It's kind of a minimalistic article about what is going on with digital over twisted pair. The reality is that while standard cat-5 cable is definitely capable of carrying a 1080p signal about 300 feet over cat-5, you start running into major issues when you up the interference potentials. Those interference potentials, which are common within a distributed video scenario most often include multiple runs of cable side by side, or within the same conduit structure. The S/STP solution is part of what helps with this, but the real integrity comes when you use a cable which is of a much higher caliber.
Extron is recommending, and we have seen, that cat-6a STP is the cable to use if you intend to get a run over 100 feet and you want to ensure the quality of the signal on the other end.
During testing it was shown that even a standard cat-5 cable coiled up can cause enough interference to cause it's own signal to drop out at 300', while spreading the cable out reduces this interference and allows for a clear signal... Unfortunately, in a multi-cat-5 installation, you likely can't get the spacing between cables which may be necessary, and this may compromise the entire system.
That said, it can be hit or miss as to when you will run into issues, so a cat-6a solution may be overkill, but do you want to wait until after the drywall is in place to find out?
As is often the case, for those just looking for something that works, Monoprice offers pre-terminated cat-6a STP cables...
HDMI Cable, Home Theater Accessories, HDMI Products, Cables, Adapters, Video/Audio Switch, Networking, USB, Firewire, Printer Toner, and more!
About 30 bucks for 100' of cable which is about the best twisted pair on the market right now.
Things that people may not know:
It is recommended that cat cabling never be terminated to a plug connector, but always to a jack connector, then use a patch cable to your device.
Patch cables are rated for 100 insertions before they should be replaced (even though they typically last longer), while the jack connectors are rated for the lifetime of a product.
Cat-6a termination is not as easy as standard cat-5, but for anyone in the industry, this will become old hat in a couple of years and for those building a home or wiring for twister pair delivery, just putting cat-6a STP in place is certainly a good way to go.
At three times the cost of cat-5, it's not exactly inexpensive, but with a HD-Base-T end point running $200+ per box, it makes sense to use decent cable.
Amazon.com: Cable Matters 1000ft Bulk Cat6a Cable SSTP Shielded Solid In-Wall Rated (CM) 600MHz 23AWG in Blue: Computers & Accessories
