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Author Topic: Audio Cable and Ethernet Cable continuity tester recommendations  (Read 4290 times)

Eric Snodgrass

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I am shopping for a new audio cable continuity tester as well as an Ethernet cable continuity tester.
These testers will be used at a venue that also has patchbays containing XLR, SDI and Composite video patch points as well as ethercon connections labeled either"video balun" or "data" (and as of this posting I don't know the difference between those two runs).
So this venue needs continuity testers and sniffers for the patchbays.

What pieces of gear are folks using for this?
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Dave Garoutte

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Re: Audio Cable and Ethernet Cable continuity tester recommendations
« Reply #1 on: March 28, 2019, 06:53:47 PM »

If you have multiple runs that terminate together, you could use a short jumper between any two and check the pair from the opposite end.
« Last Edit: March 28, 2019, 10:56:16 PM by Dave Garoutte »
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Tim Hite

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Re: Audio Cable and Ethernet Cable continuity tester recommendations
« Reply #2 on: March 28, 2019, 07:40:14 PM »

Rat sound has the sound tools line of sniffer-sender units for XLR, DMX and UTP cables with distant ends. I keep a couple of the cheap Pyle cable testers around the shop and they work just fine.

Unsure about testing BNC on coax. Fluke has stuff from $500 to $5000 depending on how much info you want. Also has BNC adapters.


I am shopping for a new audio cable continuity tester as well as an Ethernet cable continuity tester.
These testers will be used at a venue that also has patchbays containing XLR, SDI and Composite video patch points as well as ethercon connections labeled either"video balun" or "data" (and as of this posting I don't know the difference between those two runs).
So this venue needs continuity testers and sniffers for the patchbays.

What pieces of gear are folks using for this?
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Pete Erskine

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Re: Audio Cable and Ethernet Cable continuity tester recommendations
« Reply #3 on: March 28, 2019, 11:06:27 PM »

What pieces of gear are folks using for this?

This is not cheep - it's the one I use
Fluke CableIQ
tests ethernet, blink port lite, continuity, cable bandwidth capabilities, distance to break, crosstalk, measures length, sends tone, impedance fault
Also does Coax
8 senders to identify cables-put on end and number shows up on meter
Stores test info

Most 8 wire cable testers will do simple continuity tests
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Ryan McLeod

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Re: Audio Cable and Ethernet Cable continuity tester recommendations
« Reply #4 on: March 28, 2019, 11:45:52 PM »

We’ve been using the dBX CT-3 and so far we dig it! Hard to tell from the pic, but it’s actually two physical units bolted to a plate that can be separated to work at either ends of an installed cable.

https://dbxpro.com/en/products/ct-3
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Justice C. Bigler

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Re: Audio Cable and Ethernet Cable continuity tester recommendations
« Reply #5 on: March 29, 2019, 02:07:00 AM »

This is not cheep - it's the one I use
Fluke CableIQ


Ironically, the Fluke CableIQ costs about what your post count is, Pete.  ;D
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Russell Ault

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Re: Audio Cable and Ethernet Cable continuity tester recommendations
« Reply #6 on: March 29, 2019, 02:15:59 AM »

[...] depending on how much info you want. [...]

I think this is probably the question you should start with. DC continuity testers will do a decent (but not perfect) job of pass/failing low-frequency signal lines like analogue audio, but for anything much above that the continuity tester isn't going to tell you much because cables perform differently at higher frequencies.

There are plenty of twisted-pair and coax installations out there that will pass a DC continuity test but will fail when you try to put actual signal through them. Basically, the question is whether or not testing simple continuity is enough information for what you're doing.

-Russ
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Bob Faulkner

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Re: Audio Cable and Ethernet Cable continuity tester recommendations
« Reply #7 on: March 29, 2019, 07:07:42 AM »

I am shopping for a new audio cable continuity tester as well as an Ethernet cable continuity tester.
These testers will be used at a venue that also has patchbays containing XLR, SDI and Composite video patch points as well as ethercon connections labeled either"video balun" or "data" (and as of this posting I don't know the difference between those two runs).
So this venue needs continuity testers and sniffers for the patchbays.

What pieces of gear are folks using for this?
I use this for continuity:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/652447-REG/Pyle_Pro_PCT40_PCT_40_12_in_1_Audio_Cable.html


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Neil White

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Re: Audio Cable and Ethernet Cable continuity tester recommendations
« Reply #8 on: March 29, 2019, 07:18:43 AM »

This is not cheep - it's the one I use
Fluke CableIQ
tests ethernet, blink port lite, continuity, cable bandwidth capabilities, distance to break, crosstalk, measures length, sends tone, impedance fault
Also does Coax
8 senders to identify cables-put on end and number shows up on meter
Stores test info

Most 8 wire cable testers will do simple continuity tests

2nd vote for the fluke testers. I wasted a bunch of time on site last year rerunning and terminating a couple of lines before realising the cheap tester I was using was not actually testing all pairs correctly any more. Threw it in the bin there and then, and as soon as I got home bought a Fluke Micromapper. Super fast go / no go testing of all pairs and will show reverses, swaps and opens. Remote end doesn’t have any lights you need to check, all info is on the master end.

About 3 months later I picked up a CableIQ from ebay which comes out to play either when troubleshooting or I need to provide documentation of cable infrastructure testing.
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Lyle Williams

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Re: Audio Cable and Ethernet Cable continuity tester recommendations
« Reply #9 on: March 29, 2019, 07:17:18 PM »

For just pinout and continuity, get something cheap.

If you have lots of cables to do, choose something fast - something that shows correct pinout instantly without having to turn a knob to select each pin.

A Really-nice-to-have feature is an ability to detect discontinuities over time.  So you can plug in a cable and flex it searching for an intermittent fault.
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ProSoundWeb Community

Re: Audio Cable and Ethernet Cable continuity tester recommendations
« Reply #9 on: March 29, 2019, 07:17:18 PM »


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