looking for a 1080p (or 720p) that can record sound

[martin68 0]

I have a budget of only £250 and I need a 4 camera cctv system that uses full HD cameras, or 720p due to budget, but with a DVR or NVR that can also record sound either as 4 channels or just one.

SWo far I have found many units (mainly on ebay) in my budget but none can record sound.

 

I don't want a 960h system, as this is still only 480p in the old analog format.

 

Any advice to what unit/system could suit my needs?

[Don Stephens 0]

I have a budget of only £250 and I need a 4 camera cctv system that uses full HD cameras, or 720p due to budget, but with a DVR or NVR that can also record sound either as 4 channels or just one.

SWo far I have found many units (mainly on ebay) in my budget but none can record sound.

 

I don't want a 960h system, as this is still only 480p in the old analog format.

 

Any advice to what unit/system could suit my needs?

 

You're limiting yourself to an IP camera system right now, unless you want to run microphones separately from the cameras. If that doesn't bother you, then AHD, HDCVI, or HDTVI can also be an option.

 

I think you're probably going to have a hard time meeting your budget with an IP camera system without ending up with substandard cameras. The HD over coax option might make life easier on your wallet (AHD, HDCVI, HDTVI). Personally, I wouldn't be considering anything in the HDSDI category, but I'm sure someone disagrees with me on that.

[nightrider 0]

unless you want to run microphones separately from the cameras. If that doesn't bother you, then AHD, HDCVI, or HDTVI can also be an option.

 

HDCVI composites video, audio, and control signals together and then transmits them over one coaxial cable.

[Don Stephens 0]

HDCVI composites video, audio, and control signals together and then transmits them over one coaxial cable.

 

HDCVI cameras with integrated microphones don't exist, nor do any any external microphones exist that can be integrated directly with an HDCVI camera. Additional cable has to be run for audio in this case, but a power splitter can be used to share power from the camera to the mic.

 

The amount of splicing, connectors, soldering, and time that it takes to make audio possible over coax is not worth it until they start producing something easier for use with HDCVI.

[martin68 0]

My current system in 14 years old and has served me well. I have 2 cameras, and one mic run by a seperate cable to the audio input of the dvr.

 

My plan is to upgrade to an HD system, where the cameras are proper HD (not like the many DVR's that claim they are HD, with an HDMI output, yet only support PAL 625 analog cameras, no matter how many lines these analog cameras claim they have, 600, 800, even 1000, they are still all only standard definition PAL 625 lines)

 

I don't mind running a seperate mic cable to the dvr, as long as the new HD DVR or FDR has an analog audio input. but so far I can only find units without audio that support 1080 or 720 cameras.

[martin68 0]

si, is AHD the same as 960H? if so, I have tried 960H cameras, and the picture is no where near as good as 720p, it still looks un-detailed and is still only 625pal or 525ntsc which is SD.

[martin68 0]

I have also seen some fdr's that have 4 wired cameras that use cat5 cable apposed to coax. are they any good and does the cat5 support audio?

[Don Stephens 0]

My current system in 14 years old and has served me well. I have 2 cameras, and one mic run by a seperate cable to the audio input of the dvr.

 

My plan is to upgrade to an HD system, where the cameras are proper HD (not like the many DVR's that claim they are HD, with an HDMI output, yet only support PAL 625 analog cameras, no matter how many lines these analog cameras claim they have, 600, 800, even 1000, they are still all only standard definition PAL 625 lines)

 

I don't mind running a seperate mic cable to the dvr, as long as the new HD DVR or FDR has an analog audio input. but so far I can only find units without audio that support 1080 or 720 cameras.

 

If you want to keep your old cameras in addition to getting new HD cameras, you're going to need a Tribrid DVR or Hybrid DVR. They exist for any and all combinations of video signal you're looking at. They are noticeably more expensive than standard DVRs or NVRs but they're nice.

[Don Stephens 0]

si, is AHD the same as 960H? if so, I have tried 960H cameras, and the picture is no where near as good as 720p, it still looks un-detailed and is still only 625pal or 525ntsc which is SD.

 

AHD and 960H are absolutely two different things, hence why they looked so obviously different to you.

 

If I'm not mistaken, AHD is only available in 720p right now, but the difference between 960H and 720p is like night and day.

[nightrider 0]

@martin68,

 

Personally I wound not buy cheap Ebay junk, unless it is second hand reputable brand or I've seen some reviews I can trust, or you're willing to throw some money away. Otherwise, there is almost certain possibility that you would end up with some low grade devices, backed up by some Chinglish manual. But hey, don't take my word for granted, everyone needs to bump their head in order to learn.

 

@Stephens,

 

It seems that only 2-3 models of the Dahua IP cameras are with built-in Mic/Speaker and few with available ports. Most of the HDCVI PTZ models seems to have input audio channel.

[Don Stephens 0]

I have also seen some fdr's that have 4 wired cameras that use cat5 cable apposed to coax. are they any good and does the cat5 support audio?

 

I'm not sure what you mean by FDR.

 

Cat5e/Cat6 cable is obviously used with IP cameras, and can also be used with SD analog cameras without issue.

 

I would highly recommend against using Cat5e/Cat6 for anything that's considered HD analog. I've said it a million times on here already, Cat5e/Cat6 will work with these systems but at a reduced video quality. How bad? It depends entirely on the length of the cable run. Solid copper coax has to be used to guarantee the best results.

[Don Stephens 0]

It seems that only 2-3 models of the Dahua IP cameras are with built-in Mic/Speaker and few with available ports. Most of the HDCVI PTZ models seems to have input audio channel.

 

Dahua definitely has at least a few options for IP cameras with microphones, you are correct.

 

HDCVI PTZ cameras are the exception to what I said; I forgot about those. You can use your everyday CCTV mics and integrate them very easily with the PTZ cameras. They posses an additional component that the rest of the cameras do not.

[martin68 0]

thanks for all this info. I'm planning to buy new cameras too, so a hybrid recorder will not be necessary.

 

for the highest HD resolution on my budget of £250, which system is better: HD CVI, HD SDI or HD TVI and what's the difference between them? this might narrow down my decision.

[Don Stephens 0]

thanks for all this info. I'm planning to buy new cameras too, so a hybrid recorder will not be necessary.

 

for the highest HD resolution on my budget of £250, which system is better: HD CVI, HD SDI or HD TVI and what's the difference between them? this might narrow down my decision.

 

HDCVI and HDTVI are really the same tech with different manufacturers. You can't go wrong with either.

 

 

There's one thing that you'll notice right away about HDSDI that differs from the other two, and one thing you may or may not experience:

 

-The image quality with HDSDI is an improvement over HDCVI/HDTVI, but it's pretty unnoticeable unless you're comparing the images side by side. I think most people would say that the image quality of HDSDI is comparable to IP cameras.

 

-What you may experience, and I think most people do now, are very odd and normally intermittent issues with the cameras. I'm not going to go into examples, so to make a long story short, HDSDI has started being looked at as an unreliable option. I would suggest you do a little research into the subject yourself and form your own opinion of it if you decide to proceed any further down this path.

[martin68 0]

I think most people would say that the image quality of HDSDI is comparable to IP cameras.

 

.

 

Now i'm really confused, I was under the impression that IP cameras are no where near as good as 720 or 1080 over coax.

 

I see that IP DVR systems are a lot cheaper than SDI systems, but are they simple plug and play for the 4 cameras to record onto hdd on the PVR, or does it involve a lot of setting up with ip addresses etc, plus maintainance of the software?

 

Reason i'm asking this is because I have tried wifi ip cameras via my router, and one day they work fine, then next day nothing.not to mention hogging my internet speeds which are only 2mbs to start with.

 

I am also yet to find an IP camera PVR that supports audio, do they even exist?

[Don Stephens 0]

Now i'm really confused, I was under the impression that IP cameras are no where near as good as 720 or 1080 over coax.

 

I see that IP DVR systems are a lot cheaper than SDI systems, but are they simple plug and play for the 4 cameras to record onto hdd on the PVR, or does it involve a lot of setting up with ip addresses etc, plus maintainance of the software?

 

Reason i'm asking this is because I have tried wifi ip cameras via my router, and one day they work fine, then next day nothing.not to mention hogging my internet speeds which are only 2mbs to start with.

 

I am also yet to find an IP camera PVR that supports audio, do they even exist?

 

 

Almost everyone is going to tell you that IP cameras are the top of the food chain, so I'm not sure where the idea of them being inferior came from.

 

I would need to know what you're looking at in order to make any assessment of the quality, cost, or setup.

 

If I had to guess, I'd say those wireless IP cameras you have/had were more of a novelty than anything else. Wireless is also going to be inferior in all aspects next to wired. IP systems require bandwidth, but if you have a decent router, ISP, and service plan, you shouldn't have any issues.

 

If you're referring to standalone units, IP cameras require Network Video Recorders (NVR). I have never seen one that doesn't support audio. To make another guess, I assume you're just looking at the back of the NVRs for audio inputs. Most NVRs won't have any video or audio inputs as it's all done through your network/router. Audio and video in this case are transmitted through the Cat5e/Cat6 cable back to your router, and then available to stream on whatever device you have setup for it.