DVR card

[appytiser]

Hi guys, Im getting more security minded as the dark nights approach and going by the last couple of years that means problems again with the local scum damaging cars and property etc . So what I would like to do is install a DVR card, one of those that you see on ebay, so I can set up a cctv system. Are these cards easy to install ?. Im more mechanically minded but can manage PC stuff after reading instructions numerous times Can anyone recommend a particular seller of these units, give advice on installation, or just point me in the right direction
Cheers

 

[breezer]

if i think it is what i think it is (allows you to record video onto your pc) they probably slot into a currently empty slot, but the question is how much space have you on your hd?

 

[appytiser]

yes Breezer your right !!!. As I said Im nore mechanical than PC wizard so this is my PC's vital statistics. P4 2.66GHz 512MB ram 80GB hard disk.
If I go to defrag it tells me that " RESTDONE(D: ) 99% free" I believe this is my partioned bit, and HDD(C: ) is 80%free.
Does this answer your question ?

 

[breezer]

it depends on how much the "recording rate is set for, i should suppose, i suspect it would be better if you get a 2nd hd installed for the sole purpose of recording (just my opinion)

I am not sure about 80% free(may be wrong) try this

mycomputer>(then select you hd) right click on it,>properties

a pie chart should come up showing how much is left / used

 

[appytiser]

Just done that and the pie chart shows "used 13.8GB" "free 58.7". I mainly use my PC for tinternet mate so thats why I've got the free space. I feel as if Im apologising

 

[breezer]

i would still be inclined to get a 2nd hd, that way if ever it goes wrong /corrupts your pc should still work, but you could always try it and see

 

[appytiser]

I would only want to record cctv on thu, fri and saturday night for about 4 hours at a time, from 11 till 3am. Recordings would be deleted on a daily basis. So how much we talking for a second HD. And is it easy to install ?

 

[breezer]

oh, i see. hd price depends on size of drive and where you get it from (ebuyer are good) almost as easy to install as a card

there was a recent post detailing how to install one, its the same for installing a cd drive, or cdrw/ dvd (you get the idea)

one IDE cable, one power cable, thats it (oh and move jumper)

 

[Igorian]

Any particular reason for using a PC as the capture device? It might be cheaper to use a video recorder.

 

[breezer]

it maybe that videos only record for 3 hours, he wants 4, also used constantly the video head will wear out

 

[Igorian]

could use a long play video

 

[breezer]

poorer quality then. also less expece with pc, since to be posting on here you would assume he has one

 

[appytiser]

Any particular reason for using a PC as the capture device? It might be cheaper to use a video recorder.

I was thinking of setting-up two cameras cos one will not give me the full field of vision. A dvr card isnt expensive and will permit upto 4 cameras. I dont know if it would be a truly practical system so any advice is appreciated.

 

[breezer]

could you not change the camera lens?

 

[AdamW]

Old post I know, but thought I would stick my two pen'orth of oar in with a mixed metaphor:

The kind of datarates you would be looking at for your purposes are around 500 megabytes an hour. the image on the best of CCTV cameras, under IR illumination, is not great enough to warrant DVD-like recording rates!

So, if you wanted to leave it for 4 hours then you have plenty of space. About 2GB a night.

I don't see this as much of a HDD-fragmenting activity either, as you are using very little of the space anyway. So, no real advantage to a second drive.

However, if you stuck in, for example, a 200GB drive (around £65-70) then you could store several months of CCTV recordings on there. Might be useful, might not be.

But as it is, you have enough space to store several nights of video on your computer. Perhaps you could use a DVD writer (around £30, even £25 if you shop around) to archive any particularly "interesting" nights of footage ready to hand over to the police/council?

PVR cards are getting cheaper all the time. I was going to suggest using a plain old TV card with some software called "Dr DivX" but to be honest it wouldn't save you any money and would potentially be a source of hassle. So I won't suggest it!