General Considerations:

1. ZIP type parallel conductor constructions afford the lowest cost and overall ease of termination. They are significantly less costly than Teflon FEP constructions, with only slightly lower impedance. ZIP cable use should be limited to areas where they can be routed away from noise aggressors such as CPU's, fans, and power supplies. Due to their parallel construction, they do not have good crosstalk isolation and common mode noise rejection.

2. Loose Pair constructions afford a maximum of cable flexibility and routability in bus applications requiring good air flow for heat dissipation. Their twisted pair construction yields good common mode noise rejection and crosstalk isolation. However, impedance control is not as tight as fully laminated twisted pair designs.

3. Fully Laminated twisted pair constructions afford good control of impedance, skew, and crosstalk due to precise placement of the twisted pairs. The dual lamination (top and bottom of the pair) allows the cable to be bent and folded without delamination and subsequent cable failure. Folding and creasing of this type of cable should be minimized at Ultra320 data rates in order to avoid reflections caused by impedance discontinuities.

4. OptiClear^TM is recommended for Ultra320 applications where the cable must be round for maximum airflow and cable routability, while retaining the consistent electrical performance required of Ultra320 signaling.