Non-technologically advanced looking for advice

M

mjroth.eng

n3wb
Mar 26, 2023
15
19
Iowa
Hello! I've looked through the forums several times in the last couple years, and I'm finally ready to dive into my first setup. Andy/Empire? is helping me with the cameras. I had a friend who put his system together here and suggested blue iris and this forum. I picked up a spare computer from work and am ordering a 4 TB hard drive for it. That's as far as I've gotten. I am not at all savvy in technology related things but I like learning.

Could someone point me in the direction of where I might find a "beginners guide" to the hardware side of things? I love visuals! There are a LOT of posts on here about a lot of things, but it seems they are beyond my knowledge at this point. I'm trying to figure out what I need for hardware/infrastructure in addition to Blue Iris & cameras to get started before I move on to all the advanced topics involved with setup. Cables are pulled, host computer and hard drive procured, cameras almost ordered, where do i go next?!

Thank you for you help and patience.

-Matt
 
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The main thing you'll need beyond cameras, computer, and cables is a PoE ethernet switch. This depends on how many cameras you plan to install and how power hungry they are (a big PTZ needs for power).

Hopefully you installed high quality cable and not Copper Clad Aluminum (CCA). If you don't have experience terminating cables that's something you should practice before you try to do it on a ladder.

If you haven't found your way there yet, you should check out the wiki.
 
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Thank you for the response. I'm looking at eventually building out to about 8 exterior cameras and 6 interior cameras. For now, I'm starting with 6-7 cameras total. The cabling is a mixture of CAT5E and CAT6, so no copper clad wire! I'll look through the wiki link more this evening. Looks like a lot of information. I also appreciate the switch suggestion. I'll definitely look into that!

I had intended to pursue using Blue Iris on a computer because that is what a friend of mine had done. As I was reading through various threads, there are mentions of SmartPSS and an NVR in a discussion about dewarping in live view. I'd maybe only have two 360 cameras. Is there a place that compares the benefits of these two different system approaches? I much prefer simple, but I also want a reliable home camera system.
 
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I came here a couple years ago in the same situation. This worked well for me: order a single Dahua (EmpireTech Camera). I ordered the 2231 2MP varifocal which is still available in the Ipcamtalk store. Buy a BI License (and download to your PC) from the Ipcamtalk store, setup a test bench, all you need is a short ethernet cable which you should already have laying around.

ETA: Oops, you need a POE switch or POE injector :facepalm: TPLInk makes a POE injector which can be found on Amazon for $20. This only supports one cam but is handy for the test bench.

There are instructions on this site for getting the first cam up and running, the cam also comes with instructions. You should be up and running within the first hour of getting everything hooked up. It is really a 5 minute job but I mention the hour for hiccups and figuring out a few stumbling blocks. Post any issues on this site and you will get an answer the same day.

I run 6 cams now, several more need to be mounted when I find the time.
 
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mjroth.eng said:
The cabling is a mixture of CAT5E and CAT6, so no copper clad wire!
Click to expand...
Just be aware that there is a TON of CAT-5e and 6 out there that is CCA!

Read the specs well, ask the vendor questions if not stated or unclear, look for UL approval and buy a reputable brand from a reputable vendor like True Cable, Monoprice and others.

You want solid (not stranded) copper (not CCA) with a jacket rated for it's application: CMR (Riser) for use in walls, attics, crawl spaces, between floors. Use CMX with outdoor-rated jacket when UV and moisture is an issue, use direct burial-rated jacket if buried OR even if in underground conduit, as water does get in.
 
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Thanks for the great feedback! I will definitely follow the advice and "workbench it" before getting carried away on a ladder. I just got home and it looks like I have COM-Link Cat6 UTP and Southwire Cat5e UTP. I think this is the acceptable kind and it looks to be solid instead of stranded albeit I don't see "CMR" on it anywhere. I'll look at getting a switch ordered tonight.

Does anyone have a suggestion where I could see a good pros/cons comparison of using a computer with Blue Iris vs. a NVR type setup? I have a couple youtube videos to watch tonight, but they look to be more about setup than a comparison. I'm curious how folks with experience with both might think of the two.
 
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That link was extremely helpful in consolidating a digestible summary of opinions amongst what feels like millions of "threads." Clearly the path I was on is the right one, whether or not Blue Iris can dewarp that one or two 360 camera live. I got some other great reading material to dive into from those as well, but I satisfied enough with my course to pull the trigger on my cameras having just pulled the last wire this evening while I start reading through what to do next. Thank you for the advice and not making me feel too dumb.
 
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I don't disagree after looking through the various pictures and views in the forum coupled with now knowing Blue Iris cannot dewarp live. I have one room on the main level that I'd like to watch two doors. It requires 160 degrees to catch them both. On the outside, I did not pull enough wires and have two locations that would require 210 degress to pick up what I'd like to see. Knowing what I know now, I probably would have done several things different on the exterior cameras. They are also 14' off the ground since my grade sucks.

I'm planning on trying one IPC-EW5541-AS inside to see how it works and starting with IPC-T5442T-ZE on the outside and selectively choosing my view angle barring any advice.
 
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I have a large shop next to my house that I'm working on finishing. I'll use this new knowledge to better locate my cameras when I finish it next year.
 
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Reinforcing the mention that I know nothing about how this stuff works, can I simply put one of those splitters up in my soffit and install two cameras? I thought about a splitter earlier but assumed I probably had to have two wires for two cameras. That could be a game changer if there isn't an easy 180 degree camera option.
 
 
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mjroth.eng said:
Reinforcing the mention that I know nothing about how this stuff works, can I simply put one of those splitters up in my soffit and install two cameras? I thought about a splitter earlier but assumed I probably had to have two wires for two cameras. That could be a game changer if there isn't an easy 180 degree camera option.
Click to expand...

The link I put down will work for two cameras (or daisy chain it for another), but as pointed out don't try searching for something called a splitter as most of those won't work for POE cameras
 
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Very helpful suggestions. In the interest of time, I think I'm going to get to start with cams I listed to see how well they work. If I don't like the view, I can move them and replace with one of these great options. I've made a note to come back and look through these suggestions in more detail. Thank you for the suggestions!
 
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