Extremly bright image

[Claudio Catanzaro 0]

Hi everybody,

 

I'm from Peru and I have a card for 16 cameras. It comes with a kodinet software, but kodinet says that they don't know it. I'm attaching a picture of the card for documentation. I will be very glad if somebody confirm me which brand and model really is. We bouht it in a big wholesaler, here in Peru and we refuse to believe that is not an original one.

 

It was working really fine in a Pentium III Windows 2000 computer with 8 cameras attached, then we changed our PC to a Pentium IV 1,7 Ghz.

 

We installed Kdnet 2.50.16.0 software, that comes with the card and it doesn't worked very well.

 

The image is extremly bright (all white) and we barely could see an image there.

 

It is not a light problem, because it continues been extremly light even at night.

 

The cameras are working fine, because we tested them with a litle tv monitor.

Do you know what can be happen?

 

Looking for something that could be wrong, I saw in the card a litle golden screw in a blue socket. What is this screw for? could it have something to do with my problem?

 

I really apreciate your answers about this issue.

 

Thankyou in advance

 

Claudio Catanzaro

[kensplace 0]

Not familiar with that make of card, so no idea if its genuine or not..

 

Although, I notice a few things to be wary about.

 

1. The makers say its not genuine. Either you got someone there who is not familiar with their products, or its really not genuine.

 

2. See attached pic, it looks like a sticker of some sort has been removed from one of the chips. Possibly the cards real identity has been removed on purpose to sell it as a fake?

 

3. See attached pic, this is either bad design (last minute fix) or very poor production, as it looks to me like the surface mount component highlighted in the attached pic has fell from its pad and is soldered where it should not be (especially in comparision to the other sets of identical components).

If its not meant to be like that, then that could well be causing problems.

 

I would ask the manufacturer again to confirm in writing or email that it is not genuine, then get in touch with the distributer, and tell them the manufacturer has told you its a fake, and if they dont send you a genuine one straight away, that you will sue (and do so - or at least shop them to the manufacturer). Cant stand people who make/sell fake cards.

[dvr1001 0]

there is a BLUE trimmer at the top of the card, adjust it with a small screwdriver to adjust video level, post results.

[CameraGenius 0]

check the AGC if the software can control this and also some cameras have AGC adjustments right on them

[survtech 0]

3. See attached pic, this is either bad design (last minute fix) or very poor production, as it looks to me like the surface mount component highlighted in the attached pic has fell from its pad and is soldered where it should not be (especially in comparision to the other sets of identical components).

If its not meant to be like that, then that could well be causing problems.

I wouldn't worry too much about the circuit board mod. Pretty much all manufacturers do that. It is just a simple production change that isn't incorporated into circuit board production yet.

[Claudio Catanzaro 0]

Thankyou for your answers!!!

 

1. The makers say its not genuine. Either you got someone there who is not familiar with their products, or its really not genuine.

 

I have supossed that It's from koditec because It comes with a kodinet software, but nobody told me that It was a Koditec card. In a matter of fact, It's labeled "STV" in the box (I didn't find any stv company in the web).

 

How much "pirated" can be a hardware? (It's not retoric, I really don't know about hardware copiright). If my card comes with a pirate software (I know it's a bad thing) but I buy a legal software to use it... Am I "legalizing" it? or could be a pirate dessign too?

 

2. See attached pic, it looks like a sticker of some sort has been removed from one of the chips. Possibly the cards real identity has been removed on purpose to sell it as a fake?

 

That's my fault. I removed the sticker looking for some information about the card to google it. Obviusly It didn't work.

 

then get in touch with the distributer, and tell them the manufacturer has told you its a fake, and if they dont send you a genuine one straight away, that you will sue (and do so - or at least shop them to the manufacturer). Cant stand people who make/sell fake cards.

 

Here in Peru, we have not a lot of dvr cards to choose, neither a lot of distributers... Sego (the one that sold me the card) is one of the biggers and suposely a serious one. I'm really surprised that they sell pirate cards. You are right, We can't stand people who sell fake cards.

 

I was thinking in buy directly and import dvr cards, but It was a future plan when my bussiness get bigger. I can't import 2 or 3 cards by month... It will not be cost effective.

 

The good news is that if the bigger distributer here are not serious people... There is a space in the market for seroius people that could be us.

[Claudio Catanzaro 0]

there is a BLUE trimmer at the top of the card, adjust it with a small screwdriver to adjust video level, post results.

 

It helps!!! I was playing with it, turning half a turn, or quarter a turn... but looking in he web, This trimmer accepts 25 turns until it sounds "tic".

 

When I make 25 turns, until the "tic" begins to sound, It appears some black and white image in one of the cameras (the only one that haves night-vision)

 

Trying to understand this card with a friend of mine who knows about electronic, We have found some things.

 

1) This card has an direct RCA output that can be connected to a monitor, and It's customatizable via software to cicle some cameras. It works, giving perfect image of every camera, then It confirms that cameras are fine.

 

2) One of the camera's signal gives too much voltage (1.5 V) when all of the others give voltage in the millivolts range. It could hace the guilt of fry some part of my card in some way. (We have not tested this camera with direct RCA output )

 

3) The blue trimmer, affects 10 chips that works like amplifiers (those ones that appear in the first picture: U11, U12, U20, U21, U22, U23, U24 and U25 ), all fo them are connected in a wear chained way but we can't continue following the circuit after them

 

My friend took the card to his lab, to continue trying to know what's wrong in it or at least, how is that it works.

 

Claudio Catanzaro

[dave.au 0]

I had a similar problem with a four channel card, when i tried to view all 4 channels on screen everything would go bright white, if i chose to zoom and view only one channel it was ok. this was a software fault.

 

Dave

[Claudio Catanzaro 0]

Not in my case Dave,

 

I gave the card to the distributor and they answer me that one of the chips must be fryed, maybe caused by a over-voltage in a camera.

 

They didn't give me a new card neither my money back, because they said that it was a problem with the cameras (They sold me the cameras too). They ask me if the cameras had a voltage stabilizer and ground, before the power supply that they gave me (I looked in the specifications of both and there's nothing about stabilizers), also they asked me about what kind of coaxial cable and if the cameras was outside (I bought them asmikg for uotdoor capabilities)... Obiusly they was looking for a mistake for don't cover the warranty. I didn't find too a technician that can repair it.

 

Now, I'm looking for a good distributor in USA or even inChina (I don't know how to import small quantities from China... I don't know even how to pay a China's Distributor, but I'm doing my investigation). I want a good card for 8 cameras or 16 cameras, with linux compatibility and, of course, a good price.

 

Claudio Catanzaro

[501 0]

Just pay the price for genuine Geovision cards and you won't have these problems. Time is worth a lot of money and if you save $100 but spend 8 hours trying to fix the card or at least make it work, your definitley not farther ahead, never mind trying to sevice your customers.