We have a residential site with 16 Axis network cameras and a 16 channel QNAP VS 4116 Pro+ NVR. The site is being upgraded to 24 cameras, so we are evaluating whether to add a second NVR or replace the existing NVR with one that can support 24+ cameras.

It's been a bit since last evaluating NVRs, and I was hoping for some feedback on manufacturers other than QNAP.

Also, any thoughts on upgrading the existing NVR vs. adding a second one from a system design perspective? (The home owner views cameras through a Control4 interface and contacts us on the few occasions that he needs to view camera recordings.)

I would always go with a Hikvision system given the choice. If the cameras are ONVIF compatible they should work with a Hikvision NVR.

The Hikvision app is good, and has its own DDNS service, so you dont have to setup a VPN or port forwarding for remote access.

From a configuration and setup point of view its always going to be easier to setup one NVR dashboard and use that dashboard for admin of all the cameras. So i would get a new NVR for all of them, rather than add a second NVR.

I dont do C4, but given how popular Hikvision is im sure there is a Hikvision / C4 driver.

Hikvision and Dahua are hard to get away from on the low-end, because of the Chinese's government subsidy. Making it a really hard value to beat. That is why the vast majority of CCTV in the world, is OEM by those 2.

But maybe you are not aware... because of the back door that the Chinese government makes Hikvision & Dahua put into its products, Hik in particular has been banned from ANY federal government facilities here in the US. And US embassies abroad.
It is a serious security problem not just because of the Chinese government (I'm sure they could care less about spying on most residences). But because of the problem when hackers find the latest back door and exploit it. Like what happened last year - it was major news to anyone paying attention.

AXIS is a setup up above this and doesn't have the security concerns. Although I do believe AXIS did have its 1st security issue last year. But they were quick to patch it also.
Hik and Dahua played the denial game for almost a year before patching their latest 'intentional' BS.

Stick with the QNAP type of NVR. Either upgrade the existing or goto another one thats larger and faster.

I use Synology for this type of setup and cannot complain.

I assume you have VLANed the cameras as 16 cameras is a bandwidth hog and 24 will just make it worse.

Maybe I'm not thinking of this correctly, but since the cameras are not doing much broadcasting or multicasting, I don't see what use it would be to put them on their own VLAN. Since we are talking about unicast traffic, it's the same amount of network utilization whether the cameras are VLANed or not, right?

I like the Hikvision Cameras and NVR.. but not interested in using their DNS service.

Can't you just add the licenses needed to the QNAP? I thought they worked like Synology.

I use Synology NAS as well for these as they are easy to setup and expand when needed. Good apps for remote use too.

Unfortunately, we are at the license limit for the model we are using.

So is this actual NVR software made by Synology? Or is it QNAP software running on a Synology?

Is the app much better than Hik or about the same for non-techy customers...

It’s called SecurityStation and is an app available on all Synology NAS’.

Then they have their own mobile apps for remote viewing.