PSA: Stop using cheap RG6 from the big box stores on long runs

3 comments

3 Comments

What counts as a long run to you? I've got a 50 foot cable from the basement and it's been fine with the cheap stuff, but maybe I'm missing something.

jessica92116h ago

... wait, 40% signal loss on just 75 feet? That's wild. I mean I knew the cheap stuff wasn't great but I figured you'd lose like maybe 10-15% tops. Makes me wonder about my own setup now, I've got a 60 footer from the attic to the living room and I just assumed it was fine since the signal meter on the modem never dropped below 85%. Now I'm thinking I should probably swap it out before I start getting dropouts during game nights or something.

ericcraig17h ago

A 2.2 GHz sweep test I did last spring showed a 40% signal loss on 75 feet of cheap RG6 from a hardware chain. Nancy, that 50 foot run you mentioned might work for now, but the shielding on that stuff is usually aluminum foil with loose braiding, so it picks up interference over time. The real issue is the dielectric foam too, it degrades faster than the higher grade stuff, and you won't notice until your modem starts dropping packets at random.