cglaeser

$2.99 is cheap enough to give it a try. I don't see the Panasonic 502, so I picked a random Panasonic and it seems to work fine inside my LAN. I tried connecting to Exacq and it did not connect. I'll continue to play and see if I can get that to work. If I wanted to make cameras available outside the LAN and accessible to my dyndns address, what is the recommended port forwarding scheme? Best, Christopher

In general I would agree with you, but the Exacq third party app was better than the Exacq app. It looks great on an iPhone, and fantastic on an iPad. IMO, it was well worth the $49. Exacq bought it and replaced it with their own. I don't think you can purchase the third party app now. The latest release of the Exacq app is pretty good, but I still prefer the third party app. July 18. Best, Christopher

Try the free demos from Exacq and Avigilon, and then show him the features and functionality. I have the Panasonic 502. It's an excellent camera, and it plays nice with both Exacq and Avigilon. Best, Christopher

Actually, this is an increasingly common solution to bridge the gap from D1 analog to MP IP. The Axis encoders are a bit pricey at $1,000 for four ports plus four IP licenses, but the Avigilon encoders are less than half that and only use one IP license. Regarding the potential for image improvement, Avigilon uses lossless JPEG2000 with wider dynamic range than JPEG. I have not seen images to compare, but others have reported some improvement in forensic information. By using video encoders, it's possible to switch a large existing install from DVR to NVR fairly quickly, and then begin replacing multiple low res analog cameras with a fewer number of high res cameras as time and budget permits. Best, Christopher

I have an aging PC that shuts down abruptly when some programs are run, and sometimes on start-up. It seems to run fine for hours in Safe Mode under modest load. There are no apparent entries in the Event Log. The power will just suddenly turn off. What is the most likely cause? A faulty power supply? Best, Christopher

I don't see any bad caps, but I'll go back and check each one very closely with a penlight. I connected the Watts Up Pro and it hovers around 290W with a peak of 313W in Safe Mode. When I try to boot in normal Windows mode, the power gets to 445W and shuts down. If I get time tomorrow, I'll purchase a new PSU and see if that resolves the problem. Best, Christopher

If the PC is booted in safe mode, it will remain powered up. The graphics card is an nVidia FX 4500. According to the specs, the power requirements are 109W. Although the problem is likely a faulty PSU, I'm guessing the PC may stay up if I replace the FX 4500 with a low power graphics card. Best, Christopher

I have not replaced the PSU yet. I'm still using the original 600W PSU. Best, Christopher

Good suggestion. I thoroughly cleaned it last night, but perhaps the heat has already caused some damage. It sill shuts down when loaded. Best, Christopher

Thanks for the quick response. I do have a Watts Up Pro and will try that. This PC has been working in this configuration for almost five years without any power failures, so perhaps the tolerances have drifted with age. It also got pretty warm in the computer room this week, so perhaps that caused some damage as well. Best, Christopher

What computer would you recommend that has a modest footprint, relatively low power, can run Windows, and record a modest number (2 to 4) MP cameras? Best, Christopher

OK, I see what is happening with the jpeg images. Avigilon allows display settings for each camera. These display settings include black level, white level, and gamma. The jpeg images are extremely sensitive to the white level. The default is 0.980, and the jpeg images are dramatically improved when set to 1.000. FWIW, the difference in appearance of 0.980 and 1.000 seems far too dramatic. The histogram moves to 1/3 scale at 0.980 and full scale at 1.000. One would guess a white level of 0.333 would be required to move the histogram by that amount. It seems a bit tedious to find a levels adjustment that looks good on both the timeline and jpeg snapshots. I'll keep playing and see if I can find a happy medium before posting images. Best, Christopher

I do have some recorded video, but there is something wrong with the save snapshot feature because the night images look really bad when stored to jpeg. I tried png and tiff with no improvement. The stills look quite nice on the Avigilon timeline. I set the compression to low on export, but don't see any other settings that would affect the output. I'll see if I can generate better jpeg images for comparison. Best, Christopher

I tried Exacq with the Avigilon dome one more time before returning the demo cameras. I was still unable to get motion recording to work. For an unknown reason, Exacq would force the camera into continuous recording. I set the motion area using a browser, but that did not help. The camera would send motion information to Exacq, and the Exacq window would indicate there was motion being detected by changing the color of the border, and even the timeline would change color during motion, but it would still record when there was no motion, and it was not obvious how to change that. Others have reported success connecting Avigilon cameras to Exacq, so perhaps I was doing something wrong. Best, Christopher

It also uses lossless JPEG2000. And, it only uses one ACC license for 4 ports. Best, Christopher

There's one more option you might consider, and that is an Optex outdoor wireless IR beam. Sometimes it is difficult to aim a PIR for the desired coverage, and the IR beam is an easy option to create an electronic fence. If you set the height above the average dog, you won't get false alarms on animals but detect people walking onto your property. Just one more option. Best, Christopher

I actually have the Panasonic 502 on Exacq, and it's an excellent camera. I use the 1.3MP H.264 mode. The 3MP mode does not seem to add much forensic detail, H.264 only works at 1.3MP resolution, and the low-light performance is enhanced considerably at 1.3MP. The 502 works well with both Exacq and ACC. As for which has better low light performance, the 502 or the Avigilon H.264 dome, I'm not sure. At first I thought it was the Panasonic. But then I started playing with the Avigilon H.264 box and was very impressed with low light performance, particularly at full zoom (the specs do not indicate the aperture of this lens across the zoom range; I doubt it is a fixed aperture, but it clearly doesn't give up much at the long end). Based on that, I went back and took another look at the Avigilon dome. The noise was particularly high, but the gain was set to maximum on dealer reset. I backed off on the gain, and the noise dropped considerably, and the image did not darken much. So, in answer to your question, I'm not certain. If I play with the Avigilon settings a bit more, I may be able to improve the low light forensic quality. If you already have Exacq, you will likely be happy with the 502. I've been using it for a couple years and am pleased with the performance. As for Avigilon ONVIF motion on Exacq, Michael reports he had it working. Best, Christopher

Optex makes a short, mid, and long range outdoor PIRs. You would select a model based on your requirements. Regarding the monitoring of the road, that really depends on the traffic. I live on a court. I ignore the activity during the day, but if there is activity at 2 am, I'll wake up and check. I can see all my cameras on my iPhone, so I don't have to get out of bed to check. When a PIR chimes an alert in the middle of the night, I reach over and check the phone. If you live on a busy street, you would need to set up the PIRs to cover your yard. BTW, Optex makes wireless outdoor PIRs, which are a breeze to install. Regarding IR, that can be very helpful in being able to see at night, but don't expect to ID someone based on night images. It's difficult, even with IR. The best way to get an arrest is to call the police while the burglar is in the neighborhood. PIR will alert you, and cameras allow you to observe in safety. Best, Christopher

+1. Outdoor Optex PIRs have netted six arrests thus far. I have one Optex that can detect someone coming at 100 meters. I know to check my cameras before they are even in camera range. They work day or night, rain or shine. Best, Christopher

FYI, Canon makes more than one 70-200, and there is huge difference in price. Best, Christopher

Michael says he got it to work. When I tried it, only continuous recording was available. The colors on the timeline would change when there was motion, but the recording was continuous nonetheless. I suppose I could try a few more tests, but I've pretty much decided if I use an Avigilon ONVIF camera, I'll use ACC as well. I've been playing the ACC and the two H.264 cameras all day (plus several Axis cameras, encoders, and a Panasonic 502), and I really like both the NVR and the cameras. The low light on the box at full zoom was far better than I anticipated. In fact, right now I have it aimed under a distant street light, and it is in color mode. I manually changed it to mono, but the color looks much better so I switched it back. Another cool feature is the automatic change in brightness levels when zoomed to a dark region. Not only is this supported in the JPEG2000 cameras, but ACC does this for the H.264 cameras as well. I'm really tempted to switch horses from Exacq to ACC. The features that ACC supports are generally done extremely well, but Exacq has more features that I use such as advanced scheduling. Exacq has good mobile phone support, but Avigilon is scheduled to even that score by the end of the month. Decisions, decisions. Best, Christopher

Does Avigilon ACC Standard support alarms? Is it possible to record or send email based on an alarm trigger in the standard license? Best, Christopher

Will do. The implementation of the Avigilon timeline is very compelling, but the full-feature set of Exacq is also compelling. Exacq has had mobile phone support for many months, and Avigilon will even that score later this month. Exacq has the best email implementation on the market. Exacq also has very powerful event scheduling that is included with the standard product. There are also differences in the number of servers and clients that can be used. I'd like to be able to pull up six or eight homes and HOAs, and Avigilon limits that number too. Decisions, decisions. Best, Christopher

What is the cost for enterprise? Best, Christopher

Thanks, it looks like alarm management is Enterprise only. How much is Enterprise for 2 to 4 cameras? Best, Christopher