It is just 8 copper wires. They can be spliced. It is better to do so with a simple solder connection. There is no real magic. If it is shielded, there is a little more hassle to connect the shielding. It is better to avoid adding extra connectors whenever possible because the transition to different metals will cause attenuation in addition to the resistance of the connector overall. Inside it is just 4 twisted pairs that must be matched 1:1 on each side. The pairs are twisted because it is a differential electrical signal so the twisting helps cancel out interference noise along the length. It is important that each pair of wires is very close to the same length. It is not very hard to do this. I make my own Ethernet cables all the time.
this post was submitted on 04 Mar 2025
6 points (100.0% liked)
wellthatsucks
1624 readers
10 users here now
Welcome Reddit refugees!
Well, that sucks. Whether you've got a new vacuum to show off, a big loss to mourn, or simply encounter an inconvenience, put it here.
Proudly moderated by
Other mods
- chaos_a: Reddit Mod
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
Soldering probably isn't the best solution for Ethernet cables, and it's unclear how much slack there may be in what's left of the cables. It may be prudent to terminate each end in jacks and bridge them with a short patch cable.
The connector is soldered to the boards at each end at the device. Should we stop the world and redo all of them. There is no magic in copper traces or wires. Solder is far better than multiple mechanical connections with nickel plated pins to multiple connectors. That is a great way to attenuate signals massively. Every connector in the path is a problem.
No, Ethernet cables aren't soldered into boards; they plug into jacks which are.
It is all the same! I design and etch circuit boards because it is easier than point to point wiring. There is no magic here. The connector is soldered to a copper trace but that trace is not magic. It is only a wire that is easier to sort and organize with the complexity of the circuit. I can and have replaced those traces many times with point to point wires. It makes no difference.
What makes the most difference is the mechanical point to point contact through whatever grime and junk is present combined with oxides and the very limited contact surfaces.
I have made Ethernet devices and circuits many times in hobby circuit board projects. This is a none issue.
Yeah, I do all that too, personally and professionally.
I've also run Ethernet through three different houses.
Anyway, the main point is that it's going to be a lot easier to attach some connectors than to solder some bare solid wires hanging in midair.