kaysadeya

Kodicom 516. 2Wire 1000SW modem/router (Yahoo/SBC DSL). Hardwired ethernet wire (that's why I went to Fry's) connection between modem and DVR.

Main problem is figuring how to configure the connection settings from the PC client. The DVR appears to be able to ping the modem, but the DVR UI and docs are really unclear on how to set this stuff up or how to check what's going on.

Observation: You noticed a difference with the LCD monitor.

What type of monitor were you using before the LCD? From your description, you had two types of monitors connected to the DVR. Were they from the same video output?

Rory, I haven't forgotten about your request to post shots from the new 721 camera, but woke this morning with the realization that maybe I can't import a video signal into my PC. I had just assumed I could import video via the VGA or S-Video ports, but can't seem to find a way to do that. I guess PCs can only output video from these ports. If anyone knows otherwise, please let me know.

Went to Fry's anyway .... just because I COULD . (And what a sorry place that's become -- they'll probably be going out of business soon.) Couldn't find half of the connectors I was looking for, but picked up some of the stuff I needed to get the Kodicom DVR connected to the DSL modem. Unfortunately, couldn't get everything to work. I've got some questions out to tech support, but probably won't be able to get any screen shots posted for a few days.

The first thing that pops in my mind is that there may be a PAL / NTSC compatability problem between the camera and DVR.

yeah I forget what thats like sometimes ..!!

 

all i can get to eat after 5pm is fried chicken or a gas station hot dog!...

Ah, paradise. Well... we're in the middle of a major hail storm here. Weird.

Sorry to RUB IT IN, but some of us live in civilization.

Si

I'm now doing the Vulcan Mind Meld. If that fails, I'll pick up a cable manana.

It's not connected to any network It's a low priority in my installation.

It's dark now and the thrashing has stopped. Yes, it's the UF500 and image now from the camera is amazingly good! There's probably a sensitivity setting on the camera menu that I need to twiddle.

By the way, I went to capture a night shot with my laptop, but realized that all of my VGA cords go directly into the displays that are not connected to the internet. I'll need to invest in another VGA cord to capture an image. Maybe I'll go to Fry's tomorrow....

Now this is interesting....

I'm currently watching the camera thrash between color and B&W modes.

Received two Samsung 721's today from our friend Hermin. This is what I can report so far:

* Overall this is an excellent camera. Very nice image and color balance (even when monitored on a 50" HDTV).

* Lots of features and an RS-232 input so they can be set remotely.

Two issues:

* These cameras do not work correctly in B&W mode when powered with 12v DC. You must use 24v AC. This is not noted anywhere in the manual, except in the troubleshooting section which suggests using "AC power source" if you have problems switching to B&W mode.

* The lens back adjustment requires that you loosen two delicate pin-sized hex screws on either side of the lens mount. Fine for clock makers; maybe not so good for ham-fisted CCTV installers.

Installed one today and waiting for dark to see how this baby performs with IR illumination.

I'm assuming you have each camera connected to a separate terminal on the power supply, rather than all 10 on one terminal. If so, it's easy to troubleshoot any power problem with a multimeter. Check the AC power at both the PS and camera terminals.

Found a great source for video connectors:

http://www.btx.com/products.asp?Cat1=Video+Connectors

One camera connected to the TV is better than nothing. That's how I started several years ago to keep track of cars in a driveway we share with a neighbor. Our cars used to get some suspicious-looking dents; so, rather than go stand out in the driveway every time a car pulls in or out, we just checked the camera.

After I felt more comfortable with having a camera, I added more cameras; then a mux; then a time-lapse VCR... Now I've replaced the mux and VCR with a 16-channel DVR and am adding more cameras.

One tip on your first cam: If you want color, invest in a good day/night camera. That way you have the option to expand to IR illumination should the need arise in the future.

Personally, I'm a DYIer with a dedicated 16-channel Kodicom DVR. It's a bit overkill for a home installation, but my interests in CCTV are more hobbyist than a deep-routed need to record everything that goes on outside my house. After researching and installing various CCTV gear, I can really appreciate the amount of specialized knowledge you pros have and the types of unique challenges you must encounter and don't for a minute question that you deserve what little money you earn marking up the equipment you sell to clients. You make an honest living the hard way.

That said, I suspect there's a market for a variety of high-quality 4- 8-cam DVR packages targeted to the DIYer. There could be various packages that are customized for indoor-only, outdoor-only, indoor/outdoor, day/night, etc.. I've seen such packages for sale, but they're mostly made up of cheap components. The objective here is to offer high quality components and some level of customer support for the entire system, like you'd expect from Dell or Apple (which really isn't very much) and a forum like this to exchange stories and installation tips with other users.

I don't intend to start any new business myself, but suggest that some of you might consider this an option to explore in addition to your traditional one-off installs. Hopefully this type of sales model would empower the end users more and inspire freer exchange of what might now be considered "trade secrets."

Cheap shot. Maybe we wouldn't be forced to buy from Radio Shack if us little people had access to the information and prices in the Dealer's Only thread.

Dealers, consider the basic business concept that, if you don't expand your customer base, someone else will take it from you.

I suggest we start a "Users Only" topic. All established dealers are banned from participation.

Please vote.

Interesting question: how do you confirm a RS-422 / 485 signal? Both its presence and its meaning.

(Please don't post the answer in the dealer's only thread.)

Thanks Cooperman.

Any suggestions where I can pick up all or most of them on this side of the pond? Wallco is currently my best bet, mostly because they're one of the few suppliers that provide prictures on their web site. Most of the others just provide a list of part numbers and prices, which is not very helpful unless you have a catalog for reference.

Looks like I'm going to need to dig deeper for find the connectors I need.

Here are the descriptions of the zooms and lens controller and photos of the connectors...

1) Cosmicar 7.7 - 75mm 1/2" format, video iris. It has two connectors: one for the iris and the other for the zoom/focus control. They look like:

More detail: The iris connector looks like a round version of a modern square connector:

More detail: The zoom control connector appears to be more obscure:

2) No-name 12.5 - 75mm 1/2" format zoom lens (It just says "TV Zoom Lens"). The connector is a small 8-pin deal that looks like:

3) Pelco MLZ6DT Motorized Zoom Lens Control.

The manual describes the zoom-control "Output" socket as using a AMP CPC type, 14-pin connector. I think this connector from Wallco will work, but can't confirm:

http://www.wallcoinc.com/Tyco_AMP_206044_1_CPC_Connectors_p/wal9-206044-1.htm

I'm at a loss to find the AC connector and will probably rewire this one. (It's just a 24 ac power input, so obviously they were trying to sell some overpriced power supply.)

I understand I can just hack off the connectors and rewire everything, but that would be painful because they're all such high-quality connectors. (Ok, maybe the stupid AC power connector on the back of the control unit should go.) So, if anyone recognizes any of them, please respond.

No way I know of. You can host them on a web server somewhere and then provide us with the URL between '' tags. If you have Yahoo DSL or some other service that provides web hosting, that will work.

bodeekwa, from what I can gather in this forum, the PC-base solution is fine. However, based on my research, it only makes ecomonic sense if you already have a newer model PC to configure as a dedicated DVR. The numbers just don't add up if you need to invest in a new PC. Even then, for a GeoVision setup, the price of the video capture and realtime display cards alone will run pretty close to the price of a dedicated DVR.

G'deal. Will do first thing next week. Thanks.

I was in the same situation as you and went nuts on this forum trying to get a clear idea of which DVRs are "quality" and which are "crap." To add to the confusion, many of the same lower-cost DVRs you see on the web are sold under dozens of different brand names.

My original DVR budget was $1000 or less for a 16-channel DVR. After using the members here as a sounding board, I realized that this budget was not very realistic; so I doubled it and selected a Kodicom unit. I don't have any experience with the lower-cost units I was looking at, but couldn't be happier with the Kodicom.

I plan to write up a full review of this unit soon. There are some features that are lacking and others that could have been designed better, but the unit is rock-solid and produces high quality video.

My main point is this: After learning about most of the features of my DVR, I came to appreciate why these things are so expensive. If you consider what you pay for a run-of-the-mill computer, then add the massive storage and video features, you will realize that most of the multi-channel DVRs are really quite cheap.

If I were to distill all of what I gathered from this forum so far, I'd budget at least $1000 for a four-channel unit and focus on the more "recognizable" brands.

Hope this helps.