Cat 5 Splitter

[MikeyRo]

OK, so I am running 2 controllers. My pc is in the basement and I have a wired connection going outside. I will have one controller on the roof and the second one in the front yard. Can I split my cat 5 output cable from my LOR dongle (straight controllers, no DMX, yet) and run a separate line to each controller?

This would allow me to not run two cables and use approximately 100 extra feet of Cat 5.

Ideas?

Edited September 10, 2012 by MikeyRo

[CLD Kevin]

If you have the Booster Network Adapter (USB-RS485B) which has dual ports....then, yes you can. Each port can connect to each of your controllers. This one:

http://store.lightor...coadwivobo.html

If not...sorry, you can not split the signal on the Cat5. You will have to daisy-chain.

Edited September 10, 2012 by CLD Kevin

[Santas Helper]

If not...sorry, you can not split the signal on the Cat5. You will have to daisy-chain.

Kevin,

I hate to differ with you on this one but yes you can.

You can split the signal on the cat5 cable to two different directions.

I did this with 22 controllers. 11 on one side and 11 on the other side.

All I did was strip the ends of the two running cables and twisted them together and taped them up.

No problems what so ever.

Edit, this was on top of using the USB-RS485B prior to the split. So I had three different runs at once.

Edited September 10, 2012 by Santas Helper

[Max-Paul]

Ok, lets say you can do that. Heck you can do a lot of things. Like you can run your show with the power plug going into a non-GFI protected socket. But is it good practice? If you read the white papers on RS-485, it says that it is to be wired as a daisy chain topology. So sure split the cables as you want to. But if it does not work, then drop back to the daisy chain topology.

[Santas Helper]

Ok, lets say you can do that. Heck you can do a lot of things. Like you can run your show with the power plug going into a non-GFI protected socket. But is it good practice? If you read the white papers on RS-485, it says that it is to be wired as a daisy chain topology. So sure split the cables as you want to. But if it does not work, then drop back to the daisy chain topology.

MP,

I hate to see a comparison of something "unsafe" like you mentioned versus something that can be done with "no safety factors" like I mentioned. Was the question about a non-GFI protected socket? Nope.

The OP had a question and I answered it with my own experience.

Edited September 11, 2012 by Santas Helper

[CLD Kevin]

Kevin,

I hate to differ with you on this one but yes you can.

You can split the signal on the cat5 cable to two different directions.

I did this with 22 controllers. 11 on one side and 11 on the other side.

All I did was strip the ends of the two running cables and twisted them together and taped them up.

No problems what so ever.

Edit, this was on top of using the USB-RS485B prior to the split. So I had three different runs at once.

No worries. I never realized splitting the signal would work. The manual states to daisy-chain and I haven't tried anything else. If it works...then great, but I personally wouldn't recommend it. However many of us do things that are not recommended....including myself :-)

[JBullard]

Yes you can. LOR offers the product. Read the description, last line. Designed for this application.

I would think that most good LOR Partners would have this essential display item in stock ready to ship to their customers. I have a couple of these that i use in my display.

http://store.lightor...com/rsnere.html

[Max-Paul]

Hey JB,

Note that SH said that he just stripped some wires and twisted 3 together. One from the RJ-45 and two leads going left and right. Note the same as the splitter that LOR sells. And to be truthful I dont know if this is just some circuit traces connecting two output jacks or two jacks connected to a buffer chip.

SH ok the example of an unprotected power source might be extreme. But the point is, what you are doing is not good practice in accordance with the RS-485 white papers. OK? That is all a few of us where saying. If it works for you, great. I am happy for you. But if it starts to act weird, lights turning on or off when they are not supposed to. Then you might want to consider wiring per the white papers. As for me and my display. I will keep it K.I.S.S. and per the engineered specs. Less chances of something driving me crazy trying to figure it out and track it down. I do that enough at work daily, dont want that crap at home cuss I took a short cut. But thats just me and I try to give newbies good sound advice. Even when it is like a German over engineering it. Cause I am a hard headed German and my Grandfather taught me a lot when I was growing up.

Now I got that out.

[George Simmons]

...I am a hard headed German...

And just how did a German ever get involved with bagpipes? Tubas or accordians I could understand, but bagpipes?

Edited September 11, 2012 by George Simmons

[Santas Helper]

I got your point MP and understand.

Thanks for explaining.

[JBullard]

Hey JB,

Note that SH said that he just stripped some wires and twisted 3 together. One from the RJ-45 and two leads going left and right. Note the same as the splitter that LOR sells. And to be truthful I dont know if this is just some circuit traces connecting two output jacks or two jacks connected to a buffer chip.

Max,

I was answering the original posters question with a link to a LOR product that is designed to do exactly what he was asking about.

No guesses, no wrong answers and no homebrewing solutions.

And I have experience using two of this product in my display for several years and have first hand knowledge of how well they work and will satisfy the application of the original poster since LOR designed this just for this application.

Just offering CORRECT and SAFE way to do it with zero loss of signal strength due to the repeater and booster ciruits inside the unit.

[Max-Paul]

SH,

Remember the Saxons invaded the British isles, which includes Scotland. Just call me a mutt. Must be cause I a wee brun and loved ta bagpipes. Nae laddie tis not a pair ah kitties a fightn.

[Santas Helper]

Just call me a mutt.

MP, you mutt

I do love the sound of bagpipes by the way. Heard them several times in the military.

My most charished memory is when I was visiting my parents gravesite this past memorial day, a man in the distance was playing the bagpipes. It made that moment perfect.

[TJ Hvasta]

I have really been scratchin' mah hed over this one.. if the Cat5 sockets on each board are just paralleled (daisy-chained), what is the differance in either twisting the pairs together, or using a two (or three)-fer plug, as you would plug a phone and answering machine into the same phone socket.. and plugging in several Cat5s into (or making) a block of sockets paralleling them? Is it a signal loss thing or would that even be a factor if the runs are short enough.

Bagpipes, 'tis bu' a clever instrument fer coverin' th' sound o' cats bein' tortured..

Edited September 11, 2012 by TJ Hvasta

[Santas Helper]

Is it a signal loss thing or would that even be a factor if the runs are short enough.

TJ,

In my experience, with my method, I ran over 500' of cat5 on each leg after the split/splice and didn't seem to have a signal loss as all controllers operated as directed from the computer. Again, just my experience.

It was like the sound of bagpipes in the wind .

[Max-Paul]

I swear, I might have to go and get a link to the white papers. But figure most of you all would use it as that reading material that you read one paragraph and go to sleep material.

According to the white papers, a "T" tap is allowed, but it is recommened that the tail is kept very short. Something along 2' or less I think it was. So, the distance between the two RJ-45 jacks along with the one RJ-11 jack is less than 2" to the comm chip. Now I got to say it has been a few years now from the last time I read the white paper, so my distance might be off a bit on the tail. What SH has set up, leaves him open for some mean reflected signals. But so far it seems to be working for him. We will see as his show grows and he adds more than two controllers.

[TJ Hvasta]

powered by dilithium crystals, it shud be fine laddy..

oh I did mean ta ask.. I did a St. Louis trip Friday, when that mega-cell hit the airport (we made it in 2 minutes before the storm hit).. di ya get any bad weather where ya arrre?

Edited September 12, 2012 by TJ Hvasta

[Santas Helper]

What SH has set up, leaves him open for some mean reflected signals. But so far it seems to be working for him. We will see as his show grows and he adds more than two controllers.

Two controllers?

Come on MP. It was 22 as I mentioned earlier in this thread. 22 controllers. 11 on one side, 11 on the other side. Another 8 controllers before the split/splice.

[Max-Paul]

Aye laddie, tis a good blow and was nae ta nice rain. Twas one of them rains that William Wallace noted ta was frum ta left to ta rrright. But ta grass is a green again. And ta well haz nae rrrun drie. So and so tit was a good rrain in ta long of it. Has ta say tat it was a gud thing ye got ye britches down beforen ta hard rrain.

[Max-Paul]

Oy vey, now how did I miss that? I know ma old head got addled and was thinking about the op's controller count. Gee 30 controllers, you must be rich. Do you need another son? I think I am about topped out at my max display. Going to add 3 more this year. Brings me up to 2 DC controllers as 10 AC controllers. Might and that is a big might add 1 or 2 controllers for a few dumb and smart RGB strips.