Everything You Need To Know To Find The Best BS Standard Cable 

March 6, / General, 101 learning, Installation and testing, Best Practices

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Both shielded and unshielded twisted-pair copper cable comes in either stranded or solid wire versions. There are plenty of considerations when it comes to choosing one or the other, including standards, environment, application, and cost. Let&#;s take a look at the differences and considerations, so you can decide whether stranded copper wire or solid copper wire cable is right for your specific installation.

Differences Between Stranded and Solid Wire Cable

Stranded and solid wire cable differ in key ways, including construction, flexibility, and performance.

What Is Stranded Wire Cable?

In a stranded cable, each of the eight copper conductors are made up of multiple &#;strands&#; of small-gauge wires that are wound together concentrically in a helix, much like a rope. Stranded wire is typically specified as two numbers, with the first number representing the quantity of strands and the second representing the gauge. For example, a 7X32 (sometimes written as 7/32) indicates that there are 7 strands of 32 AWG wire that make up the conductor.

What Is Solid Wire Cable?

In a solid cable, each of the eight conductors are made up of a single larger-gauge wire. Solid wire is specified by just one gauge number to indicate the size of the conductor, such as 24 AWG. Whether it&#;s a one-, two-, or four-pair cable, the gauge of the solid conductor is the specification for the cable.

Stranded Wire Cables Are More Flexible than Solid Wire Cables

Beyond the way they're made, another key difference between stranded and solid wire cable is flexibility.

• &#; Stranded wire cables are much more flexible and can withstand more bending. In terminations, however, those flexible strands can break or become loose over time.
• &#; Solid wire cables are more rigid and can break if flexed too far or too frequently. However, solid conductors will hold their shape over time and seat properly within insulation displacement connectors (IDCs) on jacks, patch panels, and connecting blocks.

Solid Wire Cables Are Better Conductors

A less-obvious difference between stranded and solid wire cable is performance.

• &#; In general, solid wire cables are better electrical conductors than stranded wire cables, and they provide superior, stable electrical characteristics over a wider range of frequencies. They&#;re also considered more rugged and less likely to be affected by vibration or susceptible to corrosion, since they have less surface area than stranded conductors.
• &#; Solid wire can also carry more current than stranded wire. Higher-gauge (thinner) conductors have more insertion loss than lower-gauge (thicker) conductors; stranded cables exhibit 20 to 50 percent more attenuation than solid copper conductors (20 percent for 24 AWG and 50 percent for 26 AWG). Because the cross section of a stranded conductor is not all copper (there&#;s some air in there), they also have higher DC resistance than solid cables.

Now that you understand the differences between stranded and solid wire cable, let&#;s cover what you need to consider when making a choice.

Is Stranded Wire Better Than Solid Wire?

Which type of wire is the best choice depends on the installation's requirements.

When to Use Solid Wire Cable

When it comes to 90-meter horizontal permanent links, there&#;s no choice: whether it's shielded or unshielded twisted pair, both TIA and ISO/IEC standards require solid wire cable. Stranded cable (24 and 26 AWG) is limited to patch cords and 10-meter lengths within a 100-meter channel.

When to Use Stranded Wire Cable

Because stranded cables are more flexible and can withstand bending, they make excellent patch cords for equipment connections and cross-connects where cables are frequently bent and manipulated; at just 10 meters of the channel, the increased insertion loss and resistance aren&#;t a factor in the overall channel performance. However, smaller 28 AWG stranded patch cords that have even more insertion loss and resistance due to their smaller gauge do have some limitations &#; get the Skinny on 28 AWG Patch Cords to learn more.

Open office environments, however, are special situations; they&#;re faced with regular reconfigurations and may require a more flexible cabling system. In those installations, the standards allow stranded patch cords to take up more than 10 meters of the channel. However, if you&#;re using more than 10 meters of stranded cable in a channel, industry standards require de-rating the overall channel length to accommodate for the greater insertion loss and DC resistance.

When it comes to de-rating stranded cable per industry standards, the overall gauge is a factor: higher-gauge (thinner) cables have a higher de-rating factor. The de-rating for 26 AWG stranded cable is 0.5, while 24 AWG is only 0.2, and 22 AWG stranded cables require no de-rating at all.

Here are the calculations to determine overall channel length, where H=horizontal cable length, D=de-rating factor, C= total stranded cable length and T=total channel length.

For example, if you&#;re using 60 meters of horizontal solid category 6A cable and 40 meters of stranded 24 AWG category 6A patch cable with a 0.2 de-rating factor, the total length of the channel must be reduced to 97.5 meters. (If you prefer the actual math: total stranded cable length = [105-60]/[1 + 0.2], or 37.5, and total channel length = 60+37.5, or 97.5 meters.)  If you&#;re using 26 AWG stranded cable with a 0.5 de-rating, the channel length needs to be reduced to 90 meters.

PoE Makes Greater Demands on Stranded Cable Patch Cords

While stranded cable is the norm for patch cords at patching areas in the telecommunications room (TR) and at the work area (perhaps longer than 10 meters in open offices), a primary application to consider in today&#;s LANs warrants the use of solid patch cords: Power over Ethernet (PoE). When PoE is delivered over twisted-pair copper cable, some of the power dissipates as heat. When power dissipates as heat, the cable temperature increases. With higher insertion loss and DC resistance, stranded patch cords are more likely to exhibit degraded transmission performance at elevated temperatures.

While not typically a concern in environmentally controlled spaces like the TR, stranded patch cords could become an issue once you start connecting devices in the ceiling &#; think wireless access points, security cameras, LED lights, and more. In best practice, if the environment isn&#;t temperature controlled and the cable doesn&#;t have to bend much, solid cable patch cords should be used. If you do use stranded patch cords in uncontrolled environments, it&#;s better to keep them short (about 5 meters or less). And when it comes to higher-temperature environments, industry standards require de-rating channel length for that, too; more cables in a bundle, each generating more heat, can require even more length de-rating (though there can be An Exception to Every Rule).

Balancing the Cost Difference Between Stranded and Solid Wire

While more strands in a conductor mean greater flexibility, a higher strand count also means a higher price. To keep costs down, stranded category 6 and category 6A cable are designed to strike a balance: enough strands to maintain proper flexibility, but not so many that it creates a dramatic price difference. You don&#;t have to compromise performance (or standards compliance) by selecting stranded wire cable instead of solid for environments and applications for which it&#;s not suited. Keep your stranded cables in environmentally controlled areas that require greater flexibility, and use solid wire cable where rugged performance (and little bending) is required.

Whether it&#;s patch cords, permanent links, or channels, you can configure a Fluke Networks Versiv&#; tool to certify the cable's performance.

View the Versiv Configurator

Solid and stranded wires see frequent use in electrical equipment, such as cable assemblies and wire harnesses. Solid wires consist of a solid core, whereas stranded wire consists of several thinner wires twisted into a bundle. Each has distinct advantages, with the right choice for an application depending on the specific project details. Some of the factors that may influence the choice between stranded vs. solid wire include:

• Amperage load

• Use case

• Costs

• Metal type

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  For more information, please visit Mingda.

• Wire gauge

Learning more about the difference between the two types of wires will make it easier to determine the best choice for your needs. The following information should help to inform the selection process.

What is Stranded Wire?

These thin, bundled wires are compressed and insulated with non-conductive materials. Stranded wire is more flexible, making it ideal for connecting electronic components in cramped spaces or for twisting and bending to fit intricate geometries. Stranded wire is more flexible and malleable than solid wire, and it won&#;t split or sever. It is often used for indoor applications such as electronic devices, circuit boards, and speaker wires.

What is Solid Wire?

Solid metal core wire is a much heavier, thicker product than stranded wire. It is ideal for outdoor use where more durability and higher currents are required. This rugged, low-cost wire is resistant to weather, extreme environmental conditions, and frequent movement. It is often used for carrying high currents throughout building infrastructure, vehicle controls, and various outdoor applications.

Stranded vs. Solid Wires: The Key Differences

Comparing stranded vs. solid wire involves exploring the advantages and disadvantages of the two very different types of wire. A comparison narrows down the choices based on how the specific wire characteristics relate to their expected use and the project requirements. You must first determine your application&#;s requirements for weather resistance, flexibility, and resistance to splitting or severing. Then, choose the wire that most closely meets those needs. 

Some key differences of stranded vs. solid copper wire include:

• Stranded vs. solid wire current capacity

  . Solid wire is thicker, which means less surface area for dissipation. The thinner wires in stranded wire contain air gaps and greater surface area with the individual strands, translating to more dissipation. When choosing between solid or stranded wire for house wiring, the solid wire offers higher current capacity. 

• Routing

  . Stranded wires offer superior bendability and flexibility, making them easier to route around obstacles than solid wires.

• Flexibility

  . Stranded wires are more flexible and can sustain more vibration and flexing without breaking. Solid wires may require more frequent replacement than stranded wires in applications with significant movement or vibrations.

• Cost

  . The production costs of solid wire are much lower than stranded wire, which makes solid wire the more affordable choice. 

• Ease of manufacturing

  . The single-core nature of solid wire makes it much simpler to manufacture. Stranded wires require more complex manufacturing processes to twist the thinner wires together. 

• Distance

  . For longer runs, solid wires are the better choice because they feature less current dissipation. Stranded wire will perform well over shorter distances.

• Superiority.

  When it comes down to stranded vs. solid wire, there is no clear choice. Each option offers distinct advantages in particular situations.

Wire Solutions From Consolidated Electronic Wire & Cable

Consolidated Electronic Wire & Cable has been a leading manufacturer of high-quality standard and custom electronic wire, molded cable assemblies, wiring harnesses, cable, and power supply cords for over 100 years. Our longevity is due to our versatility, adaptability, and commitment to continuous improvement in processes and products. Our many industry certifications are a testament to our commitment to quality and innovation, including:

• ISO

• RoHS

• CE Mark

• NEC

• UL

• CSA

• VDE

• LF

• MIL-Spec

When you partner with us, you will gain the full expertise of our entire team to ensure the success of your project. For more information on our capabilities and product lines, please contact us or submit a quote request today. 

The company is the world’s best BS Standard Cable  supplier. We are your one-stop shop for all needs. Our staff are highly-specialized and will help you find the product you need.