PC for gaming and video editing Reddit

What is the best pre-built gaming/video editing computer you could get and potentially customize later for ~$4.5K? from buildapcforme

The following builds are designed to be a good baseline or jumping off point for your personal build. They have been designed with video editing in mind as the primary usage, with programs such as Premiere, After Effects, and Resolve considered. In all cases they will also provide a good gaming experience but do not necessarily represent the best value for that particular use case. Your personal needs will undoubtedly vary and if you need help with further configuration (more storage, better GPU, different form factor, etc), please feel free to create a new post.

The following lists utilize PCPartPicker's parametric filter option. That means when you click on the link and select your country in the top-right of PCPP's website, the currently cheapest, in-stock, and compatible parts will be automatically chosen for you and you will be ready to hit the ground running with your build. All parts for all builds have been researched and carefully chosen.

A few general notes regarding the builds:

• Intel CPUs and Nvidia GPUs are generally recommended as they currently present the best performance per dollar across all price categories and editing software (QuickSync & CUDA).

• All cases have been chosen with high airflow in mind. Good airflow = cooler parts = better performance and longevity. Keep in mind that you may want to add to or swap out stock case fans as well (this has not been factored into the builds due to the case variations possible with the parametric filter).

• For most builds, (good) air coolers have been favored over AIOs, as they offer improved reliability and longevity at similar levels of performance. Ultimately, if the system is meant for work, stability and reliability should always take precedence. Even if the system is only down for 1 day, that could mean missing a deadline for your largest client. An AIO failing could be potentially catastrophic to the whole system. An air cooler that fails will still function to some degree and will be back to running at 100% after a simple fan swap (the only potential point of failure).

• With the exception of the $1000 and less builds (due to the budgetary constraints), all builds have been configured to align with the recommended 3 drive optimized storage setup: 1 SATA SSD for OS and programs, 1 smaller NVMe SSD for scratch and cache, and 1 larger NVMe SSD for raw footage and proxies. Please note that for everybody it is rather likely that you will need additional and/or archival storage beyond what is recommended in each build. Video footage, especially from high bit rate cameras, eats gigabytes for breakfast. However, as these are templates, it is impossible to take into consideration what kind of storage setup each person already has, and a "middle of the road" approach has been taken. Some users may already have a 50TB server set up at home, whereas others may not have a single megabyte to their name. If you need help with your archival storage setup, feel free to make a new post.

• PCIe Gen 4 SSDs have not been included in these builds as the use cases in which they can be fully utilized are very situational. They are also comparatively still quite expensive over Gen 3 drives, therefore the money "saved" has rather been distributed towards upgrading main components.

Budget builds

It is recommended to start with the $1000 build if you can. This is of course not a viable option for everybody, so two budget builds are recommended here: ~$600 or ~$750

~$900 build

This is a great build for a beginner or hobbyist. 1080p footage will cut like a dream and basic 4K projects will work without the need for proxies.

PCPartPicker Part List

~$1500 build

This is a build targeted toward the entry-level professional: You are just getting your first paid gigs and want to be able to put several effects on your (non-H264) 4K footage without the need for proxies.

PCPartPicker Part List

~$1850 build

This build represents the best overall value and will be able to handle pretty much anything you throw at it. This PC is a workhorse that you will be able to put through its paces every day.

PCPartPicker Part List

~$2700 build

You're a professional and time is money. Don't let your PC hold you back.

PCPartPicker Part List

~$5000 build

A jump up to an HEDT platform (Threadripper) brings an extra 16 cores and 32 threads to your workflow. Not only will your render will be done by the time you're back from your coffee break, but you won't even need to put your heat on in the winter! ;)

(Note that current availability issues are inflating the price below.)

PCPartPicker Part List

Laptops

MacBook Pros currently provide the best value. M1 Pro, 10-core CPU, 16-core GPU, 16GB RAM, 1TB storage, 16" display is the baseline recommendation ($2700).

If the price of an MBP is too steep, a good Windows laptop with an AMD CPU, Nvidia GPU, upgradeable RAM, and a decent display would also work quite well. The Lenovo ThinkBook 16p Gen2 (starting around $1400) would be a good buy.