Learning the hard way.

[Eric the Poor 0]

Bought this model DVR. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/8-CH-H-264-Network-VGA-Audio-DVR-CCTV-Camera-/330574695508?pt=UK_CCTV&hash=item4cf7c98c54

 

A bit quirky but seems OK, Paid less than £80 for it.

 

Have my Panasonic BP130 B/W camera's. Setup to test it but had issues with cloud and sun.

 

As it got dark the image got very grainy, But as the sun came out the reflection from a building

opposite cause the camera to white out.

 

Had a play with the settings and enable the backlight control and ALC/ELC. Better but a bit of

a compromise. Had a good search and it seems like i needed auto iris lenses.

 

Also thought a wider view would be better, Chose a 3-8 auto iris lens to replace the fixed 8mm.

What is the difference between an F1.4 and an F1.2 lens though? This is 1.4 but they also do

a 1.2. I need to order another one so which is best?

 

Wow thats much better. Not connected to the DVR yet but i hope thats all sorted now.

 

Next comes tidy wiring. Cams are 240v so not much i can do about that. But do i run BNC

cables from each cam or go for CAT5?

 

From what i have read one cable can run 4 camera's with baluns. But how do you run 4 cams from

4 corners of the flat?

 

Is that unrealistic? Stick with 4 BNC cables or run 4 CAT5 cables?

 

Thanks

[Soundy 1]

What is the difference between an F1.4 and an F1.2 lens though? This is 1.4 but they also do

a 1.2. I need to order another one so which is best?

F/1.2 means the iris will open a little wider, allowing a little more light when it's completely open (about 1/3 more, in this case). Not a concern unless you need really low light capability, and probably not enough to worry about unless the cost is the same.

 

Cams are 240v so not much i can do about that. But do i run BNC

cables from each cam or go for CAT5?

 

From what i have read one cable can run 4 camera's with baluns. But how do you run 4 cams from

4 corners of the flat?

You'll still need one cable to each location, whether using UTP or coax. Four-over-one is useful if you have to run four feeds from one location to another.

 

Is that unrealistic? Stick with 4 BNC cables or run 4 CAT5 cables?

Mostly comes down to which is more cost-effective for you, although using Cat5 would give you the ability to upgrade to IP cameras later... or if you wanted to add a second camera at a location, you wouldn't need to run another cable for it.