Updated on August 14, 2022
Even action cameras and smartphones will be able to record videos in 4K and 60fps in 2021, making the need for professional equipment obsolete. High-resolution video editing can take a long time if your computer’s graphics card can’t handle such a complex work.
Graphics cards are becoming increasingly crucial in the video editing and rendering process as more and more video editing software programmes change from relying entirely on the CPU to relying on the GPU. For those of you who want to minimise the choppy playback of 4K films or reduce the amount of time it takes to render 4K footage, you’ve come to the right spot. In this post we’ll walk you through the best graphics cards for editing and rendering 4K video.
Top 5 Graphics Cards for 4K Video Editing and Rendering
If you’re looking for a graphics card, your options are limited to two big manufacturers: AMD and Nvidia. Since AMD has produced a number of graphics card models capable of exceptional performance in recent years, Nvidia has been a clear choice for video editors working with enormous high-resolution video files. The finest graphics cards for 4K video editing and rendering in 2021 will be examined in this article.
1. Asus AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT
On Amazon, the price is $424.99.
Pros
8GB of GDDR6 RAM is available
H.264 4K decoding and encoding formats are supported.
Provides a high-end premium solution optimised for virtual reality
Cons: Makes use of a cutting-edge sharpening system.
Potential for overclocking is meagre.
AMD’s graphics card was created to enable video editors, animators, and gamers get the most out of their systems’ video output quality. To minimise lag and enhance the gaming experience, the 7nm RDNA architecture of the graphics card features 40 compute units. Radeon Image Sharpening, VR, and FidelityFX are all enhanced by the RDNA architecture, which ensures each detail in a 4K movie is shown precisely.
Connect up to six displays to the AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT so you can play games in 8K resolution at 60 fps or display 5K visuals at 120 fps with this graphics card. This graphics card has 4.0 express PCI, which gives twice as much bandwidth as the PCI 3.0 express graphics cards you’ll find on the market.
2. Gigabyte AMD Radeon VII
Amazon has it at $449.99.
Pros
The memory bandwidth is 1 terabyte.
Excellent ability to overclock
a 4096-bit wide memory array
Adaptable to 4K and 8K displays
Cons
Uses up to 300 watts of electricity.
For editing 4K or 8K video, AMD’s Radeon VII is the greatest graphics card you can purchase in 2020. This graphics card is VR-ready thanks to its 16GB of VRAM and 1,800MHz boost clock. The card’s performance is increased by 25% thanks to the 7nm architecture, allowing you to handle even the most demanding video editing tasks and video games. Radeon VII performs brilliantly in the gaming department even if it doesn’t feature ray tracing units. PCIe 4.0 is supported by Ryzen processors, however Radeon VII only has a PCIe 3.0 interface, which limits the amount of data that can be sent between the graphics card and other devices.
3. EVGA Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 Super
Amazon has it for $589.55.
Pros
Ray tracing in real time
Cons: 8192 MB GDDR6 RAM, 1770 MHz boost clock, with silent dual HDB fans
Features are the only thing that matters. Your 4K films will be rendered faster, and you’ll be able to play the latest video games in real time thanks to the PCIe 3.0 RTX 2070 Super’s support for 3D animation and rendering. Turing GPU design is powered by a powerful artificial intelligence (AI) that can boost graphics card performance by a factor of six. Dedicated RT cores deliver up to 10 Giga Rays per second, while the card’s AI can handle large workloads thanks to the card’s parallel processing capabilities. Smooth playback of 4K videos and quick rendering of huge video files are ensured by the memory’s 14Gbps speed. A hardware encoder built into the Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 Super makes it possible to stream games in real time without experiencing lag.
4. Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Founders Edition
The cost is $799.99.
Pros:
Cooling system that excels in ray tracing and provides DLSS for yet-to-be-released games
Refresh rates of at least 60 Hz
Cons:
pricier than comparable models
The GeForce RTX 2080 Founders Edition graphics card makes it easier to edit 4K footage shot with smartphones, action cameras, and professional video cameras. Turing architecture provides 1800MHz boost clock and 2944 CUDA cores in addition to the card’s 8GB GDDR6 VRAM. The GeForce RTX 2080 Founders Edition supports a maximum digital resolution of 7680×4320, making it possible to play both 4K and 8K videos on your computer after installing this graphics card. In order to increase your computer’s 4K video editing capability, this card comes equipped with standard display, HDMI, and USB Type-C interfaces.
5. EVGA Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super
The cost is $699.00.
Pros
Exceptional overclocking ability CUDA cores of 3072
Allows for the connection of up to four displays
Con sumption of less electricity
Designed exclusively for video editors and gamers.
When it comes to 8K video playback and 4K video editing, go no further than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080. The GeForce RTX 2080, like the rest of Nvidia’s RTX Super Series cards, delivers exceptional performance even when working with massive amounts of 4K video files or creating complex 3D animations.
RTX 2080 is a great pick for gamers and streamers because of its ability to play the most recent video games at their highest settings in real time. You may begin playing games right away after installing this graphics card on your computer because it is VR-ready and has game-ready drivers.
Background Information about Graphics Cards
In order to complete a project shot in 4K, the amount of time it will take depends on the computer configuration you are using to edit the footage. A computer’s GPU can greatly reduce rendering times or improve the playback of huge 4K files, despite the fact that CPUs still play a key role in video playback. So, to give you some context, here are some facts about graphics cards.
What exactly is a graphics card?
It is a piece of computer hardware that generates the steam of output images that you can see on a computer’s monitor or any other display device, such as a television. Even the most basic apps like word processors and web browsers would not be viable without a graphics card.
How Many Different Types of Graphics Cards Can You Find?
Graphics cards come in two varieties. You can edit images, watch and edit movies, and play video games on most computers since they have an integrated graphics card built into the CPU. As a result of this, the computer takes longer to complete demanding tasks because the CPU and GPU on the same chip sometimes limit each other’s capabilities.
By upgrading to a dedicated graphics card, you’ll be able to edit high-resolution videos faster and cut the time it takes to produce a 4K video. A dedicated graphics card’s processor and RAM are distinct from the rest of the computer’s RAM, allowing it to run more efficiently and with less lag while editing video.
What you do on your computer on a regular basis will determine whether or not you should invest in a dedicated graphics card. The integrated graphics card is all you need if you’re merely editing photographs and videos at a basic level.
But if you’re a video editor, animator, or just want to play the latest games at their highest resolution, a dedicated graphics card will make your daily computer duties go much faster and smoother than they would without one.
Choosing a Graphics Card: What to Look for?
It can take some time and research to locate the finest dedicated graphics card for your computer’s configuration, as there are currently hundreds of models available. Before you invest in a specialised graphics card, you should also examine your computer’s specifications.
1. The ability to draw a lot of power.
All computer setups benefit from having a reliable power supply since it helps prevent system crashes and hardware failures. Dedicated graphics cards can use anywhere from 120 Watts to 300 Watts of power, depending on the brand. A computer power supply must be able to deliver enough power to run high-end graphics cards, which use more power than all other computer components combined.
Cooling is the second step.
It’s possible that overheating will permanently damage your graphics card and your computer, so it’s worth verifying the cooling capabilities of any cards you’re considering. Furthermore, dedicated graphics cards’ cooling fans can make a lot of noise, so you should check to see if the model you’re considering can run at low noise levels.
Amount
Between 10.5 and 11 inches in length, most high-end dedicated graphics cards may fit into two or three expansion slots. As a result, before making a graphics card purchase, make sure you know how many expansion slots you have available and what the card’s actual size is.
Scaling over many cards
Because attaching two or more graphics cards might take up a lot of space, your multi-card scaling options may be limited by the amount of accessible space and the size of your computer. Connecting AMD and Nvidia cards through CrossFire X or NVLink is conceivable, but there is no way to pair graphics cards from various manufacturers.
