How to Troubleshoot Video Loss on your CCTV Recorder
Hi everyone, Joe here, and today we’ve got an article and accompanying tutorial video covering “How to Troubleshoot Video Loss” on your CCTV Recorder. This guide will help you with this issue no matter if you have a DVR or NVR type of recorder. Video loss can occur for several different reasons. The kind of video loss we are referring to here is when you were able to see the security system displayed off of the local monitor, but now unexpectedly can not. The issue involved can range from very simple solutions such as power switches being off, or loose cables, all the way up to failing hard drives or bad monitors. If after following all of the steps in the video and article you still have no local video, or if you cannot get past step one because your recorder will not power on, we then urge you to contact our technical support line or chat in. Our phone-based and chat-based Tech Support is for customers of SecurityCameraKing.com products and services.
The video is set up a bit like a skit in which our main character Joe is trying to check last night’s footage. He is stopped short by discovering the local Monitor for his recorder, is not displaying footage but it was last night. Follow along to see how Joe solves this problem. You can also read the article alongside the video to see the steps involved, worded more precisely. We hope you enjoy the video, and the article and find them useful:
Video Guide:
The Steps:
- How to Troubleshoot Video Loss I – Check if the DVR/NVR is on
Sure it sounds silly, why would my 24/7 recording device be turned off? Well, strange things can happen, power outages, bad power supplies, even human Error. If you are not getting video on your local display make sure your recorder is on and getting power. Most recorders will have an LED that lights up to indicate the unit is “ON”. Additionally, you should be able to hear the gentle hum of running fans and the unit being powered on in general. If not, check the power switch on the recorder, and that is PSU cable is plugged into both the recorder and outlet firmly and properly.*If you cannot get past step I because the recorder will not power on, call tech support and stop here.
- How to Troubleshoot Video Loss II- Check if Monitor is on
IF the recorder is on, the monitor may not be! check and see if your monitor is getting power, and is turned on. Additionally, if the monitor has more than one input setting, make sure it’s set to the correct input. Refer to your monitors manual to determine if it has multiple input settings, and how to change this setting. Most inputs on most monitors are clearly labeled. (I.E. HDMI 1, VGA, ETC)
- How to Troubleshoot Video Loss III – Check if the monitor is plugged in
If the monitor -won’t- power on, check to see if it’s plugged in. If it won’t no matter what, you have a bad monitor and/or power cable.
- How to Troubleshoot Video Loss IV – Check if the monitor cable is plugged in
If the monitor is powered on, and the correct input is selected, but still no video, make sure the cable is correctly and firmly connected at both ends to either the VGA or HDMI ports at both the recorder and the monitor. If this fails to resolve move on to step V
- How to Troubleshoot Video Loss V – Restart Recorder
At this point, it’s best to give the recorder a restart. Sometimes a good old fashioned “Try turning it off and on again” is the best approach. If after reboot, 5 minutes pass with no video, move on to step VI
- How to Troubleshoot Video Loss VI -Test monitor and cable for functionality on a computer.
We now need to determine if the recorder’s monitor is working, or is bad. The only way to do this is to test it with more than one cable, on a different device such as a pc. First, test the monitor on another device with the same cable. If it works with the first cable, both the monitor and cable are fine, move on to step VI. If the first cable doesn’t work, try with a second different cable. If this works- then likely you have had a bad video cable this entire time. Test the monitor on the recorder with the cable that worked. If it still fails, restart the recorder one time. If that still fails move on to step VI
- How to Troubleshoot Video LossCheck VII – Resolution Settings on the web interface
The last thing to check before calling technical support for additional help is the resolution settings on the recorder. If it is set too high for the display you won’t get video. This is a catch 22 because you cannot get to the menu locally, to change this setting back. In order to affect this setting, log into the recorder from a PC on the same network, via internet explorer and the recorder’s local IP address. This will bring up the web interface allowing you to access the display menu, and make sure the resolution is properly set. If it is not, set it correctly, and hit apply. This will usually cause the recorder to reboot, and when it does you should get video locally.
Thanks for joining us today as we covered the steps on troubleshooting video loss on your CCTV recorder. If you weren’t able to resolve your issue and are an SCK customer, call tech support at 5612885258. Call that same number for more info on sales and our amazing CCTV products. If you enjoyed the video or found it useful, toss us a like, and don’t forget to subscribe for more CCTV content! Until next time, STAY SAFE!
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