DIY Video recording system

[BEN]

The other threads seem to be full of people selling things, so I thought I would start a new thread.

Allot of people have been asking me about the SanDisk V-mate, and what is required to get it setup. So here it is what is required to set it up neatly, it can be done cheaper, but this is just what I have refined my system to.

You can run it all directly off the car's battery if you want, but when you crank the engine the starter draws too much power and restarts the V-Mate.
So if you stall during a stage and dont press the stop recording button, the V-mate does not close the recorded file off properly and you loose your recorded file.

What you need.
1. SanDisk V-mate recorder (selling for $79 on eBay at time of writing)
2. A camera of your choice. I am now running a Sony 1/3 CCD 420Line Bullet Waterproof CCTV Camera ($87 from eBay) but anything will do, even the $50
cheapie I originally purchased worked fine.
3. Memory Card , any SD or Sony Memory Stick will do
4. Enclosure, Purchased from jaycar HB6254 $26, is a sealed polycarbonate unit and is very sturdy.
5. 8xAA battery case, also from Jaycar $1.50
6. 3x RCA bulkhead adapters from jaycar $3.75 each
7. 2.1mm bulkhead power socket jaycar $2.65
8. switch surprise from Jaycar $3.95
9. a 12 volt DC convertor jaycar MP3038 $25
10. 8x AA batteries (2500mah will do) I will be doing some run time tests shortly.

Ok now the Fun stuff.

The DC convertor is used because the V-mate only requires 4.5-5V, and the CCD camera all seem to run of around 12V. I have soldered the convertor to the switch, and the other end plugs straight into the V-Mate.

then drill 5 holed in the side at the bottom of the case for the power switch, camera power and RCA adapters and fit as per below.



You then just plug in the V-mate Video In cables to the inside of the RCA adapters, and solder the 2.1mm camera power socket straight from the switch

It all fits inside in the enclosure easily with some space to spare, Foam works well to fill the small void between the convertor and the V-mate, and to provide some cushioning.
And here is the finished product.



Now you have 2 sound channels and 1 video channel to connect up.
Some of the cheaper cameras also include a microphone, but any microphone will do it doesn’t have to be special, and the other channel can be plugged straight into your intercom system.

Connecting up the camera is now just as simple as finding a spot for your camera, and running a video and power cable to the camera and plugging them in.

All is you do now is charge some battery’s, mount it to wherever you feel like in your car. It only weighs 800 grams complete so it’s not overly heavy and then enjoy watching yourself have fun.

Ben.

[Dirty Deeds Rally]

I got one of these
http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2007/11/or...ion_cam_f.html

for my birthday last week and ran it at Tomerong last weekend. Picture quality is pretty darn good, but inbuilt mic can't really cope with rally noise where we mounted it, might be better further back in the car... Plus side is that it's water/dust/shock proof and weighs hardly anything. EASY to mount and turn on/off - it's mounted on top of the terratrip with a couple of cable ties - really stable. It copes with the movement really well and also the change in lighting (ie. in and out of trees). Comes with mounting stuff, instructions etc. Will put footage up soon...

Oregon Scientific Action Cam - $190 (Paxtons)
2xAA batteries - $3 (up to 3 hours apparently, but haven't tested that yet)
1x2GB SD Card (JB Hi-Fi) - $24 (1 hour footage)

Bang for buck, it's great! Obviously the lack of good microphone and terraphone input is not ideal, but being cheap, dust/water/shock proof and having great picture quality, I'm extremely happy with it.

Andrew

[BEN]

Some More Info

Yep, you will have to open It up to Change Battery's and Memory Card
a 4GB Memory card will record just over 3 hours if footage at Max Resolution
a 16GB could record 12 Hours !!!

Yes the remote works through the clear enclosure, so you can stop and start recording and turn the V-mate off without taking it out.

Runtime will be tested shortly, when me new camers arrives next week. But i suspect about 8 hours based on the mAh used by the camera and recorder.

Ben.

[Marty]

It looks good Ben.

How hard is it to hook up a mic to a Terraphone intercom (The Clubman - not the Pro version)?

Marty

[BEN]

I only have the pro version's in both cars, but if i am reading the brocure correctly it still has the same 3.5mm plug in the back as the Pro. Does your's have a small socket in the back ??

if so you just need to buy a RCA Plug to 3.5mm Plug Audio Lead (jaycar part number WA7088 $4) , and plug the RCA into one of the audio channels, and the 3.5mm plug into the intercom.

Ben.

[jamar]

Great stuff Ben,

please keep us updated..

Thanks & Cheers

[rowdytoot]

Originally Posted by BEN

I only have the pro version's in both cars, but if i am reading the brocure correctly it still has the same 3.5mm plug in the back as the Pro. Does your's have a small socket in the back ??

if so you just need to buy a RCA Plug to 3.5mm Plug Audio Lead (jaycar part number WA7088 $4) , and plug the RCA into one of the audio channels, and the 3.5mm plug into the intercom.

Ben.

doesn't work cos on a clubman it's an input...


I pulled my terraphone apart and hard wired a lead to the board - works a treat...

[BEN]

that is very strange rowdy ??

http://www.terratrip.com/TERRAPHONE.PDF

The Brocure says otherwise ?? i Will confirm with my older pro models when i get home from work today.


Ben.

[rowdytoot]

must be the older ones then I think mine is close to 10 years old.

I know fro's worked fine but wasn't supposed to!

[BEN]

It might be hit and miss with the old terraphones,
Both the Sprinter's and the Excel's are about 10 years old, I just tested both.
The Sprinter one i get sound to the V-Mate, but not the Excel one,
I will do some more testing tomorrow

Ben.

[mattyoung]

ben
is there a light or anything on the vmate that tells you that it is recording.
thanks Matt

[BEN]

Matt there sure is,
It lights up Red when recording,

Ben.

[Mathew Boorman]

If (when) you get problems with the battery life (or just because its much easier!)...
Just use the 12V from the car with a backup battery wired in to keep the vmate running. Run the camera direct from 12V. Funky circuit diagram, key parts are diodes.

+12V --->|-- vmate ---|<--- +9V

[BEN]

I like the portabality of battery's
and like i said i suspect it will last 8 hours continuous on AA's

It has been recording for 3H 30min non stop so far.

Ben.

[BEN]

Well the battery's have finally run out, 11 Hours 10 min of recording
using 8 X 2650 mah AA rechargeables.

I think it will do a rally
now all is i need is a memory card that can record for that long !!!

Ben.