survtech

Yes; rare to see high voltage motor drives now. I did work with a few back in the day (120VAC) but those were domes. They required an electrician to connect a dedicated AC line to the receiver/driver board inside the back box; which used an RS232 control signal. A high voltage pan/tilt requires a separate receiver/driver and dedicated wiring from it to the motor. Typically that would be 5-6 wires for the motors plus separate video and camera power. In the U.S., the high and low voltage wiring has to be in separate conduits.

WOW! A 240VAC pan/tilt. Not something I would want to work with while powered up.

I'm not familiar with Everfocus DVRs but whether you need to homerun multiple PTZs depends on your controller. You can daisy-chain PTZs if the controller has the ability to handle multiple addresses per port. If it does, you would set one PTZ to address "1"; the second to address "2" and so on; then set up the address perimeters in the DVR or controller. When you daisy-chain multiple RS422/485 devices, it is recommended to turn termination "off" on all but the last device in the chain but we typically daisy-chain up to three PTZs and leave them all terminated with no problems. The resulting load on the transmitter (DVR or joystick) would be: 1 device - 100 ohms 2 devices - 50 ohms 3 devices - 33 ohms. I was talking to the owner of Sennetech (a code converter manufacturer) and he relayed how one property he visited had something like 100 PTZs connected to a single port (all terminated) and the system still worked. That would be an impedance of 1 ohm (100/100) at the transmitter.

What do you mean by "security setting"? We use KVMs to switch our rack-mounted monitor between our 35 servers. There are a number of them that use CAT5 cable to interconnect; allowing longer runs of cable. Check out the Belkin OmniView line. Other manufacturers include Dell, Lantronix and StarTech. Do a web search for "IP KVM" or "KVM over IP". They're not cheap, though. By the way, why wouid you need a KVM to control one PC from one location? All you need would be either remote access enabled if both are connected to the network or extender(s) to directly connect the keyboard, mouse and monitor the 120 feet.

It looks like too much AGC. On a lark, if the camera has adjustable or defeatable AGC, turn it down/off. That may help when the lighting is high, but could cause a dim picture when the light is lower.

The cameras are 24VDC? That's extremely rare. You might want to double-check that. Typical camera power is either 12VDC or 24VAC.

You're both very welcome. For West Coasters (and others?) who need CCTV equipment, including PTZs, repaired but don't want to send them to the OEM, you may also want to check out Moore's Electronics (http://www.mooreselectronics.com/). We used them to repair Pelco Spectra domes after getting disgusted with Pelco factory service and before we started repairing our own in-house. They're in Tiburon, CA (near San Francisco).

I didn't know Bach used h.264. I thought he composed using keyboards (piano, harpsichord & organ) and violin.

Spectra III and IV dome drives and back boxes can basically be interchanged freely. That is unless you want to take advantage of some of the more unusual features of the Spectra IV SE series back boxes: Spectra IV:"Spectra IV SE back box options include the following models: environmental in-ceiling (ideal for outdoor soffits), indoor in-ceiling, indoor surface mount, and standard and environmental pendant. The Spectra IV SE Series can also be ordered with heavy-duty, pressurized, and stainless steel back box options (refer to the appropriate product specification sheets for more information). Each back box model features built-in back box memory to store camera and location-specific dome settings, including labels, presets, patterns, and zones. A passive UTP circuit is located on the door assembly for convenient video transmission through twisted pair wire. For added flexibility, Pelco fiber modules can also be attached to the door assembly for transmission over single-mode or multimode fiber." Spectra III:"Spectra III Series back box options include an environmental inceiling model that is ideal for outdoor soffits, an indoor surface mount, indoor in-ceiling model and pendant styles for standard and environmental installations. All environmental in-ceiling models meet IP66 and NEMA Type 4X standards." Note the addition of memory, UTP capability and optional fiber modules in the Spectra IV back box.

" title="Applause" />

You guys are pikers! Panasonic 150-Inch Plasma TV

Try Time Lapse Supply. They sell OEM and replacement bubbles for a number of PTZ and fixed domes. http://www.tlselectronics.com/dcparts_domebubble.shtml

About the only Preventive Maintenance you can do is replace the cooling fans every few years. As far as repairs go, we do all of ours in-house, using parts from TLS and (occasionally) Pelco. The most common failures are the Power Supply kits. Here are the parts we buy most often: Power Supply Kit - DD53KIT Camera Heads - varies, depending on original model Firmware - (with camera head) Camera Bracket - 7064013COMP Tilt Leg - MF00-5561-100A Slip Ring - PA05-0039-00A0 We often buy the 'B' stock parts to save money. Mostly they have worked well and TLS makes good on the ones that don't.

Fading fast here!

We couldn't pass up the deal Pelco offered. We originally bought the 24 TW3004P 4-channel active receivers in RK5000 chassis. What garbage! We had continuous issues with power losses, burned contacts and video messing up so Pelco (to their credit) replaced them with three CM9700UTP32AUS 32-channel active receivers.

No, that's the power supply PCB in the dome drive. The kit includes the base plate, fan, heat sink/ducting and PCB. Part Number: DD53KIT Description: Power Supply Kit, Pelco Spectra III

One time, I told one of their salesman he was "a glorified shoe salesman".

Ground loop isolation is a good thing but luckily, ground loops have not been an issue with us. Every input in our system is isolated due to our use of Pelco CM9760-MDA's for every analog input. We didn't originally buy the MDA's for that purpose; it was to put synchronized time and date and camera numbers on our VCRs. It was only later that I realized that the isolated and buffered inputs prevented ground loops - even on very long runs of cable. That said, I would assume that NVT makes excellent, if expensive, hubs; both active and passive. We are using Pelco CM9700UTP 32-channel active receivers for our long UTP runs (over 1000'). They work quite well and require no per-channel adjustments for differing cable lengths but are sensitive to RFI from our two-way radio repeaters. Which brings up another issue with me: I used to love Pelco - good products and excellent support. No longer! Ever since Schneider bought them, they have been going downhill. They still make certain items that are among the best but they will be losing much of our business.

Most likely. Another possibility is that they are dead. Spectra III's had issues with the power supply boards. We have replaced a bunch in our Spectra III's. The boards were later redesigned to give better cooling to the parts.

None taken. Soundy's and my points about the nearly immeasurable differences between passive baluns is one aspect. Regarding the potential longevity of baluns, they are extremely simple devices that consist of a transformer, circuit board, connector(s) and maybe a ceramic capacitor or two. Except for mechanical problems or possible poor assembly, there is nothing in them that has any lifespan limitations (ie. active circuitry, electrolytic capacitors, etc.). NVT and Nitek both tend to use scare tactics similar to Monster Cable. My favorite discussion with a Best Buy employee illustrates this. He said, "If you use cheap HDMI cables to hook up your expensive 3D TV, you can destroy it." BS! Cables are cables; especially digital. They either work or they don't. They're not going to damage the equipment. One year I attended a UTP "class" at ISC West that was put on by NVT. What a load of self-serving crap! They used basically the same kinds of arguments to try to discourage us from purchasing other brands of baluns. At the time, the price difference was huge: $200+ for NVT's vs. maybe $25-30 for other brands. By the way, we usually use either GVI or VBU (Video Baluns Unlimited) baluns. They're both well made, relatively inexpensive and have IDC connectors for the UTP. The advantage versus, say, Vigitron is that no tools are required - no stripping; no screws to tighten, etc. The only issue is that they are not easy to fit in dense BNC connector boards like our Pelco MDAs or patch panels.

Sort of. Spectra III and Spectra IV back boxes and dome drives can be interchanged. Not so with the Spectra II and the other two. Pelco located the electronics cooling fan in the back box in the Spectra II's but moved it to the dome drive in the Spectra III and IV series. If you put a Spectra II dome drive in a III or IV back box, you wind up with two fans but they are not positioned so that they "mate up" so the electronics will get insufficient cooling. If you put a Spectra II dome drive in a III or IV back box, you wind up with no cooling fan for the electronics. Pelco added a ridge to the Spectra III and IV back box connectors that prevents the Spectra II dome drive from latching properly inside the back box without using excessive force to push it in. BY the way, Sean, I got your email. I'll get back to you as soon as we have a bit of free time to get the inventory together, counted and inventoried.

Sorry, but I think NVT and Nitek are hugely overpriced. I did a comparison a few year ago (it's somewhere on this board) and there was less than 1/2 db difference between brands of baluns, including a pair of NVTs. Tests were done at approximately 1,000' and 1,500'. Nitek and NVT tend to be the Monster Cable of baluns.

All Pelco back boxes have active circuitry so it might not be wise to attempt to wire to a connector alone. Besides, how would you hang the dome drive? It locks into the back box with side tabs. The in-ceiling (cheapest) back box is a BB4-F. Here's a complete list: BB4-SMB Surface mount, black BB4-SMW Surface mount, white BB4-F In-ceiling, black BB4-F-E In-ceiling, black, environmental BB4-PB Pendant mount, black, standard BB4-PG Pendant mount, gray, standard BB4-PG-E Pendant mount, gray You can get the flip-down door with the PC board that normally mounts in the back box. Time Lapse Supply (http://www.tlselectronics.com/pelcospectraiii.html) lists both Spectra III and Spectra IV door assemblies: Part Number: BB4DOORASSY Description: Pelco Spectra III and IV Complete Backbox Door Assy Part Number: BB53DOORASSY-B Description: Pelco Spectra III Complete Backbox Door Assy B-Stock Anyway, here's the connector, if you're so inclined (although I think this is the female that goes in the dome drive; not the male that mates with it): Part Number: CN12-3311-1022 Crosses to Part # SP22PCONN Description: 22 Position Connector for Pelco Spectra II, III, and IV Price: $18.40

Two words: Crazy Glue!

Or 14/2 or 12/2, depending on the distance. I agree - NEVER run 120VAC and low voltage cabling in the same conduit. Besides violating electrical codes, you're setting yourself up for a multitude of potential problems, including interference, grounding issues and the potential for electrocution!