I've had this cable now for a few years, and I have to say that it has been highly reliable. What sets this cable apart from others is the adaptable ethercon shell plugs, which can be easily removed and reattached to allow the cable to be inserted into standard RJ45 network ports, as well as the lockable 'XLR-style ethercon ports. The cable is very rugged and performs flawlessly. Over time I expected the shells to loosed, but this has not been the case at all. The cable is still in perfect condition after a few years of use for gigs every week. I strongly recommend this product to anyone looking for a reliable way of connecting a digital mixer or other digital networking equipment using either Ethercons or standard RJ45s.