cableconnector
While looking around for some plugs to use for running and crimping some bulk Cat-6 cable, I noticed the online sites show RJ-45 plugs for Cat-5e and separate ones for Cat-6. Is there actually any difference between the two? The Cat-6 plugs mention having an "insert", but does this really matter?
Last time I needed to crimp cable, it was for Cat-5e, which is why I'm asking this now. Thanks!
There's no telecommunication difference (e.g. noise, crimping, termination), just the sheathing. The difference is an electrical code safety issue.
Regular network cable (i.e. non-plenum) is flammable, can catch fire, can spread fire, and emit toxic fumes when burning.
Plenum quality cable is required for use if you run your cable in air handling spaces (i.e. air ducts), or if you're running them between floors. Plenum cable is fire-resistant (it will melt, but not support combustion or carry a flame). It also emits less toxic fumes when it does burn.
If you look at some network cable, you can see which type it is:
CMP burning:
CMR burning:
CAT6 is still very precise about how the cables are terminated. Sloppy termination will reduce the capacity of the run. This is generally not the case with CAT5.
The linked wikipedia article, has good diagrams illustrating what is plenum space and what isn't. Generally, you should use plenum cable in a dropped ceiling unless you are certain that it is not air-handling space. If a duct in your drop ceiling is missing a section: your drop ceiling suddenly, inadvertently, becomes an air-handling space.
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
"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:
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.