Thank you for considering BCD's DVD-1150/DVD-1150HDD.

Summary: Play with this machine at your shop before installing at the customer's site.  Please be certain that it does what your customer requires before you get to the job site.

The DVD-1150 was designed from the outset to be controlled by RS-232 via a Crestron, AMX, PC, or other RS-232 control device.  Please note that compared to a BetaCam (our favorite controlled device), the response of the DVD-1150 is very slow.

Our manual is comprehensive and includes all available commands. Nevertheless, it is probable that you, the programmer, have your own ideas about how it should operate.  That's good, and we are eager to hear about it, but the fact is that you need to program for what it actually does and not what you imagine it ought to do.

The Most Important Commands :  "ECHO 0"  and  "MODE 1"
1.  The first command should be ECHO 0.
Normally the DVD-1150 echoes each character back to you as you send it.  What a waste of bandwidth, parsing.. all of that.  ECHO 0 turns off character echo so that the ">" prompt character is the only extra charater you get, other than the response value.

2.  Use MODE 1 instead of STAT or MODE
The DVD-1150 CPU is contantly polling the system for status anyway.  The STAT and MODE commands force the CPU to query the whole system again, redundantly, and this can take a long time (2-3 seconds).   MODE 1 instantly returns the current MODE value without the wait.  MODE 1 will make you happier.

We have found that programmers are often very self-assured and reluctant to ask for help because they know that they can do it themselves.  We often hear "I've been programming controllers for xx years and I know how to do it."

PLEASE call us (800-223-6734) or email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   with your questions when you begin!  Please do not wait until you are frustrated and angry because the machine doesn't do what you think it should.   There is probably a way to do what you want, maybe not the way you had in mind.   It may be that there is something we forgot (after all, we do things our way, not yours).  

By the way, if there's an operational feature you'd like us to change or add, let us know.  We are good listeners and are often able to respond very quickly.

Whatever the challenge, communication is the key.  Please contact us early in the project and we can all have satisfied clients.

090610 

What about +R and +RW?
DVD +R vs. -R discussion has become more of a religious issue than a technical one.   Back in the year 2000, it find players for +R were less common than they are today, but even the oldest players accept and play +RW.

 The BCD DVD-1150 Industrial DVD Recorder uses +RW and +R.  Frankly, +RW is our favorite.  The "Plus" discs are preformatted by the machine (takes less than a minute) and this insures playablity on any other DVD player.  And... +RW doesn't need finalizing!

Both "+R" and "+RW" will playback immediately on a DVD-1150.   No finalization required to play back on the same machine that made it.  After finalization, "+R" plays well in consumer DVD players.

No Finalization with +RW
DVD+RW is unique in that it will play in consumer decks immediately, no finalization is required!

Unintended Features

We test our products in every way we can think of.  Our clients, however, are often even more creative and have procedures we never thought of.   Some of the items below are actual limitations of the machine.   Please check back to this page from time to time to see any updates, changes, deletions, or additions.

Please see also the "Troubleshooting" section at the end of this article.

"-R" Recording
The DVD-1150 uses "+R" and "+RW" discs only.
This is not an issue with us, but it important to some of our clients.   We prefer the +RW format to any other because it needs no finalizing.  Just remove the disc and play it on another player.

"Cannot Copy" error appears on the TV monitor screen.
This error occurs when one attempts to copy a commercial "Hollywood" DVD from another machine.  The DVD-1150 will not copy a copy-protected source.   This error message can also happen when video input is from certain TV cameras.  It appears that the camera inserts some sort of data into the video that the DVD system interprets as copy protection.   The current remedy is to use a different input source. 

Time Remaining Display is inaccurate in certain circumstances.
The Time Remaining display on the front panel, and the RS-232 TLFT (Time LeFT) command will become inaccurate after Pause-during-record.   Upon unpausing, the Time Remaining will revert to the original value at the start of the recording session and count down from there.  There is no fix for this right now.  The elapsed time (front panel display and FRAM command) will indicate the correct elapsed time.

Recording fails if no video input.
The unit will not record if there is no video input. 
Recording will fail if video is removed when unit is in Record-Pause and the machine is then UnPaused.  Record, Pause, remove video, Unpause.  This is one instance in which the MODE and STAT commands incorrectly indicate RCRD (Record) instead of NVID (no video).  Inasmuch as correct status is a hallmark feature of the DVD-1150 series, we very much regret this and are working to find a remedy.

NTSC & PAL
The DVD-1150 accepts either NTSC or PAL video signals.
If NTSC, it records NTSC DVDs.  If PAL, it records PAL DVDs.
The anomoly is that during video loop-through, it transcodes PAL to become NTSC at the video output.

No Recording to DVD after HDD is selected
PROBLEM: This is peculiar and we're working on it.
Select HDD Record from front panel menu or via RS-232 "RDSC 1", and SAVE.
Power off the machine, then power on.  It comes up as HDD-1150 showing that HDD is selected.
Select DVD Record from front panel menu or via RS-232 "RDSC 0"

Troubleshooting
These are genuine "issues" that should not happen.  Ever.  But sometimes they do.  Please contact BCD for current status: 800-223-6734 (800-BCD-MPEG)

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"How to Finalize a DVD"
(Hold REC, Touch STOP, Release, Touch ENTER)

It's true.  We prefer "+RW" discs because they do not require Finalization.  You just Record, Stop, Eject, and play in another machine.  Period.

Some situations, however, require permanence and Finalization of the "+R disc before it will play in another machine.   Finalizing can take as long as 5 minutes, and other machines can make you drill through multiple menus just to get there: Up, Enter, Down, Down, Down, Enter, Right, Enter, OK.  Whew!

Finalization with the DVD-1150 is easy.

With RS-232, just issue the FINL command.
With front panel buttons, just hold REC, touch STOP, release, touch ENTER.

   We even included a countdown on the front display to let you know how long it will be.

We rely on you to advise us, and encourage your comments and questions.   Here are some of the more Frequently Asked Questions...

• Q: Does it have Firewire, IEEE-1394, SDI or Component Video In/Out?
      A: No.  Composite & S-video In/Out
• Q: Do you offer Balanced Audio/XLR In/Out?
      A:  Not yet.
• Q: Does the DVD-1150HDD act like a network drive?
      A: No.    We do offer the optional Outload System as a special order item.  ($695.00) This permits copying ALL of the MPEG files from the hard drive to a local PC via USB all at once.   It works with special program on a local Windows® PC only, not as a network drive.
• Q: How long does it take to copy from the HDD to a DVD disc?
      A:  It depends on the speed/quality of the original recording as set by the QUAL  x command (x is the  quality/speed from 1 to 5.  QUAL 1  is the best:  a DVD will hold 1-hour of video at QUAL 1.)

Here are the HDD-->DVD copy times for a 20-minute video.  All files are the same time duration, but higher quality/faster speed have higher bitrates & larger files. 

•   Q: So how good are the QUALities?

            A:  Our subjective opinion is that:
                QUAL 1 is excellent
                QUAL 2 is the "normal" speed.  2Hrs on a DVD
                QUAL 3 is very good.
                QUAL 4/EP is better than VHS. 
                QUAL 5/SLP is less than VHS
                     (Motion is pretty blocky. Might be ok for talking heads.)

Unintended Features

We test our products in every way we can think of.  Our clients, however, are often even more creative and have procedures we never thought of.   Some of the items below are actual limitations of the machine.   Please check back to this page from time to time to see any updates, changes, deletions, or additions.

Please see also the "Troubleshooting" section at the end of this article.

"-R" Recording
The DVD-1150 uses "+R" and "+RW" discs only.
This is not an issue with us, but it important to some of our clients.   We prefer the +RW format to any other because it needs no finalizing.  Just remove the disc and play it on another player.

"Cannot Copy" error appears on the TV monitor screen.
This error occurs when one attempts to copy a commercial "Hollywood" DVD from another machine.  The DVD-1150 will not copy a copy-protected source.   This error message can also happen when video input is from certain TV cameras.  It appears that the camera inserts some sort of data into the video that the DVD system interprets as copy protection.   The current remedy is to use a different input source. 

Time Remaining Display is inaccurate in certain circumstances.
The Time Remaining display on the front panel, and the RS-232 TLFT (Time LeFT) command will become inaccurate after Pause-during-record.   Upon unpausing, the Time Remaining will revert to the original value at the start of the recording session and count down from there.  There is no fix for this right now.  The elapsed time (front panel display and FRAM command) will indicate the correct elapsed time.

Recording fails if no video input.
The unit will not record if there is no video input. 
Recording will fail if video is removed when unit is in Record-Pause and the machine is then UnPaused.  Record, Pause, remove video, Unpause.  This is one instance in which the MODE and STAT commands incorrectly indicate RCRD (Record) instead of NVID (no video).  Inasmuch as correct status is a hallmark feature of the DVD-1150 series, we very much regret this and are working to find a remedy.

Digital "Stuff" at the top of image
There are 3 lines of digital stuff at the top of the recorded image.  Originally designed to be TV program & channel information, it is just stuff.  We have to live with it.  It generally doesn't show on  a TV monitor with moderate overscan, but can be distracting when the disc is played on a computer.

Certifications
The DVD-1150 and DVD-1150HDD are custom, hand-built to high industrial standards.  The major components of Power Supply, DVD Drive and Hard Drive have one or more of the following certifications: FCC, CSA, CE, UL, VDE.  Specifics on request.

Troubleshooting
These are genuine "issues" that should not happen.  Ever.  But sometimes they do.  Please contact BCD for current status: 800-223-6734 (800-BCD-MPEG)

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 This is the Title Menu of the DVD-1150.

• Thumbnail snapshot of start of scene
• Date and Time the recording was started
• Quality of recording (1-5).  Default is 2-hr SP (2).
• Optional Title Name (up to 12 visible characters) with the TNAM command
• Percentage of disc available for recording

Access the DVR-1150 optional web server.
Click here to try our Ethernet Control Test Page  
(http://bcdvideo.no-ip.com) in a new browser window. 
(It's for control not streaming.)  Generally it's up.

The optional web server gives the convenience of controlling your machine from anywhere. Or use several browser windows to control several machines in different locations.  Or control many machines at one location through a single browser (see Multi Machine Control ).

Fixed IP address or configurable for DHCP.  (We can set your desired IP address, enable DHCP complance, and/or show you how to do it.)

The response is not very fast over the internet, and we regret we cannot show you what is playing, but it's still cool and very practical.

Disclaimer: If it does not respond, we're probably doing something else with that machine (which we leave running 24/7).   Please try again later.

For questions & comments, email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or use our contact form.

Configuration:

Working from the DVD-1150 back toward your browser, the DVD-1150 has a fixed IP address of 192.168.1.250.   (We use a fixed IP because our building has power glitches from time to time from thunderstorms, etc.  Everytime the DHCP server reboots it gets to reassign new IP addresses, and we would rather it not do that.)

We set the Port Forwarding on our router to forward HTTP requests to go to the DVD-1150's address of 192.168.1.250

We used the free service at no-ip.com to establish the domain alias of bcdvideo.no-ip.com for our development DVD-1150. 

Here's a screen shot in case our demo unit isn't online...

RS-232 Control is built-in!
The BCD DVD-1150 was designed to be controlled. 

Why choose a DVD-1150 ?
Feedback:  IR is one-way. 
                 BCD's STAT and MODE commands tell you what is really happening.
Reliability:  Some DVD RS-232 interfaces "go to sleep" after a while and need rebooting.
                    RS-232  and USB Serial are the DVD-1150's  primary methods of control.

1. The deck is powered on?
2. There is a disc in the machine?
3. The disc has enough room left on it?
   

The DVD-1150 has a 'hard' power switch.  When it's on, it's ON.  It comes back on automatically after a power outage.

The DVD-1150 has two-way commnuncation.  The MODE command returns a numeric code telling its current statis.  The STAT command returns a 4-character status report.  If there is no disc in the machine, MODE returns 31 and STAT returns NDSC.  

The TLFT (Time LeFT) command returns HH:MM like 06:05 for 6 hrs and 5 minutes.  

See our Basic Commands section.  All commands are 4 characters of English mnemonics, terminated by a Carriage Return.  'PLAY' means PLAY.

The RS-232 multiple recorder control architecture permits standard Crestron & AMX systems to control up to 100 machines... from a single serial port!

(Note: 5-1-2008  Crestron Integrated Partner Module to be available mid 2008.) 

(Note: 12-15-2009  Some Crestron programmers have noted the Crestron module seems to respond slowl. They prefer to write their own Crestron control.

(Note: 9-21-2011 BCD DVD-1150 Firmware Version D00930d is recommended when using the Crestron module.   Changes in recent BCD firmware may not be compatible with the current Crestron module.