22 gauge Telephone cable or Cat5 UTP (24 gauge)

MyLeftNut

Senior member
Jul 22, 2007
393
0
0
I got some 22 gauge telephone cable (4 wires) and some Cat5 utp which uses 24 gauge wires. Which would be the better cable for wiring the dsl line in the house? The telephone cable is slightly thicker than the cat5 wires, but cat5 wires have more twists?
 

kevnich2

Platinum Member
Apr 10, 2004
2,465
8
76
Just go with the cat5 cable. If you have some cat5e, it would be better though as it'd be dual purpose for later if you ever needed it as a network cable.
 

ScottMac

Moderator<br>Networking<br>Elite member
Mar 19, 2001
5,471
2
0
There is more to "Category" certification than twists. If the larger gauge cable s not "Category" certified, you have no way to know what the performance will be. Chances are it'll be worse than the Cat5. You may or may not get traffic through the fat stuff, and unless it has a good crosstalk spec, it's going to suck. Bigtime. Also, have fun finding termination for that stuff ...

But hey! if you're into wasting time & money, have at it.
 

drebo

Diamond Member
Feb 24, 2006
7,034
1
81
Short answer: it doesn't matter.

Long answer: Listen to Kevnich2's recommendation.
 

skyking

Lifer
Nov 21, 2001
22,631
5,740
146
Originally posted by: drebo
Short answer: it doesn't matter.

Long answer: Listen to Kevnich2's recommendation.
:thumbsup:
When it comes to telephone specs which include the DSL, CAT3 is fine. I would not use 2 pair to make a run fom the DMARC out to a jack though. I'd always use 4 pair in case there were future requirements for more than two lines of service. If you have some CAT5 it will serve.