Direct Attach Cables (DACs)
High-Performance Data Center Interconnect
What are Direct Attach Cables (DACs) ？
Direct Attach Cables (DACs) are high-speed copper cable solutions specifically designed for short-distance interconnections within data center environments. These cables, which are meticulously constructed from a high-purity oxygen-free copper core, come factory-terminated with fixed-style connectors at both ends, such as SFP, SFP+, QSFP, and OSFP . DACs directly transmit high-speed electrical signals, enabling efficient communication between network devices . Notably, as passive DACs operate without active circuit components, they inherently offer exceptional energy efficiency with almost 0 power consumption . For modern data centers, DACs are vital components where ultra-low latency, high energy efficiency, and cost-effectiveness are paramount for intra-rack links and server-to-switch connections .
DACs particularly excel in addressing ultra-short distance connectivity requirements, with passive cables typically effective up to 7 meters. This makes them the preferred choice for Top-of-Rack (ToR) deployments . Their direct electrical signal transmission ensures the lowest possible latency, positioning them as an ideal solution for high-frequency computing and edge nodes . Compared to more complex optical solutions, DACs provide a compelling balance of performance, practicality, and significant cost savings, especially suitable for distances within their optimal operating range.
Why Choose Our Direct Attach Cables
Ultra-Low Power & Cost Efficiency
Passive DACs consume negligible power, typically less than 0.1W. This is significantly lower than active DACs (~0.5W) and AOCs (1-2W), leading to substantial energy savings and lower operational costs in data centers. For short-distance applications, DACs can be 50-70% more cost-effective than AOCs.
Superior Low Latency Performance
DACs provide the absolute lowest latency for short-distance connections by directly transmitting electrical signals, eliminating optical-electrical conversion delays. This makes them ideal for latency-sensitive applications like HPC, financial trading, and edge computing where every nanosecond counts.
Robust Durability & Wide Temperature Range
Constructed with high-purity oxygen-free copper cores, zinc alloy housings, and thickened gold-plated contacts, DACs offer excellent electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) and radio-frequency interference (RFI) shielding. Their passive nature allows stable operation across a wider temperature range than optical alternatives, ensuring reliability in demanding data center environments.
Unbeatable Value & Proven Reliability
For intra-rack and adjacent-rack connections (typically up to 7 meters), DACs offer an optimal balance of performance, cost, and energy efficiency. Their simple, passive design translates to higher reliability and a longer lifespan, making them a strategic and cost-effective investment for high-performance interconnects.
Extensive Compatibility & Future-Ready
Our DACs undergo rigorous testing to ensure 100% compatibility with industry-leading servers, switches, routers, and storage devices from brands like Cisco, Huawei, H3C, Ruijie, and HP. The global DAC market is experiencing significant growth, with projections reaching billions by 2030, driven by the increasing demand for high-speed data transmission in data centers.
And More
Extensive Compatibility, Excellent Performance
Our Direct Attach Cables (DACs) undergo rigorous testing to ensure 100% compatibility with industry-leading servers, switches, routers, firewalls, network cards, and other equipment. Through in-depth optimization for multi-brand environments, our DACs provide high-speed, stable, and low-power consumption connectivity solutions for applications such as data centers, high-performance computing (HPC), and cloud storage. Whether deploying new network infrastructure or upgrading existing systems, our DACs can seamlessly integrate, ensuring your network performance and data transmission efficiency.
Supported Brands
The following are some of the mainstream brands supported by our DAC products, offering extensive interoperability:
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Direct Attach Cables FAQs (Frequent Asked Questions)
A1: A Straight-Through Cable (DAC) is a high-speed copper cable primarily used for short-distance connections within data centers. They are shipped with fixed transceivers at both ends, such as SFP+, QSFP, or OSFP. DACs transmit electrical signals directly, providing a cost-effective and energy-efficient solution for interconnecting network devices such as switches, servers, and storage systems.
A2: Our DACs feature ultra-low power consumption, excellent low-latency performance, and robust durability. They are highly cost-effective for short-distance applications, simplify deployment, and are widely compatible with industry-leading equipment, ensuring high reliability and a strong return on investment for data center infrastructure.
A3: Key advantages include near-zero power consumption (passive DACs < 0.1W), which significantly reduces operating costs. Because they use direct electrical signal transmission, they have extremely low latency, making them ideal for high-frequency computing. Furthermore, their robust construction, featuring a high-purity oxygen-free copper core and multi-layer shielding, including aluminum foil and metal shielding layers, provides superior signal integrity and strong immunity to electromagnetic interference (EMI) and radio frequency interference (RFI) in noisy data center environments.
A4: DACs are pre-terminated, plug-and-play solutions that eliminate the need for separate transceivers and fiber optic patch cords, simplifying installation. Their fixed length and robust design reduce cable clutter, improve airflow, and enhance overall data center efficiency and management.
A5: Our straight-through cables support a variety of data rates, from 10 Gbps to 400 Gbps and even higher, including 10G SFP+, 25G SFP28, 40G QSFP+, 50G QSFP28, 100G QSFP28, 200G QSFP56, and 400G QSFP-DD. They are ideal for in-rack and inter-rack connections, server-to-switch links, top-of-rack (ToR) deployments, and high-performance computing (HPC) applications requiring short distances and high bandwidth.
A6: Our DAC products undergo rigorous testing to ensure 100% compatibility with many industry-leading network equipment manufacturers such as Cisco, Huawei, H3C, and HP. Their robust zinc alloy shell construction, combined with high-purity oxygen-free copper cores and multi-layer shielding and PVC protection, ensures high reliability and long service life.
A7: DACs are generally more cost-effective than AOCs, with significantly lower power consumption, especially for short-distance transmission. Passive DACs consume near-zero power, while AOCs require photoelectric conversion and typically consume 1-2W per end. However, DACs use copper cables, and even oxygen-free copper cores have transmission distance limitations (typically 7-15 meters). In contrast, AOCs support much longer transmission distances (up to 100 meters or more) and are lighter and thinner, making them more suitable for ultra-high bandwidth, long-distance lossless transmission and applications with strict cable size requirements.
A8: Yes, our DACs are ideal for AI/HPC environments. Their ultra-low latency, high data rates, and high reliability make them ideal for applications with extremely high data transmission speed and signal latency requirements, especially for applications such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, and high-performance computing clusters.
The maximum effective distance of a DAC depends on the data rate and whether the cable is passive or active. Passive DACs are generally recommended for distances up to 7 meters. Active DACs can extend this range to about 10-15 meters, but with a corresponding increase in power. For higher data rates (e.g., 100G), the maximum reliable distance of a passive DAC may be shorter, around 3-5 meters.