bantham1 0 Posted December 1, 2009 Are the cheap IR's such as the 48 led models worth it? I am going to upgrade to 484s Panasonic cameras and I may need IRs on a couple of them. I am planning on running a 1x2 power splitter from the siamese cable to power the IR, so I do not want to overpower the wire and the power supply (1amp per channel). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rory 0 Posted December 1, 2009 they will probably be similar to the IR you would find on the IR bullets .. power wise that is .. dont expect too much but should cover you for at least 50-60' depending on the unit. Unless they specify a different beam expect a spot like 30 degrees, either way if the lens is around 70 degrees +- you would need a couple for full coverage. If you are looking to flood the area with IR, then ofcourse you would want something more powerful anyway. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bantham1 0 Posted December 1, 2009 50-60 feet is all I need. I just do not want to over power the system. What is the maximum Amps I can run on 18/2 siamese? I could prob get away with running a cheap IR without another cable, but if I upgraded the power supply I am assuming I could run the max the cable could take. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rory 0 Posted December 1, 2009 total amps would depend on distance .. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bantham1 0 Posted December 1, 2009 100 feet of cable Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zmxtech 0 Posted December 1, 2009 cheap IR give cheap results dude ...... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bantham1 0 Posted December 1, 2009 I would rather have a 600 dollar IR with a dedicated power supply, but my budget will not allow this. I can say from experience light is light. Sure, power to the leds, size of leads, and beam pattern do make a difference. I have many cheap Chinese flashlights that will shine just as bright as one of my surefire lights which can be 10 times more in cost. Are they as nice, no.....but they do get the job done. Cameras and optics are a different animal. I am trying to illuminate 50-60 feet not a whole football field. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zmxtech 0 Posted December 1, 2009 actually I have noticed the cheap IR units cheat by being at least ~100nm off freq @ ~750nm not ~850 so they appear to work better, the down side is they can be seen quite easily. [can be a good thing tho] The other problem is MTBF the cheapies just don't last. but.....you can get lucky. Oh and they generate lots of heat compard to a RAYMAX\litestorm so this attracts tons more bug life -just being picky... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
