Comments on this brand of DVR please

[karnisar 0]

I am looking for a CCTV system for a gas station and the budget is very tight. However, since I already have an XP box for other work(P4,40G,512) I started exploring the possibilty of buying a cheap DVR card and hook up 4 cameras to it.

I think, after doing this research, that the computer I have in mind will not be adequate, and that I also need a dedicated one. Am I right?

I have also found a DVR card on sale on ebay-what are your comments on it?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=48634&item=3061181449

 

It can also be viewd at:

http://www.tailand.com.cn/eshop/te104.htm

 

While we are at it, what do you think of his cameras:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=48640&item=3062138682

[karnisar 0]

Also, I found you on deja.

[AVCONSULTING 0]

You might want to look into a more simple embedded system. It will cost about the same as the card and a dedicated computer and be more reliable than trying to build one yourself. Here is a link to one such unit that is on special.

http://www.vsscctv.com/ProductDetail.asp?ProductID=453055631

[karnisar 0]

"You might want to look into a more simple embedded system". Well, its too late for that since I already have a computer and I am hoping to put that into use.

[AVCONSULTING 0]

I'm not sure what computer you have, regarding chip type, etc. A DVR card should be used on a computer totally dedicated to recording video and not shared with other programs running. Generally a Pentium IV 1.8 GHZ or better with 256 RAM, etc needs to be used. Forget those super cheap boards on EBay since they will most likely cause you problems and there will be no factory support. The most popular DVR card around is GeoVision and it isn't particularly expensive, it is very reliable, and there are several web based suppliers. Plus on this site there are some excellent GeoVision users who can help you with any problems you may run across. Here are a couple of GeoVision sites to check out.

http://www.dvrcards.com/economy_dvr_cards.htm

http://www.wisemicro.com/card.htm

[larry 2]

karnisar welcome to the forum.

 

One question I have about those products is support. What happens when one goes bad. Yeah they are priced right but who do you send it to to get repaired.

 

Also are the camera going indoors or outdoors?

 

Another thing. The computer you have will be used for other things as well. Is the software from that card going to cause problems to your other programs or will other programs cause problems for the capture software. Normally computers used for surveillance systems are used only for survelliance systems.

 

If you are willing to take the risk then go for it and please report back and let me know how it goes. I am always looking for inexpensive components.

[cctv_down_under 0]

Most of the cheap DVR cards are cheap for a reason, when you buy a card you dont pay for the card, what you pay for is the software development.

 

I agree with everyone else that a PCI card inside a PC will not be stable unless it runs on its own, all the good programs for DVR use all of the available CPU cache and Ram therefore, the slightest problem and BANG....your system will crash.

 

In all honesty there are are a few rules you should look out for and they are as follows:

 

1/ Dont try to insert a card into PC unless you know what your doing and the cheaper the card the more problems you might have, capture cards are not like Video cards and compatability of the motherboard chipset can mean the difference between stabilty.

 

2/ PCI cards bought from manufactorers will get you little support, however if bought from a distributor, you will pay more but they can tell you what motherboards work and what they use.

 

3/ If you can afford it, have a system built for you!

 

4/ Standalone boxs.. are more reliable, by a long way,, however there is a lot of people selling PC Based systems that have no idea how to build them, therefore PC based systems are not as unreliable as people think.

 

5/ Standalone box's have much less features and in short, if you are going to want Text, Phone Video, remote connection, voice, Two way phone, Paging etc then you should choose a PC Based option. Geovision is the best of these that I have seen. However if you arent fussed on options and dont care that it is harder to upgrade then you can rely on the stabilty of a standalone box and let it do its job, knowing that no one will play with it!

 

5/ If the seller wont provide you with a remote software demo, then the software is probably garbage.

 

6/ lastly but most important! Cameras.... simple rule of thumb is:

 

Chinese, Taiwanese, Korean, US, Japanese... this is the order of price and very much the order or quality!

 

Security is the one thing you should never skimp on price with but you can only buy what you can afford.

 

If you email me your email addy digitalsecurity@westnet.com.au I will email you back info on some demos that may help you choose the right product.

[mdemmons 0]

Sorry I'm not familiar with that brand of card. My advice would be to ask the company very specifcally what incompatibilities there are with certain chipsets, video cards, etc..

 

For example of some common areas of incompatibilities, go to our website at: http://www.cctvsentry.com/h_series.htm. Look under system requirements near the bottom of the page and there is a link called "compatibility specifications" that lists the compatibilities/incompatibilities of our H Series cards.

 

Don't believe a company that says that a card is compatible with any system.

 

Hope this helps!

[cctv_down_under 0]

You have some very usefull information on that site... Once again... unless you know someone who has tested a cheap card I would stear clear of them.

[qman 0]

STAY AWAY!!!!!!!!

 

I tried one of those cards, and let me tell you, they use a software called "pico 2000", the most unstable software that I have ever used, go for the ALNET system..