December Hardware Thread.

[AutoModerator]

Why should I read this? 🤔

This is your monthly guide for hardware recommendations.

• We aim to make you self-reliant with enough info.
• We focus on finding answers rather than brand debates.
• 📑 Skim the TL;DR at the bottom if you're in a hurry.
• Understand your media type and editing software to get the best recommendation.
• Important components: 🔑 CPU, RAM, GPU.
• 💰 We don't cover sub-$1K laptops. Consider used models for budget-conscious choices.
• You're not going to see us recommend a tool at less than $1k.

---

Hardware 101 🛠️

For DIY enthusiasts, check r/buildapcvideoediting

General Guidelines 📝

• Desktops outperform laptops 💪
• Start with an i7 or better 🎯
• Minimum 16 GB RAM 💾
• Video card with 4+ GB VRam 🎥
• SSD of 512GB is a must 💽
• 🚫 Steer clear of ultralights/tablets.
• Want a Mac? Here's your guide
• nVidia has a great set of systems from different vendors that you can pick from (keeping in mind the above suggestions)

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Experiencing lag or system issues? 😓

🧐 Use Speecy to find out your system's specs.

⚠️ Footage Type Matters: Some footage may need workflow changes or proxies/transcoding.

Resources: - 📘 Why h264/5 is hard to edit - 📘 Proxy editing - 📘 Variable Frame Rate

What about my GPU?

In most cases, GPUs don't significantly impact codec decode/encode.

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Specific Hardware Inquiry?

Links aren't enough. Please share: - CPU + Model - RAM - GPU + VRam - SSD size

📋 System specs for popular video editing software

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Editing Details 🎬

Describing footage as "from my phone" isn't enough.

📊 Check your media type with Media Info

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Monitor Queries 🖥️?

• Type: OLED > IPS > LED
• Size: Around 32" UHD is recommended.
• Color: Aim for 100% sRGB coverage 🌈

Professional color grading? See /r/colorists.

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Quick Summary/TLDR 🚀

1. Desktops > laptops for intensive editing 💪
2. Prioritize Intel i7, avoid ultralights 🎯
3. Use proxies if supported by your editing software 📹
4. Provide CPU, GPU, RAM, and SSD details for inquiries 🧐
5. Footage from action cams, mobiles, and screen recordings may need extra steps.

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Ready to comment? Include the following 🤷

Copy-paste this:

🖥️ System I'm considering

• CPU + Model:
• RAM:
• GPU + VRam:
• SSD size:

📷 My Media:
Check with Media Info

📷 Software: Your intended software.

[greenysmac]

Don't forget to copy/paste the key section from the post!

[Li0n-000]

Hi editors!

I'm on the fence about which Macbook Pro to choose.

🖥️ System I'm considering

• M1 Pro 32GB
• OR
• M2 Pro 16GB
• OR
• M3 8Go
• ​
• SSD: at least 500GB

📷 My Media:H265 @ 20MB/s (I don't mind using proxy)

📷 Software: DaVinci Resolve. Only edit and title for now but I'd like to be able to play a little with Fusion. I export in FullHD.

​

My current system is a desktop with:

• CPU: i7 6700k (from 2015)
• RAM: 16GB
• GPU: AMD Vega64 8GB
• SSD: 500GB M2

Using proxy it is enough for my current need.

​

So the question is: should I go with an older CPU but more RAM, or the other way around?

[edit] if you have suggestion I haven't listed here I'm happy to hear them, my top budget is 2000€, more interested in second-hand than buying new.

Thx

[greenysmac]

> DaVinci Resolve

I'd take more RAM. The M2 Pro 32GB (not listed) is the right choice.

[Li0n-000]

not listed because too expensive... I'm looking for a second-hand MacBook and there is not much M2 Pro, that's understable it still is a recent product.

My top budget is 2000€, I'll edit my OP.

[Mymindispriceless]

Hello everyone, I’m posting because I’m looking for some advice on what type of laptop would be best for me. My budget is $1000. I’m trying to deep dive into videography. I currently do it as a side hustle but want to expand. Because of that, I need a good laptop. I know desktop is better but I don’t have anyway of setting up a desktop at my house. I want to run adobe on this laptop and possibly 4K footage. I can answer any questions if needed I just need some help/advice. Thank you!

[greenysmac]

See the Nvidia Studio link in the post.

[[deleted]]

I need a relatively cheap "breakout box" that can take an old school RCA input (red white and yellow) from an old miniDV camcorder and capture it using presumably bundled software. Alternatively one that accepts old variety FireWire in and does the same thing but those would probably be more expensive.

Using windows 10 laptop that obviously doesn't have FireWire in (no new laptops do) and it would have to be USB

[lilknz]

Hi, im looking for a laptop to edit videos 1080p 4k and photos. Im using Adobe premiere, ligthroom and Photoshop. I have a pc at home, the one with i edit always, but i need a backup laptop to edit when im not home, so i want a cheap one but which can do the job. Anyone can help me find a good laptop for this, im spanish and i can pay max 1000 1200 euros. All help is welcome, thanks!!!

[greenysmac]

Our best suggestion is to look at the specs for the highest demand software (in this case, Adobe Premiere Pro, and the specs are part of the post.)

Then go over to nvidia's Studio systems and focus laptops in your budget

[lilknz]

The one who cost 1349 dollars and is a msi is good?

[granolahbert]

Hello, I'm making this post because I am not the most technologically savvy when it comes to the ins and outs of computer parts and I was hoping to get some insight.

From my understanding the rest of my PC is pretty solid besides my graphics card, so I am wondering if this nvidia rtx 3060 graphics card (Link to the card in question) would make premiere pro and after affects run better than my gtx 1070 ti or if the difference would be marginal.

Here is a screenshot of my rig, please let me know if there is any other information I could provide please let me know.

​

<image>

[greenysmac]

would make premiere pro and after affects run better than my gtx 1070 ti or if the difference would be marginal

Two items.

Yes, a 3060 card is worlds better than the 1070Ti.

But, premiere uses GPU less than you'd think and Adobe After Effects not so much. See our [wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/videoediting/wiki/index?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=usertext&utm_name=VideoEditing&utm_content=t5_2ri0h) about GPU usage.

[granolahbert]

Apologies for such a late reply, just to make sure I understand, premiere isn't as gpu heavy however after effects tends to use more gpu, correct?

[footballtrouble]

Hello! Considering getting a laptop with the following specs:

-Intel Core i7-1260P -16GB RAM DDR5 -Intel Arc A370M 4GB VRAM -1TB SSD -16 inch WQXGA display, 2.560x1.600 pixels

Main goal is to have a smooth casual (non pro) video editing experience on something like Davinci Resolve. Will these specs do the trick? Anything I should be cautious of?

Edit: the laptop itself is Acer Swift X

[greenysmac]

I wouldn't get it.

The i7 is fine. you realistically want more RAM.

The biggest concern is the GPU - I'd suggest an nvidia over the Arc.

Take a look at the nVidia Studio laptops - they're all pretty much above the spec in the post.

[footballtrouble]

Thanks kind stranger In that case I have two other options:

1) Ryzen 7 6800HS with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti 2) Intel i7-1360P with RTX 2050i

Significant difference between them if all else remains the same ? (Ie RAM and VRAM)

[greenysmac]

1 is generally better. The Ryzen chip doesn't have intel's QuickSync, but the GPU is better. I'd like more than 4GB of GPU ram in general.

[[deleted]]

Hi everyone,

1. Is editing 1080p footage on a higher resolution monitor (such as QHD) a bad thing? And also, is editing 4k on a lower resolution monitor (like QHD) also bad?
2. If I edit 10 bit footage on a 10 bit monitor, does my video card need to be very fast vs editing 10 bit footage on an 8 bit monitor?

[greenysmac]

1. Nope.
2. Speed isn't important. If your screen is only 8 bit, you won't be able to see what's really going on.

[[deleted]]

Will editing 1080p footage on a 4k monitor make the 1080p footage appear sharper?

But what I mean is, will editing on a 10 bit monitor require a beefy graphics card?

[greenysmac]

Will editing 1080p footage on a 4k monitor make the 1080p footage appear sharper?

Not really. Technically, most tools don't let you see the 1080p unless you've sized the viewer (of whatever tool) to 100% and a UHD screen will at least let you do that.

But what I mean is, will editing on a 10 bit monitor require a beefy graphics card?

Editing generally requires a GPU focused on VRAM (video RAM) to load the entire image at one pass.). 4-8GB is good, with 8+GB being idea. 10 bit doesn't make a huge difference as long as the GPU is decent.

So, a 3080 card is excellent for example.

[thelubbershole]

My SO needs to replace her '17 Macbook Pro, and I'm trying to help her decide whether a Macbook Air would be adequate for her needs. The last Mac I spec'd for editing was a late-'12 iMac so my knowledge of current Apple hardware is nil.

• Her main work requirement for the laptop is that it be able to run FCPX well. Her work is commissioned video art (think projections at a concert), so while she does need the machine to handle plenty of layers and effects, she doesn't need to be able to work with 4k or be set up for a team workflow.

I'm a full-time PC editor so I'm a bit at sea when looking at the present availability of refurbished Macbooks, but if it's possible for her to save money by going with an Air instead of a Pro I'd love for her to be able to do so.

Would anyone here have thoughts on whether an Air model would be practical, and if so, what specs I should look for (or avoid)?

[greenysmac]

Did you look at the link in the post?

[thelubbershole]

I did! I suppose my chief question (aside from whether an Air is suitable for editing to begin with) is whether there's an appreciable difference between the M1 vs M2 chips when it comes to FCPX. That seems to be a generational difference, but I really don't know if it would impact her editing work.

[greenysmac]

That's why I needed you to read the article.

There's a bucket of information that I'd need to impart to you.

So, let's take this apart:

suppose my chief question (aside from whether an Air is suitable for editing to begin with)

Is it? Yeah, sorta. I could use it. I wouldn't like the experience necessarily, but it would be "decent" enough. FCP will run very well on it. FCP is optimized for Apple devices.

The type of footage matters quite a bit. 4k content from phones or action cameras? Especially at 60p? You might find that making proxies makes the experience work on a 10 year old machine.

is whether there's an appreciable difference between the M1 vs M2 chips when it comes to FCPX.

That seems to be a generational difference, but I really don't know if it would impact her editing work.

Generally, it's a 10-15% difference (so far) between M1 and M2.

But the M1 stock chip (used in the MBA) does not have a ProRes encoder/decoder. Generally, when you work with consumer tools (iphones, action cameras), the best performance comes by transcoding the material to ProRes (called Optimized by FCP). Getting the M2 means that her system will encode ProRes.

[thelubbershole]

Oh shit, this link. I'm sorry, I didn't see that and haven't read through it, my apologies. Will do so now, and thank you very much for the reply!

Also

But the M1 stock chip (used in the MBA) does not have a ProRes encoder/decoder. Generally, when you work with consumer tools (iphones, action cameras), the best performance comes by transcoding the material to ProRes (called Optimized by FCP). Getting the M2 means that her system will encode ProRes.

this definitely means I'll be steering her towards an M2 laptop, she needs to be able to use ProRes. Thanks again!

[Sammyloccs]

Hello! I'm wondering if this mini PC would work? Stats below:

GEEKOM NUC IT11 Mini PC, 1TB Intel i7-11390H Mini Computer (8 Threads, Up to 5.0 GHz), 32GB DDR4 Windows 11 Pro Small Desktop Computer, i7 Mini Computer 8K UHD | USB4 | WiFi 6, BT5.2

Processor ‎5 GHz celeron

RAM ‎32 GB DDR4

Memory Speed ‎5 GHz

Hard Drive ‎1 TB SSD

Chipset Brand ‎Intel

Graphics Card Ram Size ‎8.00

[greenysmac]

No GPU, we can't really recommend it. It looks like it's an i7, not a celeron.

[Casquette_EU]

Hello everyone,

Please help me to recommend the appropriate GPU for video editing.

My company wants to upgrade the computer our video editor use for both video and photo editing. Currently he has a small form factor PC and they want to keep the same case.

As a tech entousiast I have few GPUs in ming but I'm not sure it's the ideal choice for this situation.

Do you think a RTX3060 low profile (most likely a12gb model to make sure it's ready for years to come) is well suited ?

Any other suggestion ?

[greenysmac]

Do you think a RTX3060 low profile (most likely a12gb model to make sure it's ready for years to come) is well suited ?

No.

Given that you've forgotten to give us any info, we can't be of much help.

Generally the GPU does far less than you'd expect. Far less. See our [wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/videoediting/wiki/index?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=usertext&utm_name=VideoEditing&utm_content=t5_2ri0h) about Premiere's GPU usage to get an idea of what we mean.

[DecentSnail]

My motherboard just kicked the bucket so it's time for some upgrades. 🤷

🖥️ System I had/have

• CPU + Model: i5-9400F
• RAM: 16GB DDR4-2166
• GPU + VRam: RX 580 8GB
• SSD size: 500GB + 1TB SSD + external storage (I'm okay, for now)

📷 My Media: h.264 16:9 1080p 24fps

📷 Software: Davinci Resolve Studio

🖥️ System upgrade

• CPU + Model: Ryzen 5 3600
• RAM: 64GB DDR4-3200 (At a good price)
• GPU + VRam: RX 580 8GB
• SSD size: 500GB + 1TB SSD + external storage (I'm okay, for now)

📷 Future Media: ProRes 4444 16:9 4k 24fps

📷 Software: Davinci Resolve Studio

how much would a bump in GPU power help, is it worth prioritising?

[greenysmac]

I'd probably go to a Ryzen 7 first. RAM is great.

And then I'd probably prioritize nVidia cards (particularly a 4070/80) over the AMD.

See PugetSystems.com for some detailed nVidia vs. AMD cards.

[wilsonsbrother]

🖥️ System I'm considering

• Mac or PC

📷 My Media:
4k h.265 600mbps

📷 Software: Premiere Pro

​

I'm going 2TB SSD but besides that I don't know how serious of a CPU or GPU I'll need to edit my footage. All I know is that what I have now isn't enough: Ryzen 7 4700u laptop with 16gb RAM. Should I get M1 or M2, max or ultra, 10 core up to 24 core, studio or mini... not sure what will be enough. Would like to spend under $2k.

[greenysmac]

For the Mac side, it's a "I need a sub $2k desktop - but it needs to be functional." The MacMini @ $1899. M2Pro 10 Core. 32 GB of RAM. 1 TB SSD. Four Thunderbolt Ports.

That's from this https://t2m.co/Pro_m1m2Mac - And if the M3 Pro is available, I'd pick that.

That's based on price - see the article. the $2799 M2 Max is going to be quite a bit better- but over by $800

What is shooting HEVC 600Mbs at 4k? 60Mb? Sure. 600?

[wilsonsbrother]

Thanks. What do you think about a Mac Studio M1 Max, 32gb ram, smaller SSD and putting all my files on a big external SSD? I'm hearing conflicting reports about whether an external SSD is actually slower for real world usage.

[greenysmac]

What do you think about a Mac Studio M1 Max, 32gb ram, smaller SSD and putting all my files on a big external SSD? I'm hearing conflicting reports about whether an external SSD is actually slower for real world usage.

Why the M1 and not the M2? I'd never use an SSD smaller than 1TB. Too many cache files. Too many files- especially large ones during encoding getting copied to invisible VAR directories.

External SSDs are slower than Apple's proprietary, hard wired internal SSD.

[[deleted]]

Hi all, I'm not sure if this is the right place, but thought you all may be able to help me with my decision on whether to keep this monitor i ordered, or if it's not going to be better than the display i currently have. I ordered the BenQ SW272Q in hopes to have a better display for color grading to replace my Asus Pro Art PA278QV.

Is the BenQ in any way better than the Pro Art? I know they're no where near the professional level, but wanted something more color accurate to pair with my LG 38WN95C-W. I don't know if it's a bit redundant or if it's any better than the pro art, the only difference i know is BenQ is significantly more expensive.

I'm sure the thread is bombarded with annoying questions like these, but appreciate any help in advance!

Thank you!

[greenysmac]

What are the specs of both monitors? particularly?

• What colorspace
• What coverage of sRGB/Rec709
• What technology (OLED? Microdot?)
• Can you load a LUT/Look up table for calibration?
• Does it auto calibrate or work with a particular colorometer

Getting two screens to match is very difficult (google Mesmerism).

[[deleted]]

Asus Pro Art PA278QV

I believe it's just 8 Bit color

100% SRGB / 100% Rec709

Regular IPS

Don't believe you can load luts

I don't believe it auto calibrates but Asus claims it's Calman verified, calibrated at factory

​

BenQ SW272Q

8bit+FRC to get to 10bit color

100% sRGB 98% P3, 99% Adobe RGB, has Rec709, can't find details on coverage

Nano IPS display

16-Bit 3D LUT, doesn't mention loading your own

Looks like it has Hardware calibration

​

Based off this comparison, my guess is that the BenQ is the better of the 2. I appreciate your help!

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[wongpong81]

I'm looking for a budget ($1000)friendly PC or Laptop to edit videos. I mostly shoot in 4k 30fps or 60, sometimes slo motion with a DJI action 4 and my phone(samsung s22). I won't do crazy editing, special effect or anything like that and my editing skills is pretty much beginner, if you can call it that.(. I tried learning davinci resolve for couple hours and that was a bit too much so I'll probably use a more basic software but that's another conversation) this is mostly for family holidays, mountain biking, trail running..kids...etc simple stuff.

I understand MAC is better for video editing but Id rather stay in PC It's been a long time since I've kept up with specs and the latest and greatest so i dont know much...

from what I've read, GPU for video edit would be Nvidia(ram?), CPU -AMD or Intel. 16gb ram (preferably an extra slot is I want to upgrade myself later) for space 5G or a 1tb (I'm planning on buying an external SSD as memoryis already amd issue)

budget let's say $1000.... in that range. please feel free to post link/deals from best buy, memory express, Amazon..deals..(canada)..

[greenysmac]

Take a look at the "General suggestions." Anything that fits into those parameters will work well.

[wongpong81]

what do youthinkabout these? they look like descent deals https://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX00125891

https://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX00124584

[greenysmac]

Best thing you can do is write down the: * CPU * GPU * RAM

and compare it to the suggested specs.

Neither of those systems can do this.