Subscriber Discussion

Axis P5534 PTZ - Anyone Seeing High Failure Rates?

UE
Undisclosed End User #1
Mar 23, 2017

So I would like to reach out and ask those that have any Axis P5534 PTZ cameras in their system.

  • Are you seeing high failure rates?
    • If so how long are you seeing these last.  I have 35o f this model in my system, and have had 5 fail in the last 2 months.  I understand this is an older model, but a couple of these were in storage, and only got deployed in the last year .  I am starting to get really worried, and quite frankly I expect these cameras to last longer than they have.  4 of the five just stopped communicating, and no factory reset will work, they are just flat out dead, the 5th, which happened last week, the zoom function failed, but it 'tests' ok in the Axis WebGUI, under the PTZ test. There were most bought in 2012, so at most 5 years old, but like I mentioned a couple are much newer than that, because they were on the shelf.  There have no guard tour running, they sit static 99% of the time, so I cant imagine they are worn out.  Any insight would be appreciated.
    • I also want to say I always hated these cameras, they spray oil all over the inside of the dome, and require CONSTANT cleaning.

 

  • As a side note: We are putting out a medium Cap Ex project this year for getting the rest of the indoor Analog PTZ cameras out of our system, and I would like to try out a couple of brands other than Axis, before we go to bid. We are looking at 35-40 PTZ cameras (720p, is OK, but 1080p would be better), and 50 1080p fixed cameras (mix of dome and box), any brands you would recommend, that are comparable to Axis in quality, have good long term service, ease of RMA, etc...
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SR
Samuel Rodgers
Mar 23, 2017

We have 2 of them on our system, they were both installed 2014 and have been ok. Like you they are mostly static. we also have an older P5532 on the system that is roughly the same age and also has been fine. Have not seen issues with oil inside the dome either. We mostly have AXIS cameras and in general the failure rate has been very low for us.

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Avatar
Brandon Knutson
Mar 23, 2017
IPVMU Certified

I don't have any Axis PTZ cameras but I've have great experiences with Hanwha (Samsung) PTZs. A plus is Hanwha now has a 5 year warranty for products purchased through their silver and gold dealers ("3 Years on HDD, Fan/Belt, Pan/Tilt, Slip-Ring for PTZ cameras").

I've also had good experiences with Hikvision PTZs, but I'm avoiding those due to negative brand perceptions.  

I should mention that I'm just an end-user with no affiliation to any brand. I did speak at Hanwha's annual meeting in Cancun a couple of weeks ago and got an insiders view of their company and products.   

Hope this info helps you. 

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JH
John Honovich
Mar 27, 2017
IPVM

#1, please let us know how this progresses. I forwarded this to Axis and they said they are tracking the issue and are investigating it with you.

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UE
Undisclosed End User #1
Mar 31, 2017

I heard from Axis via my open ticket and they indicated their R&D team wants to investigate the issue, they asked for a phone number and address for an RMA.  Sounds like they are going to offer a "Goodwill" repair after they look into what is causing these cameras to fail. 

Thanks John, I appreciate you reaching out to Axis, I am really happy I may be able to get some answers as to why these cameras are failing on us.  I had a feeling that if I could touch bases with the right person at Axis, this might be able to get investigated, I just did not know how to go about this. 

JH
John Honovich
Mar 31, 2017
IPVM

#1, thanks for the update and please keep us informed of how it goes. I am curious to hear what Axis learns / responds.

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U
Undisclosed #4
Oct 13, 2017

Please let me know as well, I would like to see if they would repair out of warranty...

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UI
Undisclosed Integrator #2
Apr 02, 2017

EU1 I think you just have run into a "bad batch".  I have 50 or more of this model deployed and have had no issues with them. I also don't remember there being oil in the dome either.  Good luck I hope it all works out.  

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UI
Undisclosed Integrator #3
Apr 10, 2017

We have had several of these cameras fail that were part of the same order.  We replaced with a different model and have had no issues.  All of our cameras are various Axis products and this is by far the most problematic model.  We are just avoiding going forward.

U
Undisclosed #4
Oct 13, 2017

Same here, in the past 6 months I swapped out at least 15 axis ptz's. They are all over 3 years old, likely between 3-6 years old. My question is that I want to see if there is a repair center somewhere for Axis Ptz's?? I hate to throw these cameras out if its something as simple as a capacitor on the circuit board and if I could get them repaired for a reasonable cost I would send these all in...

Avatar
David Warren
Mar 11, 2018
Security Network Advisors LLC

What did you end up doing? Did you find a repair center or just throw these in a closet waiting for a fix? I noticed recently a company in LA area advertise they repair PTZs. Digitron is the name, but they say they are an AV company.

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David Warren
Mar 10, 2018
Security Network Advisors LLC

Did anyone figure this out at Axis? I'm pulling my hair out with over 70 units now that can't recognize PoE, but do fine with standard 24V power input. 

I did replace the 3V battery on one I had a stroke of luck:

#1 - I didn't blow up as the manual says would likely happen if I tried repairing myself!

#2 - The camera DID work on PoE after that

#3 - Also wondering if the PCB board or NIC card on those older models need updated drivers? Everything else on the cameras are flawless. 

I'm seeing people give these away by the hundreds on ebay. I'm sure there's a fix.

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DB
Dean B
Mar 10, 2018
IPVMU Certified

YES!! I have replaced several of these in the past year. I have been looking for a solution for over a year. It such a waste to throw these out and replace with new units. I am sure its something simple on the board that is causing this problem. I have about 15 ptz's of different varieties that I would like to have repaired. These are all over 3 years old but no more than 6 years old.

I have not seen issues with oil inside the units. 

I am still a huge Axis fan and still think they are the best in the business. We started to see Bosch ptz's for the first time. They seem fine so far. To early to tell.

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David Warren
Mar 11, 2018
Security Network Advisors LLC

In line Step Down to 24VDC

SOLUTION:

So after trying everything I could think of, I finally have these working again. Simple, but because there is so little documentation Axis has on this, it took forever to find the right size terminal blocks most people at Axis didn't even know this 5502-491 Multi-connector cable for audio/power existed. 

What I did:

1. Took the 48V PoE from the switch, and put this PD splitter I had received as a demo from a factory partner next to the camera. 

2. Grabbed a patch cable for Ethernet in to the RJ45 port, took the DC 24V out and wired it up to match the power on the multi-connector cable. 

3. Unit fires right back up. I'll keep running it for a couple days, but worked on the P55 and the Q60 series cameras. 

I've got enough I need this for that I'm going to have the factory prewire these for me so it's plug and play. If anyone else wants a few, let me know. The unit I'm holding is hardened and has 24W (+/-) Output. I'll likely use the indoor splitter from the same factory Axis makes theirs. 

If anyone from Axis reads this, feel free to hit me up and I'd gladly let you make this instead. I'm in a hurry though, so I'll probably do a run of at least 100 so I can get a few customers up and running. 

Avigilon, you're next on my hit list. You're newer bullet cameras are literally burning up  switches....Totally melted 4 PCB boards...All were from different factory suppliers. I have a slogan you can use at ISC...

 

 

 

 

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David Warren
Mar 14, 2018
Security Network Advisors LLC

Update.

Axis asked me not to get in to details, but they do have a solution if you call in and talk to their techs that works if you are an electronics geek. That being said, I'll be creating a quick connect jumper cable that can connect to the 24V input off my splitter and this will give you a little more life on the Axis PP55 and Q60 series PTZs by next week.

I'll be sending the solution to Sweden as requested by Axis to ensure it doesn't do anything funky or create a new issue over time. I'll have a batch done by Friday if anyone wants to do a test run. Seems to work fine in a controlled lab environment fine, but as other posters mention, when you take it to the units that have heaters, you'll likely want to talk to the technical team to give you a solution. 

Hope that helps. John, I'm not sure all the rules of the board. If I am crossing the line, please let me know. I'm creating this solution and offering it more to prove that my Syncom branded PoE units are/did not cause the issue, but still want to help all my buddies at Axis. 

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JH
John Honovich
Mar 14, 2018
IPVM

David, thanks.

Some feedback from Axis on our end. Axis mentioned, "The camera is designed to be powered by either POE or 24V, so running it on 24V does not void the warranty."

Axis also explained the most common cause of failures they have seen: "The main reason is water leaking when an “indoor” RJ45 connector is used in outdoor installations, instead of the IP66 rated that is included with the camera. Second is surge, breaking the PoE mainly since unshielded cable is used." That's just general feedback, not saying it applies in your case.

U
Undisclosed #5
Mar 28, 2018

On most of my units I've had the "oil" problem previously mentioned , not the outright failures being discussed here.

The sensor gets affected and the image becomes milky.

This is a known issue, and Axis replaced them even off warranty.

AK
Aaron Kamitomo
Mar 28, 2018

We have had a few of the Q6034/44 from the same year 2012-13 die in the past few months as well.  One of them was damaged in transit enroute to Axis, so no resolve for that one, the others are packed and ready to head to the Repair center to see if anything can be fixed.  Thanks for the information so far all, I thought it was just us.

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