What's the difference between cat 6a STP and cat 6 STP plug connector?
Can I use a cat 6 plug on a cat 6a wire?
Best Answer
I was wondering this as well and felt I needed to track down the actual requirements.
Visually/design wise there is no difference. If you are using them in a non-certified setting feel free to use whatever you have on hand (6/6a).
Basically it just needs to be made with higher quality materials (if aiming for the bare minimum qualifications), but because of engineering tolerances and business reasons (you don't want to lose a whole batch because you cut things too close) they'll usually pass (This "usually" is an important distinction though if you needed to certify your network).
In contrast to Ron's statements: It is VERY LIKELY, but not guaranteed, that if you construct the cable correctly (and honestly it isn't rocket science, just finicky, on a cable by cable basis) using Cat 6a cabling and Cat 6 connectors it would certify as Cat 6a. That said, again if you need certification then it's probably just best to spend the extra money on Cat 6a parts.
Getting technical: (this information is all pulled directly from primary sources)
ANSI/TIA-568-C.2 (Definition of Cat 6 and Cat 6a)
IEC 60603-7-4 (Cat 6 unshielded),
IEC 60603-7-41 (Cat 6a unshielded)
IEC 60603-7-5 (Cat 6 shielded)
IEC 60603-7-51 (Cat 6a shielded)
The ONLY additions are that Cat 6a connectors must pass these extensions of the same tests (This is for both shielded and unshielded connectors):
Tested up to 500 Mhz instead of only to 250 Mhz.
NEXT Loss meets all All Pair Combinations: >= 46.04-30log(f/250) dB for 250 MHz - 500 MHz vs 94-20log(f) dB for 1-250 MHz (Both still capped at 75 dB)
And there's an added test for Power Sum Alien (Exogenous) NEXT which has similar specifications. All Pairs: 107 - 20log(f) dB, 1-500 MHz
"It depends". To the best of my knowledge, the standards themselves do not mandate any changes to the plugs. I would guess -- but I'm not 100% sure -- that the standards are mainly concerned with externally observable characteristics of the cabling such as crosstalk and attenuation, and leave the internal implementation details mostly up to each manufacturer. Having said that, the following comes to mind:
23 gauge copper wiring (thicker wires) is more common in Cat6 installations than in Cat5 in my experience. If the wires are thicker, the plugs are different.
More and more manufacturers are updating their cabling systems, both to allow faster cabling work, and to ensure more consistent and/or higher quality. Many cabling systems now use a little 'form' to hold the wires in place before the plug. This is to minimize crosstalk and noise near the plug (where the cable is un-twisted, and much more susceptible to interference).
See John Gardeniers answer regarding stranded / solid wiring; these should use different plugs. Solid wiring is often used in building wiring.
Regarding OP's link to a no-name plug, I think it's mostly marketing. While there can and should be differences in how plugs are designed, in the no-name space I don't think you'll find a consistent set of differences between no-name Cat5 and Cat6 plugs.
Here is a little video that shows how some modern structured cabling systems use an insert / form. The same brand uses a "smart connector" for the 8P8C plugs as well. But this is a name-brand structured cabling system. Cabling systems will typically be installed by certified installators, and be validated end-to-end after installation by measuring that they meet or exceed an agreed level of performance.
From looking at your pictures, it looks as though you have cat5(ish) wires in the walls and a totally wacky termination at the jack.
You should put a tone generator on each plug and see if it is a single continuous run of wire from jack to jack in your house.
I'd be willing to bet that it is wired in such a way. This sort of topology would work fine for voice but not at all for data.
In such a case, you can probably replace each single "cat5" jacks with a pair of cat5 jacks and terminate each end properly. From there you can connect a switch to each port and get ethernet from one end of the service to the other.
This would be significantly less work than running new wires and give you marginally decent connectivity. It wouldn't be nearly as good as a traditional hub and spoke topology, but it would be much better than wireless...
Good luck!
(allow me to add: In no way is this acceptable work. If I were at a commercial site or if I had just paid someone to do that work, I would tell them to do it over again. Given that this is old work in a residential site, and given that a typical domestic situation's "data" budget is quite a bit smaller than even a small business, I'd be inclined to try to make it work before throwing in the towel and opening up the walls.)
Best Answer
I was wondering this as well and felt I needed to track down the actual requirements.
Visually/design wise there is no difference. If you are using them in a non-certified setting feel free to use whatever you have on hand (6/6a).
Basically it just needs to be made with higher quality materials (if aiming for the bare minimum qualifications), but because of engineering tolerances and business reasons (you don't want to lose a whole batch because you cut things too close) they'll usually pass (This "usually" is an important distinction though if you needed to certify your network).
In contrast to Ron's statements: It is VERY LIKELY, but not guaranteed, that if you construct the cable correctly (and honestly it isn't rocket science, just finicky, on a cable by cable basis) using Cat 6a cabling and Cat 6 connectors it would certify as Cat 6a. That said, again if you need certification then it's probably just best to spend the extra money on Cat 6a parts.
Getting technical: (this information is all pulled directly from primary sources)
The ONLY additions are that Cat 6a connectors must pass these extensions of the same tests (This is for both shielded and unshielded connectors):