Have a few questions

[Firefighter 0]

So Maybe I posted in the wrong forum. But I'll post it here since it's directly related to nvr software on a computer or a nvr standalone unit...

 

Alright so I have a few questions and please bare with me as I figure out and learn exactly what it is that I need.

 

Should have listened to you guys 6 months ago but oh well, I am now. lol

I had another thread but that was for the analog system and is old etc...

 

So, I have a few different options here.

I want Live view, and motion recording so it won't be recording 24/7....

 

I have a solid custom tower I built but it was meant for my Photography/Video editing. Not to use as an nvr.

It's a Windows 7 64bit I7 intel comp with plenty of graphics ( 1GB radeon 8500 card ) and a 1tb hd and a 2tb hd and I have room for 3 or 4 more hard drives.

 

Anyway, I COULD use this as an nvr I suppose. I just don't know if It's something I want to do.

 

My other option is to purchase a dahaua nvr.

 

I plan to have probably a total of 12 cameras down the road.... so a 16ch system if I bought a nvr.

I'm ok with recording at 7.5 fps (that's what I'm use to) Though I would prefer 15fps....

 

Cameras: I want 1.3MP, 2MP and even some 3MP cameras. The 1.3 with be for close door front shots.

Even 2mp could be used here.

 

I want 3mp for wider area coverage. ie. Front yard, Driveway, Side yard, Back yard etc....

 

From my understanding, a Dahauanvr won't take full advantage of a 2MP IP cam correct? Much less a 3MP or 5MP....

 

If this is true, Then My only option really is to have a dedicated pc with software.... correct?

 

Of course I have a lot of research to do with wich cameras I want to go with.

 

But, I really liked the Reviews, Specs and price of the

 

Dahua IPC-HFW3300C 3MP

http://www.dahuasecurity.com/products/ipc-hfw3300c--15.html

Only issue is 3.3 lens and 0.2 lux, was really hoping for a slightly better lux

 

IPC-HFW3200C 2MP

http://www.dahuasecurity.com/products/ipc-hfw3200c--6.html

 

right off the bat those are my top choices. I just can't spend any more on a single camera....

so the 3MP at about $350 is my top dollar I can spend on a single camera....

 

I'd only have a couple cameras and would Slowly add over time....

 

I figure 1.3mp would be fine for mounting inside.

I also want to get a really low lux for the basement....

 

So, The issues to figure out is,

PC or nvr?

Cameras?

 

Heres some photos of my home and property. It's about 30ft from the front door to the road. Entire property is about an acre.

 

 

 

What are my other options as far as cameras, I'm not worried about size. I could care less.... The commercial enclosure and box camera didn't stick out so anything goes.

 

I plan on selling this home next year so It doesnt have to be custom to this home....

[breezin 0]

I'm in the same boat as you in regards to the NVR or PC choice.

 

If you are ok with 7.5 frames per second then my understanding is the 16 channel NVR should be able to handle that for 16 x 2MP cameras. The NVR should fully support the 2MP at 1920×1080 for the max of 120 FPS at that resolution. You will not be able to take advantage of anything above 2MP on the Dahua NVR. I have my eye on the Dahua IPC-HFW3300C 3MP as well since it is only $15 more over its 2MP brother.

 

I personally would prefer a setup and forget it system... which would make me lean towards the Dahua NVR. Just not sure I can live with the limits. I'm still on the fence.

[Firefighter 0]

Yeah I don't know either. Im not okay with 7.5 fps for recording. I would really

like to see 15fps. Since itll be recording on motion i think i have a better chance at this

Still No one has Chimed in on if its worth the extra mp or even a 5

[Razer_SE 0]

I say go for a PC, it gives you options to change your software and such and is much more capable and flexible overall. I have used both, all of our standalone NVR/DVRs are being switched out to go to a totally PC solution.

 

Some software solutions need a powerful PC, some do not. I use Exacq for example and it uses very little PC power, I have it running 8 camera systems on a few year old Pentium Dual core machine with 2gb ram and it uses only about 10% cpu normally. Even displaying all cameras and messing with it it usually is only about 40% on that old hardware. Not saying Exacq is right for you, just giving you an example of super low CPU usage. You could buy a $400 i3 machine and add a 3tb HD for $130 and be all set in computer when using Exacq for example. Much better than a standalone at that price to me anyway. Other software may be cheaper, but if I then spend $800-$1000 more on the CPU, is it really a better deal?

 

Camera wise it depends. Higher MP cameras are awesome during the day, then not so good at night usually. As in amazingly bad in some cases. If you have great lighting then no issues. If not, then 1-2mp cameras would be best depending on the cameras. I use 1 and 2mp cameras from ACTi usually and they work great, and the price is good too. I just purchased 20 of the new e31 cameras and will see how these new ones work soon. I also use the hemispheric cameras and the 5611 box camera. Hemispheric camera would be an amazing porch camera imo, in my case I'm using one to get an overall view of a whole office, it replaced 3 analog cameras! Be neat to get that huge overall view of the front of a house for example.

 

There are tons of options, it will take some work to figure out what works best for you!

[Kawboy12R 0]

I'm looking at NVR vs PC vs hybrid NVR vs hybrid PC at the moment. It is beginning to look like it might be cheaper to forget hybrid and my existing analog cams and get the flexibility of a PC IP system. If it isn't actually cheaper, depending on what cams a fellow wants to mix and match with, then it's not much more expensive for a big increase in image quality where the cheap IP cams replace analog ones. Well, as long as you have decent light and/or don't require outboard-only infrared for the cameras.

 

For a small homeowner installation we can mix and match cams and brands and not worry so much about whether the software supports the in-camera motion detection of everything out there. Just throw CPU cycles at the video streams from the software end and don't worry about it. Put a few good IP cams in the areas that need it most and put some cheap ones where pixel count and image quality isn't as important.

 

The problem is that I'd greatly prefer having an NVR by my front door but I can't find one reasonably priced that'll run the cams I want with motion detection. It's looking like either a PC in my front closet or a wireless mouse and VGA balun system so I can locate the PC elsewhere and still view my cams on a monitor at a convenient central location. That's probably a better solution security-wise because there's always the possibility that someone will break into the house. A hidden security system is better than one by the front door that they can easily steal as well. Around my home most of the problem is with prowlers looking for open cars/sheds/etc though.