I am running a dvd camcorder with 1000 ft of cable. How do I get a good picture?

Question

I film football games for a local High school. I use 1000 feet of cable and my picture is fuzzy and faded.. How do I improve the clarity of my shots

Answer 1

It depends on the model of camera you are using and the recording system; however, the issue may simply be the cable.   Where is the cable going to, and why?  What kind of cable are you using?  It is probably coax since your have a single 1,000 foot strand.

Consult your cable's manufacturer.  They will know the signal degradation for that particular cable, but remember that those estimates drop as the cable gets older, is bent, trampled, and exposed to other extremes and abuses.

Most data cables are not designed to carry a full signal more than 300ft at a time.  This applies to all 'metallic carrier' cables (coax and twisted pair) regardless of use as audio, video, or data.  These types of cables are hardly ever run more than 300 feet without some type of signal amplifier or booster.  Look at your local cable line in your neighborhood.  Follow it around, and your will see there is a signal amplifier or distribution box every 300 feet or less.  This also is why computer networks have so many switches, hubs, and routers; not just for connectivity and security, but to also ensure proper signal strength. over long distances and to multiple sources.

Adding to this issue is that your DVD camcorder is probably a basic consumer model that does not send out a very strong signal - especially while on battery power.  The cable's wear and tear is also adding up resistance against that weak signal, so by the time the signal reaches the full 1,000 feet, the signal is almost non-existent.

You might be able to add in a signal booster at either end, but no matter where you put the single booster, the signal may still be too weak to traverse the full length of cable.  If you can use a shorter cable, do so.   If you can not use a shorter cable, you will need to purchase shorter runs (or splice the existing cable) and add in video switches, hubs, or repeaters every 250-300 feet.  Your other option is to look into a wireless signal broadcast system to send the video through radio waves to the destination.  If you do not need to feed the video signal to another device at real time, why not purchase a couple of Firestore or Sony hard drive recording devices?  You could also record to DVD, but it may be more of a hassle for your situation.

* If the location wants to put in a permanent system but does not like the coax cable system, you could use fiber optics.  Most professional and collegiate sports complexes use fiber optic cable.  Fiber optic lines can be run for 1,000 feet or more before signal degradation.  Sports complexes and similar locations also use fiber optic lines because they might have 3 or more cameras on the same line with each camera providing very high quality HD signals at the same time.  This allows standard consumer or advanced professional cameras to share the same line without any loss of signal.

Answer 2

Er, what exactly do you need the cable for?

Modern digital camcorders record directly onto DVD, digital tape or solid state memory and are powered from a battery. There is no need for any sort of cable.

You don't mention whether the cable is to power the camcorder or to transmit a video signal, but either way I don't know of any circumstance where you would need a 1000ft cable. That just sounds ridiculous.

Answer 3

You'll need to purchase a video signal amplifier/booster.  Here is a link to one place that you can get them from.

Hope this helps.

http://www.ramelectronics.net/audio-vide...

Answer 4

I'm inclined to agree with RichB, but why use anything that's recording to DVD - that's got to be the worst possible choice for filming sports.  The MPEG-2 compression used by DVDs is very bad at handling movement.

Answer 5

What you need is Video Distribution Amplifier.  And for a run that long I’d use 2.  Basically take your BNC cable run and place a “DA” at the 300’ mark, run another length of BNC for another 300’ then add another “DA” then run the rest to your camera.  Long video runs of cable will loose their signal strength after 200’, it’s still viewable but you’ll notice degradation.  With a 1000’ run I’d try to move your camera closer to your recorder or switcher.