videotiger

Thank you for the recommendations! I've come across Kowa, which has some potentially viable lenses. I looked at one and got sticker shock though--like in the $1800 range. This is a personal setup, not a commercial, so cost is a factor. I determined that the pan/tilt mount I have only puts out a single zoom control signal (besides the common). Yeah, there's a reason the mount was relatively inexpensive, I'm learning. I noticed that zoom controls usually have four wires (zoom motor control and a brake coil pair). Is there a standalone RS485-based Pelco-D protocol controller that has a four-wire zoom output?

Thank you for all of the information and suggestions! I've seen the Fujinon as well as Computar lenses. The max focal length/zoom is something I need to decide upon. I checked today and the image sensor is 4:3 format. This camera will replace an NTSC 600 line camera I installed on a house in Honolulu. The house is located up one of the mountain ranges and has a nice scenic view, so I would like the camera to be able to pan/tilt/zoom. Besides being able to pan it around for security at the house, I would also like to be able to use it take in the view. Things range from 1/2 mile away to about 15 miles, but most interesting things will be about, at most, five to seven miles away. I did come across a Computar lens with some incredible max focal length of like 750 mm, and a fog filter, but it cost as much as my first car!

One of the online businesses I use for cameras, 2mCCTV, carries this camera. I've bought quite a few cameras from them, and have been happy with their service so far.

I have heard this too but we have some multiplexers that require 2.5 amps 12V DC power and we when plug them in with a 12V DC 5 amp power supply, they just act real funky and the alarm beeps constantly. We sell our multiplexers without power supplies and we get about 2 or 3 reports a month of people using power supplies that have too much amperage and when they use the power supply with the correct amperage, it solves the problem. What could be causing this? Actually this scenario is possible with poorly-designed switching supplies. Some switchers need a minimum load to keep the switching regulator operating in a stable manner. But typically I'm talking about a switching power supply which can supply 20A, and we're putting under an amp of load on it. Better switchers don't have a minimum load design, and stay stable. From the spec's you give, it's possible that the power supply is either not regulated, or the "5A" rating is a surge rating, and the actual steady state capability is significantly lower.

The StarDot Express6 draws about an amp at 12 VDC. Likewise for a decent day/night camera. You also need to budget in the power for a standalone Hayes-compatible (ATx command set, serial port) modem. Too much current shouldn't be an issue; I assume your solar panels charge up a bank of storage batteries. Efficiently providing regulated voltage for the server, camera, and modem can be accomplished with the proper selection of switching regulators. If you just want one camera, you're already looking at nearly a 2 - 3A constant current draw off of your solar panels and storage batteries. That's viable, but it's a BIG solar array. However I'm sure you won't be able to steal enough energy from the phone line, which is measured in milliamps. POTS analog phone lines are current devices (works by modulating the current flow) for the voice modulation and to determine when your phone is onhook or offhook. If you draw too much current, the telco will interpret that as the phone going offhook. Good luck! I wonder if something like a wildlife camera (integral digital camera, motion detector, battery powered) could be coupled to a dial-up modem to accomplish this. Unlike the setups we've described so far, wildlife cameras are designed for ultra low standby and operational power draws.

Yes. StarDot Technology's video servers and possibly their IP cameras along with a dial-up modem should be able to do this. The servers have a serial port on them for modem connection. They also have alarm inputs so you can connect motion sensors which can trigger image capture. I have four of their Express6 servers, but I have only used them in LAN mode, and not the dial-up modem mode. I have mine set up using several of their features, including periodically taking and ftp'ing snapshots to a webpage, as well as near-real time viewing on demand. You'll have to carefully budget whether your solar-based power system can support the power requirements of this setup though.

Thank you for the comments about your experiences! This is exactly the kind of information I'm looking for. I have some additional camera installs I want to do, and the only cabling I have already in place is CAT5e.

I believe you're referring to a *balun*, which is a device which matches a balanced line (in this case, the UTP of a CAT5 cable) to an unbalanced line, in this case, the 75 ohm coaxial cable. I also found myself in a similar situation needing a video balun . However there's a real lack of comparison data out there as to who makes the best. I'm tempted to do some sampling and testing myself, but it's not a high priority and I don't have the right equipment offhand. I ended up getting a ten pack of baluns from a local security shop--who I won't purchase from there again due to their less than stellar attitude. Good luck! I think this is a subject worth discussing.

I have heard that, depending on your local laws, adding a microphone to something like a video camera may fall under applicable wiretapping laws. Cameras that record images but no sound seems to be okay, but I've read here and there that when you add sound recording capabilities, it's best to ensure that you aren't treading too far. Best to double-check. Good luck!

. How would i do that Circularly polarized filters are available from camera stores. If you choose a camera with a lense which is threaded to accept filters, you're in luck, Otherwise what I have done is kludged together a method of mounting the filter to the camera lense. I have had to use duct tape (the real stuff, plastic substrate, water/heat resistant adhesive, not fabric tape) to attach a filter to a camera. It's important to keep the area between the back of the filter and the original outermost camera lense light-tight, or you'll have light contamination from the inside of the filter as well to compound your problems because pp is needed outside Understood. It's important to keep in mind that this forum is very much worldwide, and regulations differ from country to country. In meeting and talking with colleagues worldwide, what is considered routinely acceptable in the United States is sometimes severely prohibited in others, and may subject violators to very serious consequences .

You will definitely get reflections off of the inside of the window, especially if the window catches full sunlight. I also agree that a camera with built-in IR illuminators will absolutely not work in this installation configuration at night due to the same reason. One option is to put a polarized filter on the camera and adjust it to eliminated light reflected off of the inside of the window. I've done it for an inside-the-window camera installation I did. I'm guessing that your mounting location is necessary because you have CC&R's which require approval before installing items like exterior cameras. NB: the filter will significantly cut down on the light that eventually reaches the imaging device in the camera, so night-time operation will be severely hampered. For that one application, it wasn't an issue: I was watching a house under construction and they stopped before sunset.

Where did you measure 11V, at the power supply or at the camera? Was the camera connected and in night mode when you measured the voltage? The KT&C bullets draw about an amp with the IR LED's on, so you may get significant voltage drop, depending on the length of your power cable run and the gauge of the wire. I have had a camera module (not a KT&C bullet cam) where the IR filter mechanism got stuck with the IR filter out of the optical path. So it's possible for a mechanical problem to happen too.

I just installed a ball-style vandal-resistant Veilux unit in an exterior application in Hawaii. This means that it be subjected to consistent air temperatures in the 80's -90's, high humidity, high air salt-content, and bright sunlight. It is covering a vulnerable entry door area which is pitch-black at night. This unit is the model SVV-58IRC40L2812D. It has a 550 line Sony camera in it. Physically, the camera is robustly constructed. The mount is die-cast aluminum in two pieces. The only vulnerability is that if the camera is aimed at too sharp an angle, the cables from the ball portion are vulnerable. The window is concentric two-piece, so the IR illuminators shine through a separate ring of glass than the camera lense. This is MUCH better than the single-piece windows on my KT&C N600H's I have. When those get dirty, the IR light reflects back into the lens, obscuring the view. Would I buy another one? Yes. I don't consider sample size-one a good sample size.

Check out StarDot Technologies' IP cameras. They have support for tzo.com and dyndns.com. I have three of their Express6 servers and the tzo.com support has been flawless.

A good online example would be the twin cameras at the USGS Johnston Ridge Observatory at Mt. St. Helens. They upgraded their NTSC analog camera to a StarDot megapixel IP camera but left their analog camera in place. Either do a Google search for "Mount St. Helens VolcanoCams" or go to their VolcanoCam website at: http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/volcanocams/msh/ The only catch is that you have to wait for a clear day here in the Northwest Have no fear, the weather is suppose to get clear and hot in the next few days.

I'm in need of some video baluns to transmit the unbalanced 75 ohm composite video output of cameras down some CAT5 twisted pairs. However I've found video baluns from $5 to $50, along with comments that, independent of price, range from "great" to "don't bother with these". Anyone have recommendations on which (passive) video baluns work well, and which should be avoided (poor performance)? I need to send video down about 150' of CAT5 cable. Thanks!

I'd be interested to see apples-to-apples images to compare! I've found that spec's are as useful and accurate for cameras as they are for stereo speakers--for me it comes to down to how the image looks and other aspects that specs can never capture. (Listen up camera vendors!) I believe it would be a big selling point if someone came up with a very well-controlled set of image/video tests to allow shoppers to compare camera performance. There's aspects like color accuracy, image sharpness, and, for security cameras, the ability to obtain identification traits of subjects on camera that are important. The test scenarios should vary parameters such as ambient light level, lighting direction, light sources (solar, fluorescent, sodium), and distance of object/subjects from camera. Targets in the viewing frame should include such items as sample license plates and faces, whether photos or manniquins or actual subjects. The key, though, is the tests have to be tightly controlled so the *only* thing that is changing is the camera. (off soapbox)

I purchased 15 KPCN600H's for three home security projects back in January of 2007. + 100% reliable thus far + Excellent resolution/picture quality during the day and night + Vari-focal lense and true day/night + IR illuminator range easily reaches distance within which camera is effective enough to be used for facial identification - Inside of front lense must be kept absolutely clean or you will get white spots on the viewed image at night - If it matters, the IR LED's glow a dim red in the dark Overall, compared to other cameras I had purchased at that time, it was a good price/performance compromise. I have yet to do an apples-to-apples comparison to other comparable or better cameras (it's that money-to-spend issue, you know).

As a landscaper demonstrated, a bullet camera I've installed on the side of a house needs to be replaced with a more tamper-resistant camera. As such, it needs to be a dome camera, for starters. Other must-have include: - IR illuminators since the area of interest is about 14' away, and it's unlit at night - true day/night (mechanically actuated IR cut filter) - mechanical auto-iris - outdoor-rated - Prefer 12VDC since my other existing cameras are, and I have plenty o' power supply to power it. Here's the coverage and mounting situation that has made the ability for me to find a suitable camera much harder: There's an exterior wall. On the left end of the wall is the door I want to monitor. About 14' to the right and about 8' off the ground is where the camera has to be mounted to the same vertical wall. This means that, as you face the camera as it's mounted on the wall, it's looking hard-left and down the surface of the wall, sideways to watch the door. Most if not all of the cameras I've found are designed to be screwed up into a ceiling or soffit. Their 3-axis gimbal mount is intended to allow a ceiling/soffit-mounted camera to pan and tilt. I need to also be able to spin the camera on its logitudinal axis to keep the image upright. I know I can use a bracket, but a bracket would be easier to knock off than if the camera were securely screwed into the wall. Ideas? Thanks

A friend of mine bought a "starlight technology" camera several years ago. If I recall correctly, the camera works by integrating multiple image samples together and mathematically sums the information to get an image from a low light condition. Unfortunately this can result in strange images such as streaks et al. A day/night camera works by either having a dedicated non-IR-blocking imaging camera combined with a daytime camera in the same housing, or by mechanically removing the daytime IR filter and usually switching the camera to b/w mode when the lighting conditions get too dark. Personally I have found the latter to be inferior to a dedicated b/w camera.

I haven't had a chance to own/try their megapixel cameras, but I am a very happy customer of two of their Express6 video servers. Very solid, extremely reliable performance with a lot of neat features. The software is Linux-based. Customer support is excellent--I get quick answers and a very friendly response to my questions. You can view one of StarDot's cameras which is in use by the USGS, aimed at Mt St. Helens in Washington State. The next three days should be great viewing . They have a conventional NTSC-to-capture camera as well, so you can do a side-by-side comparison.

Another manufacturer of megapixel--and more--cameras is StarDot Technology. They have up to 3Mpixel IP cameras, and a new "hybrid" camera (IP and composite output). I have several of their Express6 video servers and find them to be very very well-designed and very feature-ladened. Customer support responsiveness is top-notch too, and the servers are rock-solid stable. The big seller for me: they have several live demos available on their website so you can preview the actual products before deciding whether to purchase.

I've purchased three Matrix MB-1000DN cameras over a period of the last couple of years to use for monitoring activity outside the front of our house as well as a remote webcam located several thousands of miles from here. The MB-1000DN's are board-level cameras with mechanical auto-iris and mechanically-switched IR filters in the lense assembly. While the auto-iris function seems to be working okay, I suspect that the IR filter mechanism is malfunctioning. On all three cameras, on at least one occasion, I've seen the camera go from being in-focus to going out of focus. On all three cameras, I had originally set the focal length and focus, then cinched the settings down by tightening the thumbscrews on the lense. On all three occurrances, the camera goes from in to out of focus over an event where the camera would switch the IR filter in and out (e.g. an overnight dark period). In one case, I refocused the camera, only to have it go out of focus (again) about a week later. Clues indicate that the IR filter mechanism malfunctioning may be the culprit. I've never had any of my other cameras go out of focus like this. Has anyone else had their mechanically-switched IR filter day/night camera do this? I'm now gun-shy of getting more of these types of camera after this episode--especially since one of these MB-1000DN's was located thousands of miles away when it succumbed to this malfunction . That camera was subsequently replaced with a camera sans an IR filter mechanism.

Here's a review I posted at a vendor's site: Very nice camera for the price/performance. Mechanically well -constructed. Hood adjusts or removes altogether. Hood is held in place by the same threaded insert to which the supplied gimbal mount may be attached. There are three attachment points for the supplied gimbal mount: top, bottom, and rear of camera. The Sony SuperHAD CCD is one of the best imaging CCD's I've tried in this class of camera. Daylight resolution is excellent, but white balance and hue can be slightly off depending on lighting conditions. Color is good, but not completely accurate. Low-light (not completely dark) performance when the camera switches to black-and-white is very good. IR illuminators have a relatively narrow hotspot area of around 16' diameter at about 25' in distance from camera. But anything in the illuminated hot spot is fairly clear. IR illuminators do give off a visible red glow when active. Image is very sensitive to dust on inside of front lense of housing. Dust shows up as white dots in the IR-illuminated image and is very irritating. Recommend using a pre-moistened eyeglass wipe to clean the inside of the lense and allow to air-dry before visually checking for dust, then immediately reinstalling. I'm looking to get more, so that indicates my satisfaction with this camera.