Best Computer Specs for Video Editing

[lynnb62]

Looking into a new computer...what kind of graphics/video card should I look for for the most efficient video editing?

[Greg_S.]

As far as I can tell, Premiere Elements doesn't make much use of the graphics card.  So, I wouldn't be spending a whole lot of money on a high end card unless you are into gaming.  A better CPU will give you more benefit.

[Steve Grisetti]

Greg is right. If you're editing with Premiere Elements, spend the money on a processor rather than a graphics card.

This benchmark chart is really the only way to compare all the different processors out there. At minimum, look for one that scores 6500-8000. A 10,000 score or better is great, even if you're editing 4K.

PassMark Intel vs AMD CPU Benchmarks - High End​

As you can see, most current processors easily exceed what you need.

[Shivangi_Gupta]

Hi lynnb,

Thanks for reaching out.

Here is a link to an article: Adobe Premiere Elements system requirements

You can refer to this to know the basic requirements for using Adobe Premiere Elements. Anything above this will enhance the performance. I would like to mention that apart from the computer's hardware, there are other factors which are responsible for making the performance good or bad, for example, media used(format, resolution, length etc), the complexity of the project(effects applied), third-party plugins used.

Give us a shout if you have any other query.

Thanks,

Shivangi

[Bill Sprague]

The "Adobe Premiere Elements system requirements" are accurate, but probably "minimum".  There are a lot of i7, and now i9, processors that have higher performance.  Replacing HDDs with SSDs can make a big difference.  Video editing is probably the highest work load you can put on a computer.  Exceeding the minimums if video editing is a priority can be a good idea.

[HOTELECHOMIKE]

Replacing HDDs with SSDs can make a big difference.

I second that.

I have a i3-4130 CPU which scores somewhat below the figures that Steve recommends for editing HD videos.

Originally I had the C: drive on an SSD & D: was a HD.  Frequently during playback the video being worked on stuttered.

Presumably because a project comprises many pointers to files on the HD which had to be picked up "on the fly".

I then added a second SSD as drive D: & moved the original D: to F: (the hard drive).

On the new drive D: I just keep the project that I am working on (including raw video & photos of course).

Completed projects get offloaded onto backup / archive media.

Now playback works smoothly.  Always.