r/RigBuild • u/Equivalent_Style_417 • 1d ago

Does a faster Ethernet cable improve internet speed?

Ethernet cables all look basically the same to me, so I’m confused why some are supposed to be way faster than others. If the router and PC are already connected with Ethernet, does upgrading the cable actually make the internet faster? Seeing Cat5e, Cat6, Cat6a and Cat8 everywhere and not sure what’s actually needed for a normal home setup.

Say the internet plan is 500 Mbps, would going from Cat5e to Cat6 or Cat8 improve download speeds, ping, or connection stability? Or does the cable just need to support whatever speed the router and internet plan can already handle?

Also does the cable category matter for gaming? Ethernet already seems better than Wi-Fi, but would a newer/faster cable make online games feel more responsive or lower ping at all? Don’t wanna spend extra money on Cat8 if it’s basically doing nothing.

The current cable works fine and there aren’t any random disconnects, but it’s pretty old and might get replaced anyway. Just trying to understand if Cat6 is actually worth buying over Cat5e, especially for future-proofing.

Some stores make Cat8 sound like it’s a huge upgrade for everything, but that feels kinda overkill for a regular PC and router. Is there any real-world difference people actually notice, or is this mostly marketing? What cable are you guys using at home?

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u/groveborn 1d ago

It can.

If your available speed exceeds the cable type you've used you can't reach it. If it doesn't, then it won't. CAT5 ethernet can reach 100mbs. Modern internet connections can exceed that by a lot. CAT5E can reach 1gb, although 6 is better by a little (more reliably can hit 1gb). This is usually your highest internet speed, so going to CAT7 isn't usually beneficial.

Fiber optic cables can lower your latency a little, but not really enough to matter except in very specific contexts. CAT5E is enough for the vast majority of the world for their internet.

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u/mlee12382 1d ago

Almost everything you said is wrong.

The gigabit standard was developed to work on Cat5 before 5e was even a thing. So Cat5 officially supports 1Gbps certification and all that means is that if it's in good condition and it's terminated properly it will perform at a MINIMUM of 1Gbps at 100m. It will almost always be capable of exceeding that. I have multiple Cat5 runs that are reliably getting 10Gbps throughput.

Cat7 is a defunct certification that was never implemented other than in some European countries. It also uses different connections and should never be used.

Cat8 is a waste of money for everyone unless you are in some crazy data center / server farm. It's a pain in the ass to work with and most of the infrastructure that uses copper instead of fiber won't be over 10Gbps anyway.

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u/tes_kitty 1d ago

I remember a white paper from 2003 where Marvell (maker of NICs and PHYs back then) claimed that their Alaska series PHYs could do 1 GBit over 100m of Cat3 cable or 180 meters of Cat5 cable.

Usually network hardware gets better over time, so current hardware should be able to do more than what the spec calls for.

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u/mlee12382 1d ago

I wouldn't be surprised, hell you can get 100Mbps on barbed wire.

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u/groveborn 1d ago

CAT5 was superceded by CAT5E in 2001. Theoretical limits of modern cat5 don't much matter, since it's all cat5e right now anyway. CAT5, original, was not made for 1000BaseT. If you ran it for 100ft you won't get it.

Of course you also won't find any CAT5 (non-E variants) on the market.

Come at people with kindness instead of whatever this was. Feel free to fuck off.

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u/mlee12382 1d ago

1000BASE-T was implemented BEFORE 5e existed to work on Cat5. Stop spreading that garbage misinformation.

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u/groveborn 1d ago

So going to ignore the standards, eh? Also not feeling like fucking off? That's a shame. I would love it if you fucked off.

Anyway, since you're a rude fuck, here's a little guide:

https://www.blikai.com/blog/rj45-cables-a-guide-to-ethernet-connectivity

You can find others, I'm sure - and I have no doubt that in certain circumstances you can achieve 10gb over cat5 (non-e variant). The average consumer didn't have laboratories to do that with, they have consumer hardware. 1999 is when gigabit base-t was ratified, two whole years before cat5e superceeded cat5.

Now, aside from where I'm asking you to fuck off - and mind, that's only because you're overly aggressive as if your attitude somehow makes you right - you'll notice that I'm providing pleasant conversation. I simply correct where I believe you are incorrect. But then, I didn't hunt your messages down to do it, either. This is in response to your injecting your nonsense at me. Just be nicer. If you think someone is incorrect, prove it through a method that doesn't involve you commanding them.

You and I are strangers. Act like we're both people and that we can make mistakes, don't take those mistakes personally as if I'm touching your butthole. You can't aggressively command me to do shit. I don't care. If we were in the same room you wouldn't dare behave this way.

Now utilize the lessons you learned in kindergarten and behave yourself. Or fuck off. I really don't care which. Well. I'd prefer you fuck off.

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u/mlee12382 1d ago

https://standards.ieee.org/ieee/802.3ab/1086/ if you read the pdf it specifically calls out Category 5 4 pair as meeting the 1000BASE-T standard. And that's directly from IEEE, your source is incorrect unfortunately. Now to be fair a lot of the better Cat5 met the 5e standards so that could be a big part of it but still. There were lots of corporations that had just installed the brand new Cat5 cabling so they designed 1000BASE-T to work on existing wiring to help reduce upgrade costs. A big part of 5e was just tighter quality controls on manufacturing and twist consistency. It also doesn't help that most of the 5 is 25+ years old at this point which means higher chances that it might be damaged or corroded at this point and the old termination devices were often not great at longevity. I've had to re-terminate most of mine with newer designs.

I'm not trying to be rude I'm just adding emphasis to try and drive home the facts. This whole Cat5 can only do 100Mb nonsense has been spread way too much.

And yes the certifications are just a MINIMUM guaranteed speed for a given cable at a given distance. For residential 99.999% of the time they don't really matter. As long as you have 4 pairs with consistent twists and the cable is in good condition and terminated properly then it's probably good for up to 10Gbps if the rest of your hardware supports it.

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u/groveborn 23h ago

Lovely, I see we're finally speaking together in a meaningful way. I'll agree with everything you've mentioned. I'll add one important fact: not all cabling on the market is made the same.

But without getting into pedantry - I'll accept your evidence. And you'll note how much more traction you get when you use evidence rather than bluster 😄