Teaser Info and Mini Review - Empiretech B52IR-X3 Triple Lens Camera

[Ri22o]

I just received my B52IR-X3 triple lens camera and wanted to throw up some information to answer some questions. I won't go into a full, in depth review but do plan to add more information to the first couple posts of this thread as I find time.

You can currently purchase this through Andy's store here.
At the time of posting, pricing is approximately $289.99 USD.

The camera is a bigger than a B54IR-Z4E, but not much longer. It is also pictured next to a T54IR-ZE.





The specs claim a vertical adjustment of 0-70. I believe this is only due to clearance between the upper corner of the housing and the above surface. If you were to space the mounting flange down, you would be able to get it to 90 or better.





The Live page in the GUI shows all 3 FOVs and you can swap between Main and Sub stream for each.



It appears each channel's settings are able to be adjusted independently, this even includes IR levels. However, Day/Night is only available in the settings for the Distant channel.

 

[Ri22o]

Reversed.

 

[Ri22o]

Reversed.

 

[Ri22o]

Reversed.

 

[David L]

Very nice, thank you for taking the time to share...

 

[EMPIRETECANDY]

Thanks a lot for your sharing @Ri22o , it's a crazy good long range triple camera esp at low light. Hopefully you will share us some great videos!

 

[Ri22o]

Thanks a lot for your sharing @Ri22o , it's a crazy good long range triple camera esp at low light. Hopefully you will share us some great videos!

It will take some time. It's going to be a lot to figure out and make the settings right.

 

[Timokreon]

Yeah...think that will be a spring purchase for me. Covering garage door/driveway, mailbox and then the street for vehicles, etc... looks good.

 

[Heavyopp]

That’s a lot of reversing…

Curious to see how this performs.

 

[Ri22o]

That’s a lot of reversing…

Curious to see how this performs.

Got to keep the people on their toes. I may not even use those replies, but wanted something at the top just in case.

I was messing with it some more this morning. In addition to having IR control per channel, you can also control the IR LEDs L and R. If you need less IR up close on the R side of the FOV, you can dial it down.

IVS ONVIF triggers only come from the Near (Panoramic) channel, so a trigger rule will need to be set up in BI to trigger the Mid and Far channels if you want them to switch from Sub to Main (I plan to do this by triggering a group). IVS triggers can be set across the 3 FOV, but they all live on the Near channel.

Day/Night switch is determined by the Far channel. I haven't been successful with this yet, but it's also staring at a wall in the basement and likely not thinking there is enough light to switch. Once I am able to get it outside I am sure it will work as expected.

 

[Ri22o]

If anyone wants any specific screenshots or has any questions, let me know.

 

[David L]

My main interest is the IR at night, hopefully in total darkness. Appreciate all your input...
No rush since Andy is out of stock on these...

 

[Ri22o]

My main interest is the IR at night, hopefully in total darkness. Appreciate all your input...
No rush since Andy is out of stock on these...

I need to see how I want to get it temporarily wired in, but I may try to get it mounted outside after work. There may be a some light, but the area behind my house is devoid of street lights.

The ability to dial down the IR for the different channels should be helpful. Full blast at distance and not so much up close.

 

[David L]

I need to see how I want to get it temporarily wired in, but I may try to get it mounted outside after work. There may be a some light, but the area behind my house is devoid of street lights.

The ability to dial down the IR for the different channels should be helpful. Full blast at distance and not so much up close.

So there is 3 IR LEDs?

 

[Ri22o]

So there is 3 IR LEDs?

8 LEDs

I will grab some pictures with various settings so you can see how they work.

 

[Ri22o]

My observation is the top 4 LEDs are for distance, next 2 are near, and bottom 2 are mid-range.

All LEDs on.



The GUI showing the LED adjustment for Areas 1 and 2. (L and R)




Below, the Far LED Area 1 is set to 100, Area 2 is set to 0. Near LED Area 1 is set to 0, Area 2 is set to 100.

You can see what I was talking about before with side-to-side control of the IR power. The reflectors also appear to be shaped to better direct the IR for the different distances.

 

[Ri22o]

I was able to cobble together some stuff and get it mounted on the back of the fence about 18" over from the current easement camera.

I am sure I may find more, but currently my biggest gripe is the adjustability of the armature. All three adjustments are very coarse and not infinite. I don't know why there is a level embedded in the top of the housing if you don't have the ability to sneak up on the adjustment. I am trying to shoot a gap between two trees and I can't set it in between them. I either get an adjustment tooth that puts the right tree in the FOV or an adjustment tooth that puts the left tree in the FOV. The 5442 bullets, even though they have teeth, allow a much finer adjustment. I may need to adjust more to the right and go through that gap instead, unfortunately.

These are the three images from the triple lens (still on defaults), with the current easement 5442 at the bottom.




Current 5442 (2.8mm) FOV



And these are some IVS triggers from during setup.

 

[David L]

Very nice. If you leave the TripleCAM there you could swing your 5442 to the right to capture that footage. I am impressed so far. The 3.6mm is a nice view and the 25mm goes quite the distance...

Trees, love them except when they block CAM views We have a young tree like yours that we will be moving now that I have the Thermal CAM in place, it blocks the view of our Easement where the deer like to hangout...

Just curious, what do you think the distance to your neighbor's light pole? (Third Pic)

 

[Ri22o]

Very nice. If you leave the TripleCAM there you could swing your 5442 to the right to capture that footage. I am impressed so far. The 3.6mm is a nice view and the 25mm goes quite the distance...

Trees, love them except when the block CAM views We have a young tree like yours that we will be moving now that I have the Thermal CAM in place, it blocks the view of our Easement where the deer like to hangout...

Just curious, what do you think the distance to your neighbor's light pole? (Third Pic)

When I went through the hassle of trenching ethernet and power back to the fence I also trenched ethernet to the other side of the gate. If this camera works for me, then I may consider putting one on the other side of the gate, crossing over this FOV to get the path from the other direction as well.

This summer I took out the ornamental cherry the builders had planted outside the front porch. It was a nice tree, but it was going to be too big for where it was planted. It also was in the way of my LPR and PTZ, so that helped justify its removal as well...

I forgot that street light is back there, but the Google machine says 215'.

 

[David L]

When those trees mature the trunks will be quite a bit wider blocking more view. But only blocking view behind them, for security footage the view in front is what you want.

I will say you can definitely Identify on the 3.6mm and the 12mm which is nice. The 25mm Recognize. The sidewalk is a good focal point.