2 port ethernet hubs available?

Benzino

hey, sounds like a stupid question because it is, but can you get 2 port ethernet hubs any more?

tried pc world and online but to no avail. I'm getting broadband soon which will be connected to 2 pc's, however the pc's are a good 30-35m apart. So i was going to get a 20m long cable and 10m long cable and connect both to a 2 port hub in between the 2 pc's.

Why don't i go wireless? cause it'll be used for gaming and ping is therefore very important

Foxwood

Benzino wrote:

hey, sounds like a stupid question because it is, but can you get 2 port ethernet hubs any more?

tried pc world and online but to no avail. I'm getting broadband soon which will be connected to 2 pc's, however the pc's are a good 30-35m apart. So i was going to get a 20m long cable and 10m long cable and connect both to a 2 port hub in between the 2 pc's.

Something like this?

Of course, they won't ship to Ireland, so maybe these guys in Kildare or these guys in Firhouse (never heard of either of them before, just found them on google) can help. Elara says that they're out of stock.

Benzino

i don't think that's the one, from what i can see you have to connect that straight into a pc?

My mate has one and to the best of my knowledge it is a seperate device with it's own plug, very similar to a usb hub but it accepts ethernet cables instead of usb.

Going off topic here, so i'm sorry, but my mate says that when ordering broadband with eircom, you get them to get a technician to install the broadband and tell them to install a new phone socket at no extra charge as they are charged at a fix rate. Is that true?

Thanks for your help.

Foxwood

Benzino wrote:

i don't think that's the one, from what i can see you have to connect that straight into a pc?

No, you plug it into an ethernet socket, like the one on your router. (Though if you get a router with 4 ethernet ports, you wouldn't need this, and it'd probably block two of them anyway).

My mate has one and to the best of my knowledge it is a seperate device with it's own plug, very similar to a usb hub but it accepts ethernet cables instead of usb.

Did you ask your mate where he got it, and what the make/model is? Most powered hubs/switches will have at least 5 ports. They cost about €20 and you can find them at any of the retailers I listed earlier.

Going off topic here, so i'm sorry, but my mate says that when ordering broadband with eircom, you get them to get a technician to install the broadband and tell them to install a new phone socket at no extra charge as they are charged at a fix rate. Is that true?

Thanks for your help.

Well, if you consider paying €130 or whatever the current rate is for an "enginer install" free, then yeah, you can probably get a new phone socket at "no extra charge".

But why get your DSL from eircom, when they charge more than everyone else does for the same service?

Benzino

Did you ask your mate where he got it, and what the make/model is? Most powered hubs/switches will have at least 5 ports.

When i think about it his hub had 3 ports i think.

[router] _______20M________[hub]________15M__________[pc]

The above diagram is basically what i'm trying to achieve. I have found a 4 port hub here. It's the smallest i can find and would do the job i think.

But why get your DSL from eircom, when they charge more than everyone else does for the same service?

I have been asked this alot, the main reason is that i'll get a free router, free connection and one month's free rent. As this is my first time connecting to broadband (just came into my area), i cannot get a free connection or router. I also have isdn with eircom at the moment, so it would be easier to go with them. I saw a thread in the broadband section that says eircom are lowing their prices soon as well.

fatherdougalmag

FWIW I can give thumbs up to NoWaffle. Couple of lads working out of a couple of 20 foot containers Occasional bargains to be had in their 'Used and Value' section (which is what they started out with).

irlrobins

You'd be better off with a switch or router tbh. And you can use wireless for gaming without any loss of performance. The bottleneck will be your broadband connection, not the wireless.

Benzino

You'd be better off with a switch or router tbh.

Yeah i found this switch on komplett, it'll do the job perfectly.

And you can use wireless for gaming without any loss of performance. The bottleneck will be your broadband connection, not the wireless.

Even though it'll be going thru 2 walls and a floor/ceiling?

irlrobins

Well assuming that you can get a good enough signal of course. Depends on the wall constuction etc. I've never had any problems with a 11Mbps connection passing thru metal filing cabinet and two concrete walls.

lucernarian

I'm not sure if this is too late but 100 Mbps connections will work for a distance of 90 metres on basic Cat 5 certified cable.

It could be 100 metres either, I'm not sure.

Capt'n Midnight

http://www.jaguarcompsys.ie do one for €15 + VAT

http://www.marxcomputers.ie/ do a €25 one too and are open saturday
they also do a gigabit one for €56 too, but that is overkill for sharing broadband

JohnnieM

If he connects with eircom wont he get a four port router with wi fi?? so he's sorted...

cregser

To_be_confirmed wrote:

I'm not sure if this is too late but 100 Mbps connections will work for a distance of 90 metres on basic Cat 5 certified cable.

It could be 100 metres either, I'm not sure.

I second this. From the diagram above, I don't see any need for a hub. CAT5 is not like co-ax cable were you need to boost the signal every couple of metres. CAT5 is good to 100m.

Also, eircom typically supply 4-port routers, so your diagram:
[pc1]--1m--[router]

---

35m

---

[pc2]

Less complicated and less places for things to go wrong (because they do). And also leaves the option open for gigabit ethernet (depending on your network cards). But if you plan to place another PC at the location of the hub/switch in the future, then you're better off going for it.

As for wireless, I wouldn't trust it for gaming either. I only trust that technology for directional antennas.

Benzino

I'm not sure if this is too late but 100 Mbps connections will work for a distance of 90 metres on basic Cat 5 certified cable.

I second this. From the diagram above, I don't see any need for a hub. CAT5 is not like co-ax cable were you need to boost the signal every couple of metres. CAT5 is good to 100m.

Also, eircom typically supply 4-port routers, so your diagram:
[pc1]--1m--[router]

---

35m

---

[pc2]

Less complicated and less places for things to go wrong (because they do). And also leaves the option open for gigabit ethernet (depending on your network cards). But if you plan to place another PC at the location of the hub/switch in the future, then you're better off going for it.

Cheers for that info, as u might have guessed im a noob at this My mates did mention a 50m CAT6 cable but they said that the signal would die near the end, however i never thought of a CAT5 cable, after all it'll be a long time till i'll be able to get a 100MB connection.

Are they hard to get, I can't seem to find them on komplett, only installation cable UTP CAT5E. Overclockers.co.uk only have a 30m CAT5E crossover patch, i'll probably have to make it myself?

Thanks again to everyone for their help!!