MrMxyzptlk

We had a Speco NVR where the customer changed the Admin password and forgot what she used. WE had to return the NVR to Speco. Unfortunately you bought it used and they probably won't honor the warranty.

We use Speco hardware and like it a lot. I've got a customer who is running their VMS Secure Guard for his six IP cameras recording them to a slave drive on his office computer and it's doing very good for him. Setting it up was easy and the software is free.

On a dark and stormy night... Ok, it wasn't stormy and it wasn't at night. But a Halloween story needs a good spooky opening. I installed a Speco NVR, their NXL series which is supposed to be real smart. We set it up as the tech support people advised and shortly after it started booting cameras. We had six IP cameras hooked up through the network. I know the NXL has a POE but the conditions didn't allow for getting all the lines to the NVR. Those six cameras were four O2VLD6, one O2LPR67 and one O2P12X PTZ camera. We had them set for around 2,400 Kbps for the main feed and 1,200 Kbps for the secondary feed using VBR. The total Kbps should be around 21,600 total. The NVR can run a max of 80 Mbps over all eight channels. The roughly 22 Mbps total of the six cameras should be fine. Since they are all 2 Mp cameras running at a moderate quality they shouldn't ever come near the 80 Mbps limit. However we have at various times lost from 1 camera to 5 cameras. One single O2VLD6 sucking upwards of 80 Mbps is literally insane. So we returned the NVR. Speco ran it through the paces and couldn't find anything wrong. So they sent us a brand new one. We set it up again and low and behold the new one did the same thing as the old one. Has anyone had this problem and if so how did they fix it? So, I'm thinking ghost. It's the only answer I have left. Tech support is baffled. I've called in a networking specialist to check the system out to see if the cable company or we have something set wrong but if that fails I'm wondering if anyone has the number for Ghost Busters... Not the new crew but the original guys. Oh, and what the heck is the "Remote Channel" setting all about? I can't find anything on what that is all about.

I don't think you will regret this decision. We've used Speco for a while now we find them to be the best we've ever worked with for the price. We carry TruViusion as well for customers who simply wont spend good money and we've found the TruVision are the same as Swann for compatibility with other systems. TruVisiuon cameras shut down my Speco DVRs they are so incompatible. Keep an eye on your resolutions, Speco is right there with the latest stuff so often a newer camera will be too high a resolution to work with last years DVRs and NVRs. We ran into that with their 4MP IP cameras and what we thoght was the newest NVR. We actually needed one our supplier hadn't stocked yet so now we are working to fix the problem. Their 4MP camreas wont record on a 1080p NVR without downgrading their resolution. Sucks but is real.

You have my sympathy and I'm afraid little else as we work with Speco and Truvision depending on how serious the customer is. We put together a huge system with 4MP cameras on the outside and 2MP on the inside. Our sales rep didn't bother to mention that the 4MP IP cameras wouldn't be worth a **** on the NVR that only supported 1080P... I wanted to find the rep and smack him with one of the NVRs. We had to set the resolution on the cameras to 2MP to make them work and now are having to get a new 16 channel NVR that can handle recording 4K resolutions. I made up a little card to help line up camera resolutions to recording formats and perhaps this will help you in future endevours. I will try to put it up here, we shall see what it looks like... Monitor Resolutions Camera Resolutions Standard Aspect Width (px) Height (px) Standard Width (px) Height (px) Total (px) SVGA 4:3 800 600 D1 704 480 337,920 WXGA/HD TV 16:9 1280 720 1MP/720P 1280 720 921,600 SXGA 5:4 1280 1024 1.3MP/960P 1280 1024 1,310,720 Full HD 16:9 1920 1080 2MP/1080P 1920 1080 2,073,600 WUXGA 16:10 1920 1200 2.3MP 1920 1200 2,304,000 WQHD 16:9 2560 1440 3MP 2048 1536 3,145,728 4K UHD 16:9 3840 2160 4MP 2240 1680 3,763,200 4K UHD 16:9 3840 2160 5MP 2592 1944 5,038,848 4K UHD 16:9 3840 2160 6MP 3032 2008 6,088,256 8K UHD 16:9 7680 4320 8MP 3264 2448 7,990,272

Back in the day we used to run a piece of phone line up into the phone company box with the ends linked up and then into the alarm panel on one of the zones so if they cut the wire bundle coming out of the phone box the alarm system would trigger with an audible siren. If you don't have an alarm system one could use the same wire idea but connect to a relay rigged to a power supply so when the line is cut the relay loses power and the siren with power supply is connected to the normally closed and common terminals goes off. End result, bad guys cut wire, 200 dB siren goes off and bad guys need new undies.

So, the other day I put in a nine camera system for a customer and while trying to get the system online the router went crazy. It was an old router and cratered for some reason or other so I replaced the router with a stock one I carry. When I looked at their "switch" under the counter that POS and Credit Card Machine was hooked to I found out it was a wireless router that had been lobotomized (DDNS turned off, etc.. to make it into a defacto switch). It too was not playing well with others so I grabbed an old switch I had laying around that was from a previous project that didn't happen and I set it up. After powering everything down and then bringing it back up in sequence (modem, router, switch, device) and doing the required port forwarding and setting changes their mysterious internet problems went away and they were pulling 50K downloads. I was the hero, accolades and flowers rained upon my head, etcetera. All this got me thinking. Since routers and switches aren't that costly to begin with would it make sense to plan on replacing such hardware on any installation where the hardware is old or simply not the tech you prefer to work with? If that were a good idea, what brand of hardware would be best? I've dealt with many different kinds of tech over the years and some was better than others. So what would you use in such a situation? Best Wireless Router and why. Best Wired Only Router and why. Best Switch and why. Also optimal number of ports for each. Discuss. Gracias

Sounds like you need some basic POE information. Now this is what I've gathered from my studies. POE is some weird DC voltage sent over four of the eight lines of a CAT5 cable. The voltage can be anywhere from 37 to 57 vdc with currents up to 350mA. Its the wattage that matters. The POE device detects the presence of power and decides if it is right and if so allows the device to use the power. If it doesn't like the power coming in it wont use it at all and it will look for an alternate source. Just because a device has a 12vdc or 24vac or 19.53 vdc/vac port for alternate power doesn't mean the POE injection needs to be the same voltage type. I've seen POE injectors using all manners of input powers to meet the criteria for POE. You need to determine if the device is 802.3af or 802.3at compatible, there is some cross platform compatibility but best to match them up. I hope this helps.

http://www.raysharp.cn/en/questiondetail-63.html Here's a start. Looks to be another wonderful product brought to you by Chinese slave labor. The manual is likely translated from Chinese to Russian and then to English by a guy who learned the language from old Batman reruns. Enjoy.

Cameras are not about preventing crime. Trying to use them as such is a waste of the product. Cameras are more about prosecution and legal protection. If you pull a gun on some guy who is causing trouble on your property its your word against his. Unless it all got caught on camera. Then you have a witness that can prove the other guy was causing trouble. Same thing with pets. If your dog bites some kid the parents can claim the child was not in your yard. Catch the event on camera where the kid is clearly in your yard and adios lawsuit. If bad guys do bad things on your property and you get a face, build or other useful information the police have an easier job of solving the case. Our cameras on the exterior of the business have been very helpful for our neighbors and the police. They are in every other month getting footage of some sort because of a bar fight next door or similar things. Want to prevent crime, sell the dog and get a gun. A pound of burger and the mutt is my best friend. You cant bribe a gun. Have a dog? Get a camera to avoid the inevitable lawsuits. The old boss's dog bit a guy on the nuts here at the shop. That's why he's the old boss. Needed to sell to pay off what insurance didn't cover. Of course cameras wouldn't have helped, the dog was guilty as all get out.

When I took my first electronics class the teacher told us "electrons are like college freshmen, they seek the easiest path." They can be lazy little buggers so like many have said power supply is likely the issue. I run a minimum 4 amp supply for any camera system that has IR LEDs involved. They aren't much more than a 1 amp supply. However if you are running off a plug in transformer then the 1500 mA they say is likely a lie and at best you are getting an amp which isn't enough for most 4 cam IR LED systems. The specs on the cams say roughly a third of an amp when fully lit. Four cams makes that around 1.2 to 1.3 amps. Pushing the limits of a plug in transformer. Step 1, real power supply. I like Securitron but I'm an old school Access Control guy and they are my favorite. Step 2, make sure the power wire is 18 gauge. You can get by with lighter stuff for non IR and non heated cams but for quarter to half amp draw cams it gets a bit shaky at the end of longer runs. If the guy put in a plug in transformer he may have used CAT5 or some such nonsense and 22 gauge just isn't going to work for that draw.

Well, to save on wiring nightmares I'd go with an 8 channel DVR at the hotel and two four channel DVRs in each of the offices. I'd make sure they are all capable of being accessed remotely via internet and then run a CAT6 from each building to the main office. Run those into a router and dedicate an inexpensive computer to the system. Run the 8 channel DVR to a regular monitor in the hotel office so the 8 can be watched locally. Run whatever software you need to have the three DVRs accessed simultaneously on the computer. You will use no internet as the system will be 100% local. You may have more money wrapped into the three DVRs but the fact that you wont need to run 8 separate RG59 cables from the hotel to the office and one back for video output will make up for it. Enjoy.

Welcome to the club. I did my first IP camera system earlier this year. Quite the learning curve I must say. Things I learned. There are IP cameras and POE IP cameras. IP cameras need a separate power supply while POE (Power Over Ethernet) don't as long as your router or switch delivers POE or you use an "injector". Both types require the CAT5/CAT6 cables follow the proper pattern for the wires. If you make your own cables follow the pattern as if your life depended on it. Make sure the cameras you order are able to talk to any system and not limited to only the manufacturers NVR. Those are the three lessons I learned. Good luck.

I am in agreement with the majority here. Capping CAT5 or CAT6 is far better in the long run that buying specific length patch cables. Just another tool to drop in the toolbox. When you get used to it you can fly through and the time saved pulling through smaller holes and not worrying about buggering heads will be worth it in the long run. Just make sure to get the pattern right, it's important. Very important.

We've been using Speco for a few systems lately. We were using Everfocus but their hardware isn't playing well with Windows 7 and 8 so we've moved away from them. I like the Speco 12X analog PTZ so far, reasonable price for decent zoom and speed. The ZipKit irritated me a bit as it was the first IP POE system I did. Didn't know the pattern for the CAT5 ends was so important. It is. Look it up and follow it religiously. Short runs are ok but over 50 ft and the camera wont work unless the ends are done right. The Zip Kit cameras are a fish eye lens so they see a wide arc but the quality is moderate and the images all have an odd curved quality. Also they don't have heaters on board so as outside cameras they are questionable. The NVR is not bad. Fairly user friendly. The instructions are not intuitive and Tech Support isn't great on the phone. However they respond to emails within 24 hours M-F. I wouldn't use the IP POE stuff unless you have a customer who has a backbone of CAT5 already running through the property. Otherwise you will have to run cable anyhow so why not run Siamese RG59 18/2 and save big bucks sticking to analog. They have some real nice analog cams we put in a liquor store and the customer is happy as can be with the quality. Speco also is fairly serious about supporting their vendors. Visit their site and make sure your vendor is on their approved list or else you will not get any warranty on the products. Have fun. Scott

I'm of two minds on this one. Yes giving the customer access can be good. However I have one customer who screws around too much and messes up passwords and the like. So she needs minimal access to her system.

This has been part of my process with system design for the last several years. It has become part of mine. After a fiscal debacle with a customer who was unplugging her system every time we left to keep hackers out we have included a sentence about troubleshooting the existing system to get our gear to work with it costs extra to make it clear where the quote ends and extra labor begins. Since this last job where I had to use the clause and wound up replacing hardware I am thinking about hardware replacement and just geeking the whole system up from square one. I shall look into them and keep a price sheet handy, Linksys and Netgear are both ones I have had luck with in the past as well. As for customer service nightmares Corby cant be beat. I've been waiting for two months for a reply to a question. I fixed the problem, billed the customer and got paid. Still no answer from Corby. Their failure rate is minimal at best, but I will say that when one of there products does break down, getting them to honor their warranty equates to about 2 weeks of ***ing and trying to get them to reply to you.

Very true. Not to mention monitors have gone down in price, we bought a rather cool 17 inch that can do Type F, BCN, HDMI, VGA, USB, KGB, IRS and FBI for $100. It's a good little beast.

I installed a Speco Zip Kit and it allowed each camera to have a different password and each one is accessable with a different ip address.

what about some kind of vga to usb device that will allow input signal through a software? Type 7 Inch Car Monitor VGA into the search engine of your choice. Under $100 and far easier than some twitchy software app and adaptor.