IntelliTone Isolate mode is designed to minimize bleed between Category 5+ cabling. It is typical to see a level 6 to 8 on the toned cable, and a level 1 to 4 on the bleed cables providing clear differentiation between the toned cable and untoned cables.

There are times when separating the cables with more than an inch (2.5 cm) of separation is difficult such as a closely spaced wall-jack or a tight bundle of cable. In these cases, the signal from the toned cable will be picked up while probing the untoned cable. This guide addresses isolating cables in tight circumstances.

Probing wall plates
Wall plates come in various numbers of jacks and space between ports. When the spacing between the jacks is less than 1 inch (2.5 cm), the probe will show approximately the same level in both receptacles.
 

When the untoned jack is measured (see image below), it provides a level 3. While this is a clear difference, if the receptacle panel had a tighter spacing between the jacks, of less than an inch (2.5 cm), the untoned jack would be close enough to the toned jack that the probe would pick up that signal.





 

When trying to isolate between closely spaced receptacle panels where it is difficult to differentiate between the toned and untoned jack, a short patch cable, or the provided cable, may be used to clearly differentiate between the jacks.

Plugging a cable into the jack makes it possible to isolate closely spaced jacks. Here the same jack that provided a level 6 before, provides a level 7 when we probe the cable a
few inches (5 cm) away from the receptacle enclosure.

Plugging the same cable into the untoned jack provides a level 1 reading as we are truly measuring the cable strength and not the strength of nearby toned cable. The physical separation provides a 6 level difference between the toned and untoned jack.

Isolating in a tight bundle of cables
Similar to the close spacing on the wall jack, there may be situations where the user wants to isolate between closely spaced cables in a bundle. In these cases, two things optimize isolation.

1) Always try to create an inch (2.5 cm) or more of physical space between the probed cable and the bundle.

2) When this space is difficult to achieve, awareness of the antenna location in the IntelliTone probe makes it possible to get resolution down to approximately .25 inch (6.4 mm).

For optimal isolation, when it is difficult to get cable separation, the best results are achieved by measuring the cables at the junction of the black tip and the yellow probe body. This makes it possible to get a discernable strength level between the toned and untoned cables.