Jon Compton Posted January 1, 2014 Share Posted January 1, 2014 I was grinding some gears and wondering. 1) can you use cat6? 2) when you go to make it, does the LOR boxes need all 8 wires? 3) If not which ones? 4) Can I wire in device ends with out interference (data noise) for example head set ends, usb etc.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Benedict Posted January 1, 2014 Share Posted January 1, 2014 Yes, you can use CAT6 cable BUT you need to remove the cable hoods so they fit better going into the controllers and plugging close to each other. Either buy them cheaply or you can make your own. You should use all 8 wires to keep life simple (it will avoid problems later). Elaborate on question 4. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Compton Posted January 1, 2014 Author Share Posted January 1, 2014 With such a large yard I was thinking about extending my fm transmitter through a pair of legs in the cat6. By the time you get to the street it crackles. (Im probably over thinking) And thanks for the reply Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Santas Helper Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 Actually Jon,I made my own cables back in 2006. If I remember correctly, only the middle 4 wires/connections are needed. Worked like a charm for 22 controllers over hundreds of feet apart. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k6ccc Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 If you are going to extend the audio going to your FM transmitter, I would not put it in the same cable as your LOR data. Use a separate cable. The only way I would do it is if you REALLY understand proper use of balanced audio line and terminations. It does work if you know what you're doing (I did it in a broadcast studio), but if not you will likely get interference either from the data to the audio or the other way around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-klb- Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 4&5 must be a pair. 3&6 make the most sense to keep as a pair. I agree that I would keep the audio separated. Keeping audio clean over distance using unbalanced audio can be challenging. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a31ford Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 For running the audio hundreds of feet..... (to the transmitter) http://forums.lightorama.com/index.php?/topic/30395-add-on-remote-300-feet-fm-transmitter/ I'm working on it as we speak.... Greg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Stevens Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 DANGER WILL ROBINSON! DANGER! You're asking to blow up stuff! Or at least make it not work any more. Jon - On an 8 pin RJ45 connector, LOR uses pin 4 for RS-485 data +, ping 5 for RS-485 data -, pin 3 for 9v DC +, and pin 6 for 9v DC -1. The 9 vots can be use dto run devices such as an iDMX1000 and the USB to RS485 dongle. Pins 1,2,7, and 8 are not used and can be used for other purposes in a LOR network. I've seen discussions where people have used them for a theft alarm - run a low current/continuity test through them and if the circuit is opened by someone unplugging a controller to stel it, it sets off an alarm. A simple DC voltage powering a normally closed relay (voltage keeps the rely "open") will do that. If you do this, you will either need to run the cable back to your house to access the end of the wire or short two of the unused wires together at the last controller so it will be a completed sircuit - i.e. - put the voltage on pin 7, expect to see it back on pn 8, because you've got pins 7 and 8 shorted at your last controller. You can NOT run RF through the cat 5 / cat 6 cable. If you try to use the spare wires as an antenna, you'll probably cause some interference in your light controller signals until your transitter dies due to an impedance mismatch. For the amount of time your transmitter actually works, the signal quality would probably be far worse than not useing it, due to that impedence mismatch. Audio? Again, probalby distortion due to impedence mismatch, with the possible side effect of cross-talk into your light control netowrk pair (pins 4 and 5) You can try it, it may work, but I won't do that myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Benedict Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 For running the audio hundreds of feet..... (to the transmitter) http://forums.lightorama.com/index.php?/topic/30395-add-on-remote-300-feet-fm-transmitter/ I'm working on it as we speak.... Greg How about running balanced audio (shielded at one end only) and phantom power for the transmitter? A small decoupling circuit at the transmitter to split the power and audio and maybe a 12v regulator to insure constant voltage. It gets kinda technical, but when done right, it's very clean and reliable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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