Inexpensive solid state in Car Video System

[Russ Noble]

Thanks again Sandy.

Hmm.... Had a look through amazon and a heap of other places as well. Not that easy to find a cheap mini TV in PAL with video input. Best I can find is here in NZ, $160 (about $US120) 7". Might have to forget about viewing it at the track and may just have to drag my home 29'' TV into the workshop to set up the camera position.:cussing:

Dammit, with this carcam it seems there are low priced options that are not that satisfactory and high priced ones that do the job but nothing in between

There are some things about this GT40 build that provide a real challenge !!

Cheers

 

[Sandy]

Amazon is where I got the LCD TV it was about $110 USD if I recall. It has been a while. Some of the DVD/LCD TV's may also have video in, but hard to say as most of the info is sketchy in the descriptions.

And don't worry the day you get something HDTV will be required and you will have to update everything again...

If you can find a good camcorder with Video Inputs you might be able to put something together. I think a couple newer camcorder can record to a memory card, but don't know the pricing or capabilities, and if PAL versions exist.

Sandy

 

[Ron Earp]

Just to add a quick post on DIY video on the cheap. This was taken with my $125 solid state system recording directly to a 2 gig SD card:

YouTube - VIR ECR1 Goblin's Go Earp/Young

The You Tube Compression really reduces resolution, the native 640x480 is actually nice. It uses a bullet cam with built in mike (needs a foam piece over mic input), $35, and the Neuros MPEG-4 solid state recorder that despite the picture it little bigger than a pack of cigarettes.

Amazon.com: Neuros MPEG-4 Recorder 2 Digital Video Recorder: Cell Phones & Service

That slot in the front is for the SD card which is tiny. $90. About $125 will get the entire setup, you'll need to make a 5V supply to power the Neuros but that can be done with 5V solid state chip supplies for about $1.50 each. I used three in parallel to provide the necessary current draw for the Neuros.

Ron

 

[Sandy]

Ron -

You finally go it going! The video doesn't look all that bad, the compression of yahoo, youTube, etc kills most of any resolution video of any duration. One thing that does look really good is your camera stability. How is it mounted? I have used the I/O port Roll bar camcorder mount for the bullet cams and seems a bit wobbley when you see the video, yours looks really stable. The make one without the vibration dampner for bullet cams which might be a better way to go.

Also how did you trigger the recorder? I think that and the powersupply were the only things that needed to be hacked up a bit to make this a good low cost set up. The audio is a pain to get good, I got some old airline head phone foam and put it over the mic and it helped a huge amount with the wind noise.

Cool that you got it going!

Sandy

 

[Ron Earp]

Sandy, you'll laugh, but it is mounted to the roll bar using the swivel mount that came with the camera. No high dollar tricks there. It works. The base has holes in it, I bent the based and screwed it directly to the rollbar. Tighened up the ball swivel and it did the trick. Here is a picture of essentially the same camera.

I still have to fix triggering. Right now I have to push two buttons on the remote. The remote is velcroed to the tranny hump, and it stays put. There is a hack though you can do on the remote so that it becomes a one button record, one button stop.

The native resolution I've attached and it is not 640x480 like I thought eariler. The recording was doing 320x200 I think, or close to that. Whatever it is I've shown it here. The max it can do is 640x480, I need to change the settings in the Neuros.

But, it works and the price is right.

R

 

[Sandy]

I have to get the urethane mount removed. The video from the solid mount is much better. I have a couple of the same mounts that came with the camera, might make some use of them.

Thanks

Sandy

 

[BruceB]

Hi Ron, great looking system.
Where did you buy your bullet camera as I can only come across cameras that seem to cost from about $100 upwards?

 

[Ron Earp]

I was in California at Fry's Electronics and bought the one I'm using. You should be able to find them on Ebay fairly easily. WAIT, damn, you are in Ireland, well, that explains it. I was in England last month and was shocked at the cost of electronics. Your iPod Shuffles were like 59 Pounds, they are $59 over here and sometimes lower. If the the shipping wasn't a killer I'd just send one over to you. Check Ebay UK, maybe someone is selling them for reasonable money. You'll need the solid state recorder too, also easily found on Ebay for cheap.


Ron

 

[charlie c]

There is a device called the Hero by GoPro Video, and it is a one-piece self-contained camera and 2gig solid-state video recorder that is optimized for active sports.

56 minutes on a 2gig card.....

.... and the best part is the price....

...$179 for the whole deal.

 

[Ian Anderson]

I saw this advertised - no idea on quality etc nut thought it good to throw it into the mox

Ian

 

[Ian Anderson]

Action Camera - I Want One Of Those

For a link this time

Ian

 

[BruceB]

Thanks for the replies.
Only problem is now more choice.

 

[Brett James-McCall]

Ian,
My friend has one for skiing. Its OK, but maybe not the best quality in the world

Brett

 

[David Briggs]

Doreen gave me a Chase Cam set up for Christmas. I will get it set up in the GT and issue a report later this month.
Dave

 

[Sandy]

Dave -

They are very good. Get a (a couple) good Compact Falsh card and definitly wire it up to your car's electrical as internal batteries are a pain and don't really last that long. You can use an extenal pack too, they are not that hard to make.

Definitly go up to the chase cam forums you can see all sorts of good tips. Also they are very helpful in getting anything sorted.

Get some video going for us ;-)

Sandy

 

[Lynn Miner]

I just returned from the Consumer Electronics Show CES in Las Vegas last week. A company was there displaying a new portable video recording product for race applications. There website is VholdR. It is a ruggedized, self contained recorder, camera, mic, assembly that is very small, has a LiIon battery, SD card slot and multiple mounting options for race cars, motorcycles, helmets etc. It has hi res video and is very cool. It costs around $300. Check it out.