Defender SN 501 System questions

[greyeagle55 0]

Hello everyone,

I'm new to the boards and after looking around and searching for a bit I've not found an answer to my questions.

I'm trying to help some friends who without much research went and bought this Defender SN 501 system for their store. It's a 16 channel and they run 16 cameras, it has a very small 500GB HDD. I have read their manual backwards and forwards, I've been online to the company website and had a chat with them, I've called them and spoken to different people, I've read the online manual for this system, which is different by the way than the one my friends have, all to no avail.

I want to setup an external HDD for my friends on this system in other words a hard drive in an enclosure that is hooked up by the USB port on the front. I'm being told that all I can do is use a 32GB flash drive or hook up a portable CD/DVD burner to get the files that are on this system. I keep asking Why? What is the difference between using a flash drive and a external HDD? I keep not getting any answer but " you can't use anything but a flash drive or burner".

Would one of the experts here have any idea why this is? Is there a way around it?

If there isn't would buying another DVR to hook up their cameras to solve the problem? What type of DVR would they need for something like what they want to do?

I know nothing and less than nothing about a security system, I build and repair home computers so I have a little knowledge in that direction but nothing like this.

I would surely appreciate any ideas, thoughts, information or suggestions on this.

Thanks very much.

[tomcctv 187]

Hi. i think what you are asking is can you use the usb as extra storage ??? no that is not possable it is used just for backup ..... and is limited to size. you might be better just going from 500gb to 1tb drive. (if your dvr supports it.

[greyeagle55 0]

thank you very much Tom I appreciate your help. Yes, that's basically what it boils down too. They wanted to use a 2 TB external drive that when the little 500GB was full it would just start to store footage or clips as defender calls them on the other drive or at the least be able to hook up the external drive and take the clips off of the internal drive and put them on that drive to store them for later use and viewing in other words to backup the files.

I understand now that they can't do that I still don't understand why, what the difference would be using a flash drive to get the files or using an external drive to get the files but I guess that is just something that I'll never know.

I did ask defender about switching out the internal drive, 500GB to a 1.5 TB which they say it will take but I was told if I did that it would void their warranty. So they are just stuck with either doing daily disk burns or buying a whole lot of flash drives.

I think that if they could find a DVR that would accommodate their 16 cameras they would be better off. Do you think that would work? Is there such a DVR that would do that? Are camera cables kind of universal or do they require special ports and plugs and special DVR's?

thanks again very much for your help.

[groovyman 0]

I understand now that they can't do that I still don't understand why, what the difference would be using a flash drive to get the files or using an external drive to get the files but I guess that is just something that I'll never know.

It's simple - some DVRs have features that others don't. The Defender SN 501 supports 1 HDD up to 1.5TB, period.

 

The USB port is used for backing up video, not adding additional storage. The 32GB is a limit of the OS on the DVR not being able to recognize a FAT32 partition larger than 32GB. Although it's possible to format a 2TB HDD as FAT32 using third party utilities the DVR might not recognize it. This 32GB FAT32 limitation has been around for a long time and is nothing new.

 

Typically, to use an external HDD as additional storage, the standalone DVR would need an eSATA port and the feature to support multiple hard drives. There are plenty of standalone DVRs with this feature and even more that support multiple internal hard drives.

 

By the way, I hate the BS marketing of that Defender DVR. They list "Recording Time: Max 2.5 years with 500G HDD." They leave out the part that the DVR needs to be set at the lowest resolution and frame rate to achieve that. Essentially, they may not be lying, but it's very deceiving.

[groovyman 0]

I did ask defender about switching out the internal drive, 500GB to a 1.5 TB which they say it will take but I was told if I did that it would void their warranty. So they are just stuck with either doing daily disk burns or buying a whole lot of flash drives.

Wonderful company - swapping out a hard drive voids a warranty. So silly.

 

I think that if they could find a DVR that would accommodate their 16 cameras they would be better off. Do you think that would work? Is there such a DVR that would do that?

Absolutely.

 

Are camera cables kind of universal or do they require special ports and plugs and special DVR's?

Yes, yes and yes. Most DVRs use BNC video inputs. The one they have now uses BNC. So, just make sure any replacement also uses BNC. This shouldn't be a problem as just about all DVRs you'll look at will use BNC video inputs.

[tomcctv 187]

I did ask defender about switching out the internal drive, 500GB to a 1.5 TB which they say it will take but I was told if I did that it would void their warranty.

 

 

hi yes that is the same with most if bought when fitted. but i had a look at the sales link some say record for 2 years and this link just cracks me up.

 

 

Product Description

The SN501-16CH-006 is a do-it-yourself video security package that has it all. Protect your property, valuables, and family with advanced features that you can setup yourself. Know who enters your property even when you are away with the online viewing feature that lets you check in from any computer in the world with Internet Explorer. Access your DVR's live footage from your smart phone. This security system is loaded with user-friendly features that will help keep your business or home safe and secure. The SN501-16CH-006 is an effective and simple security solution that can record over 8 years of continuous video on the built-in 500GB hard drive.

 

 

thats on Amazon.

 

 

i dont know what your customer is looking for in data storage but they might be better looking at setting the dvr to its optimum settings i.e motion record only.

 

some DVRs like the aver will backup via usb from a time given. but then you are just wasting money on hard drives. 16 cameras on a aver set to smart record on 1tb drive will give 25-30 days storage

[groovyman 0]

The SN501-16CH-006 is an effective and simple security solution that can record over 8 years of continuous video on the built-in 500GB hard drive.

Well, if it's set on motion record at the lowest settings and there's no motion.....

[greyeagle55 0]

You all are just wonderful, Thank you so much for your information and your help! I'm a computer person and just have no knowledge at all about these things but I surely feel I'm learning something here! " title="Applause" />

I'm going to pass on your suggestions and information and ideas to my friends. Just makes me so angry that they were basically lied to in so many pretty words about what this system really could and couldn't do.

Thank you again to all of you! I will be recommending this forum to anyone who needs help with things like this.