survtech

You should not put the 75 ohm resistor across the pair of the twisted pair; it should be after the balun. Twisted-pair is 100 ohms and a 75 ohm termination will cause problems. In theory, the best place for termination is at the board's input itself. If that is not possible, use a "T" at the BNC or RCA input and place a terminator there. By the way, is the capture card set for the correct format (NTSC or PAL)? If you set it to the wrong format for the cameras you are using, the picture would come out in black and white.

No. There must be adequate separation maintained between all low voltage cables and high voltage cables. This does not apply to fiber optic cables. I assume you mean can you splice CAT-5 video cable? Yes if it is carrying analog video, no if IP. You should try to maintain the number of twists per inch. Use "beans" or other suitable connectors for the splice and try to minimize the number of splices - each one attenuates the signal. Hard to say. Maybe yes, maybe no. You would be better going to a regular CCTV or electronics distributor or retailer and buying a name brand.

For the 12VDC camera(s), ARM makes an inexpensive converter from 24VAC. The model number is 24VACTO12VDC8.

MPEG4 uses a lot less disk space per hour than M-JPEG.

Either. So is just about any twisted-pair cable; either unshielded or shielded; for runs of 1000 ft. or less. The difference is maximum distance: UTP CAT-5 or better will get you up to 4,000 ft. with RS485/422 signals. If you use shielded cable, only attach the shield to a ground at one end; usually at the "head end" (the controller). This will help prevent ground loops. Properly grounded, at one end only, it is more resistant to external interference. You can splice the grounds if you daisy chain multpile PTZ's, just don't connect them at any ptz or allow the shield to touch grounded metal. Trim the shield at the last PTZ in a chain and make certain it can't touch metal anywhere. We used 22/2 shielded for years for runs up to well beyond 1,000 ft. with excellent results. We only started using CAT-5 for data when we started using it for video a couple of years ago. It works at least as good as shielded for data and is a bit easier to use because we don't have to worry about keeping the shield insulated from ground. If your control signal is RS232 (rare these days), you do need shielded cable and the distances are severely reduced, to approximately 50 ft.

Hey scorpion, When my wife and I went to Disney World a couple of years ago, we paid nearly $300 a night for a room. Next time we go, can we stay at your place for free (we'll even buy the beers)?

This kind of reminds me of an IndigoVision "IP Conference" I attended a few months ago. It wasn't a conference at all - mostly a sales spiel for their products. It really irks me to spend my employer's money for travel, lodging and food to attend what is basically a sales presentation. Apparently these "conferences" are really popular in Europe. It must be a cultural thing . Not that I'm saying this is in the same vein; just that there would have to be a seriously good reason to attend an event; especially in today's economy!

Yes, but they can be somewhat expensive. Considering that many cameras put a reference signal in the blanking interval, you could use that as the test waveform with an oscilloscope monitoring it. The color burst signal is available on all color cameras and, at 3.58MHz, makes a reasonably good test signal, as long as you measure directly at the camera first for a reference level.

We tested a few different baluns last February, using a couple of cameras and an FM Systems CM-1 Camera Master tester. A links to the results is below: http://www.cctvforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=11664

Perhaps it is time for the customer to retire the hard-wired PTZ's.

Simulated (read fake) cameras are not recommended for businesses. For one thing they can open up the business to a lawsuit. Say a customer trips on an item and gets hurt. Seeing the camera there, the customer's lawyer asks for a copy of the video, which doesn't exist. Or the customer untruthfully claims a clerk was abusive. The store would have no proof otherwise.

I agree a central power supply is a more elegant solution. That said, if you have an install that used a bunch of individual wall warts, there are solutions: Gets Rid of Wall-Warts - Tributaries Power Strip http://www.popgadget.net/2008/03/_do_you_have_un.php Furman PlugLock Outlet Strip http://accessories.musiciansfriend.com/product/Furman-PlugLock-Outlet-Strip?sku=421950

Most likely you have power supply issues. It is very common when disconnecting cameras to short the power wires, either to each other or to a ground. That will blow fuses. It happens to us all of the time, even if we take care to separate the wires.

You might want to try a 900MHz wireless system. The lower the frequency, the less interference from objects in the way like wood walls, trees, etc. so 900MHz may work better for your application than 2.4GHz and 5.8GHz systems.

Oh, the humanity!

Video Distribution Amp Radio Shack has them for $50. So do most electronics stores. http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103065&cp=2032057.2032187.2032188.2032195&parentPage=family http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=205-572 http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=180-006

The short answer: No. The long answer: Not really. Seriously, there are only three ways to go that far: * Active-active twisted pair would have both an active transmitter and an active receiver. The limit there is approximately 4000 ft. (1200 meters). * Fibre. The limit is approximately 3000 meters without repeaters. * Wireless. The limit is approximately 5-7 miles, depending on your frequency, the antennas used, interference from other sources, terrain and obstacles.

I think you would be better off just getting a DVR with a composite video output that meets your resolution and frame rate specs and hook it up to a separate DVD burner. We have a Toshiba burner hooked up to one of our Viewstations. We play back through the Viewstation's analog output and record on the burner and the DVD will play on any DVD player.

An interesting article, John. Axis and Arecont were the big names. ACTi is another. But just wait until Bosch, Matsu****a, Sanyo, Sony and other BIG names decide to pull out all stops and really push IP.

You would need a 15mm lens on a 1/3" camera or a 11mm lens on a 1/4" camera. The easiest way to get the exact field of view you want would be to use a varifocal lens or buy a camera system that has a varifocal lens. Your best bet there would probably be a camera with a 5-50mm lens. If you need to see the cars in low light, choose a true day/night camera with an auto-iris varifocal lens.

Tell us again why you dislike Pelco. I think my reasons for not liking AD are at least as legitimate as your reasons for not liking Pelco. I have checked their prices from time to time. Are you suggesting I would want to ask you for a job?

You could run a camera and DVR off a car battery but you would have to recharge it every couple of days. The simplest system would be one designed for mobile operation. A number of manufacturers sell the 12VDC DVR's. Just add one or more 12VDC cameras, a car battery and a car battery charger for your house. You will either have to disconnect the battery from the system to charge it or have two batteries: one running the system and one charging at all times to keep the system running.

Is this you?

I didn't end the discussion because you "called my bluff". I ended it because of your incoherent statement: This from a person who works in a field that would not exist if it weren't for science. And I did not attack you for your dislike of Pelco, rather for your failure to acknowledge that they produce products that are at least the equal, if not superior to, your recommendations. Since Deluxecctv.com had already recommended the Pelco Spectra IV SD4CBW35, I saw no need to re-recommend it. But since you insist, I second the nomination. Let's take your statement below: American Dynamics is far from "best of the best". AD sells a lot of products that would be considered average in quality. In fact, they are no better than Pelco in that respect. For that, they might be considered to be a suitable brand for many applications. But on the other side of the coin, you yourself have admitted a number of times that their Technical Support is poor. That's enough to remove them from the "best of the best" list. Yes, I dislike them. That dislike comes from far more than one Tech Support idiot's statement of "did we tell you that would work" to my explanation of the problem we were having with a piece of their equipment. You can add their failure to send a tech to our location despite 3+ years of requests by SeeVid and their incompetence in trying to sell us a product (Intelleview) that was basically vaporware at the time; and they knew it. I have no real opinions on Bosch products except that they tend to be on the expensive side compared to their competition and their failure to demonstrate their products to us after many promises to do so hasn't earned my respect. Sanyo is another company that makes decent equipment but by closing the support department for their Casino DVR's, even while still selling them, they've basically spat in the faces of the many casinos who purchased their product. GE is GE. They do make some unique products and we have used some Kalatel and GBC-based products with reasonable results. I agree that Panasonic is an excellent company. I have always liked their products, both pro and consumer. They don't always perform to "state of the art", but they have always been well made and reliable.

Pelco hasn't made Spectra II's for at least 5 years. Since then, they produced the Spectra III's (also discontinued) and now the Spectra IV's. But not the Pelcos. You have made it clear that you dislike that company. But your dislike has nothing to do with the quality or capabilities of their products.