RJ45 jacks?

[RJ]

Last year I asked the membership if I should do away with the RJ45 jacks on the Smart String equipment and the resounding response was no. But I continue to see post complaining about them being unreliable for some while others do not have issues. But when I keep seeing the same thread over and over again on this I have to ask again if I should do away with them? I liked them for the easy of premade cables reducing one less thing a new user could make a mistake with. And on this they could actually damage stuff. But if they are that much of an issue maybe they need to go away.

RJ

[Steve Gase]

I like the rj45 jacks on the boards, and the cheap cabling option...  but I don't like the rj45 out in the yard. 

its not a big deal to modify the cable to replace the jack on one end.  (thanks to past problems I have plenty of cables to be fixed with new connectors )

This year I changed over everything except for 16 aethers this year to waterproof connectors.  half of the rj45 connectors  failed, so I'm replacing them now.

Summary: keep the boards as is... but don't use a standard cable to connect your SSCs and DMX elements.

[Rich Renn]

I agree the rj45 jacks on the boards is great I have had no issues with my equipment for the last 3 years this was my first with the Lynx expresse which are awesome by the way, but when it come to connections to my elements I use water proof connectors of some sort never a rj45 jack

[tbone321]

While a bit on the fence about it, I'll go with getting rid of the RJ45's where power is being transferred.  Many are having issues with the RJ45's on the controllers.  Steve recommends that the connectors on the external devices be changed but if you do that, then you need to replace the connector on the end of the pre-made CAT5 which can lead to the very mistakes that you were trying to avoid and pretty much eliminates the ease of using them and all that is left is the restrictive current limitations.  Another issue that I feel is more important is that we are using the same connector for multiple and incompatable uses.  The big issue here is between the ETD and hub controller output.  The ETD uses all 4 pairs for data transfer while the hubs only use the first pair for data and the other three for power transfer.  If someone were to accidently plug an ETD into a hub controller output, you will damage the ETD and that both easy to do and has already happened. 

[cBell]

After two years of smartstring use with 2 hubs and 18 SSCs I have yet to experience any issues with the RJ45 connections. At the hub end they are in a battery box and at the SSC end I cover the SSC and the RJ45 connector with a ziplock bag and close it with a zip tie. I like the RJ45 connections.

[JoeFromOzarks]

I swapped out every outside RJ45 connection and replaced with waterproof connectors several years ago.   The female "RJ45 Pigtails" are not intended for use when exposed to the elements.   All of my cables between the hubs and the SSC's are RJ45 on one end of standard, stranded CAT5(e) cables with Ray's 4-core connectors on the other, sealed with heat-shrink.   Works a charm!   (I posted pictures of the pod's we built several years ago.)   One of the pods spent a good week submerged under several inches of water & eventually ice, still uh-tickin' perfectly!      Most nodes on a single version 1 SSC is 76 and I don't use the computer power supplies - only Ray's 12VDC supplies.

I don't believe anyone has had any problems with the RJ45 connectors on the hubs, have they?   The problems are with the female pigtails subject to the wet environment, correct?

My Aethers are wired with the six-pin automotive trailer connector, an effective solution.  (Two of the conductors are for the anti-theft alarm.)

I'm not worried about plugging the ETD into a hub powered output, I marked the hubs PixelNet input with a white Sharpie.   

I'm just babbling.  I'll go with whatever the final decision is and be happy with it.      RJ's stuff works and in my little corner of the world, has proven itself to be reliable, stable and easy to work with.

joe

[emcee]

I say keep them. 2 years and no problems. Cheap cable choice.  Thanks. Mike

[Steve Gase]

screw-down terminals are not all that convenient either.  are there other options that beat the rj45/cat5?

in my experience, the small screws are easily stripped.  they also are tightly packed, so you almost need to connect the cables on the bench instead of out in the yard?

[tbone321]

I never said to use screw down terminal blocks.  I'm not even sure if they would fit since unlike the Zeus, you would need 4 of them per output. on the hub  If you are stripping the screws then you are cranking down WAYYYY to tight.  How much pressure due you think an RJ45 is putting on the contact points?  They are still easier to me then stripping cat5 and soldering a different connector to the end.  I would be happy just soldering the wires from female 4 pin waterproof connectors directly to the board.  The only issue I have right now is finding wire that will work properly for signal transfer at a gauge heavy enough to properly deal with the current draw without the excessive voltage drop we are currently dealing with.  Twisted pair speaker wire would work well but so far, what I have found is $$$$$$.  I will be ordering some standard 4 conductor speaker wire and see how it works at 100 foot lengths under less than ideal conditions.  If I can't find another cable that works properly at a reasonable cost and am stuck using cat5 for this, then the RJ45's may as well stay put.

[CaptainMurdoch]

RJ45 cables are easy, they're cheap, and can be purchased pre-made in numerous lengths and colors making setup and config changes easy for those who do wish to use RJ45 pigtails on their SSC's.  Bulk Cat5-e cable is cheap and continuity testers and connectors are available cheap as well.

I say if it ain't broke, don't fix it.  If people want to use waterproof pigtails on their SSC's let them, but I say keep the simplicity and flexibility of the current setup.  The only reason my SSC's have RJ45 pigtails on them (temporarily) is because my order from Ray was late last year so I didn't get my waterproof connectors on time.  Those will get swapped in this year, but I still prefer the Cat5-e back to the hub with quick connecting RJ45's.

[mms]

Definitely leave the RJ45 on the board and let folks decide for themselves what's best out in the yard.

[maffeirw]

I've had my eves and windows up for 3 long seasons (start early Oct for Halloween and end mid Jan) without a single connection failure in those 8 SSCs. No failures (2 seasons) on the 12 SSCs running my Pixel Tree either.  Although my area, about 50 miles north of NYC, doesn't have the corrosive weather of Florida or the severe cold of our Canadian friends, it has been right up there with the worse, given the October storms and ridiculous freeze thaw cycles lately.  The only reason I've had to replace any RJ-45s is my carelessness when taking them in. I tend to break off the retaining tabs. I have a number of long runs and can't imagine that any connectors/cables would be as cost effect for me.

And finally, as we all know, some RJs are just irreplaceable. 

[pwalstead]

Keep the RJ-45. If anyone is having an issue with the pigtails they can always install outdoor/waterproof RJ-45 connectors.

[bakerlights]

Being a first timer here, I would echo many that say leave the RJ45's on the boards themselves as they are in a protective case.  I believe the issues are out in the yard where the connection is exposed to the weather.   I had 30 SSC out this year, all but one had connection failures from corrosion, the one that did not fail was a very tight fitting connection.   I will take the blame for that as I did not use any dielectric grease and not all my connection were able to be put straight up and down.  I did try other methods to protect the connections but those failed also.   My plan is to follow some of the other suggestions to switch to a waterproof connector at the SSC end of the cable.   Being new, if I had found or beeb given more information on the fact that the connection at the SSC should be covered in dielectric grease or something similar, I would have followed those instructions and probably would not have encounter these issues.    In the end, all of this comes down to my knowledge at the time that I was setting up the display.  I thought I was prepared, but I missed somethings that I probably should have done more research on.   I have learned and will correct it for this year.    I will have to say though the design of the equipment and ease of putting it together far outweighs some of the issue that I encountered during the use of said equipment.

Steve.

[rdebolt]

I say keep the RJ45s. Cheap and simple. I too have had the same corrosion issues in the yard. I will be changing them all to 4 wired waterproof connectors this year, but that is my choice. I really only had 1 failure to corrosion this year, but I also wrapped every connector with electrical tape.