Soundy

If I follow CNB's naming schemes, the version you'd want for PAL would be VCM-25VF. The V indicates Vandal dome, the M indicates the Monalisa model. Here's CNB's page on the 24VF: http://www.cnbusa.com/en/html/product/product.php?seqx_prod=1073

Sorry, fixed the link for you... I have one where it's mounted to a black tile wall too, but I'll have to find the picture of it... Yes, the ones I'm talking about are still weatherproof. IP ratings, at least of IP65 and up (the CNBs are IP66) mean they have to withstand direct water spray (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_Code#Liquid_ingress_protection). The first one, I don't see any indication that it's an outdoor-rated dome. The picture looks like it's designed to flush-mount in a board or tile ceiling. The second one doesn't say anything about outdoor use or an IP rating either, and it's not a Monalisa model (plus, it's only a 1/4" CCD). This is what I'm talking about: http://www.cnbusa.com/en/html/product/product.php?seqx_prod=1073 The VCB models aren't Monalisa either (the Monalisa chip is what helps give these cameras their excellent low-light performance).

No, but there's never any guarantee you're getting something good, or even what you think you're getting. Ya pays yer money, and ya takes yer chances.

Then start by offering sensible advice. Read the first post: OP already stated they don't want three separate 16s, and they need to expand beyond the capabilities of three 16s. Your answer is right there: So only one of three existing still works, and given that, there's no guarantee of the reliability of the third.

Yes. Some can use both, but will actually say "12VDC/24VAC" (or similar) on them. If it doesn't specifically say "24VAC" or "24~" or something to that effect somewhere, don't try it.

You can generally run a few hundred feet over RG-59 coax... up to 1000' or more with passive baluns over UTP. Type of camera doesn't matter.

12V power adapter is an easy thing to implement.

RAID - Redundant Array of Independent Disks. Different RAID levels refer to different methods of spreading data across multiple disks. RAID5 can be performed on three or more disks, where one disk's worth of space is used for "parity" information - basically data that's used to recover if one disk is lost: you swap the dead disk (most RAID boxes support hot-swapping disks so you don't need to shut down), and the system rebuilds the set. The catch is that you lose that space: three 2TB drives in RAID5 gives you 4TB available. RAID6 works the same way except it uses two disks for parity, so you need at least four disks, and any two can die without data loss. Four 2TB disks in RAID6 also gives you 4TB available. Eight 2TB disks in RAID5 gives you 14TB total; with RAID6, you have 12TB total. But, you have that redundancy to protect against data loss. Most units can notify you if a disk is failing, so you can replace it before you have any data loss. You do pay for that security (especially these days with the price of hard drives), so it depends on how concerned you are about losing information if a drive fails. You'd need to contact 3xLogic about a local reseller, but I think MSRP of the rackmount 32-channel systems are in the $4000 range... so that's most of your budget there. Being PC-based systems though, it's easy to connect additional external storage. The rest, it's really hard to say what it's going to cost until you start tearing things apart and finding out where the actual problems lie. Ideally, I'd start with pulling the DVRs out, disconnecting all the wires (including from the power supplies, making sure to note what voltage they're using if there are a mix of 12V and 24V power supplies), untangling it all, then reconnecting things to power, testing the incoming feeds, sorting out what cameras are where, and labeling everything. Then I'd take a floor plan of the site, mark up where the cameras are, number them in some sort of logical sequence, and reconnect them to the new systems in that order. It's substantial labour and the systems are potentially offline for a couple of days while you get it all cleaned up, but it will save SO much hassle and headache later on as you add or upgrade cameras.

Why not 16 four-channel DVRs then? Then you only stand to lose four channels at a time. If you're that worried about it, keep a spare DVR on-hand that you can readily swap in should a DVR fail. 32-channel Dahua: $1500... two of them: $3000. 16-channel Dahua: $1000... four of them: $4000. Add a spare 32, you're at $4500... add a spare 16 to the 4x16 layout, you're at $5000... either way, costs more for the same thing.

I'm a fan of PC-based systems, I use and recommend the Vigil recorders (http://www.3xlogic.com)... but I've been testing a 4-channel Dahua and been impressed by its features and performance. I'd say the 32-channel system is worth a look, for sure. Give Vigil a look, too (although they're a good bit more expensive, they're a very nice system, and fully hybrid, so you can add/upgrade IP cameras later if you want). Now here's another question: you're already going to need a lot of storage, so you're probably looking at a RAID... how reliable do you want this storage to be? You COULD just have a stack of individual disks and if a disk fails, you lose that data... or you could set up an array with RAID5 (able to have one disk fail without data loss; capacity is the number of disks minus one), RAID6 (two disks can fail)... the sites where we need lots of storage, we've started doing RAID6 plus a hotspare... so out of 8 disks, 7 are in use for the array, and one sits idle until a disk in the array fails, at which point it automatically rebuilds using the hotspare. The 32-channel Dahua can take up to seven internal disks, but I don't know if it will RAID them, so you need to determine if you want to use external RAID storage... and then make sure the DVR can use that (usually via network).

Here's a VCM-24VF, painted black and surface-mounted:

With existing wires between buildings, you do have the option to interconnect them - if you're using IP cameras, you can run all the cameras in a building into one central switch for that building, then network that building to the next using the existing wiring, if there's capacity there. There are adapters that will let you run network over a single coax cable, or over a single twisted pair. The other option would be to use *proper* WiFi points (such as Ubiquiti Nanostations) to link between buildings - again, wire all the cameras into one switch in that building, then connect the WiFi units to that. Your network might then look something like this: Notice the network forms a full circle - this creates a redundant set of paths, so if one connection goes down, all the cameras can still communicate back to the head end (remember to use switches that support STP to avoid a network "feedback loop"). Does the $5k budget include cameras, or is that just to achieve the network? The Ubiquiti stuff isn't expensive, but this looks to be a lot of labour, and you're definitely not going to get quality cameras into that budget along with everything else (don't forget to include the cabling, switches, accessories, etc.).

Moreso than the alarm box? Sure can. I've installed plenty of CNB VCM-24VFs on walls like this. Punch a hole through for the wire, mount the back-box over the hole using Tapcon screws and a silicone bead to seal it to the wall, make the connections inside the back-box, mount the camera, aim and focus, and close it all up Then you're back to the problem of the camera looking down on people's heads rather than seeing their faces. Except for the standard problem with speed domes, which is that they still only see whatever they're pointed at, and don't really give you any benefit unless there's a live operator controlling them.

The only drawback to megapixel cameras here is that they're generally not great in low light. My first suggestion would be, of course, the CNB Monalisa line, such as the VCM-24VF. Works well with very little ambient light, and comes in well under the $350-$400 budget. With the extra money, you can then add external IR illuminators, or ideal motion-activated floods where more light is required. It's going to be tricky to get full coverage of the yard or fenceline because of the shape of the building... how high/secure is the fence? Are intruders likely to be coming over the fence, or are they pretty much relegated to using the gates? Either way, I'd probably start with a couple cameras zoomed tight one the gates, to try to ID anyone coming in, since even if they can get over the fence, the gate is a natural first route to try. I've not used the box-type Monalisa cameras, but if they work as well with low light as the domes, that would be a good choice, along with a suitable lens (5-50mm should allow you to get tight enough). Next thing is to try to narrow down what areas of the fence and/or yard are concerns, and then determine cameras and placements to address those.

The simplest setup for this might be a "rear view" camera that you'd normally install in a car - usually come with a small 3"-4" LCD screen and a remote camera that plugs ino it with a single cable. Connect the screen to power, and away you go. Go with something wired, rather than wireless, as you still need to power the camera somehow, and wireless is more likely to suffer from interference in that environment.

Can you post some photos or exported stills, or better yet, some video clips of this happening?

How much does he *realistically* want to spend on this? That's a lot of channels... a lot of power, and a lot of storage needed. What resolution and framerate do you need to record at (NEED, not want - everyone WANTS D1@30fps, but few NEED anything close to that)? What sort of retention does he need - 30 days? 60? More, less? Do you need remote access, smartphone access, video analytics, POS integration, etc.? As you've found, there are a LOT of options out there...

You DVR probably only records at CIF resolution, or 352x240 pixels... so yeah, you're not going to see much difference, if any, with a camera over 240 lines. There are lots of "good" DVRs - the question is, how many channels do you need, what sort of features do you want, and how much are you prepared to spend?

I've seen more issues with octopus cables breaking, since they're usually flimsy little wires too... but even that is very rare. And there's always options like above... or the ones we've been using: First site we used these one, we ran into a patchbay first... second time, we just terminated all the runs in RJ-45 plugs and went straight into the VPS (due mainly to space restrictions in the rack).

"Hunting"? Do you mean "haunting", like a ghost image? Does this happen on all channels, some channels...?

So make sure the DVR itself has smartphone PTZ support The smartphone doesn't care whether it's PAL or not.

Hmmm... cheap PAL DVR off eBay, something with HDMI out so NTSC/PAL doesn't matter?

BTW, the offer was serious - I'll take one in exchange for figuring it out for you (hey SEANHAWG, you ever get any more? Remember the other thread? viewtopic.php?f=6&t=18998)

Can you link a larger version of that schematic? I can't quite make out the labels on my 24" monitor Edit: from what I can make out there, the board is outputting 12VDC and 5VDC to the communication board, with a separate output to the fan (probably 12V as well). The "UP" pin looks to be a "power on/off" signal from the controller to turn the power supply on or off. If you could supply the communication board connector with 12VDC and 5VDC, you could probably eliminate the power board altogether. If you were REALLY ambitious, you could replace the transformer with a proper one for 120V operation, although that would also require replacing a few other parts on the "hot" side of the transformer... a better option might just be a "travel adapter" designed to use European appliances in North America (just make sure you get one that can provide enough current).