Shielded cables and ADSL - fact or fiction?
As any technology evolves there are, shall we say, seemingly technically good ideas that really don’t produce the results one might think they could.
A perfect example is shielded cords. While it is indisputable that a shielded cable or a cord made from such a cable is more resistant to certain types of external interference, the marketers and promoters of such cables and cords commonly overlook the fact that if they are not installed properly, they are no more resistant to external interference than a regular cable or cord.
In order for a shielded cable to work properly, the shield must be properly grounded and the proper methods are beyond the scope of this FAQ.
In most cases, considering the jacks and modems used in ADSL service, properly grounding the shield is not possible for the average end user to achieve. As such, one who has paid the money for a shielded cable never realizes the benefit (if any) of using such a cable.
IMO based on my experience, unless you live in an extremely high radio frequency or other man made noise type of environment, using a shielded cable for ADSL service is money tossed to the wind.
Conversely, if you do live in an extremely high radio frequency (Ham Operator), you probably don’t need an FAQ on RF/noise mitigation as you are already living it and may have already written a few chapters about it. ;-)
Wayne
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got feedback?by Splitpair 
edited by FAQFixer
last modified: 2007-10-24 22:07:16
