Need PC solution for 32 high quality analog cameras. PCI-e?

[speed_demon 0]

Currently I have two P4 computers running 16 analog coax cameras each on standard PCI cards. The problem is the quality is very low. I assume the standard PCI DVR cards are the problem. When all but one camera is disabled frame rate increases but quality remains poor. I know the cameras are good partly because they were expensive but also because when hooked directly to a monitor quality is very good.

 

1. What cards are available in PCI-e x4 or better?

 

2. What kind of quality gain can I expect over standard PCI? Is it just too much to ask for decent quality when using 16 cameras per card?

 

3. Can two cards be used in one server with multiple PCI-e buses? Is there software that can support 32 cameras?

 

Any info or other solution ideas are greatly appreciated!

[Soundy 1]

PCI vs. PCI-e doesn't have a direct effect on your image quality... PCI-e provides higher bus speeds and MAY (depending on other factors) allow higher framerates at higher resolutions without impacting system performance as much, but the "quality" is still a function of the capture device, the framerate, the resolution, and the compression used.

 

It's possible that if your machines are under-powered, you can't get the resolution and compression levels you need for the quality you want, but I don't think going to PCI-e cards will solve that.

 

I recently installed a Vigil "Pro-Series" system that can do up to 30fps on all of 32 cameras (960fps total)... I don't believe it's using a PCI-e capture device. See http://www.3xlogic.com/H.264-Hybrid-DVR-Analog-IP-Megapixel-Camera-Video-Surveillance-Recorder