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Ethernet Cable
Pretty simple question Just got a Nighthawk AC1900 Smart Router - Before purchasing checked a review - One reviewer suggested changing the CAT 5 ethernet cable between the router and cable modem to...
Basically, if you are using a 100Mbps rated cable, it might not be the best choice. ISP usually over provision the speeds Up/Down specified. If your service is rated at 100Mbps Down and 100Mbps or less up, you'll lose a little. Cat6 would not lose that little amount. However if you ever upgrade your service Cat5 might not work well.
Here is some info on different cables : https://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/differences-between-ethernet-cables/
Where you would really need the CAT6 if you have a LAN and tranfer files around or execute programs from another PC. Hard wired devices should have CAT6 as the Router itself is 1GB ports. Of course, wired to wireless devices or visa versa would not the the max. speed but will still be faster than if CAT5 were used to the wired devices.
Compared to everything else, upgrading to CAT6 is not usually expensive. It will also improve speed on long runs.
> Thinking of changing mine to cat6
What is it now, Cat5 or Cat5e? Changing a bad Cat5 cable to a good
Cat6 cable might help, but I wouldn't expect much gain from replacing a
good Cat5e cable. But it's a pretty cheap experiment to run.
> Our cable co now provides 100mbits. [Per second, not total, I assume.]
So, even if you were getting an amber LED for that port, suggesting a
100MHz link, you might not notice.