

Mike

[giddonah]

I just redid a network in a house that kept giving the owner problems. Cheap Linksys wireless router in the mechanical room and a wireless extender up in the living room. They had maybe 15 wireless devices on that network. Poor little router didn't stand a chance. People too often underestimate (and grossly underestimate) how important a strong network is.

Used to just be a computer or two. Now? Desktops and laptops, bluray players, tv's, internet radio devices, ip cameras, voip and ip phones, control systems, iPods and iPads, HVAC controllers, security, sat receivers, NAS backups and file servers, slingbox, AppleTV, VUDU, Netflix viewers...

We just did a house that has 5 networks on the property. One of them has a subnet mask of 255.255.254.0 (for those that are scratching their heads, that means we needed more than 254 ip addresses for that network). Yes, this is a residence.