magens 0 Posted November 28, 2014 I have the following setup in my HOA Entrance / Exit that is having issues with the Speco License Plate Cameras recording at night. Speco Model CLPR67B4B – LP Camera http://specotech.com/index.php/products/video/cameras/analog/item/626-clpr67b4b I have two of these LP Cameras connected to a Speco N4NSP (4 Channel NVR with 4 Channel Built-In PoE and Digital Deterrent) along with two Speco VIP2B3 Bullet Cameras. During the day all 4 cameras (License Plate and Bullet Cameras) record perfectly fine to the DVR. Once night fall comes, the License Plate Cameras record sporadically while the two bullet cameras record with no issues. When I go into the recording status for the last 24 hrs I see the little time slices the License Plate cameras record. During playback of either License Plate Camera footage, it jumps to each time it recorded overnight. Once sunrise happens, the License Plate Cameras record solid until the next night fall. The Speco Techs had me first confirm that the NVR was set to continuous recording for all cameras with no schedule setups. All cameras are set to continuous recording. Then they had me swap PoE ports for each of the cameras to see if the issue follows the License Plate cameras. The issue followed the License Plate Cameras. The next thing they want me to try is to turn off the lights that are up at the entrance / exit that are off to the center lighting up the center wall the cameras are on. The cameras are on the outside edges of the wall. Does anyone have any suggestions about any of this? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Billy_ICU 0 Posted November 30, 2014 Swap the connections for the LP cameras and the Bullet cameras. See if the Bullet cameras have the same trouble on those connections. If yes, then not a camera problem. Also you can turn on the video loss alarm. See if the DVR is losing the video signal at night. Perhaps the wire run is too long or cheap wire used? Maybe just a borderline wire-run - night might not work so well for some reason. Another thing is DC (Direct current) voltage drop with long wire runs. Night vision uses more electricity. Try running an extension cord to one of the cameras and plugging in its AC adapter right at the camera. Then there will be a short run of wire from the camera to the AC adapter and very little DC voltage drop. Voltage drop for supplying DC power can be fixed with using a larger gauge (size) of wire to power the device. This differs depending on voltage, amperage, and distance of the wire run. Search google.com for the following words... DC voltage drop calculator Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
magens 0 Posted December 6, 2014 Update to the issue. Speco Tech came out and we did some testing. When connecting a monitor directly to the License plate camera cables, we see every single vehicle and license plate. When we connected to the IP converter (which connects the license plate camera to the DVR) we see every vehicle and license plate. So the issue seems to be somewhere between the IP converters and the DVR. Also, the tech was able to reproduce the issue in his lab where as his LP cameras stopped recording to the DVR at night. We did a test last night where we put up reflectors in the field of view of the LP cameras to give it something to see. At night they see nothing but pitch black and he thinks what is happening is that the DVR or IP convertors think there is no data and do not record. This make sense since when I pull footage from the night, the LP cameras just show up as "No Data". Last night the reflectors seem to make a difference where as I was seeing more license plate captures that before. So tomorrow I am going to check the overnight recording status of the LP cameras to see if we are getting consistent overnight recordings. If so, then I am going to remove the reflectors and see if we have the issue again. Speco Engineering has been contacted as well by the local tech and he is working on this with them to see if they can figure out where the issue is. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
magens 0 Posted December 8, 2014 New Update! So the reflectors seem to be working. When placed in the License Plate Camera viewing area, the cameras record at night time with no issues. Take away the reflectors and we are back to inconsistent recording. So all of the information, findings, etc have been sent to Speco for their review. I am hoping they come back with some sort of more permanent fix than me using reflectors as it is only a matter of time until someone hits them or steals them. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
magens 0 Posted December 11, 2014 So far the cameras are still working with the reflectors out in front of the cameras. Question for anyone out there that deals with Speco hardware. Has anyone had experience with this product connected to Speco License Plate cameras and a Speco 4 Channel DVR? http://specotech.com/index.php/products/item/877-d1bd This is where the problem appears to be with this whole issue and setup. The opinion being told to me now is that it is only a matter of time before these piece of hardware burns out. I have had them replaced once already where the two of them burned out. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
magens 0 Posted December 30, 2014 Final Update! Speco has reproduced the issue in their labs and determined that it was the IP converters after all. http://specotech.com/index.php/products/item/877-d1bd A new firmware release is being created to correct the issue. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Billy_ICU 0 Posted January 1, 2015 ...A new firmware release is being created to correct the issue. How REFRESHING to see good old fashioned customer service - where a company works on resolving a customer's problem and fixes it! This is the way all companies used to be. Tell them I will remember their company name (Speco) and do business with them in the future if possible. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
