More recent IR illuminator recommendations?

fnhanks

n3wb
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One of my outdoor cameras really needs some help with light. I’m looking to add an IR illuminator but I’m really struggling to find one that doesn’t have reviews that are trash, or is recommended within at least the last 3 years. The FAQs here are recommendations from 2018 and I have to imagine there are newer options. Was looking at some of the CMvision ones on Amazon and half the reviews say it’s the best thing since sliced bread, the others say they might as well ship them straight to the landfill. Was also looking at some of the univivi ones and they’re kind of same deal.

What are folks using that they like and have lasted longer than one year? Not restricted by POE as I can run separate 12v power.
 

sebastiantombs

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I have one of the "blaster" lighting a 200'x200' plus back yard. Works very well for the last year and a half.

I have about eight of the smaller ones, some working for as long as three or four years.

Both have broad beams, not spot style, and can fill pretty good areas. The smaller ones will light a 40'x40' area.

External IR
Blaster

Smaller IR
 
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fnhanks

n3wb
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Yea that was the exact one I was looking at (the blaster) and half the reviews said most of the LEDs burned out after a few months to a year. Have you had any issues like that?

For the little spot one, half the reviews said it didn’t do anything past 15ft. Has that been your experience?
 

sebastiantombs

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Like I said, the blaster has been up for over a year and a half with no problems. No LEDs burned out at all. I will say the dusk/dawn switch is a little funky in that the light flickers a few times both when turning on and shutting off.

I stand by what I said regarding the coverage of the smaller one. I have one mounted on the back corner of the house and it throws IR out to at least 40, if not 50 feet. I am using Dahua cameras, 2MP with 1/2.8" sensors, and that can make a significant difference when compared to a consumer grade 4MP on a 1/3" sensor which could easily account for apparent illumination differences.

I just bought one of these and find the beam is more like a spotlight than a floodlight. Much narrower and may project a bit further as a result of that. I think it's a function of how many LEDs are in use compared to the others I have.

 
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fnhanks

n3wb
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Thanks for the details / confirmation. Seems like it’s worth taking the plunge.

One last question, do you know if you can override the photo sensor so it can be controlled externally? Planning on driving these based on home assistant.
 

sebastiantombs

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Here's a shot of the blaster from a 2231T-ZS. The fence in the background is about 200-220 feet away from the camera. The bright spot on the shed is a 5442B-ZE. There is also a small one on the back of the shed for a camera watching the area the shed blocks. You can see from the lighting and shadows back there how far they will illuminate, and it's only about five feet off the ground.

back yard night.JPG

Here's a shot from a 4231EM-ASE. The smaller IR is located in front of the camera by about 30 feet and is illuminating the area behind the fence. The fence sections are 8 feet long so that's 32 feet plus the partial at the far end. I also need to get out there and tilt the IR up a little more and rotate it more toward the back yard, but you can see it is lighting well past 15 feet.


east side south.JPG
 

tigerwillow1

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Was looking at some of the CMvision ones on Amazon and half the reviews say it’s the best thing since sliced bread, the others say they might as well ship them straight to the landfill.
Pretty typical for amazon reviews. I've tried 2 different CMvision models, one model has 100% reliability for me, the other 100% failure rate. On amazon the one I've had success with is rated 4.2, the one that's failed, 3.8. I've noticed with many amazon products that reviews are posted for the wrong product.
 

sebastiantombs

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Amazon lumps all reviews for the same brand into each model, so when you look at reviews for the small one, you see those, every small one they make, as well as all the big ones. Amazon reviews are semi useless as a result, then throw in the fake reviews and they're even less useful.
 

handinpalm

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I have used a variety of IR emitters and find most of them put out too much IR light and blow out the faces/details. I typically use them down range, where as much detail may not matter. I stay away from the emitters that use 20 - 150 regular LEDs. because that is obviously not what they were designed for, if you need that many. I always use the high power LEDs in the emitters. Now I always use these, that have 4 high power LEDs, but still very bright. 4 LED IR emitter They will last 1.5 - 2 years in the elements, The wall wart power supplies are even worse, even though I try to protect them somewhat. Have 1 under the eves out of the rain, that is still going after 3.5 years. I have smartened up and started making my own enclosure for the emitter and power supply. I also try to diffuse the light with the plastic diffuser material you see in the ceiling for florescent lights. A few pics of the custom 4"x4"x4" electrical box enclosure with the diffuser material glued on with clear silicon calk. The end of an 120V extension cord fits up in the box and the wall wart 12V/2A power supply mounted inside also. For this application. I also covered 2 of the LEDs w/ alum tape to attenuate the brightness. So far so good.

I also use these small 4 LED emitters inside the house and shoot through the windows for better outside viewing.

PXL_20211231_175019953.jpg

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sebastiantombs

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I like the higher count units over the larger, low count models. That way if a couple do fail it's not a big deal. In the low count models if one or two fail it's not a good situation.
 

fnhanks

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Yea I was curious about that as well and one of the reasons I moved on. Not knowing how much it was actually using was frustrating as I wanted to see how it compared to others.
 

Left Coast Geek

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I have a Microlight IR Helios 30 degree spotlight, that works very nicely and is nicely made. I've had it 4 months now, so can't talk about long term reliability yet. the light quality is very good, even 30 degree cone with well defined edges, almost no illumination outside that.

its off the left edge of the screen of this view, which is from a T5442T-ZE at 12mm max zoom, the street is about 200 feet away.

 
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