Is there any way to reduce this crosstak (besides using a better cable). For example, I noticed that the four twisted pairs in data cable are also twisted around each other. Could the entire bundle of data cable be twisted to improve cross-talk performance?

Q2. I am a certified cabling designer and Installer. I have a question. I tried but failed to find a good answer. Can you help me.

I was discussing with a friend of mine who is in the same field as me. The horizontal cables when entering in the MDF/IDF room, should they be combed parallel to each other or not or should they be left mingled and sorted when they are near the patch panel? Should it be combed and all the cables from false ceiling to the entering the cabinet be combed for aesthetic reason. Or it should remain mingled as the UTP cables are twisted inside their jackets.

I believe combing the UTP cables and make them run in parallel to each other may produce noise or some other distortion in the transmit or receive of signals.

A. This is a question I asked a few years ago. I have worked for a lot of companies who all insisted on making the cabling looms look aesthetically pleasing and the only reason for doing this is to make the installation look more professional.

I spent quite a lot of time many years ago working as a prototype wireman for a company who produced control systems for submarines. On my first attempt at wiring a circuit board, I made it look very "professional" all the wires were parallel and neat. Very pleased with myself for making such a good job I showed the boss, he told me to cut all the wires off and start again! He explained that the circuit board was for a high frequency telecommunications system and that it simply wouldn't work because the parallel cables would cause too much crosstalk, "just wire it point to point, don't worry about what it looks like" he said.

The fact is, that although comms cabling looks better if all the cables are combed and loomed in parallel, it serves no purpose other than making the installation look tidy.

The term for noise between adjacent cables is called "alien crosstalk" but there is very little written about it and not a great deal of proof that it actually effects the signals.

Theoretically, in high speed communications cabling, the messier the installation is, the better it will work.

Hope this answers your question!