Methods and systems are disclosed which can perform cable characterization at link-up and during in-service monitoring to provide the best data throughput. In some embodiments a plurality of frequency tones may be sent across a cable to a remote system. A plurality of return loss values associated with sending the plurality of frequency tones may then be measured and stored. Next, a crosstalk value across the cable may be computed. A quality value for the cable may then be determined based on at least the plurality of return loss values and the crosstalk value.