Analog

An economical way to view and record a multiple camera setup is use a switcher, quad or multiplexer to display the images, then use a time lapse VCR to record the images.

Switchers sequence between multiple cameras 1 full screen at a time. When the output of a switcher is connected to a recording device only the camera being displayed is recorded. The images are recorded full frame, full resolution, but they are only recorded when they are displayed.

Quads allows 4 cameras to display on a full screen at a time. When the output of a quad is connected to a recording device, all 4 cameras are recorded to a single frame. The images are compressed by the quad, and up to 75% of the original resolution are lost.

Multiplexers combine the best features of switchers and quads. They allow full screen, full resolution recording of cameras. They allow multiple cameras to be displayed at the same time.