Build an affordable P.A. system for my driveway?

[Steve.L]

My google-fu is failing me today. PA systems are priced quite high online, I don't need a live concert system , just a couple basic bullhorns and an amp/transmitter, or whatever the proper lingo is.

I want to be able to yell at assholes from inside the house while monitoring my console.

Any ideas? My search-fu here on IPCT is also sucking, can't pull up anything.

 

[Holbs]

Professionally, we install Valcom or Bogen speakers for outdoor purposes or warehouse environments. They have variety of horns, speakers from. Majority of those speakers are 5 watt horns you see everywhere that last outside for 20 years before failing.
For a home setting, any home amplifier will work. Heck, even one of those $60 mini-amps via amazon. Will have to run weather proof 70v wire out to driveway if underground. 70v wire is the same as home stereo systems (I believe as it's just a pair Red/Black 18gauge stranded wire).

https://www.valcom.com/products/category/analog-speakers---horns

Of course...now how will you page? Will have to get a Mr. Microphone (hay good looking, i'll be back to pick you up later! only us old folks would remember this commercial). Are you looking for a standard microphone or something special such as paging from smartphone or to play specific .wav files during events?

 

[Steve.L]

Mr. Microphone, yes, a classic! Thanks for the leads. Garage is attached, so no buried cable. I do need a mic of some sort.
Did you see the member who posted the bear spray video? He made a comment in that video that is quote-worthy: "GET THE FUCK OFF MY PRAAAHPERTY!!!" It's a classic. I may be misguided, but I'm thinking I can utlize those driveway motion detector alarms and then go to the console to observe activity and yell deterring comments over the P.A.

See, I have a stalker who's been harassing me since November, and this past weekend he's escalated to driving past my driveway and throwing his Jack in the Box trash in my driveway in the middle of the night. He's apparently so stupid that he doesn't realize I have everything on video, including his plates, from nearly every drive-by since November. And the fuckin cops don't want to hear shit about it until he commits a crime...I'm afraid his next escalation may be vandalism to one of my cars or worse, set my house ablaze. Who knows what the fuck makes assholes like this tick? So until I can nail the asshole committing a crime, I'm apparently supposed to keep picking up his litter (which he did two nights in a row now) and wondering which nights he's going to troll by to get his jollies and be on edge wondering how far he's going to take this.

 

[wittaj]

Oh @Holbs is familiar with stalkers.

@IReallyLikePizza2 just takes the trash back to their house and doxxes them LOL.

MY OWN NEIGHBORS throwing their empty modellos outside my house

It never ends, does it? I looked up their plate, turns out they were around the corner... I went and gave it back to them. They denied it of course, then once I said I had it on video, said they had nowhere to put it (yet their giant city trash can was right there) Next time I'll get my...

ipcamtalk.com

 

[Steve.L]

I read Pizza's threads with empathy, that shit sucks.

 

[garycrist]

I hurt for you too. See my post of "Meet My Little Friend". A true Wiener (sp) from Cali.

 

[Holbs]

Mr. Microphone, yes, a classic! Thanks for the leads. Garage is attached, so no buried cable. I do need a mic of some sort.
Did you see the member who posted the bear spray video? He made a comment in that video that is quote-worthy: "GET THE FUCK OFF MY PRAAAHPERTY!!!" It's a classic. I may be misguided, but I'm thinking I can utlize those driveway motion detector alarms and then go to the console to observe activity and yell deterring comments over the P.A.

See, I have a stalker who's been harassing me since November, and this past weekend he's escalated to driving past my driveway and throwing his Jack in the Box trash in my driveway in the middle of the night. He's apparently so stupid that he doesn't realize I have everything on video, including his plates, from nearly every drive-by since November. And the fuckin cops don't want to hear shit about it until he commits a crime...I'm afraid his next escalation may be vandalism to one of my cars or worse, set my house ablaze. Who knows what the fuck makes assholes like this tick? So until I can nail the asshole committing a crime, I'm apparently supposed to keep picking up his litter (which he did two nights in a row now) and wondering which nights he's going to troll by to get his jollies and be on edge wondering how far he's going to take this.

yea... like @wittaj said, I had a slashing-of-tires stalker (multiple times). Never opted for an outdoor speaker though.
In your situation...hmmm...
You should file a complaint, at the minimum. Get in on paper and filed. That's a start. I learned cops are one thing, but captains & judges are another. Get some evidence built up even if the person drives by your house slowly and just looks at your house.

 

[Steve.L]

yea... like @wittaj said, I had a slashing-of-tires stalker (multiple times). Never opted for an outdoor speaker though.
In your situation...hmmm...
You should file a complaint, at the minimum. Get in on paper and filed. That's a start. I learned cops are one thing, but captains & judges are another. Get some evidence built up even if the person drives by your house slowly and just looks at your house.

I'm all for getting the whole thing documented as an incident with event timelines and all, but there's apparently no way to do so without a crime having been committed, at least here in San Jose. Call on the phone, they direct you to their website...go to the website, and answer a bunch of YES questions, and then a bunch of NO questions, and if you get past all those filter questions, THEN you can start your report. Well, when you get to the question "Has a crime been committed?" Well, then you're stopped dead in your tracks. My uncle, a retired cop, has confirmed that, even with the littering, still no crime has been committed. WTF. Apparently they have zero interest in diffusing a situation before it escalates into something serious. In this case, an ounce of prevention is nowhere near worth a pound of cure.

 

[JNDATHP]

Using a PA system to express your displeasure to this stalker could be interpreted as escalating. Just something to think about.

 

[Timokreon]

So Penal Code 374.4 isn't enforced by law enforcement? Perhaps a call to your local city council with attached videos.

 

[Mark_M]

I'm putting up vibration speakers under the eve. I don't need it very loud and I want it fully hidden.

On the subject of audio, I've got a few audio files I like that scares people.

GLaDOS voices are from uberduck.ai .

---

As for you situation. It sucks!
Could you do something like a harassment report or something about stalking?
That leading to a restraint order AND THEN a criminal charge if they come past again (you've got good evidence).

 

[Holbs]

I'm all for getting the whole thing documented as an incident with event timelines and all, but there's apparently no way to do so without a crime having been committed, at least here in San Jose. Call on the phone, they direct you to their website...go to the website, and answer a bunch of YES questions, and then a bunch of NO questions, and if you get past all those filter questions, THEN you can start your report. Well, when you get to the question "Has a crime been committed?" Well, then you're stopped dead in your tracks. My uncle, a retired cop, has confirmed that, even with the littering, still no crime has been committed. WTF. Apparently they have zero interest in diffusing a situation before it escalates into something serious. In this case, an ounce of prevention is nowhere near worth a pound of cure.

you file what is called a "report". They do add up. Here in Reno, NV, citizens can even file a report online with the ability to send pix & vids.

 

[Flintstone61]

Yeah create a paper trail and video trail. Converter #5 thief visited my backlot about 4-6 times prior to executing his removal of a Ford Escape Converter. But I only kept jan 13 and jan 15 visits in a folder. I'd have to go back thru whatever is lieft on the drive from Feb to watch all the entries into the back lot. ( no time for that)
I gotta review back lot entry every morning and decide to create a folder or not on Unknown vehicles entering the premises. If I don't then i create a lot of work for myself trying to review " tape"
But I was able to " build a case" to some extent with my LPR cams that he had in fact had prior entries to the Premises, which I included on the Initial report to a new " website" for the County sherrif to upload footage regarding a " case#" generated by the responding officer. GNX 612 forever burned in my brain LOL

 

[Steve.L]

Hi guys, thanks for your interest and help. I will respond to all comments/inquiries soon, but I'm preoccupied: Assface has resorted to tossing his household trash bag(s) onto my driveway area as of early this morning (oh, and he switched it up from Jack in the Box to McDonald's).

Okay, for my first time ever, I'm exporting videos in the other room as I type here, with the intent of stringing them all together and building my first video to share with you all.

QUESTION: when playing back my MP4 exports, they are "lighter" in color and somewhat "noisy" compared to the BVRs viewed directly in BI. Am I overlooking something in the export process or is there a way to remedy that?

Settings during export are:
OUTPUT FORMAT: MP4
INCLUDE AUDIO: No
Re-encode video: Yes
Add Text/Graphic Overlays: Yes
Create New File: Yes

Meanwhile, Ima go pull up last week's clips and save those out too. I'm also guessing that if I don't want BI to toss certain clips when they reach their expiration point, I can manually save out those BVR files to my SSD (away from BI management) and always preserve them without losing them in part of the Clips/Archiving scheme, yeah?

Thanks!

 

[Steve.L]

By the way, on my MP4 exports, I am not running substreams, so these should be full high def.

 

[Steve.L]

Alright guys, here's my very first assembled video, I'm kind of proud of it. All the clips are in real-time except the two LPR shots coming and going, I slow-lapsed those for readability.

This is comprised of all the cams I have out front at this time. I wish the video didn't seem hazy and noisy, but since nobody responded to any of my inquiries about how to sharpen and crispen up the MP4 exports out of B.I., I guess it just is what it is...suffice to say that the MP4's aren't nearly as nice as the BVRs viewed in BI.

Anyway, get a load of this cock-sucker, like he owns the street. This is the first of three - so far - trash dumpings he's done at my driveway.

 

[Flintstone61]

Good job! Probably the Zodiac Killer. careful.

 

[Steve.L]

Shit dude, don't be scarin' me like that...but you're right, I do need to exercise caution.

I have an appointment with a P.I. this Wednesday, he's gonna hunt this S.O.B. down for me and then we'll take it from there...I have a couple of options, at least.

 

[wittaj]

Just send that plate to @IReallyLikePizza2 and he can track that for you LOL.

 

[samplenhold]

Re-encode video: Yes

how to sharpen and crispen up the MP4 exports out of B.I.

Uncheck the re-encode box.

The output should be as good as the view in BI. Maybe try AVI output.

On another thought. Have you considered trying to get a restraining order against this guy?