Quote:
Originally Posted by austvarchive
You can usually find an old B&W vidicon security camera ...somewhere...even if you purchased one from ebay that wasnt in the correct tv standard, most video capture cards are multi-standard, and the security cameras often ran on lower voltages.
To get the real look you really need a tube based camera, a CCD camera is too obvious that its "modern"
although i do wonder what programs are out there which could electronically apply a filter over the image in real time to mimic the look of an old camera...trouble is most cases its still only a "mimic" and you need the real thing to truly get it right.
So, most cost effective way in my opinion, look for an old cctv camera thats tube based...usually they are being thrown away
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I appreciate the advice, thanks! I'm a little concerned in that most of the tube-based cameras I'm seeing listed are being sold completely as-is. So I could well spend money on something that doesn't work and will cost quite a bit to get into working condition - been down THAT road a time or two! And I've also noticed how much I don't know about this equipment; it seems much of it was more than just the head unit - some of the older gear appears to have had a lot of boxes and such that did processing (control unit?) and without it, the head unit is no good. I note also that some of the really old gear has either proprietary cable connectors, or use a huge-looking threaded shielded cable end instead of the BNC I'm used to seeing. Not sure if that also can be easily converted to an RCA input?
Anyway, all this to say that perhaps for a quick / cheap demo, a simple CCTV B&W security camera? Then if it works and I want to invest in an older unit for the right look - try a tube-based unit? Maybe I could get some guidance in that area...what to look for, etc.
Thanks again!