Greetings from Sunny SoCal

xmfan

xmfan

Getting the hang of it
Nov 30, 2017
187
96
Hello All,

I am based around 30 miles east of downtown Los Angeles and currently in the market to research, learn and eventually install a security camera system.

At the high level, when all said and done, I hope to have around 12 (9 outside, 3 inside) cameras installed. When it comes to cameras, I am a noob, however, I am familiar with the technology it relies on (PoE hubs, networking, etc.)

I've been reading a LOT on this forum, trying to better educate myself so I can make an informed decision to purchase the needed hardware.

Below are a couple of questions I have been pondering over and could use feedback from you experts here. If I state something incorrect, apologies in advance and request your correction, guidance and support.

Q1) NVR vs PC vs NAS : I have a core2quad CPU based pc that I can use to dedicate for this purpose. I also am considering a NAS (QNAP or Synology) to use with the security cams but after a couple of cams, I will need to purchase a cam license. At $75 each, that gets expensive. Lastly, getting an NVR seems to be the most cost effective way but I am open to all feedback/recommendations on this topic.

Q2) Cameras: Like most who are just starting with the security cams, it is probably the biggest hurdle. I am not done reading everything on this topic but I am ALL OVER THE MAP on this =). Dahua vs HIKVision vs AMCREST vs SWANN vs FOSCAM. From what I have learned so far, Dahua seems to be the most popular brand. If so, which bullet type camera is most frequently used/recommended ? I am always worried about firmware upgrades, how does one go about getting the latest firmware on these cameras and what is the most preferred online dealer to purchase from online ?

most likely, there will be more questions but I'll stop for now =)

thanks,
XMFan
 
Welcome XMfan,

Q1) NVR vs PC vs NAS : I have a core2quad CPU based pc that I can use to dedicate for this purpose. I also am considering a NAS (QNAP or Synology) to use with the security cams but after a couple of cams, I will need to purchase a cam license. At $75 each, that gets expensive. Lastly, getting an NVR seems to be the most cost effective way but I am open to all feedback/recommendations on this topic.

A: I picked up a Dahua NVR5216-16P-4KS2 once I read the reviews here and decided on the Dahua Starlight cameras ( low light cameras were what I needed the most due to night time drug / gang activity by neighbors ). 16P means it has 16 PoE ports, so I didn't need to buy a switch. I did so because it would be the quickest setup for me.
A lot of people here really like the Blue Iris on a windows PC + PoE switch combination. Not as many people here seem to like the NAS option. Some also like the NVR w/PoE + separate PoE switch.

Q2) Cameras: Like most who are just starting with the security cams, it is probably the biggest hurdle. I am not done reading everything on this topic but I am ALL OVER THE MAP on this =). Dahua vs HIKVision vs AMCREST vs SWANN vs FOSCAM. From what I have learned so far, Dahua seems to be the most popular brand. If so, which bullet type camera is most frequently used/recommended ? I am always worried about firmware upgrades, how does one go about getting the latest firmware on these cameras and what is the most preferred online dealer to purchase from online ?

A: I have one amcrest bullet camera - picked it up here before I learned more, thankfully it is a Dahua OEM so was an easy plug into the NVR and it simply just worked!
Foscam is not well liked, so you want to avoid that one. I picked Dahua due to the starlight models, they are simply the best low light camera I can afford. ( there's some really nice stuff out there... but then I really do not want to spend more money on a camera than I did for my car ;)

During my journey here, I along with giomania started to take some notes, and we would like to share them with you:

Please check out @giomania 's notes:
Dahua Starlight Varifocal Turret (IPC-HDW5231R-Z)

I have also made notes which are a summary of a lot of the reading I've been doing here,:
Looking for some advice and direction!

Have fun joining us here.
 
drunkpenguin said:
If you are comfortable with computers and networking BI is a no-brainer.
Click to expand...

My only concern about BI vs an NVR is power consumption. I already plan on having a separate POE switch (20-25w not counting POE load) and BI appears to require a beefy PC. Electricity is expensive in California and will only increase in price so it is a factor.
 
Mr_D said:
My only concern about BI vs an NVR is power consumption. I already plan on having a separate POE switch (20-25w not counting POE load) and BI appears to require a beefy PC. Electricity is expensive in California and will only increase in price so it is a factor.
Click to expand...

Hi Mr_D,

I picked up a NVR5216-16P-4KS2 and updated the firmware - it is working very well for my needs and takes very little power ( compared to my PCs ), tho the fan is loud - so keep it out of your bedroom.
 
mat200 said:
Hi Mr_D,

I picked up a NVR5216-16P-4KS2 and updated the firmware - it is working very well for my needs and takes very little power ( compared to my PCs ), tho the fan is loud - so keep it out of your bedroom.
Click to expand...

Yeah I'm looking at the non-POE version of that one. They claim under 9.5w not counting the hard drive. Any BI-capable PC is going to be several times that with the CPU under load. I'm thinking of putting the NVR in the TV cabinet with the receiver & Roku. I'm hoping it'll look like a DVD player and get ignored.
 
Mr_D said:
Yeah I'm looking at the non-POE version of that one. They claim under 9.5w not counting the hard drive. Any BI-capable PC is going to be several times that with the CPU under load. I'm thinking of putting the NVR in the TV cabinet with the receiver & Roku. I'm hoping it'll look like a DVD player and get ignored.
Click to expand...

Hi Mr_D,

The media center is one of the more popular places for thieves... maybe good to place a dummy box there and hide the NVR elsewhere...
 
mat200 said:
Hi Mr_D,

The media center is one of the more popular places for thieves... maybe good to place a dummy box there and hide the NVR elsewhere...
Click to expand...

Good to know. I have a 5 bay NAS, switch, router, and modem in the top of my home office closet that I figured would be a likely target too. I don't have a lot of other places with both power and network that I could place an NVR. Maybe I'll stick it in a metal box on the garage wall labeled "sprinkler timer".
 
Mr_D said:
Good to know. I have a 5 bay NAS, switch, router, and modem in the top of my home office closet that I figured would be a likely target too. I don't have a lot of other places with both power and network that I could place an NVR. Maybe I'll stick it in a metal box on the garage wall labeled "sprinkler timer".
Click to expand...

Hi Mr_D,

If you get a separate PoE switch and NVR you can then easily find locations for the NVR which may be less noticed.
 
Hi All,
thank you so much for the feedback. I can see there are many ways to slice and dice a security cam configuration.

A synology/QNAP NAS, for me is not a viable option at this point due to paying $75-ish camera license. I do have a PC laying around so no cost there. I currently run a couple of latops 24/7 already, i suppose adding one more won't break the bank, in terms of electricity usage, I hope :-)

I will, however need to purchase a PoE switch.

I am still reading the threads to determine which cams to go with. Dahua certainly seems to be the top with its low light capability for night recording. If I can find something else in the $100 range that is similar in performance, it would be great.

thanks !!
 
xmfan said:
..
I am still reading the threads to determine which cams to go with. Dahua certainly seems to be the top with its low light capability for night recording. If I can find something else in the $100 range that is similar in performance, it would be great.

thanks !!
Click to expand...

Hi xmfan,

Suggest looking at the Dahua starlight fixed lens turret model, which iirc is about $120-130
 
Solid core door, and good deadbolt on the closet.
But it's rare perps go after such items.

Mr_D said:
Good to know. I have a 5 bay NAS, switch, router, and modem in the top of my home office closet that I figured would be a likely target too. I don't have a lot of other places with both power and network that I could place an NVR. Maybe I'll stick it in a metal box on the garage wall labeled "sprinkler timer".
Click to expand...
 
Mr_D said:
My only concern about BI vs an NVR is power consumption. I already plan on having a separate POE switch (20-25w not counting POE load) and BI appears to require a beefy PC. Electricity is expensive in California and will only increase in price so it is a factor.
Click to expand...
Power consumption on the average BI pc is 25-50w...you want a modern intel i5 or i7 depending on load. The extra 20-60 dollars a year to run it will be well worth it.
 
looney2ns said:
Solid core door, and good deadbolt on the closet.
But it's rare perps go after such items.
Click to expand...

The closet with all my network gear is a bedroom closet with flimsy sliding doors which have been removed, so no security is possible. I did find a space in the cabinet above the refrigerator which has an outlet in an adjacent cabinet. It shouldn't be too hard to run Ethernet into it from the attic. I don't know if anyone bothers looking there for loot.
 
fenderman said:
Power consumption on the average BI pc is 25-50w...you want a modern intel i5 or i7 depending on load. The extra 20-60 dollars a year to run it will be well worth it.
Click to expand...

I'm looking at a potential draw of 100w with cameras, switch and recorder. That's $17/mo so I'm looking at any way to reduce it.
 
Mr_D said:
I'm looking at a potential draw of 100w with cameras, switch and recorder. That's $17/mo so I'm looking at any way to reduce it.
Click to expand...
the cameras and switch are a fixed draw..wont matter if you use an NVR or a PC..fyi most cams only draw 2-3w daytime 3-4 nightime with ir...like I said the small increase using a pc nvr is well worth the cost.
 
fenderman said:
the cameras and switch are a fixed draw..wont matter if you use an NVR or a PC..fyi most cams only draw 2-3w daytime 3-4 nightime with ir...like I said the small increase using a pc nvr is well worth the cost.
Click to expand...

OK it looks like I was over-estimating the camera's power draw based off the specs. When they write something like <8.5w is that just a short-duration startup draw or something so you can size the POE switch properly?
 
Mr_D said:
OK it looks like I was over-estimating the camera's power draw based off the specs. When they write something like <8.5w is that just a short-duration startup draw or something so you can size the POE switch properly?
Click to expand...

Hi Mr_D,

Typically when the IR lights are on is when you will see the higher power draw.
 
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