securing a home with sales inventory

« Back to Home

Managing Audio And Video Customization For Security Systems

Posted on

Security systems are becoming more robust, with higher quality monitoring and more precise detection systems than in past decades. Many of these features can go unappreciated if you're not taking advantage of everything the system has to offer, and a few details about how modern Audio Video (AV) installation projects come together can help you figure out your security plan's potential.

Understanding Video Quality And Practicality

If you've heard details and boasts about televisions or monitors before, you may hear a few familiar lines about the quality. HD, 4K, pixels, resolution, and many other terms are often thrown around to present the display's greatest qualities.

Those qualities matter, but not quite in ways that are useful for security systems. Especially with home automation, the highest quality possible can become a moot point if there's nothing decent to record, and "better safe than sorry" is too clumsy a term to be used on such a nuanced situation.

The higher the quality, the bigger the video information. Just like internet speeds are needed to make files move faster, your video information is actually going through components and cables at certain speeds--and if you're recording, higher quality means bigger files.

You'll be in a constant balance between getting the highest quality video and the highest amount of storage, and at some point, there is such a thing as too much. Low lighting videos aren't often improved by higher quality unless night vision cameras are being used, and there is a level of good enough that will suffice when trying to identify certain pieces of information.

An AV installation professional can pair you with the right types of cameras to go with a reasonable amount of storage to make sure you get the quality you need without constantly overwriting information or dealing with drive storage that may likely fail from wear and tear before video evidence is necessary.

Audio Options And Recording Strategy

Audio has a similar quality and file size concern, but the files are small enough at the biggest commercial and hobbyist recording levels. There are many techniques being used as people experiment with new ways to present the information.

You can safely experiment with the highest quality audio file systems on the market. Instead, worry about overspending on microphones and supporting devices, as there are only so many ways to capture good audio.

Your main concern is getting a camera with a decent microphone (mic) or getting a good microphone with shielding that can point towards specific sound sources. A studio-quality mic isn't necessary; get something that records speech or sounds at a distance you're comfortable with, then make sure that the mic still works when covered in a protective enclosure or screen guard system.

Contact an AV installation company like Streamline Media Systems to discuss other parts of getting the right mix of customization and surveillance power.


Share