The McBasic standalone copper-to-fiber converter from IMC Networks is designed to minimize the cost of building and maintaining gigabit Ethernet networks.

by Wayne Kawamoto [May 8, 2001]

IMC Networks, a manufacturer of media conversion, fiber optic connectivity and bandwidth management solutions for local, wide and metropolitan area networks, announced its new McBasic Gigabit Ethernet ("GbE") copper-to-fiber media converter.

According to IMC, the McBasic GbE is a rugged, standalone converter with an internal power supply, and is suitable for a wide range of installations, from the telco CO to connecting Local Area Networks with remote offices over Metropolitan fiber infrastructures.

McBasic GbE includes the company's FiberAlert feature that alerts service provider network managers of problems, which may ease the process of isolating and troubleshooting fiber breaks should they occur. Also, the small size and durability of the McBasic line may facilitate many installation requirements.

FiberAlert, the troubleshooting feature that's designed to minimize problems associated with the loss of one strand of fiber, mirrors the link status from one end of the fiber to the other. Even if the fiber devices are separated geographically, the link status can be seen at either end, thus helping to identify and isolate faults anywhere in the fiber loop.

Also, McBasic GbE uses autonegotiation to configure each port for full/half duplex and master/slave modes of operation. The AutoCross feature on 1000Base_T ports automatically determines whether or not McBasic GbE needs to cross over between the four pairs on the RJ-45 connector, which may simplify installation by eliminating the need for both cross-over and straight through cable.

"McBasic GbE provides substantial cost-savings over 1000Base_LX switch ports, and extends the reach of Gigabit Ethernet up to 70 kilometers while using standard 1000Base_T switch ports at both ends of the fiber run," says Michael Dailey, president and chief executive officer of IMC Networks. "On the LAN side, network managers can extend the productive life of the existing Category 5 cabling plant and use McBasic GbE to connect the latest optical switches to their network."

"Gigabit Ethernet has established itself in the enterprise backbone, and is making headway into the MAN and WAN over campus and service provider networks," added Dailey. "With the release of the industry-first modular Gigabit Ethernet converter last year, and now with the standalone McBasic model, IMC Networks has taken the leadership role in enabling enterprise and service provider networks to deliver the speed of Gigabit Ethernet over both copper and fiber optic cabling infrastructures."

Price and availability
McBasic GbE copper-to-fiber converters are available immediately inthe following list prices:

• McBasic 1000Base-T to 850nm multi-mode fiber—SC $ 950
• McBasic 1000Base-T to 1310nm single-mode fiber—SC $ 1,695
• McBasic 1000Base-T to 1550nm single-mode fiber—SC $ 5,600

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