Tag Archives: fiber media converter

Which Fiber Media Converter Is Perfect for Your Project?

Fiber media converter is a simple but useful devices that can provide conversion between fiber optic and other types of media. The most common use of fiber media converter is transmission between fiber and copper to extend the network or introduce fiber optic cabling to a copper based network. As these devices can be installed almost everywhere in the network and it is affordable, they are also being designated for many other applications. Various types of fiber media converters are provided in the market, people easily get confused during selecting the best ones for their projects. In this post, the fiber media converter selecting guide will be offered for your references.

fiber media converter

Factors to Consider During Fiber Media Converters Selection

To select the right fiber media converters for your project, many elements should be considered. You should firstly consider where you want to use fiber media converters and how to use them. Then, You should know the functions and characters of fiber media converters. The following will list some important factors that should be considered during fiber media converters selection.

Data Rate: the speed of the devices that fiber media converter is to connect to should be firstly considered. The most commonly used are 10/100Mpbs, 10/100/1000Mpbs, 1000Mpbs.

Fiber Type: which two different types of transmission medias should be converted between each other? For example, fiber optic to copper, single-mode fiber optic to multimode fiber optic, dual strand or single strand, etc.

Wavelength: to add the fiber media converters to a fiber optic network, the wavelength that the signal should be specified to the network and the devices.

Port Type and Port Number: fiber media converter also have various port type. The most commonly used types for fiber optic on the fiber media converters are ST, SC and SFP. The number of the power should depend on the applications.

Transmission Distance: the transmission distances of a pair of fiber media converter are also various and can satisfy various requirements from 2km to 15km or more.

PoE Function: PoE fiber media converter can fully satisfy the need to be powered in physical locations where main power is not available or difficult to deliver.

Power Requirement: the most commonly used are AC power supply, DC power supply,, internal power supply, and external power supply.

Fiber Media Converters According to Applications

The above mentioned are the basic factors that should be considered during selection. However, as mentioned the applications are also very important. To offer a more simple and direct way for fiber media selection. Here collected the different fiber media converters and divided them according to their applications. Click the fiber media type in the following table, you can find the fiber media converters belong to this catalog, with their specifications and prices in details.

ethernet-1Fiber to RJ45 Converters sfp-rj45SFP Ethernet Converters

oeoOEO Converters

modeMode Converters

management-converterManaged Ethernet Converters

poePower over Ethernet Products

video-1Fiber Video Converters

pdhPDH E1 & Serial Converters

How to Connect Fiber Optic Media Converter to Network

Fiber optic media converter is a device which can connect two types of medias, like copper to fiber optic and single-mode fiber to multimode fiber. As a cost-effective device that can connect two dissimilar cable media, it has been widely used in today’s network, especially FTTH systems. Although fiber optic media converter comes into various types according to the parameters like data rate, interfaces, form factors, power options and Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP), the purposes to use fiber media converter in networks are usually simple. They are often used in pairs to extend a network over fiber by inserting a fiber segment into a copper network, or be used individually to accomplish the conversion between two different cable types. This post will introduce the connection guide of fiber media converters.

1000base fiber media converter

Interface Types of Fiber Media Converters

Before connecting fiber media converters, the interface of them should be firstly acknowledged. The following picture shows the most commonly used connectors that a fiber media converters may use. The ST connector is designed for fiber optic cable using a bayonet locking system. SC connector and LC connector are the most popular small-form-factor fiber connectors. The MT-RJ connector is a RJ-style connector which has a molded body. The RJ45 is the familiar to most people, which is designed for copper cable and can be found on most of our devices that need to be connected to the Ethernet. The above mentioned interfaces of the fiber optic media converter can be connected to the target devices directly by patch cords. However, for SFP, SFP+ and XFP transceivers, there are two methods for connecting the fiber optic media converter to the network. The connection methods will be introduced in the following.

fiber media converter interfaces

Connecting Fiber Media Converters to Network

There is one of the most important things about fiber media converters, which is they are often used in pairs. The two fiber media converters should be connected to each other for single transmission and conversion.

fiber media converter connection

The above picture shows an application example of fiber optic media converter. For fiber media converters with fiber optic interface of LC/ST/SC/MT-RJ, the interfaces on the two media converters can be connected directly by a length of fiber optic patch cable that has the corresponding connector type. The RJ45 port of each media converter is connected to 10/100Base-TX HUB and computer server separately. The two fiber media converters should be supported by electricity.

fiber media converter with Bidi SFP interface

For fiber optic media converter that has a SFP/SFP+ or XFP transceiver interface. The connection between the two media converters is a little bit different from the others. Two optical transceivers are needed. Additional optical transceiver should be inserted to the port firstly and then the two media converter should be connected via ports of the two optical transceivers. If the port support 10G and the transmission distance between the two converters is less than 100 meters, then a length of SFP+ to SFP+ AOC can be used.

Fiber Optic Media Converter

Conclusion

The above mentioned fiber media converters connections are just the most basic methods. As there are a variety of media converters and their functions are different from each other. Connecting the fiber media converters largely depends on the practical using. Kindly visit FS.COM or contact sales@fs.com for more details. Our professional sales and technical support are willing to solve your problems about media converters.

Related Article: Which Fiber Media Converter Is Perfect for Your Project?

Related Article: Fiber Media Converter: What Is It and How It Works?

How Fiber Media Converter Works

If you have a network that uses the older type of copper cables and another network that utilizes faster and more reliable fiber optic cables, it is possible to connect them together by using a special product named Fiber Media Converter. A media converter changes signals on a copper cable to signals that run on fiber, make one cable “look” like another cable without changing the nature of the network. Due to this function, network executives who need to upgrade their systems from copper to fiber but don’t have the budget, manpower or time, just turn to media converters.

Fiber Optic Media Converter is a small device with two media-dependent interfaces and a power supply, simply receive data signals from one media, convert and transmit them to another media. It can be installed almost anywhere in a network. The style of connector depends on the selection of media to be converted by the unit. In a Fast Ethernet environment, a 100Base-TX to 100Base-FX Media Converter connects a 100Base-TX twisted-pair device to a 100Base-FX compliant single or multimode fiber port that has a fiber-optic connector. In a Gigabit Ethernet, a media converter commonly is deployed to convert multimode to single-mode fiber. Media converters are designed to be implemented in Ethernet networks and some ATM applications. Media converters are also playing a role in facilitating the optical last-mile connection to metropolitan-area networks.

How does a fiber optic media converter work?

Media converters work on the physical layer of the network. They receive data signals from one media and convert them to another while remaining invisible to data traffic and other net devices. They do not interfere with upper-level protocol information. This lets them support quality of service and Layer 3 switching.

Media converters change the format of an Ethernet-based signal on Cat-5 into a format compatible with fiber optics. At the other end of the fiber cable run, a second media converter is used to change the data back to its original format. One important difference to note between Cat-5 and fiber is that Cat-5 cables and RJ45 jacks are bidirectional while fiber is not. Thus, every fiber run in a system must include two fiber cables, one carrying data in each direction. These are typically labeled transmit (or Tx) and receive (or Rx).

Media Converters can function in either half-duplex or full duplex mode. Full duplex Ethernet over UTP runs at 20 or 200Mbps, while half-duplex Ethernet over UTP runs at either 10 or 100 Mbps. Full duplex Ethernet is especially valuable in linking two switches or connecting a switch to a file server. No adjustments are necessary when using either mode. A Fiber Optic Media Converter will automatically sense which mode is in operation.

There are several types of fiber optic media converters available, such as Ethernet Media Converter, 10/100/1000 Media Converters, Gigabit Ethernet Converter, Mulitmode Singlemode Media Converter, 10 Gigabit Ethernet Converter, Media Converter Rack Chassis, etc.

Attention:
Fiber optic converter should be placed in a secure location that can not be disturbed by people or machinery. Every computer connected to the fiber optic cable will lose it’s internet connection if the converter is removed or broken. Converters contain special materials that only work properly in specific temperature ranges so it is important to keep them in controlled temperature rooms that never get too hot or cold.