Table of Contents

NVR Setup with H.265 Compression and Bitrate

Adjusting Camera Settings for Optimum Performance on an NVR

This article will provide a general base on how to provide optimal performance for your NVR as well as provide insight on how to set up recordings. For more information, please refer to the information provided below.

1. Adjust Camera Settings for Maximum Resolution, FPS, Bitrate for 5MP and 4K Cameras

H.265 provides a more advanced technology than H.264 and allows the device to reduce file size which helps to reduce required bandwidth without sacrificing frames per second or resolution. Most Amcrest products, such as our NVRs, are H.265 compatible, however, please note, H.265 compression is only available on 4000 series and above NVRs and may not be applicable to any NVRs 2000 series or below.

However, for maximum compatibility when accessing your device in a web browser or third party applications, our H.265 compatible products will be factory defaulted to H.264. But for increased performance, the device’s settings can be upgraded to H.265 compression if needed. For more information on H.265 compression click here.

Note: The bitrate for the device can also be adjusted as well if needed to increase performance. This article will also provide instructions on some recommendations for adjusting the bitrate as well if needed.

Switching to H.265 Compression Using an NVR

Step 1: Log into your device locally or using a web browser. For more information on how to access your device’s web user interface (web UI) click here.

Note: If using Google Chrome or other mainstream web browsers the sub-stream for the device may be displayed in the interface by default. Please note, some older computers may not be able to support H.265 compression which may result in a corrupted file. To change the live view to the mainstream, click on the stream selection dropdown menu and select Main Stream.

Step 2: In the Management section, click on Camera and access the Encode menu. In the Encode menu, choose a connected device from the Channel list.

Step 3: Locate the Compression dropdown menu and select H.265.

Step 4: Click Save to save your settings.

Please note, if you are using a camera with a built-in microphone the microphone may be disabled by default. This is due to specific guidelines that regulate built-in microphones to be enabled by default in certain areas and may need to be enabled manually to function. For more information on how to enable the built-in microphone on your device, click here.

Adjusting Bit Rate

Since H.265 compression uses roughly 30% fewer resources than H.264, the camera will typically come default to a preset bitrate when switching to H.265. For instance, when switching to H.265 on a 4K camera, the bitrate may be defaulted to 8192 Kb/S, however, adjusting the bitrate to a lower value may help to increase the efficiency of the camera while viewing playback or watching the live view.

To adjust the bitrate, access the Encode menu and click on the Bit Rate (Kb/S) dropdown menu. A list of preset bitrates will be displayed as well as a Customized selection which will allow you to set a customized bitrate if needed. Please note, when using a 4K camera, it is recommended to keep the bitrate around 1792 Kb/S, however, different values may be applicable depending on your specific network requirements.

Note: In this menu, you will notice a Bit Rate Type menu, this dropdown menu allows you to choose between a constant bitrate (CBR) or a variable bitrate. A constant bitrate allows the bitrate to remain constant whereas a variable bitrate allows the system to choose a bitrate. It is highly recommended to keep the bitrate type as CBR to keep the bitrate consistent.

Please refer to the table below regarding the recommended resolution and bitrates and custom thresholds.

For more information on how to adjust the bit rate, please refer to the information provided below.

Note: Adjusting the bitrate to anything lower than the recommended bitrates above may result in degradation to recordings or to live view. For best results, if you are adjusting multiple cameras, it is highly recommended to adjust each camera individually. This may be a trial and error process since most network environments are unique and may vary, however, the bitrate should range between 1792-2048 Kb/S if using a 4K camera. An optimal customized bitrate should be around 1825 Kb/S.

Click Save to save the adjusted bitrate settings.

2. How to Setup Recordings

Before setting up recordings in your NVR, please ensure a hard drive is properly installed and working on the device. Recordings can be set up locally, using the web user interface (web UI) in a web browser, or using the Amcrest View Pro app. For purposes of this guide, we will be using the web UI. The same concept represented in this guide can be applied locally or using the Amcrest View Pro app. For more information on setting up recordings, please refer to the information provided below.

By default, the device is enabled to record motion detection events and alarms 24/7, however, a general (continuous) recording type can be enabled as well. Please note, there are 3 main recording types; General (which allows the camera to record continuously), Motion, (which allows the device to record only when motion events are triggered), and Alarm (which allows the device to record once an alarm has been triggered).

A recording schedule can also be set which allows the recording type to record only during specified times of the day. For more information on how to set up a recording schedule, please refer to the information provided below.

Setting Up a Recording Schedule

Step 1: Log in to the web UI for your device and click on Management and select Storage.

Step 2: In the Record tab you will notice a series of days on the left of the schedule and the number of hours at the top (specified in increments of 2 hours). You will also notice 4 checkboxes representing each recording type. Please note, if using an AI NVR, a fifth recording type (IVS) may be preset. Click Setting to begin customizing a recording schedule.

Step 3: Select which day of the week you would like the recording schedule to apply. If you would like the schedule to apply to all days of the week, click All. Select which recording type you would like to use, which in this case, we will select general, and motion. Set a time of day in which the type will be applied. For example, in this case the recording schedule is set to be active from 0600 (6 am) – 1700 (5 pm)

Note: The timeframes will be formatted to military time.

Please note, a total of 6 separate periods can be set up at a time which will provide different recording schedules to be active for different days of the week.

Step 4: Click Save to save and apply the recording schedule

The recording schedule will now be set to record only on the specified dates and times chosen.

What is HEVC (H.265) Compression?

Amcrest’s new line of 4K security cameras come equipped with HEVC (also known as H.265) video compression capabilities. When combined with one of our 4K NVRs or DVRs that are capable of receiving this type of encoding, you can expect these major benefits:

– More efficiently compressed files: A security camera with HEVC encoding can help to reduce the file sizes to the NVR or DVR without losing the 4K video quality.

– Increased recording capabilities: HEVC allows 4K devices to record for a longer periods time before it will have to overwrite older recordings.

– Increased viewing quality: See high quality live video on your smart device without all the data. HEVC works to improves network performance and overall usability when viewing your system remotely.

What is HEVC?

HEVC stands for High Efficiency Video Coding. Otherwise known as H.265 or MPEG-H Part 2. HEVC is a new video compression technology that is helping usher in the age of 4K resolutions. Its goal is to offer the same level of picture quality as its predecessor Advanced Video Coding (AVC or H.264), but with far less data and much lower bit rates.

Note: Bit rates are the amount of data required to encode the video.

In general, the less movement in the frame the better the compression will be. This can be very beneficial to security footage since the frame is typically static. There are two major methods involved with HEVC encoding, interframe and intraframe encoding.

Interframe Encoding

This type of encoding essentially involves a comparison between previous and future frames to the current frame. In H.264 encoding the image was divided into small 16 x 16 pixel blocks. In H.265 encoding, however, these blocks are no longer stuck this size. Instead, they can range from 8 x 8, 16 x 16, 32 x 32 or 64 x 64 pixels. Each of these blocks compares their group of pixels to the new group of pixels as the frame advances. If most pixels are virtually the same, then the data from the original block is intercoded to the new frame. This means that only the pixels that have changed will be stored in the data.

Intraframe Encoding

H.265 video encoding has also decreased the amount of data stored through intraframe compression. This is similar to inter-frame compression, but instead of looking at similarities between previous and future frames, intraframe compression looks for similarities within the same frame. HEVC significantly increases intraframe predictions over H.264 encoding. In fact, HEVC has 35 different intraprediction modes (compared to 9 in AVC). Ultimately, these prediction modes allow the encoding to mathematically generate some pixel values instead of storing all of them.

How Does It Work?

HEVC security cameras will initially capture the raw footage. It will then process that footage (brightness, contrast, colors), encode it in H.265 compression, and send it over the network to the recording device. The device will then receive and process the video with the user determined settings (such as lower resolutions or specific frame rates).

Before installing your 4K security camera, you may want to think about how much movement will be taking place in the frame. The file sizes will be much larger if your camera is in a high traffic area with lots of movement while files sizes will be kept smaller if there is hardly any movement taking place within the frame. Either way, our HEVC security cameras will undoubtedly provide you with a much higher quality of video with file sizes comparable to a 1080p camera with H.264 encoding.

H.265 Compression vs. H.264 Compression Relating to Bandwidth Consumption

H.265 IP cameras possess a higher H.265 compression ratio compared with H.264 security cameras.

An H.265 PoE camera can help to reduce about 50% network bandwidth consumption, which helps to increase overall transmission speeds.

For information on H.265 compression and H.264 compression while using different camera resolutions, at their highest frames per second and resolution, please refer to the table provided below.

Note: These results are estimated under stable network conditions and may vary with your actual environment and other factors. For access to a bandwidth calculator, please click here.

H.265 IP Cameras vs. H.264 IP Cameras in Storage Usage

As the bitrate is proportional to the required storage usage, H.265 IP cameras with lower bitrate can compress the videos in almost half the file sizes in comparison to H.264 cameras while retaining the original video quality.

As mentioned above, H.265 IP cameras provide a lower bitrate than H.264 IP cameras.

That is to say, with the same storage space, H.265 IP cameras can allow for longer recording time length before the older files are automatically overwritten.

NVR Setup with H.265 Compression and Bitrate

What is HEVC (H.265) Compression?

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