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Both baseband and broadband describe how data is transmitted between two nodes. Baseband technology transmits a single data signal/stream/channel at a time while broadband technology transmits multiple data signals/streams/channels simultaneously at the same time.
Baseband is defined as transmission format that uses digital signaling and uses the transmission medium as a single-channel device.
Baseband
Baseband transmission uses digital signals to send data through the media as a single channel and it is bi-directional, which means that the same channel can be used to send and receive signals. Baseband is used for short distance data transfer.
Common Ethernet Standards use Baseband for LAN data transfer; in fact, Baseband transmission utilizes Time Division Multiplexing (TDM). TDM does not use channel division; instead, each signal gets a time slot. Therefore, one signal takes the entire bandwidth for a given time slot. Usually, baseband transmission helps to send signals to short distances. Hence, Ethernet commonly use this transmission technique (notice the word "base", for example, 10BaseT or 10BaseFL).
Baseband is used for short distance data transfer.
Broadband
The Broadband transmission employs analog signals which include optical or electromagnetic wave form of signal. The signals are sent into multiple frequencies permitting multiple signals to be sent simultaneously.
The signals propagated at any point are unidirectional in nature, in simple words the signal can be travelled at only one direction, unlike baseband transmission. It requires two data path that are connected at a point in the network refer to as headend. The first path is used for signal transmission from the station to the headend. And the other path is used for receiving propagated signals.
Broadband transmission use Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM). In FDM, the total bandwidth is divided into several frequency bands, and each carries a separate signal. At the receiving end, a multiplexer divides the various signals.
Usually, cable TV, Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), variants of Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), Power Line communication use broadband transmission.
As a general rule, if we consider a broadband internet connection for the home internet, the signals from your internet service provider up to our broadband router are broadband signals. But, the signals used inside your Ethernet Local Area Network (LAN) are baseband signals.
Broadband supports only unidirectional communication. It means, nodes connected at both ends of a medium can send or receive data but can’t perform both actions simultaneously. Only one action is allowed at a time.
Broadband is used for long distance data transfer.
Main Differences
Baseband vs Broadband Transmission | |
| Baseband Transmission is a transmission technique that one signal requires the entire bandwidth of the channel to send data. | Broadband Transmission is a transmission technique that many signals with multiple frequencies transmit data through a single channel simultaneously. |
| Type of Signals | |
| Uses digital signals | Uses analog signals |
| Number of Signals | |
| Sends one signal at a time | Sends multiple signals simultaneously |
| Signal Range | |
| Signals travel a short distance | Signals travel a long distance without much attenuation |
| Transmission Type | |
| Bidirectional | Unidirectional |
| Multiplexing | |
| Uses Time Division Multiplexing | Uses Frequency Division Multiplexing |
| Examples | |
| Ethernet is an example | Cable TV, Wi-Fi, and Power Line communication are some examples |
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