The network wiring project got a kick in the pants recently. The fiber optic link between the master bedroom and the kitchen failed. That happened similarly a few years ago, after a maid had done some cleaning. I fixed it that time by swapping one of the parts from the living room fiber optic link, then I replaced the living room link with a new link based on dual CAT6's.
Well I think it's likely to be the same part which failed again (though I can't remember whether it was receiver or transmitter, and there was even some doubt that part of the problem might have been one of the power supplies). So it's possible that I can't have the kitchen video sources, including the Dish network, in the bedroom until I get the new wiring installed. It's also possible I won't bother to test spare parts on the fiber optic link beforehand.
Last week I went ahead and order the RG6 wires that would complete the picture (though I'm not really sure how I'm going to use them). But now I'm realizing that maybe I didn't quite have this all worked out completely in my mind.
The CAT6A wiring is fairly simple. Three sets of three wires originate in the kitchen and terminate in the three 'client' rooms: king's room, queen's room, and living room. Single wires originate in the computer room, where the cable modem is, and connect to all other rooms (including the kitchen). That takes up 4 slots in each client room, 10 slots in the kitchen, and 4 in the computer room. If this were all there is, it would be obvious to add two more wires between kitchen and computer room, so it can be a digital video sender or receiver as well.
But what happens when I add 2 RG6's originating from the kitchen? Well first there's the question of whether the RG6's will go to all other rooms, or skip the computer room. If I do send the RG6 to every room, the computer room will need a second panel, or I'd have to drop the two extra CAT6 wires to the computer room.
Well then if I do go for two panels in the computer room, they might as well both be relatively full. So then just make the first panel in the computer room the same as for every client room, 4 CAT6A's and 2 RG6's, minus one CAT6A which would just be a looparound from the computer room itself (so 3, actually). Then the second panel of 6 with only 4 slots filled for the CAT6A's to each room. That does leave 3 extra slots, but I can't use any of them without adding another panel somewhere else.
I think I was planning on enough cables for all this, but I'll have to check. We can see here:
4x2 RG6 from kitchen to all other rooms (yes, 8 cables ordered)
4x3 (videos) + 4x1 (lan) 16 cables
But how many 6 hole plates? 3 for the client rooms, 2 for the laboratory, and... lets look at the holes needed for the kitchen:
4x4 outgoing CAT6A
4x2 outgoing RG6
1 incoming CAT6A
That's 19, which is just one more than three panels can handle. Which makes me think...let's drop that incoming CAT6A. There are already 4 CAT6A's between the computer room and the kitchen. Even considering that one of those lines is already taken for the LAN, that's the same as in all the client rooms. It's just that in this case, hub to hub, the wires in the panel aren't merged from two sources. They just go straight from kitchen to lab.
So, OK, we can do with 3 planes in the kitchen, two in the lab, and one in each of the client rooms, 8 plates in all. 32 CAT6A inserts, 16 RG6 inserts.
There has been some misson creep here, for sure. In particular, I'm worried about the difficulty of 3 plates. It is possible to get dual plates, permitting single boxes. But I don't think you can get triple plates.
Well I think it's likely to be the same part which failed again (though I can't remember whether it was receiver or transmitter, and there was even some doubt that part of the problem might have been one of the power supplies). So it's possible that I can't have the kitchen video sources, including the Dish network, in the bedroom until I get the new wiring installed. It's also possible I won't bother to test spare parts on the fiber optic link beforehand.
Last week I went ahead and order the RG6 wires that would complete the picture (though I'm not really sure how I'm going to use them). But now I'm realizing that maybe I didn't quite have this all worked out completely in my mind.
The CAT6A wiring is fairly simple. Three sets of three wires originate in the kitchen and terminate in the three 'client' rooms: king's room, queen's room, and living room. Single wires originate in the computer room, where the cable modem is, and connect to all other rooms (including the kitchen). That takes up 4 slots in each client room, 10 slots in the kitchen, and 4 in the computer room. If this were all there is, it would be obvious to add two more wires between kitchen and computer room, so it can be a digital video sender or receiver as well.
But what happens when I add 2 RG6's originating from the kitchen? Well first there's the question of whether the RG6's will go to all other rooms, or skip the computer room. If I do send the RG6 to every room, the computer room will need a second panel, or I'd have to drop the two extra CAT6 wires to the computer room.
Well then if I do go for two panels in the computer room, they might as well both be relatively full. So then just make the first panel in the computer room the same as for every client room, 4 CAT6A's and 2 RG6's, minus one CAT6A which would just be a looparound from the computer room itself (so 3, actually). Then the second panel of 6 with only 4 slots filled for the CAT6A's to each room. That does leave 3 extra slots, but I can't use any of them without adding another panel somewhere else.
I think I was planning on enough cables for all this, but I'll have to check. We can see here:
4x2 RG6 from kitchen to all other rooms (yes, 8 cables ordered)
4x3 (videos) + 4x1 (lan) 16 cables
But how many 6 hole plates? 3 for the client rooms, 2 for the laboratory, and... lets look at the holes needed for the kitchen:
4x4 outgoing CAT6A
4x2 outgoing RG6
1 incoming CAT6A
That's 19, which is just one more than three panels can handle. Which makes me think...let's drop that incoming CAT6A. There are already 4 CAT6A's between the computer room and the kitchen. Even considering that one of those lines is already taken for the LAN, that's the same as in all the client rooms. It's just that in this case, hub to hub, the wires in the panel aren't merged from two sources. They just go straight from kitchen to lab.
So, OK, we can do with 3 planes in the kitchen, two in the lab, and one in each of the client rooms, 8 plates in all. 32 CAT6A inserts, 16 RG6 inserts.
There has been some misson creep here, for sure. In particular, I'm worried about the difficulty of 3 plates. It is possible to get dual plates, permitting single boxes. But I don't think you can get triple plates.
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