liveinxs

Are they still around, when i go online to see what they are about, i see many sites that speak of their products being discontinued...

Now its time to turn my attention to installing Indoor cameras, i am gonna go with Domes, but not sure if i should go the IR route or non IR route.. What do you guys use, i will definitely go the CNB route, the Monalisa type, with those a small nite light would be plenty for each area... Whats your view, thanks...

hey Rory, thanks for the advice...

the following link will solve any problems with your mailbox, expensive yes, but i have seen these things run over by a box truck and suffer no damage... check it out: http://www.fortknoxmailbox.com/home.htm

i hadn't thought about that...

just curious, do CCTV cameras have to be set differently in the Hot/Warm months then in the Cold months... the reason why i ask is that i notice the images across all of my CNB VCM-24VFs seems to be slightly soft or out of focus, now that it has gotten colder out... thanks

would anyone know what size and type of security wrench is provided with all CNB VCM-24VF cameras, i would like to get one that is more in style of a regular type handled tool...

i found this book on amazon , looks like it would be good reading... http://www.amazon.com/Road-Big-Brother-Struggle-Surveillance/dp/1594032483/ref=wl_it_dp_o?ie=UTF8&coliid=I3PN2MKDYZF5IQ&colid=31QL4BSN37OB2

hello all, now that i have the camera part of my system resolved, it is time to move onto the DVR, now i had originally wanted to go with the CNB HDS4824, 16 Channels DVR, but after having read about the EverFocus ECOR264-16X1, i am now some-what back to zero... of course i don't want to waste time or money, so i am turning to you guys for your input, would anyone have any info or opinions on the CNB, or EverFocus DVRs or their line of DVRs... so my head don't explode , please don't recommend any other brands, as i feel these two represent just what i am looking for, i just need some opinions on the CNB and EverFocus lines, possibly specifically these models... below is a links to the DVRs i was looking at: CNB, http://www.cnbusa.com/en/html/product/product.php?seqx_prod=1116 EverFocus, http://www.everfocus.com/product.cfm?productid=179 thanks for any help....

Has anyone ever tried or attempted to focus a camera at night, when it is dark, using a IR illuminator as a source of illumination, i was thinking that it might be much easier to focus a Black and White image as opposed to a Color image...as i believe a BnW image would appear much crisper at night...

well, i started to think about what Rory had said, about holding the Filter with one hand while trying to adjust the camera with the other hand, and not being able to stabilize yourself and keep yourself from falling off ladder, so i was set in finding a way to remove the holding of the lens from the equation... i had to figure a way to attach a 50mm shade 5 glass Filter lens to a focus sleeve that was approx 28mm, i knew i didn't want any screw type attachment or something heavy... this is what i came up with, first thing i did was to measure the size of the lens sleeve that had to be rotated to set focus, after have that i came up with the following homemade tool... i purchased 3 Rubber O-Rings and what is called a Lavatory Pop-Up Drain Gasket, the O-Rings provided a slightly snug fit to the focus sleeve and the Pop-Up Drain was the exact dimension of the Shade 5 Filter.. i then crazy glued the 3 O-Rings together in a pancake manner and then glued the O-Rings to the Pop-Up Drain, as seen it the photos, and then taped the Filter to the front of the Pop-Up Drain, i didn't glue it , in case i had to remove for cleaning... all the parts cost me 2.47.... after i was done , i test fitted it to the camera and it was a perfect fit... i did use it to focus one of the cameras as a test and it worked flawlessly... attached are the photos of the items and the completed filter adapter....

Sometimes a cheaper way to do it is find an old or used color IR camera but one with a ton of IR, and just use the IR from it. This video shows an IR Bullet using other cheap or used IR cameras for additional infrared. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0hv1T_RIo4 thats what i did, i took the original 8 cameras that i got with my original get my foot in the door, cheapo eBay system, and doubled them up and made 4 very nice IR illuminators, all i did was gut the cameras, reinstalled the IRs and rewired...

yes, i knew they were security bits, just not sure what size i needed, well i guess i will just have to contact CNB and see if anyone over there knows.. thanks anyway..

well in 22 years of firefighting, i have never had any issues with a ladder falling, if its footed properly, you could also tie it off at the top to alleviate any worries... 25' thats nothing, now 100' thats fun, especially when the wind blows your way, hold on.....

just in case your not familiar with the leg lock, its applied as in the following picture...

Yes, but as I could not see the monitor the filter was useless. Many of these articles online are copied from outdated information, or by people that must live in an underground dwelling. Also, try standing at the top of a 12 foot ladder with one hand focusing the lens, one hand holding the filter in front of the camera, one invisible hand trying to hold onto the ladder incase you loose balance as the wind sways the ladder, and the other invisible hand trying to hold the monitor or manouver to see a monitor mounted on the ladder or arm while trying to do all of that ... makes you wonder if these folks that write these articles ever been out on a job site well the article i reference is from the following site: http://www.fmsystems-inc.com/ as far as not having enough hands, you only need two, the way i see it is , hang LCD from gutter , one hang on filter and the other focusing camera, and a good old firemens leg lock on ladder, i did that dozens of times as a firefighter, swinging away with an axe...never had any stability issues...footing the ladder properly reduces any stability problems....

well the article recommends a shade 5 filter, have you ever used specifically that shade... might be worth trying, i just ordered one, i will post my results, once i get the lens...

hey Rory, i just found a article that speaks of the Auto Iris, they recommend placing a shade 5 welders filter in front of the lens when focusing, is that similar to switching from Auto Iris to Electronic Iris , that you recommend.. here is the complete article: Have you ever wondered why Auto Iris cameras seem to go out of focus at night? Many installers have had to return to the job site at night and reset the focus of a camera to solve this problem. This can be costly to your company's pocket book and reputation. There is a solution to the problem that will enable you to set the cameras focus correctly every time, day or night. Let's examine what causes the Auto Iris camera to go out of focus when the lighting level changes, as it does day to night. All lenses and Auto Iris cameras exhibit this effect to a greater or lesser degree. THE CAUSES, DEPTH OF FIELD, WHAT IS IT? All lenses have a characteristic called Depth of Field. Depth of Field is a zone in front of the lens that is in focus. It is measured as the minimum distance and maximum distance from the lens where objects are in focus. All objects inside this minimum and maximum bracket zone will be in focus. The further away you go from this bracketed "in focus zone", either toward or away from the camera the more out of focus the objects become. THE PROBLEM WITH AUTO IRIS LENSES: The Auto Iris lens has a movable aperture inside the lens that controls the amount of light allowed to pass through it. This aperture also directly controls the Depth of Field of the lens. So an Auto Iris lens will have a variable Depth of Field depending on the amount of light entering the lens. This causes the minimum and maximum bracket zone of focus to change when the lighting level changes. During the day or in bright lighting conditions the Iris is closed down to a small opening, and the Depth of Field is quite large. So called Pin Hole cameras exhibit this effect where all objects in the scene are in focus. However with movable iris cameras at night or in low lighting conditions the Iris is open wide, this causes the Depth of Field to collapse down to a smaller minimum and maximum bracketed zone of focus. An object that was inside the zone of focus during the day can be outside the zone of focus at night. THE SOLUTION: One way to set up the camera to minimize the Depth of Field problem, is to adjust cameras focus at a time when the light level is at its lowest. This may not be convenient for your installers. The best way is to use a SHADE 5 FILTER PLATE also called a #5 welders glass filter. It is the filter plate that welders look through to protect their eyes during welding operations. When you have full daylight or bright lighting conditions the filter plate is placed over the cameras lens to simulate half lighting conditions. This filter plate costs only a few dollars and should be carried by installation personnel to every job site for use with Auto Iris lenses, especially those jobs using outdoor cameras. By using the filter plate to adjust the Auto Iris, you will be centering the control range of the Auto Iris system. This will give you optimum performance from your cameras Iris control system. Hand held focus meters such as the CM-1 Camera Master are also useful in determining the maximum focus of any scene. They are more accurate than large screen monitors and much easier to take up a ladder. They display the maximum focus numerically on an LCD type display. By eliminating the subjective nature of focus setting, you will insure that all cameras will be set to their maximum focus by any installer. An understanding of Depth of Field and the proper setting requirements for Auto Iris cameras will save you time and reduce the frustration of having to return to the job site to refocus cameras.

well the cameras i am attempting to focus are the CNB VCM-24VFs.... would you know, if that camera would be a good candidate for night time focusing?....

Here is a screen shot of one of my cameras, this camera was focused just as the sun was setting... i was thinking a little more fine tuning will greatly improve the image, not that its bad now...

I ended up ordering the following Baluns, and i must say , the image is stellar...I used these in combination with Cat5e... [edit by mod-store link removed]

just in case you haven't made a firm decision yet, you might want to check out this camera, is Vandal Proof, and could be installed to the side of a door, enabling you to capture a perps face...also this has the Monalisa chip you were looking for... i just ordered one today for my home, looking forward to checking it out...

well it should be good, it does share the same Monalisa chip, i believe... yes, its slightly over 3 inches out from corner.. i don't have a problem with fixed, the way i have been thinking about installing them, would be at the corner of a doorway, so that as they move through the doorway, they will be close enough for a good id...

I think i found the perfect camera, Monalisa Chip,Fixed lense, and very cheap, only thing its missing is IR, a lamp or nightlight should solve that problem... Best part is that this can be mounted in a corner of a room, at a average persons height, whereby being able to catch a face, as opposed to on a ceiling where all you get is a image of the thiefs hat... http://www.cnbusa.com/en/html/product/product.php?inc=fea&seqx_prod=1198#p_v1

hey Rory, thanks for that link, i saw another camera similar to the linked one , but it is a indoor camera, the CNB LJL-20S, just have to find out if they come in white, if not i will just paint them..