Reddit reviews HDE Network Cable Tester

As a boss I would think you are out of your mind. I understand spare equipment, I wouldn't understand something you would use maybe twice in a single year.

I would immediately send you this and tell you to justify it: Cheap Fix

You would be better off making your own. I've found that a lot of the sets are cheap.

Here's my take on it.

1.Cable tester:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d
/B000P1OA1O?cache=6447edf9df8336c37ffb445471642e6b&pi=SY200_QL40&qid=1412645606&sr=8-1#ref=mp_s_a_1_1

Simple cat5 tester, cheap and works decently.

2. Cable stripper:

Here I've given two options, one is a spinning stripper made for things like taking the jacket off cat5, the second is a more of an electrical stripper for a bunch of gauges of wire with cutters at the back side. If your comfortable with it you can use the cutters to strip just about anything.

2.a http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0099DIV4G?cache=6447edf9df8336c37ffb445471642e6b&pi=SY200_QL40&qid=1412645735&sr=8-1#ref=mp_s_a_1_1

2.b. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00080DPNQ?cache=6447edf9df8336c37ffb445471642e6b&pi=AC_SX110_SY165_QL70&qid=1412645735&sr=8-12#ref=mp_s_a_1_12

3.punchdown tool :
If your in a spot where you get to do punchdowns it's nice to have, they are cheap and work well,

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000KMFDZ0?cache=6447edf9df8336c37ffb445471642e6b&pi=SX200_QL40&qid=1412646040&sr=8-1#ref=mp_s_a_1_1

4. Cat 5 ends:
Always keep plenty of these, a bag of them is cheap and you will be glad you have them.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B003M5BIII?cache=6447edf9df8336c37ffb445471642e6b&pi=SY200_QL40&qid=1412646222&sr=8-1#ref=mp_s_a_1_1

5: crimper:

Never underestimate a good crimper. I have had no luck with the cutting portion of them but that's why I have other tools.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0000AZK4G?cache=6447edf9df8336c37ffb445471642e6b&pi=SX200_QL40&qid=1412646393&sr=8-2#ref=mp_s_a_1_2

6. #2 philps head.
I like ratcheting screw drivers with multiple heads but this is easily the most used screwdriver in my set.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000NNK9MS?cache=6447edf9df8336c37ffb445471642e6b&pi=AC_SX110_SY165_QL70&qid=1412646575&sr=8-5#ref=mp_s_a_1_5

The flat head out of this set is also nice, depending on your bag keep them all handy.


Everything beyond this point is optional or situational.

8. Power supply tester: if you do any sort of computer repair these are very handy to hold on to.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001MKCALY?cache=6447edf9df8336c37ffb445471642e6b&pi=SY200_QL40&qid=1412646902&sr=8-3#ref=mp_s_a_1_3

9. Tweaker: good for laptop repair or if you deal with any sort of building controllers/ low voltage electrical.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0058I6VNE?cache=6447edf9df8336c37ffb445471642e6b&pi=SX200_QL40&qid=1412647026&sr=8-1#ref=mp_s_a_1_1

I also have a similar sized Philips head screw driver but I use it much less frequently.

10. Electrical tape: some people say it's for those who mess up doing electrical, I call it insurance.

11. Linemans: I use mine to crimp chicklets mostly but they come in handy a lot. I couldn't find the exact ones I use b

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000A0S4XK?cache=6447edf9df8336c37ffb445471642e6b&pi=AC_SX110_SY165_QL70&qid=1412647275&sr=8-4#ref=mp_s_a_1_4


12: a bag:
Personally, I use an old back pack. I find its a lot easier to carry that along with a box of cable. This is entirely preference.

What you are looking for can easily be found by searching Amazon for "tone probe" .

Even a cheap two piece cable tester would do the trick in a pinch.

http://amzn.com/B000P1OA1O

I bought this to test the cables. Is this sufficient? What other tests should I do?

Fluke gear is nice, but it's pricy.

I've got much lower usage than you, so I use this toner on a ~monthly basis, along with this network cable checker.

cable testers are great for checking crimps (it's so easy to make a mistake) Amazon has a ton of cheap testers that work well.

I used this one.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000P1OA1O/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I recently bought a crimper and tester. They're kinda on the cheap end of tools, but they work well (at least the crimper does, I only used the tester once).

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000AZK4G/

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000P1OA1O/

most cable testers will test each wire, lighting up if its good.


you will notice they are labeled 1-8 https://www.amazon.com/HDE-HDE-H11-Network-Cable-Tester/dp/B000P1OA1O


plug one side in the tester and the other into the remote

Just here to agree and suggest this bad boy:

http://www.amazon.com/HDE-HDE-H11-Network-Cable-Tester/dp/B000P1OA1O/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1413335811&sr=8-1&keywords=ethernet+tester

It looks and has the build quality of a piece of shit, but has tested tons of cables for me, may help you moving forward. Also hard to go wrong for the price.

That's actually really cool. Unfortunately I only have one like this, although mine does BNC as well.

You might also want to test each cable. If they're in the walls and you can't trace each cable individually and you don't know what goes to where from the basement, a tester might be worth getting

I'd recommend picking up one of the super basic types (like this http://www.amazon.com/HDE-HDE-H11-Network-Cable-Tester/dp/B000P1OA1O ) they are invaluable for peace of mind testing.

Could you post some pictures of this control panel?

Would you be willing to buy networking tools? Something like this is super-cheap and would be able to help you figure out what cables go where.

Network Tester

I would invest in one of these: http://www.amazon.com/HDE-HDE-H11-Network-Cable-Tester/dp/B000P1OA1O/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395163435&sr=8-1&keywords=cat5e+tester

It is all you need to make sure your wired correctly. If it tests fine with this tester, 99.99 percent of the time you will be fine with 1Gb links. Still to early for 10Gb so I wouldn't worry about that yet. Cat6 should be fine for future proofing at this point since its too early for home 10Gb gear to know what will be available.

Basically, he's saying to buy some ethernet testers ( http://www.amazon.com/HDE-HDE-H11-Network-Cable-Tester/dp/B000P1OA1O/ref=pd_cp_pc_0 ) and plug one end into the wall in one room, and go around the house testing all the other outlets to see where that outlet is connected. If you're never able to get a connection from one port to another, you likely have a cable problem and would need to have it re-run. Otherwise, you may have great cabling but just need to know how it's laid out.

As far as the coax, it appears to be possible, based on a quick google search, but looks like it might be a bit of work.

Depending on how often you think you might do this, it may be worth your money to get a crimper, ends, and tester, and then you can make your own cables. Making your own cables isn't fun, but it's a lot easier to string bulk ethernet cable through walls then it is to try and get finished ethernet cables through walls without damaging them.

I had the same exact question for DIY subreddit a few months ago looking to do the same thing as you. Forget about the patch panel and the big box stores. Don't spend a ton of money. You are just wiring a couple rooms. You can get everything off Amazon or ebay for cheap. If you don't care about phone service then just cut the cables and crimp on new. Then plug all the crimped ends into a switch. No need for a panel. You can get a tester for cheap at amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/HDE-HDE-H11-Network-Cable-Tester/dp/B000P1OA1O/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1346567376&sr=8-2&keywords=network+cable+tester

I bought and used that one and it worked great. Probably not the best out there, but for a one time simple project to get a few rooms online it is more than enough.

The only thing to spend some money on is the punch down tool (Although doesn't look like you may need one based on your wall jacks). The ones that come free with other stuff are useless and will waste your time and wiring. This one worked well for me:
http://www.amazon.com/TRENDnet-Punch-Krone-Blade-TC-PDT/dp/B0000AZK4D/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1346567733&sr=1-1&keywords=TRENDnet+Punch+Down+Tool+with+110+and+Krone+Blade+TC-PDT


Crimping is easy as hell if you use connectors like this:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009JCVI6/ref=oh_details_o03_s00_i00

The crimping tool by the same brand actually cuts the excess wiring while you crimp. I did about 10 crimps and all worked perfect the first time. I bought a EZ RJ-45 $60 crimp tool from someone on ebay. Then sold it for the same amount two weeks later when I finished using it.

Update your Ethernet and wi-fi drivers.

Plus find out if there is an update to your router (check ISPs website first).

And if you haven't already, get yourself a cheap network tester, and test all the cables you are using, including the ones in the walls. To test the wiring in the wall, just plug in a network cable, and connect on of the network devices, then connect the other device to the other side of the cable.

Probably a bad wire. Hopefully you discovered this before running the cable... Buy a cheap cable tester for future use.

Crap! Just bought pretty much the same items (different brands) less than 24 hrs ago on Amazon.

Product|Price|
:---------|---------:|
TRENDnet 8P/RJ-45 and 6P/RJ-12, RJ-11 Crimp, Cut, and Strip Tool, TC-CT68|$14.35
Network Cable Tester|$4.17
TRENDnet Punch Down Tool with 110 and Krone Blade TC-PDT|$20.34
CableWholesale CNE16127 RJ45 CAT-5 E Crimp Connector Solid|$4.55
C2G / Cables to Go 27352 Cat5E UTP Solid PVC CMR-Rated Cable, Grey (1000 Feet/304.8 Meters)|$99.85

Used CAT5E since CAT6 would be overkill for my needs and the budget is always tight.

Make sure you look up how to attach the cable ends to the cables. There are 8 wires in the cable and they're color coded. You have to put them in the correct order or they won't work. [Technically, the actual color order doesn't matter, but they have to be consistent.]

Might not be worth it for a one-time job, but a cable tester like:
http://www.amazon.com/HDE-HDE-H11-Network-Cable-Tester/dp/B000P1OA1O
... is handy to check your work before it drives you insane. You plug in the remote to one end and the base to the other and it lights up if you have a connection or shows mismatches. When you're done, you can test cables using the base. Definitely worth the $5 since now you can make custom length ethernet cables for a fraction of the cost you can buy them at the store for.

You have to decide if you want to put plug ends on (like the end of an ethernet cable) which will plug straight into your device or receptacles that you mount to the floor/wall in a plate (and then you use a regular cable [that you can now make!] to connect it to your device.)

They both work, the receptacles and plates look nicer than a cable sticking out of the floor.

You'll need a drill and drill bits to put holes in things.
If you're going under, you'll want clips that hold the cable in place, maybe. Zipties work too.

You'll need a crimper, like:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000AZK4G
You get the wires lined up into the plug and this squeezes the metal contacts down into the wires to hold them and make a connection.

It's totally doable, go for it!

Heck, if you just need side-by-side and very basic testing

http://www.amazon.com/HDE-HDE-H11-Network-Cable-Tester/dp/B000P1OA1O

I got a cheapo cable tester from amazon for like 5 bucks when I bought a crimper and some ends.

100BASETX uses only 2 pairs of copper; 1000BASET uses 4 pair. If the brown or blue pairs (4,5 and 7,8 IIRC) are not connected properly you'll only end up with 100Mb speeds. I ran a few cables under my house. I don't remember having any issues back in the day making fast ethernet cables, but I'll be damned if I didn't have ALL KINDS of issues getting gigabit to work. I'm using CAT5e which is basically the minimum for gigabit, but my runs are short (30 feet) so it should have been fine. Oh well, I finally got it working with the help of my cable tester. But even sometimes when a cable tested out fine, I had issues with gigabit. I must have done both ends on each cable 5 or 10 times. Guess I'm just out of practice, or my cable sucks, or.. I don't know.

That's the other thing; As you appear to know, 100 meters is the spec for both fast ethernet and gigabit; if you're getting excessive noise due to cross-talk, the links might fail back to fast ethernet.

In practice, I suspect you just have some bad cables.

Here's a cheapo:
http://www.amazon.com/eSTAR-Network-Cable-Tester/dp/B000P1OA1O

Here's one that costs more money:
http://www.amazon.com/TRENDnet-Cable-Tester-COAX-TC-NT2/dp/B0000AZK08

you can start with one of these to test one end of the cable to the other. this is the cheap way
https://www.amazon.com/HDE-HDE-H11-Network-Cable-Tester/dp/B000P1OA1O
from there you can narrow down your problems

Seriously, cable testers aren't expensive and I've never heard of a software alternative.

This one is $5 ... surely you can afford that.