Soundy

We've been using CNB domes in a number of commercial installations, and found them of very good quality, but they're priced such that they could fit most homeowners' budgets.

I regularly power two cameras off a single 24VAC/40VA transformer... and I've seen up to four on a 40VA, although the transformer tends to run really hot. A 50VA should handle three cameras without even breaking a sweat. Some cameras will list their power requirements - a Panasonic WV-CP414 I have sitting here only draws 3.5W, so mathematically, I should be able to run 14 of them on a 50VA supply. I also have a National NLC-5700 that lists 3.6W on its label, and an NLC-5500 that lists 5.5W. So even at 10W per camera, your supply should handle 5 cameras without a problem. At 500mA draw, those cameras would consume 12W (24V x .5A). That's pretty hefty - are these IR or PTZ cameras?? As for HOW to connect it, you can simply parallel the cameras to the transformer terminal. Some installations may require each line be fused, which you can do using a simple inline fuse holder available at any auto-parts or electronics-supply store:

Should have no effect at all on the noise problem. Only way it would make a difference is if the runs are too long and/or the wires are too small and you're suffering excessive voltage drop. The noise in this case is most likely caused by a ground loop... if that is the case, simply eliminating the common connection will cure it.

Your link didn't work, you haven't been here long enough. You could also take a look at some of Extreme's offerings, http://www.extremecctv.com ... er, hmm, well, I guess Bosch owns them now. Dunno if they still have them, but they used to have some really great camera designs - super-heavy-duty tapered-steel housings that prevented simply tossing a rope over a wall-mounted camera and yanking it down, and a shatterproof Lexan dome held in buy a ring that threaded into the housing on top of it, and then was locked down by ultra-small setscrews requiring ultra-small, hard-to-find allen keys to get them out... suffice to say they were a chore to open even IF you had the right tools, and damn near impossible if you didn't Ah, here it is: http://products.boschsecurity.us/en/TAMS/products/bxp/SKUPFT5677115915.P1.F.01U.089.911-CATMf53af729338a4b8b433361f4a392c56f

Agreed, "vandal PROOF" is pretty subjective. It really depends on what sort of vandals you're dealing with - I've seen Lexan domes withstand direct (very solid) blows with hammers and baseball bats... but I've had instances where the shock has killed the camera inside, or scuffed the Lexan enough to seriously blur the image. I've yet to see a dome that will repel paint, so a vandal with a spray can of Tremclad is always a problem. I've put metal shields over cameras and those will significantly slow a perp down, but someone who really wants to put the time in to attack/remove/disable a camera will always find a way to do it. I watched the footage of a thief once that dismantled and removed a dome that used security screws (the allan key with the pin in the middle) - he used what looked like a pair of needle-nose pliers and it took him a good 20 minutes of solid effort to get the dome apart, but he did finish the job and took the dome with him... and this was at a gas station on a fairly busy route. Surprised nobody saw him and call the cops or anything. Unfortunately, it was at night and what light there was, was behind him, so we never got a face from it... Frankly, the best way to "vandal proof" a camera is to put it far out of reach... we have one site with three FLIR thermal cams and a Pelco Esprit PTZ on top of a 50' tower in the middle of a yard, with a 12' climb shield around the tower base... that makes the cameras pretty much impervious to anything but a bullet.

Actually, since we have a lot of fuel services customers, I find the Rain-X particularly helpful for cameras inside car washes. It doesn't completely stop the enclosures getting mucked up (especially the ones that get the soap spray), but it does help extend the time required between cleanings.

What style of domes are we talking about? How hard would they be to simply seal up? As for cleaning them... I usually just use something like Windex Wipes - I have a small pack that I carry in my maintenance kit. If they're going to be in an area where they get direct rainfall, I'll follow that up with a treatment of Rain-X. I dunno about removing stickers and paint, though... could try something like GooGone or maybe isopropyl alcohol...

Did you install a new driver for the new card? One thing I've found with ATI, they tend to be a lot happier with driver updates if you uninstall the old driver first.

BTW, for the above board that I administer, I've recently installed the latest update (3.0.4) and it contains a very nice anti-spam feature: you can set all new users so that their posts are placed in the mod queue until they have X number of approved posts. This gives us a chance to delete spammers before any of their posts appear to the public - they can post all they want, but only approved posts go toward the post count.

Doesn't appear to be with this version of the phpBB software. This is a very old release, though. Newer versions support it, and a lot of other features.

You shouldn't need to "worry" about the voltage... if the devices all conform to 802.3af spec, they'll operate at 48VDC. If they support the newer 802.3af-2008, they'll handle anything between 36-57VDC. Regardless, the spec defines the voltage required; you don't need to know or check or compare them.

Are you connecting to the DVR and just not getting cameras, or not connecting to the DVR at all? Do you get any error messages? What browser are you using?

Aside from reducing the signal level, why not? In theory, this should work, but I'd start with the assumption that the the digital box will handle the analog tuning fine. Unless there's something that specifically states the box is digital ONLY, there's no reason to think it wouldn't do analog as well, especially since most cable companies (including Rogers, AFAIK) still carry both.

Are you connecting to the DVR and just not getting cameras, or not connecting to the DVR at all? Do you get any error messages? What browser are you using? If it's Internet Explorer, you have to be sure to preface the IP with "http://", because IE is brain-dead and if it's not on port 80, it doesn't know to try http (actually, it's good practice with any browser to always add the "http://" when using a port other than 80).

What cable boxes is Rogers using these days? Like I say, look through your onscreen program guide and see if there's a "Security Camera" channel... if there is, this method should be supported. The other thing you could do is contact Rogers and ask them if it's supported with your specific box(es).

I don't see why not... digital channels, as well as internet and "digital phone", are still analog-encoded for transport over the cable in the first place. Your only concern might be that the modulator passes enough bandwidth for your carrier's entire range, but AFAIK that range is regulated (CRTC, FCC, etc.) to within a certain frequencies anyway, so as long as the modulator passes that entire range (which I'd think any would unless it was poorly designed or built) there should be no issue.

Check out the offerings from CNB - excellent cameras for the price!

Wouldn't matter if it came out of a system, anything like that, that's destined for sale in the US, should have its own FCC ID code. If it doesn't, it was probably initially intended for sale overseas. Not that that matters to your problem, but an FCC code on it would make it a lot easier to look it up on the FCC's website.

I've not used the 484 domes, but I have used several of the CP484 "box" cams, and a number of the IS-110 domes and their predecessor, the ICS-111, and I concur, the 484 is a far better camera in itself. Besides that, I find those domes a PITA to work with. I'd take almost any other dome design over them, personally.

If you look through your channel lineup (with the on-screen program guide), you should see a channel labeled "SECURITY" or "CAMERA" or something similar... with my Shaw Cable/Motorola boxes, for example, it shows on channel 116 - channel name SECAM, program description "Security Camera". That means Shaw leaves a "hole" in their programming on 116 for just such a modulator. The trick, for you, is to find out what channel Rogers reserves for that purpose, and get a modulator that will use that channel. If some TVs *don't* use the digital box, and don't have the proper cable-ready tuners, you may need a second one that will use the standard channels 3 or 4 to feed those TVs. In any case, the trick is that the modulator must insert between the incoming feed and the first splitter, so it gets split out to all feeds in the house. Other than that, there should be no problems.

I've never seen this as a feature of the CAMERA, but it's a very common function on the MONITOR end of a backup-camera system (the kind you'd normally put on your car). If this is for that specific purpose, you might be better to just look at a complete system of that type.

Welcome aboard!

Unless it's severely under-sized (like, 24-gauge power), your existing wiring should be fine, siamese or not. Unless it's damaged or the insulation is rotting away, there's little reason to replace it - that's just extra work and expense. If the new cameras have different power connectors, just snip off the old ones and splice in the new ones (making sure polarity is correct). If the cameras are all 12V and come with their own adapters, you can discard the adapters (or save them for later use) and power the cameras all off one central 12VDC power supply... which as VST_Man indicates, is preferable for long-term reliability and maintenance.

Pelco D/P protocols are well-documented and dev kits are readily available... if your dome supports either or both (it should), you might consider using one or both of those instead. Have you contacted Bosch to ask if they have an SDK available?