z-man

To Tom, yea I know it doesn't sound like they will be wireless, but they will be. Those switches will be wired into Ubiquiti Nanostations. Any suggestions you have as to wired ip (or cheap wireless) cameras would be appreciated. NJD - Thank you this is exactly the kind of feed back I was looking for. As far as you know, will those cameras hold up in damp conditions? They won't be in direct weather, but will be under pretty much open shelters. Also "some" low light performance would be nice. These are very close to what I was looking for tho and I really appreciate your time.

I understand that analog would be cheaper, but I have to connect this system together wirelessly over some distance. With the number of cameras and they way it will all be connected, ip cameras seem like the best bet.

I need 9 relatively low costs ip cameras (no more than about $150.00) each. They will all be wired to a switch. They will also have to be compatible with an AVerMedia NV6480EXP. They will all be mounted under shelters, but will be exposed to wind/humidity, but not direct rain/water. They don't have to be super high quality 640X480 at around 20fps would be fine. I've spent hours looking at cameras, and I can find some cameras that seem like they would be ok, but they don't show up on the comparability list for the 6480. I'm kinda at a loss right now.

Thank you very much for your reply. This was very informative. My only question is still, how many ip cameras can the avermedia card handle? Also if I set it up like this, do you think it will preform adequately? I'd like at least 20 FPS from the cameras. I know it will likely be complex to setup, but I'm pretty handy with electronics and a quick study. Any tips you could give towards setting it up tho would be greatly appreciated.

Budget is around 5K. Yes there are wires ran between the buildings, but that is all buried in conduit, under asphalt. Even if I could run cat 5 threw the existing conduit, it would be running right beside power cables. I'm unfortunately fairly convinced that wireless is the only way it will work. Would it be possible to use non ip wireless cameras? Maybe 2.4 ghz models?

Thank you for the information. What is the difference between the NV6480EXP and a hybrid card? They seem to be close to the same price. Ya the cameras are cheap, what would you suggest for a decent IP camera for between $100-$150. Pan tilt zoom is not really needed. Unfortunately running wires is not possible for a myriad of reasons I've got to figure out a way to do this wirelessly, even if it's more expensive. I don't really have a picture of the location, but I uploaded an artistically masterful representation of the location. Keep in mind that all of the buildings have tin roofs. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

I'm setting up a (hopefully) low cost system that will include about 7 wired cameras and 9 ip cameras. I'm thinking about using a NV6480EXP for the dvr card. My questions are How many ip cameras can I run at once? The router I will be using (probably a Buffalo Technology WZR-HP-G300NH) will be flashed to DD-WRT and it says it supports 300 Mbps in wireless bandwidth, but I'm concerned that I may not be able to run 9 cameras at a good frame rate and resolution without running out of bandwidth. Will the software that comes with the DVR card support that many ip cameras? It has plugins for 16 wired cameras, but I have no idea how that relates to ip cameras. I plan on using low cost ip cameras specifically the Loftek sentinel pan tilt zoom cameras. I know it's cheap ($160 or so) but it's in my price range, and it's fairly well rated on amazon. Does anyone know if that camera will work with the software that comes with the NV6480EXP? Also does anyone have a suggestion for a better ip camera (I don't really have to have PTZ) that is in the $100-$150 price range? Lastly I'm concerned about the distance from the router to some of the outlying IP cameras. DD-WRT supports using another router to extend the range of wireless networks, and there is a hop off point that I could put a router in and have it be out of the weather. The furthermost camera is about 250 ft away, but the building it will be in has a tin roof, and poor line of sight. Thanks in advance for your help