Serial Cables

Serial cables are used for the serial transmission of data. They support communication standards such as RS232, RS422, and RS485, as well as Fibre Channel, IEEE 1394 or FireWire^® (Apple Computer, Inc.), and universal serial bus (USB). There are two basic configurations of serial cables: bulk cables and cable assemblies. Bulk serial cables are sold by the foot or in reels. Serial cable assemblies are collections of wires or cables that are banded into a single unit with connectors on at least one end. Cable construction, features, and applications are important specifications to consider when selecting serial cables. Additional parameters include features and approvals.

Serial cables differ in terms of serial communication standard. RS232 is the interface between data terminal equipment and data communications equipment employing serial binary data interchange. RS422 was designed for greater distances and higher Baud rates than RS232. The difference between RS422 and RS485 is that RS485 can be transformed into a multi-point application. Fibre channel is a high-speed, serial data transfer architecture that uses links of twisted-pair, coaxial, or fiber optic cable. IEEE 1394 or FireWire is designed for very fast digital data transfers, such as streaming video. USB 1.1 is the original data-transfer standard, but serial cables for USB 2.0 are also available. 

With serial cables, there are three main specifications for cable construction: cable type, gender, and connector type. Cable types are designated as Cat 3, Cat 5, Cat 5E, or Cat 6; coaxial, triaxial, or twisted pair; fiber optic; and Type 1 or RG6/11. There are three choices for gender: male-male, male-female, and female-female. Connector types for serial cables include Centronics^® (Centronics Corp.) 36 and Centronics 50; BNC; DB9, DB15, DB25, DB37, DB50, and DB68; Header 26, Header 40, and Header 50; Micro Centronics 36, 50, 60, and 68; Min DIN 4; RCAM; RJ011, RJ-12, and RJ-45; Telco 50; USB Type A and USB Type B. The length of serial cables is specified in English or metric units. 

Suppliers of serial cables may designate their products as suitable for use in specific applications. Examples include automotive, audio, camera or imaging, domestic or general-purpose, instrumentation and control, computer cable, military or defense, medical, networking, telecommunications, and video. Serial cables may also bear various marks or carry certifications and approvals. For example, serial cables that are sold in Canada or  Europe often bear the CSA mark or the CE mark, respectively. 

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Part Numbers for Serial Cables