Did somebody say 
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Optimally you want to ensure any Wi-Fi Access Point is hard wired back to your Router, a mesh that relies on using Wi-Fi for the backhaul is always going to be sub optimal.
Structured cabling is another thing entirely, especially as you start getting in to the more exotic options and those like Cat 7/8 where screening is mandatory.
Bare in mind that these higher Category cables are designed primarily for increasingly higher throughput over relatively short distances, we’re talking 10 or even 40 Gb/s here whereas anything that is streaming audio even at maximum quality is going to require a tiny percentage of that available throughput.
What those cable constructions do offer is the ability to manage environment interference especially alien or external sources of noise as opposed to noise being generated by the cable itself.
The external screen can be either foil wrapped or a braided screen, each offer different characteristics with foil being particularly effective at noise rejection above 100 MHz, whereas a braided metal screen will offer a broad spectrum of noise rejection.
Those cable types are also grounded and designed to be connected via a patch panel to the supply/building ground, if the RJ45 connector is metal, it’ll be grounding that connection via the outer screen of the cable.
If you’re going to all the effort to cable things up properly it’s worth bearing in mind all the options that are available and the relative benefits and penalties that each choice implies.
In terms of cost and efficiency, in a residential environment with low cable density and low throughput needs (under 1 Gb/s typically) Cat 6A U/FTP would be a sensible minimum for the structured cabling, all solid core.
If you add an outer screen with a S/ (Screened, metal mesh braid, steel or aluminium) or F/ (Foil wrapped, usually aluminium) type cable, factor in the grounding requirements accordingly, they will also provide additional noise rejection, however low cable run density (those run in parallel to common termination points) and environment as well as cable length, will likely mean the cost benefits will be lower than in say a commercial setting or with high levels of cable run density.
If you want to play safe then aim for S/FTP (Shielded/Foil Twisted Pair) Cat6A, moving to Cat7 or Cat8 will be based on the same cable construction type, it’ll just be tested and rated to higher frequencies and with higher throughput. Even Cat6A is rated up to 10Gb/s under 100m.
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There is no need for 8.1 in any home installation let alone in a Hifi setup.
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Here’s QED’s spiel:
“Designed to provide the most accurate, most stable connection possible between networked devices. Perfect for connecting a high-resolution digital audio streamer to a local network, the Reference Ethernet has more than enough bandwidth to deal with the data rates required by 32 bit/384 kHz and DSD512 audio files. Painstakingly engineered, Reference Ethernet is a Class I Category 8.1 cable and can support 40G Ethernet - and so has the headroom to cope with even the most data-intensive applications”.
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If you are changing from cat 5 to something else you may as well change to the latest, fastest available for the minimal cost. Dependent on cable length transmission speeds will vary, but needed? Probably not.
I have a router wifi turned off, cat 8 (1gbps) to a wifi6 repeater that transmits to two other repeaters. Each of those two are then cat 8 in to the streamer in the relevant rooms.
All works well but the dependency is the wifi transmission, not the cable speed.
I challenge anyone to find a home that requires a cable that can carry up to 40 Gb/s of data 
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Have you heard it? I haven’t, which is why i’m inquisitive…i don’t doubt QED though…they know. I’m still on the Vodka(s)…and not the denim..
I remember when Netflix worked on 3mbps…
Now streaming requires somewhat more than 3mbps. By way of example - BRAVIA CORE features Pure Stream™ which can stream HDR movies at up to 80Mbps – similar to 4K UHD Blu-ray6, on a wide range of content. This means significantly more detail, colour and contrast than conventional 15-25Mbps streaming content.
Additionally, HDMI 2.1a Specification requires a new Ultra High Speed HDMI® Cable to comply with stringent specifications designed to ensure support for all HDMI 2.1a features including uncompressed 8k@60 and 4K@120. The cable’s increased bandwidth capability supports up to 48Gbps.
Should we not consider Moore’s Law when installing or upgrading Wi-Fi or Ethernet infrastructure?
No
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Nielsen’s Law of Internet Bandwidth. 50% bandwidth growth per annum. Compound growth of 57x over ten years.
Are we talking about the same Naim??? 
Part of Naim’s charm is its slow rate of change?
Not according to the ‘superfast’ new Naim🤣
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“Naim’s law”…
Someone please come up with a witty definition.
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Is that like Cole’s Law?
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How about It’s Friday I’m having a beer law?
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