QuestionQUESTION: Please help! I'm trying to connect a security camera, a product of Wisecomm.com that is entitled "Miniature Night Vision Color Camera" (Model OC950) to a Sony VCR that I'd like to connect to a small-screened TV (Magnavox RD 0946 T102).
The same security camera works beautifully on a VCR/DVD unit connected to a later model, analog/digital TV upstairs, but a transfer of the security camera to the downstairs TV, an earlier model Magnavox, results in a failure of the TV to broadcast anything beyond a fuzzy screen!
I fully understand the VCR connection to the security camera and the camera's absolute NECESSITY to power up AFTER both the TV and the VCR are already "ON." I believe that it's the Magnavox TV that's giving me the failure to broadcast issue.
To connect the TV to the VCR, I'm using only a single, double-ended cable that has the red, white, and yellow connectors (at each end). The one end of the cable's three strands are ALL appropriately accommodated in the VCR's 3-respectively-coloured jacks, but the small TV does not have a red, 'female' jack (circa July 1996) to hold the third strand of the other end of the cord. [I don't think this TV's lack of a red jack should much matter, given that it is used for more, beyond MONO, audio power, right or wrong?]
The TV powers "ON", with a fuzzy screen and without, seemingly being able to recognize the VCR function.
Does the subject TV (RD 0946 T102) need its VHF/UHF co-axial jack connected somewhere to the VCR, in order to exclusively view the active surveillance (not the traditional TV function, as there is no antennae nor reception down there, in the lower level) OR is this co-axial cable needed to view, later, the recorded video of the surveillance tape that was created?
AND/OR does the TV also need its "EXT. SPKR 8 (followed by Greek Omega symbol)" jack connected to the VCR?
Finally, does the TV need its DC 12V jack connected to something...somewhere...to draw some form of additional power -- outside of the TV's and the VCR's well-functioning electrical cables?
Forgive me for being such a dumb bunny! I'm at a loss as to how to get all three (3) of these units to coordinate their functions...the Sony videotape player to PLAY onto or to RECORD from the Magnavox TV, the TV to recognize the security camera, etc.
I hope this question is sufficiently descriptive of the problem. I am ever grateful that you've gotten this far in trying to understand what the need is! Thanks soooo much!
Blessings to YOU!
ANSWER: The red white and yellow connectors are for audio (red and white) and composite video (yellow). If you are not using audio you do not need the red and white as they would be redundant. When a tv has only the white input it is a mono audio tv and does not have stereo capability. But, the yellow remains a video composite signal.
Some older tvs are not compatible with the newer composite video signal and do not recognize it. If the tv is really old that could be the problem. The solution there is to temporarily connect a known good but newer tv that has been working fine otherwise to this location and see if it is working okey. If so you will know the original tv was either defective or out of standard.
If you are connecting composite video (yellow) to composite video on the tv you are not using the tv tuner so the rf connectors are not relevant. But, the tv must be set for video input, not tuner/channel operation.
External speaker is to connect an external speaker just like it says. If you are not using audio then you can ignore this but keep the volume control set for zero to keep the audio amp quiet.
To record from the tv the tv MUST have a video output - which many of the older tvs do not have. So check that on each tv. Only one which has a tv out jack will give you a composite signal which can be recorded to the vcr.
If the tv has no video out you can always put a signal splitter on the output of the camera and send one signal to the tv and the other to a vcr.
Hope this helps you solve the problem.
c
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QUESTION: You are so very kind and knowledgable! I am ever so grateful for your thorough assistance. You obviously know what you’re doing, because you were the fourth and final “fella” who received the question. And, you were the only one who even tried to answer it! Are you located anywhere in the Chicagoland area?
Please…would you kindly put into easier-to-understand terms what you mean by the “rf connectors”? (Perhaps, the language I might best be able to follow, would relate to the descriptors that I tried to provide in the original request.)
I’ll guess that “rf” stands for “radio frequency.” Therein, does “rf” refer to the audio feature? And, perhaps, is “rf” descriptive of the red and white ‘composite’ cables? [Am trying to reason this through…mechanically speaking!]
On the back of the small-screened Magnavox TV, the yellow ‘female’ opening reads “Video In.” And, since I also, don’t see any such switching apparatus on the back of the TV, from video input to tuner/channel operation, is it possible that when this yellow “Video In” is connected, that the TV ‘decides’ that it’s in “video input” mode, rather than set for “tuner/channel operation” and therefore, doesn’t need a switch to change it away from tuner/channel capability?
And finally, please describe, perhaps by colour, how such “a signal splitter on the output of the camera” would look. Does it “split” the yellow composite cable, sending “one signal to the tv and the other to the vcr?” And, if so, would that yellow splitter connect into the TV’s”Video IN” and into the VCR’s Video Out?”
Incidentally, instead of switching the connection to a different TV, I needed to switch out the VCR to the upstairs working camera connection. Therein, to my surprise, I discovered that I couldn’t figure out the older (downstairs’)VCR’s set-up on the upstairs connection – as the substitute VCR, when attached on the upstairs connection, broadcasted the same snowy “nothing” screen as it had downstairs. EEeeek…now what?!
AnswerRF connector is same as tv input as opposed to video input. RF connection is used when connecting to cable or to an outside antenna, for example.
The red and white rca type cables and input/outputs are for audio (af or audio frequency). They have nothing to do with an rf connector.
The yellow is for composite video. All tvs that I know of must be manually switched to the "video" or "video1" or "video2" in cases where there are more than one video input. This is a totally different setting than the case of tv (or rf) input operation. Most tvs have this selection done on the remote control (and in fact most modern tvs require it to be done on the remote) by pressing the video button.
Splitter: NO, no. It is a simple device that you can purchase at the dollar store or any electronics department that allows you to take the signal and get two outputs from one input. If you go to a local Radio Shack store, for example, the sales clerk will show you what they are.
They are sometimes called a Y connector because the go from one to two legs. For example, you have one cable that goes from a camera to the video input on the tv but you also want it to go to the input of a vcr. So, you must have three cables: One from camera output to the Y splitter; one from the Y splitter to the tv and one from the Y splitter to the vcr.
OUT means a signal is coming OUT of that box. IN means that a signal is going IN to that box.
Maybe this will solve all your problems.
C
