ATTENUATION OF STANDARD COAXIAL CABLE

ATTENUATION OF STANDARD COAXIAL CABLE

ATTENUATION OF STANDARD COAXIAL CABLE

By: Don McClatchie

Coaxial cable is used widely in most types of communication systems. The properties of the coaxial cable make for a good wide-band path for all kinds of electronic signals. In fact, over 80 percent of the homes in the USA have one or more coaxial cables connected to them. Industries like Radio Broadcasting, Television Broadcasting, Cable Television, Telephone Companies, Microwave Transmission, and Data communications over the internet all rely on this type of cable. Most Coaxial cable is made up of copper wire and insulation material with some types of cable using copper plated steel as the conductors, so the signal loss can vary widely. The main factor in cable loss comes from the type of insulator material used and the mechanical size and manufacturing methods so the loss can vary slightly from one manufacture to another. This table shows the losses of signal through the cable at different frequencies in dB “decibels”. This frequency selective attenuation of signal level is also referred to as Cable Slope Loss. The Capacity of the cable and the inductance along its length causes a greater roll off at higher frequencies.

dB ATTENUATION OF STANDARD COAXIAL CABLE
CABLE TYPE	RG-174	RG-58	RG-58/U	RG-58X	RG-59	RG-213	RG-214	RG-6	RG-11	RF9913	RF-9914	LMR-195	LMR-200	LMR-240	LMR-400	LMR-600	LMR-900	LMR1200
	dB LOSS PER 100 FEET
FREQUENCY
1 MHz	1.9	0.4		0.5		0.2		0.2	0.2	0.2	0.3
10 MHz	3.3	1.4		1.0		0.6		0.6	0.4	0.4	0.5
30 MHz			2.5	2.0		1.2	1.2			0.8	0.8	1.8	1.8	1.3	0.7	0.421	0.288	0.209
50 MHz	6.6	3.3	3.1	2.5	2.4	1.6	1.6	1.4	1.0	1.1	1.1	2.3	2.3	1.7	0.9	0.547	0.374	0.272
100 MHz	8.9	4.9		3.6	3.4	2.2		2.0	1.6	1.4	1.5
144 MHz		6.2		4.6		2.7	2.7			1.6				3.0	1.4	0.960
150 MHz			6.2	4.7		2.8	2.8			1.7	1.7	4.0	3.9	3.1	1.5	0.964	0.658	0.481
200 MHz	11.9	7.3		5.4		3.3		2.8	2.3	1.8	2.0			3.6
220 MHz		7.4	7.4	6.0		3.5	3.5			2.1	2.1	4.8	4.8	3.7	1.8	1.180	0.803	0.589
400 MHz	17.3	10.1		7.9	7.0	4.8		4.3	3.5	2.6	2.9
450 MHz		10.6	10.6	8.6		5.2	5.2			3.1	3.1	7.0	6.9	5.3	2.7	1.720	1.170	0.864
700 MHz	26.0	16.9		11.0		6.6		5.6	4.7	3.6	3.8
900 MHz	27.9	20.1	16.5	12.6	11.1	7.9	7.9	6.0	5.4	4.1	4.5	9.9	9.9	7.5	3.9	2.500	1.700	1.270
915 MHz		20.2		12.8		8.0	8.0			4.2				7.6	4.0	2.510
1 GHz	32.0	21.1		13.5	12.0	8.3		6.2	5.6	4.5	5.3
1.2 GHz		21.5		15.9		10.1	10.1			5.2				9.2	4.8	3.100
1.5 GHz										6.0		12.9	12.7	9.9	5.1	3.310	2.240	1.690
2.4 GHz		32.2		23.1		15.2	15.2			7.7				12.9	6.8	4.400
5.8 GHz		51.6		40.9		28.6	28.6			13.8				20.4	10.8	7.300
IMPEDENCE	50 Ohm	50 Ohm	50 Ohm	50 Ohm	75 Ohm	50 Ohm	50 Ohm	75 Ohm	75 Ohm	50 Ohm	50 Ohm	50 Ohm	50 Ohm	50 Ohm	50 Ohm	50 Ohm	50 Ohm	50 Ohm
CABLE TYPE	RG-174	RG-58	RG-58/U	RG-58X	RG-59	RG-213	RG-214	RG-6	RG-11	RF9913	RF-9914	LMR-195	LMR-200	LMR-240	LMR-400	LMR-600	LMR-900	LMR1200

All the numbers in this table represent Loss and so by definition are all negative numbers.