Topband: CAT5 cable as feeder for reversable Beverage

[ZR]

Ive run indoor CAT-5 about 250' to a remote building where a PC is located. 
It is elevated about 8', hung from the CATV hardline and control cable 
bundle, and has been in use about 12 years, about 100' is exposed to the 
open sky and the rest thru the woods. Neither RF nor wildlife has affected 
it either.

Carl
KM1H


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jim Brown" <jim at audiosystemsgroup.com>
To: <topband at contesting.com>
Sent: Friday, April 15, 2011 11:09 AM
Subject: Re: Topband: CAT5 cable as feeder for reversable Beverage


> On 4/14/2011 10:33 AM, Bill Wichers wrote:
>> There is a test used when installing this cable commercially called
>> "PowerSum NEXT". If you look that up you should be able to get an idea
>> of the coupling between pairs.
>
> These are most likely to be single-number values that average the
> crosstalk over a broad frequency range, but the actual performance will
> vary as a function of frequency, and with the quality of the cable. I
> haven't done measurements, but I would expect cross-talk to be lower
> (better) at 2 MHz than at higher frequencies.  Published loss data for
> CAT5/6 shows   numbers good enough for use with RX antennas.
>
> That said, the primary consideration is probably what Herb noted about
> how well (poorly) indoor-rated cable is likely to stand up to outdoor
> conditions.  Although I love CAT5/6/7 for lots of uses, I wouldn't use
> it for outdoor runs to antennas.
>
> The best choice for Beverages and other RX antennas is low-cost coax
> like RG58s or RG59s, with construction that makes them rated for the
> outdoor conditions where you live.
>
> 73, Jim K9YC
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