You might have used coaxial cable if you have ever installed a modem, TV, or antenna. However, you might have heard of something called low-loss coax and asked yourself; What is the difference? Or is it worth it?

In this guide, we are going to examine the major differences between standard coax cable and so-called low-loss coax. As a result, you will be able to select the right one to use in your system and avoid poor signals or bad spending.

What Does Low Loss Mean?

Any coax cable degrades with distance. Such loss is named attenuation and is expressed in decibels (dB). The more your signal gets lost on its way, the more attenuated it becomes.

The low-loss coaxial cable is designed to minimize the loss of the signal. It is most often characterized by:

• A more conductive copper conductor (heavier and solid)
• Higher-rate insulation is referred to as dielectric. It is resistant to interference
• A double or triple shield to inhibit exterior noise
• A more rigid jacket, which covers the cable but makes it less bendable.

These enhancements imply that your signal will remain high, particularly in the case of long cable runs.

Why is it important?

Suppose that you are installing a coaxial cable between your living room and your attic antenna. If you have a long cable, say 50 to 100 feet or more, normal coax will suffer more signal losses over the run. In such a configuration, you may get blurry television channels, poor internet, or even lost connections.

That is where low-loss coax comes in. It will preserve signal strength at a distance, and this can be a game changer with regard to:

• Outdoor antennas
• LTE or Wi-Fi amplifiers
• RF equipment, or ham radio
• Satellite dishes
• CCTV surveillance systems.

It comes in especially handy when you have devices that work on the higher side of the frequencies, where you will likely lose signal more often.

Where the standard coax comes in

Nonetheless, you do not always require a low-loss coax. In shorter, simpler connections, such as a wall-mounted outlet to a television or modem, regular RG6 coax is quite acceptable. It is bendable, cheap, and efficient for cable TV, internet, or around-the-camera runs.

Unless you have very difficult RF signals or the total length of your cable run is less than 25 or 30 feet, there is little need to pay extra money because of the low-loss feature.

What to note

Here is a list of things to note when selecting between standard and low-loss coax:

• Cable run length: The longer the cable run length, the more signal you will lose.
• Signal type: A signal with higher frequencies (such as 5GHz Wi-Fi or satellite) is more easily lost.
• Environment: Outdoors or interference-rich environments will enjoy the extra shielding of low-loss cables.
• Cost and cost variability: Low-loss coax is more rigid and more costly. Be sure that it is necessary in your setup.

Final thoughts

Using a low-loss coaxial cable can prevent headaches and signal dropouts during long runs or outdoor installations, or high-frequency signals. On short, simple connections? Standard coax will do.

Understand your setup, distances, and buy based on performance, not price. This will give you the best signal with minimum frustration.