NCS NonConductive Shield Cat 6 A The HDBase

“NCS” Non-Conductive Shield Cat 6 A The HDBase. T® Infrastructure Cable

AGENDA • Quick HDBase. T® Signal Primer and common issues • Ground Loops and HDBase. T • NCS cable definition • Liberty Solutions

HDBase. T® PRIMER Network standard developed by Valens Semiconductor 5 -Play signal (Video, Audio, Control, Power, and Ethernet) over one cable Standard uses the ANSI/TIA-568 twisted pair infrastructure Standard 8 P 8 C RJ 45 connectivity Industry has settled on Cat 6 A as the recommended minimum infrastructure for cabling • HDBase. T at full bore is 500 MHz and Cat 6 A certification is 500 MHz • Cat 5 E and Cat 6 also work, just distances may end up being shorter • • •

HDBase. T® ISSUES • High Frequency signal is prone to interference issues • No error correction protocol, so bit errors makes it to the sink side • Shielded cables prevent signal interference issues but introduce a new possible issue – Ground Loops • If your HDBase. T Transmitters are going dead after 3 -6 months, that is a pretty good indicator of a ground loop! • Fully bonded and then grounded shielded system will prevent ground loops, however with A/V we don’t always have the opportunity to create that system

FIXING GROUND LOOPS HDBase. T. org has training to “Lift the Ground” Adding a short unshielded section at the RX end of the link Using coupler or punch down and then patching out This adds a point of failure and loss but fixes the ground issue Liberty created a kit called GRNDLIFT-KIT for this Other option is using a UTP cable. UTP automatically corrects ground loop issues because – no shield! • However now that interference issue is a possibility • Introducing “NCS” Cable! UTP with shielded benefits! • • •

NCS CABLE • NCS cable is not a new technology, just to set your hesitation aside • Officially this is a U/UTP cable (Unshielded Twisted Pair) • Systimax(Commscope) 2091 series, Superior Essex 10 Gain® XP Category 6 A, General Cable MTP®, Belden 10 GXW 12, Berktek LANmark-XTP – all the big Data folks have a version of NCS cable for the same purposes – smaller diameter and no worries about any ground loops • Primary application was for more density in bundles related to data centers due to the smaller diameter of NCS cables

NCS CABLE • The non-conductive shield (NCS) format can differ between brands. • Most use a totally encapsulated foil with non-conductive polyester or Mylar on both sides (neither side is silver) • General Cable MTP® uses a Mosaic design where overlapping segments in two layers create a 100% coverage • Liberty NCS uses the encapsulated foil version • “How to tell” – no drain wire

NCS CABLE Standard shielded cable, shield is conductive. Silver on one side, colored backing on other side “NCS”, shield is nonconductive. Colored backing on both sides

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN NCS AND UTP • Specifically speaking about Cat 6 A cables, the UTP versions of Cat 6 A are very large in diameter due to the inclusion of spacing features built into the jackets • This is from the “ 6 around 1” testing for data centers to reduce signals from the nearby cables from causing data errors in the center cable. • NCS adds the non-conductive barrier tape and eliminates the need for the jacket spacers

PRO’S OF NCS CABLE The Pro’s: • Smaller Diameter Cable, over 10% smaller than a UTP cable and allows for higher density bundling • No need to use more expensive shielded infrastructure, connectors, keystones, or patch panels • Easier to terminate, just use oversize conductor RJ 45 plugs • Automatically eliminates the possibility of ground loop issues without even knowing they are there

CON’S OF NCS CABLE The Con’s: • The shield reflects noise away from the shield, it does not absorb and drain away internal and external EMI/RFI like a shielded cable would. • NCS cable is more expensive then UTP. NCS straddles the gap between UTP and Shielded in cost. • NCS requires specialty RJ 45 plugs, the conductor diameter is relatively large compared to standard Cat 6 UTP cables

LIBERTY NCS OFFERING Cables: • 24 -4 P-L 6 ANS-(Color) for Riser rated • 24 -4 P-P-L 6 ANS-(Color) for Plenum rated • (in development) is 24 -4 P-L 6 ANS-DB-BLK for Direct Burial/Outside Plant Connectors: • Field Terminable type FTPU 60 A • Crimp Type for oversized conductors 1110808005634 Notes: • As with all Liberty category cables, these are 3 rd party NRTL (Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory) verified for Cat 6 A