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The Scottish Environmental Technology Network

residential networking

Residential networks are becoming increasingly more important in both new build houses and appartments and renovation projects. The key difference between a residential and commercial network is the type of data they are carrying.

As we mentioned in the introductory networking page residential networks place a far heavier demand on the cable specification if you are looking to utilise one type of cable to carry the bulk of your signals. Contrary to popular perception we firmly beleive that residential networks are far more cutting edge than commercial networks - for the simple reason that commercial networks don't need to be.

A residential network is designed to carry ANY MultiMedia signal from voice through computer data to high definition video and all the other flavours in between. The key to getting a residential network right is the ability to install the correct cable for the job at hand and to ensure that you take into account any future requirements for at least the next twenty to thirty years (i.e. the approximate design lifecycle of a correctly installed structured cable network). A commercial network on the otherhand is specifically designed to carry digital data and telephony only and so is optimised on that basis for the very specific reason that this is the most cost effective technology to use in a business environment or to put in another way there is no point in building a six lane motorway if you are only hasve enough traffic for a single carriageway.

Residential networks carry a mix of analogue and digital signals - the analogue frequency range can be anywhere from 300Hz to 2.3GHz (basically telephone to satellite signals) with a digital data bandwidth of 100Megabits up to around 1Gigabit - yes, we will acknowledge that 10Gip is possible in a residential environment BUT very, very rare and if you are working at this sort of level of data capacity I think it's fairly safe to assume that you know what you are doing!

mixed cable copper solutions

There are a number of possible soloutions to this, at the most basic level you can use a mixture of cables specific to task, say a combination of twisted pair data cable like CAT5e to carry the lower frequency signals like telephony, line level audio and computer data and then use Co-Axial cable to carry the higher frequency signals like TV, Radio and satellite. This mixed cable soloution is fine, it does exactly what is says on the box and the main advantage is that the materials required to create a network of this type are easy enough to get hold of and relatively cost effective. There are a number of drawbacks to the multi cable approach not least of which the huge amount of real estate required on your wall, for example if you look for four CAT5 based services and a couple of coax into one location you have three single gang sockets or a double and a single gang socket, then add in a couple of double gang power sockets - not exactly the clean minamalist installation some people look for. All of these cables will need terminated as well, so suddenly the relatively cheap cost of the materials is being offset by higher installation costs.

single cable copper solutions

Moving to a single cable type is the next option. The choice can be mindboggling CAT5, CAT6, CAT7, CAT8*, plus a whole host of proprietorial systems as well. The key to the choice lies in the bandwidth of the cable itself, we firmly beleive that where at all possible there should be no electronic wrangling of analogue signals passing through the network. So in a stroke we have eliminated CAT5, 6 & 7 from the choice of suitable cables.

CAT 5, 6 & 7 installations are not really suitable when used as a single cable soloution for residential properties, and yet are installed by many home networking companies. CAT5 cabling has a maximum analogue bandwidth of just 100 - 155MHz, with CAT6 being capable of around 250 - 350MHz and CAT7 is roughly 600 - 700MHz - figures vary from manufacturer to manufacturer but the top and bottom of it all is that these cable types cannot naturally transport a standard european television signal of 862MHz (neither US television signals at 855Mhz and Japanese at 765Mhzcan be supported either) without adaptation via an expensive electronics unit and potential resultant signal and picture degradation that comes from coding and decoding the signal.

CAT8* networks operate with a nominal bandwidth of 1200 MHz (the cable we use is now rated at 1500Mhz), making it the minimum category of cabling capable of natural televisual transmission without electronic wrangling of the signal. Which makes them ideal for use in residential networks. The cable is similar to other data cable types in that it comprises four twisted pairs, but each pair is individually shielded in aluminium foil and the whole lot is bound by a tinned cobber braid sheild and covered by a tough LSZH sheath. The beauty of using this ultra-high bandwidth cable is that it can take so many services at once, this gives your MultiMedia network absoloute unparalleled flexiblility particulary when coupled with the appropriate connection system.

We exclusively use Singlepoint Networks system as our prime MultiMedia backbone technology. Terrestrial TV, Satellite TV, CCTV, DAB, FM, Audio, IR Control, 10/100 or 100/1000 Ethernet Data network, Video, Phone, USB & Firewire peripherals can all handled with ease. The universal socket connector system allows for up to eight separate sevices to be presented at a single gang socket (though we can present up to 12 services if required).

The networks are supplied in a range of 'networks in a box' kits for self install by yourself or any competent electrical contractor or we offer a range of installation services from full project manage and install to test and commision only.

Singlepoint's network kits provide the initial infrastructure and functional hardware of your multi-media network. Simply choose the kit that provides you with the required number of points based on the size of your property or the extent of your networking requirements.

Each Network kit consists of the following:

The Network kit sizes are:

We can easily adjust the quantities of any of the kit components to suit your exact requirements, especially if you require more cable or differing LAN outlets, telephone and TV points or are planning home offices, cinemas or media centres.

In reception rooms, we usually recommend a single faceplate on two opposing walls, each with 2 cables, thus giving a total of 16 service points in each room. For other rooms, we suggest still having the single outlet on opposite walls but with just one able each, giving a total of 8 service points in those rooms. In smaller bedrooms you can either have one or two outlets. In addition, places such as the garage and the conservatory should not be forgotten. The more sockets you install, the more flexible the system becomes.

Because each outlet is capable of providing every service, you don't have to plan at this stage exactly where the TV (or any other device) is going to go as you would with networks requiring separate coaxials and other cables. In my own home we have the TV in the opposite corner from the one we originally intended. We could only do this because of the Singlepoint system.

Delivery is normally within 28 days, but if we need to do a special for you then it might be a week or two longer. If your budget ever gets tight we can always supply the cable only and then provide the patch cabinet and wall sockets later.

If you like, you can always send us a copy of your drawings and we will work out which Singlepoint system is best for you.

*The Category 8 standard is still in proposal format with the ISO/IEC so strictly doesn't exist BUT the name seems to have 'stuck' when refering to cables of this type.