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Coax-Ethernet Adapter MCA1001 User Manual
The Powerline HD family of products can coexist on the same network with older-generation
XE family products or HomePlug 1.0 products, but they are not interoperable with these older
products.
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Wired Ethernet
As Gigabit Ethernet ports become common on newer computers, wired Ethernet remains a
good choice for speed, economy, and security. Gigabit Ethernet can extend up to 100 meters
with twisted-pair wiring of Cat 5e or better. A wired connection is not susceptible to
interference, and eavesdropping would require a physical connection to your network.
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Multimedia Over Coax (MoCA)
Multimedia over Coax, or MoCA, is an open standard designed to facilitate home networking
on existing coaxial cable in the 1 GHz microwave band using Orthogonal frequency-division
multiplexing (OFDM) modulation. Data coming over the coaxial cable is divided into several
parallel data streams or channels, one for each subcarrier. Each subcarrier is modulated with a
conventional modulation scheme at a low symbol rate, maintaining total data rates similar to
conventional single-carrier modulation schemes in the same bandwidth.
This standard can be used for data connections to televisions, set-top boxes, and other
entertainment devices without the need for new connections. The technology underlying
MoCA provides the elements necessary to use this cable to distribute high-quality multimedia
content and high-speed data with throughput exceeding 100 megabits per second.
Assessing Your Speed Requirements
Because your Internet connection is likely to operate at a much lower speed than your local
network, faster local networking technologies might not improve your Internet experience.
However, many emerging home applications require high data rates. For example:
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Streaming HD video requires 10 to 30 Mbps per stream. Because latency and packet loss can
disrupt your video, plan to provide at least twice the capacity you need, or add an internal hard
drive to provide "buffering" for your connection.
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Streaming MP3 audio requires less than 1 Mbps per stream and does not strain most modern
networks. Like video, however, streaming audio is also sensitive to latency and packet loss, so
a congested network or a noisy link can cause problems.
Note: Actual data throughput varies. Network conditions and environmental factors,
including volume of network traffic, building materials and construction, and
network overhead, can lower actual data throughput rate.
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v1.0, December 2008
Understanding Home Networking
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