Just wanted to recommend Monoprice.com to any readers looking for cables. I recently needed a USB/Serial adapter and a null modem cable, and Monoprice hooked me up for less than anyone else I could find, even Newegg.com.
By the way, cables of any kind (especially Ethernet, USB and HDMI) are an astounding rip-off at almost all brick-and-mortar stores. Best Buy will ding you for $40 on a 50-ft. Cat 6 cable, which can be had online for under $6. Of course, hardcore geeks buy their Cat 6 by the spool and reach for the crimpers whenever they need a new patch cable…
The best thing about Monoprice is that they sell for less the same gear that you can get elsewhere. Those expensive Belkin HDMI switches? The ones at Monoprice are the exact same switches without the branding for 1/3 the price.
…Also, for homebrewing cat5/6 cables, if you don’t do it very often, EZ-RJ is the ticket — good illus. why here: http://cableorganizer.com/ez-rj45-network-plugs/ (But shop for price).
Oooh, those are cool!
Is it a bad thing to have multiple CAT5/6 crimpers? (One for work, a spare at work, my first one at home, and then the better, more expensive one at home because it just works better than the first one I bought?)