CCTV Systems – Working with Your Television Set

CCTV systems are among the best ways to provide video security and surveillance to your home, but top of the line equipment can be expensive. One way to save money on your system is to use your television as a CCTV monitor or playback device. There are a number of different ways to connect your CCTV camera to your television, each of them best in specific situations. The easiest way is to use a coaxial cable or RCA cable, both of which are easily available at any electronics store. It’s not a complicated process. Here’s how easy it can be to set up CCTV systems using your existing cable lines and televisions with a CCTV camera.
Single Camera On One Television
The easiest configuration for hooking up CCTV to your television is to connect a single camera to a single television set. Depending on the connections available on your television, you’ll need either an RCA cable or a coaxial cable, and the appropriate adapters to connect the cable to your security camera. Simply connect one end of the cable to the output jack on the surveillance camera and the other end to the input jack on the television set.  Again, depending on your television, you may have to select the right input through your onscreen menu in order to view the feed from the CCTV camera.
Connecting Your CCTV Camera through a DVR
If you also intend to record the surveillance videos as well as monitor them, you’ll want to connect your security camera to a DVR and a television. You’ll need two sets of RCA cables, the security camera, a DVR and a television set. Plug one end of one RCA cable into the output jacks on the CCTV camera, matching the colors between connectors and jacks. Plug the other end of that RCA cable into the input jacks on the DVR. Connect one end of the second RCA cable to the output jacks on the DVR, and the other end to the input jacks on the television. The DVR will now record your surveillance videos, and you will be able to monitor the feed via the television.
Add Security Cameras to Your DirecTV System
The DirecTV DVR has a built-in hard drive to capture video and audio signals (so do most other cable and satellite TV DVR boxes, for that matter). That means that you can add a security camera to your DirecTV setup and incorporate it into your CCTV system. All you need are coaxial cables for each camera and one to connect between the DirecTV system and the switch box, and a video switch box. Connect a coaxial cable to the RF output jack on the back of each security camera. Screw the other end of each coaxial cable into one of the RF inputs on the back of the video switch box. Connect the last coaxial cable to the RF output on the video switch box and the RF IN jack on your DirecTV DVR box. You can now cycles through the cameras by using the switches on the front of the switch box. The DVR will record whatever is being show on the television.
There are many ways to incorporate CCTV systems into your existing video and audio equipment. These are just a few suggestions. A professional consultant can help you figure out the best options for your home.