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Hikvision Poor image quality after firmware upgrade of cameras and NVR

Paul6068

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Hi.

I recently updated my firmware for my NVR 7DS-7608NI-E2 / 8P/A to firmware V3.4.98 build 171121 with cameras DS-2CD2142FW-IS and DS-2CD2542FWD-IS firmware V5.5.53 build 180730. I also have 2DE4220IW-D and 2CD6362F-IVS (which are un-affected).

Since the updates I have noticed when watching live view in 'MULTI SCREEN' the image quality is poor and pixelated. The same goes if I use my NVR, iPhone, IPAD or via my PC iVMS. If I choose single screen on the NVR the picture is perfect, also, if I review my recordings its perfect, When I use my iPhone, iPad the image is poor in both multi and single screen in live view but fine in single screen review. I have tried to revert back to older firmware on both the NVR and Cameras but this does not fix the problem. As I updated the NVR and cameras over the same period I can tell if it’s the NVR or camera updates that have caused this to happen. Prior tot he firmware updates the image quality was fine. I though I read in one update that they were changing the FOV for some reason. Any suggestions will be appreciated.
 
I have noted this too & just thought it was me. Night performance has definitely got worse since my upgrade from:

DS-7604NI-K1-4P - v3.4.95
DS-2CD2355FWD-I - v5.4.5

To latest versions
 
Hi,

It may be that the stream setting for your cameras have changed since you did the firmware update, if you go to the page shown below in the NVR settings you should be able to adjust the stream settings (the sub-stream is the stream used by the mobile app and when you remotely access - this stream will always be a lower resolution than the main-stream as the sub-stream data has to stream over the internet and not just your local network)

Screen Shot 2018-10-25 at 15.57.42.png
 
Dan,

Thanks, you are correct and with a little tweaking with the settings and its back to normal. Thanks ever so much for your help.

On another note is there anywhere that you could suggest to find what the best/recommended settings should be for Main and Sub streams?

Thanks again
 
Last edited:
Hi Paul,

There aren't really any recommend settings for the different streams, what we usually recommend is to just keep the main-stream at the highest resolution and video quality possible, and set the frame rate to around 10fps (if you set the frame rate high - 20-30fps - you end up using a lot more storage & bandwidth for very little visual improvement)

For the secondary stream it is a bit more trial and error as there are so many variables (type of NVR, type of cameras, strength of your local network, strength of the internet connection where you are remotely accessing from, etc...) so we recommend setting the second stream only 1 step lower in terms of resolution and then test how good the connection is when accessing remotely, if the stream is glitchy, has a long delay, or is drastically lower resolution than you set it at you may have the settings too high and will have to lower the stream settings further until you get it just right for your setup.
 
Dan,
I have a HIKVision NVR DS-7732NI-I4/16P, but I don't see the above menu anywhere. Can you please tell me how to access that menu?
Thanks.
 
Dan,
I have a HIKVision NVR DS-7732NI-I4/16P, but I don't see the above menu anywhere. Can you please tell me how to access that menu?
Thanks.

Do you access the NVR with a directly connected monitor? the menus are slightly different whether you are viewing via a monitor or a browser, for a monitor you will find the video settings under Record > Parameters
 
Found the menu, thank you (monitor attached to NVR). Tried adjusting but not resolved. When I view the images (main-stream) on the monitor in a multiscreen pattern (16 cameras) many (but not all) of the images are pixelated, but instant playback on all cameras is crystal clear, as is each image when viewed individually on full screen. Tried rebooting NVR. Would appreciate your thoughts.
 
Hi @Frank999

You won't be able to view all 16-channels at the full main-stream resolution because all NVRs have decoding limitations that limit how many channels you can live view at a certain resolution, the below screenshot is from the datasheet for your NVR and you will see under decoding that your model supports '4-ch @ 4K, or 16-ch @ 1080p'. This is why you are seeing pixelation when you try and view all 16-channels at once because you are seeing them at 1080p resolution, but this is not a problem because all the channels still record at whatever resolution you have set them to it is just the live view that is affected by the decoding.

If you think about it there is no point streaming high-resolution images from all 16 cameras when each one is only taking up 1/16 of the screen and if you double click any single channel it will blow up to full screen and display at full resolution.

2179
 
Hi Dan,


I have the same problem with Frank999 and ive read ur answer that ur telling it is impossible to view 16 channels in mainstream because of maximum decoding issue. So what is the best thing to do? do i need to lower the resolution of some camera or offer an nvr that has greater channel. I have 16 camera all in all, 7 of those are wired and 9 are wireless. The wired camera are not pixelating. Only the wireless camera. I will appreciate ur quick response because i badly need a solution. My client will be mad at me any soon. thank u


Cheers,
techengr
 
Hi Dan,


I have the same problem with Frank999 and ive read ur answer that ur telling it is impossible to view 16 channels in mainstream because of maximum decoding issue. So what is the best thing to do? do i need to lower the resolution of some camera or offer an nvr that has greater channel. I have 16 camera all in all, 7 of those are wired and 9 are wireless. The wired camera are not pixelating. Only the wireless camera. I will appreciate ur quick response because i badly need a solution. My client will be mad at me any soon. thank u

You will have to set the main recording stream of all 16 cameras 1080p (2MP) if you want to view all 16 in mainstream resolution, but in doing this you will get similar low quality/pixelated images as substream is usually around 720p anyway.
 
You will have to set the main recording stream of all 16 cameras 1080p (2MP) if you want to view all 16 in mainstream resolution, but in doing this you will get similar low quality/pixelated images as substream is usually around 720p anyway.

So is there anyway You know that can eliminate pixilation but retaining the nvr. Maybe the problem would be on bitrate?what do you think. Ive read some forums telling that the bitrate is not enough for its resolution.
 
As far as we are aware there is no way to view all 16-channels at the same time using mainstream resolution without any loss of quality. It all comes down to the processor & bandwidth limitations of the NVR, so you would need to look at a larger NVR with a greater decoding capability or build a custom server with more powerful processors running VMS.

You also say that it is only the wireless cameras that are affected so it could simply be that your WiFi network is not very strong. (9 is a lot of cameras to have connected wirelessly).

But the biggest thing to point out is my final comment in my reply to @Frank999 where I point out that there is no monitor out there that will actually display all 16 at full resolution.

Bitrate may potentially improve the quality of the wireless cameras but it will be trial and error with you trying different resolutions & bitrate combinations to see what gives you the best results, but reducing the number of cameras connected wirelessly will definitely be a big help.
 
As far as we are aware there is no way to view all 16-channels at the same time using mainstream resolution without any loss of quality. It all comes down to the processor & bandwidth limitations of the NVR, so you would need to look at a larger NVR with a greater decoding capability or build a custom server with more powerful processors running VMS.

You also say that it is only the wireless cameras that are affected so it could simply be that your WiFi network is not very strong. (9 is a lot of cameras to have connected wirelessly).

But the biggest thing to point out is my final comment in my reply to @Frank999 where I point out that there is no monitor out there that will actually display all 16 at full resolution.

Bitrate may potentially improve the quality of the wireless cameras but it will be trial and error with you trying different resolutions & bitrate combinations to see what gives you the best results, but reducing the number of cameras connected wirelessly will definitely be a big help.

What i mean in wireless is using an antenna in the 5ghz frequency. Its my fault that i didn't elaborate well. But go back to the issue, ive already figured out the problem. The bitrate of the wireless cam was very low in substream. I think it was just 125kbps and didnt know how it happend. i used the hikvision calculator to determine the suggested bitrate. i made the compression to h.265 then adjust the bitrate to 575kbps. But by doing that, i also adjusted the main stream from 3mp, i made it to 2mp with 2098kbps because as we know the bandwidth increased when i incremented the substream. Your correct the quality will really drop as the number of channel increase. Knowing that the nvr i offeres has low specs. And as i observe there still pixilation but it disappears in awhile. If I will increase the bitrate more it might lag the main stream. But luckily, its better than before and i think the client is satisfied of the output.
 
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