Clueless about drivers/specs... and frustrated

[jampff]

I'm a clueless newbie to Adobe Premiere Pro and Creative Cloud. I must summarize my saga before asking my question:

• I cluelessly installed PP on my old HP Envy, and was confronted with the System Compatibility Report that said my display graphics driver was not compatible, and I needed to update it.
• I cluelessly went hunting for what I thought was the correct update... updating other things like BIOS and other drivers in the process, before realizing that they weren't the updates referred to by PP. I finally realized the HP didn't have the update so I used the generic one provided by Intel (as suggested in the Adobe article) instead.
• I cluelessly wondered why my computer, which has always worked like a dream, began turning off without warning during use since those updates. I even did a system restore + drive wipe, and it's still turning off without warning if I do certain things.
• I GOT A CLUE! 🙂 The reason HP didn't provide the graphics display driver I needed was... hmmmm... a silly laptop like this probably isn't designed for fancy work like movie making. Time to go computer shopping, I guess.
• Being partial to Microsoft Surface products, I carefully compared the Adobe PP minimum/recommended specs with various Surface models to make sure I would pick the right one. I eventually settled on the Surface Book 2, configured in such a way to exceed the PP specs. I bought it, and I love this thing. It's so cool.
• I cluelessly wondered why, after installing PP on the Surface Book 2, I got ANOTHER System Compatibility Report that mentioned the NVIDIA driver this time. Once again, I was directed to update the NVIDIA drivers, or expect abnormalities in PP.
• I angrily double checked the specs on my brand new lovely computer, and they did indeed exceed the requirements.
• I called Adobe Support to ask for clarification on the System Compatibility Report, and I was told that I just needed to update the drivers, no biggie. I informed the rep (as politely as I could) that I would ABSOLUTELY NOT update anything by myself just yet, since that's how I cluelessly broke the last computer. This one costed over 3 grand and I can't break this one on the third day out of the box, or else I won't be able to do my job. (I already can't do part of it because I can't get PP to work yet.) Plus, I asked, why is PP telling me that a brand new shiny computer has an "old" driver version? Also, is there any way to know what computer I should buy that is guaranteed to work correctly? (Obviously the minimum/recommended specs page isn't enough.)
• I then called Microsoft to ask about how to correctly update the NVIDIA drivers, since I cluelessly did it incorrectly on the previous computer. They said that their agreement with NVIDIA is that all necessary updates to NVIDIA drivers will be provided through Windows Update, so I should not go to any third-party sites to download drivers.

Wow, that was much longer than I intended. So now I am cluelessly stuck with a brand new Surface Book 2, with NVIDIA drivers that are "too old" for Adobe Premiere Pro, and no clear way of updating them. This leaves me with a few questions:

1. Can I hear from real life users the truth about updating drivers... is it actually necessary? And what's the correct way to do it?
2. Can I hear from any real life PP users who use the Surface Book 2, if there are any? Is this a good machine to use with PP?
3. I'm also considering returning this machine for a refund and purchasing a https://store.hp.com/us/en/pdp/hp-pavilion-all-in-one-24-xa0125st instead. It's a huge price drop, but apparently has better specs than even the Surface Book 2 did. Does anyone use this? Can I be confident that I won't get a System Compatibility flag after installing PP? I really just want to buy something that I can turn on, install PP, and start working with.

Thanks for tolerating my cluelessness and verbosity. I really need to be able to use Premiere Pro soon so I can get back to work.

[Peru Bob]

https://store.hp.com/us/en/pdp/hp-pavilion-all-in-one-24-xa0125st

The internal hard drive is way too small.

The graphics only has 2 GB dedicated RAM.

An all-in-one will not likely be any good for video editing.

What file types and codecs will you be editing?

What effects and transitions will you be using?

[jampff]

Thanks for your reply,  Peru Bob!  I so appreciate hearing from an expert.

I plan to produce short (five minutes or less ish) mp4 files (H.264). That's where I'll start because that's all I know for now.  I won't use many effects or transitions... maybe just a cross fade here and there.

I'm a piano teacher who developed my own method.  I've been asked for years to record the lessons in video format to make them available to others. So no crazy effects needed. However,  I do intend to do lots of multi camera editing, and I read that's a strong point of Premiere Pro.

So the computer I was looking at is insufficient? I'm glad someone told me.  The frustrating part is, I keep checking this: Adobe Premiere Pro System Requirements ... and near as I can tell, that HP all in one I mentioned far exceeds the requirements. I'm just a music teacher, so I don't understand any of this. I thought the HP had "16 GB memory; 1 TB HDD storage; 128 GB SSD storage" (copied and pasted from product page).

I'm starting to realize that the Adobe Premiere Pro System Requirements page is not enough information for me. Is there a place on this site, or somewhere online, where a clueless non expert can get actual hardware suggestions? Perhaps a trustworthy list of current computers on the market that are good for video editing? I know I can just Google it... but I would rather not wade through useless information from paid sponsors or people who've never used Premiere Pro.

Also, Peru Bob, between the HP and the Surface Book 2 (which I already have), which one is better for my purposes, in your opinion? I will include the specs of the Surface here:

• Edition:Windows 10 Professional
• OS Build: 10.0.17763.652
• Graphic card: Intel(R) UHD Graphics 620
• Also,  NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060
• Installed: RAM16 GB
• Version: 1809
• System type: OSType64BitX64
• Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-8650U CPU @ 1.90GHz
• 4 cores

Thanks so much for your help!

[RjL190365]

In this case, pick your poison. Your current Surface Pro 2 is fairly well balanced with regards to the relative performance of the CPU to GPU; however, the CPU itself is only a lesser-performing quad-core CPU with hyperthreading (4 cores/8 threads). The Pavilion all-in-one, on the other hand, borderlines on being imbalanced: Too little GPU for the more modern 8-core/8-thread CPU - to the point where HP might as well not include the discrete GPU at all. The performance of that MX 230 is barely any better than the integrated Intel UHD 630 Graphics (with regards to the performance in GPGPU-accelerated apps rather than gaming); in fact, the MX 230 is neither sufficiently faster nor sufficiently more powerful than the UHD 630 to justify the additional cost for the manufacturer to put such a low-end discrete GPU in the PC. (And that's not to mention that the MX 230 has only 256 CUDA cores versus 1280 CUDA cores in the GTX 1060.)

[jampff]

Thanks, that somewhat makes sense. I don't understand any of the tech jargon, but I get the basic points: the HP is imbalanced, but the Surface is just generally puny.

Don't get me wrong; both replies so far are enlightening... but so far I've only been told I'm going the wrong direction. Where does someone like me go to get pointed in the right direction, if not these forums? In order to move forward with Premiere Pro, I need answers to some questions I've already asked. I'll rephrase them:

1. What kind of computer SHOULD I look for? As I stated above, I have already carefully examined the Adobe Premiere Pro System Requirements ... and both machines I mentioned looked to me like they more than fit the bill. So, what knowledge am I missing and where do I find it?
2. I just paid over $3000 for the Surface Book 2... should I expect to pay even more than that for something that can run Adobe Premiere Pro well?
3. What's the correct way to install graphics display driver updates? I tried downloading them from Intel and NVIDIA on my previous computer, and it broke the computer. Microsoft told me all updates I need will be included in Windows Update, so don't go looking for anything else. I'm confused over the conflicting information.

I'm a music teacher, just trying to shoot some simple lesson video. I do need multi-camera editing, which is why I like Premiere Pro, but I have never really done serious video editing before and know nothing about it. (I did use Avid a looooooong time ago, but wasn't very good at it.)

I realize no one owes me any help. I'm grateful for any replies I get. If I must fend for myself, I'll just try producing some of my simple music lesson video on the Surface I bought, and see if it works. What I'm trying to do is not complex, so maybe the Surface can handle it.

[RjL190365]

I also forgot to mention that Microsoft has NOT updated the NVIDIA driver in more than two years. In fact, the most recent NVIDIA driver version that's available from Microsoft Windows Update dates all the way back to when Microsoft released the 1703 update for Windows 10, which at the time was version 388.13. Unfortunately, that driver only supported CUDA 9.1, which is below what Premiere Pro 13.x requires just to enable CUDA acceleration at all. Dozens of driver versions had been released by NVIDIA since then.

It's no wonder why Microsoft has not produced an updated Surface Book that includes a Turing GPU or a more powerful CPU: There are currently no drivers available at all from the Windows Update site that supports Turing GPUs, thus requiring third-party drivers for those GPUs.

[jampff]

So, what kind of machines should I be looking at?

[Peru Bob]

jampff  wrote

1. I have already carefully examined the Adobe Premiere Pro System Requirements ... and both machines I mentioned looked to me like they more than fit the bill. So, what knowledge am I missing and where do I find it?

Unfortunately, the minimum requirements are just the minimum to run it, not to run it well.

Have a read here:

https://www.pugetsystems.com/recommended/Recommended-Systems-for-Adobe-Premiere-Pro-CC-143/Hardware-...

[jampff]

This is VERY helpful!

[jampff]

I took a good look at the Puget link you provided. It was very informative and thought provoking.

I thought their explanations of the different components was understandable. Also, I appreciate that they keep a more realistic list of specs.

For kicks, I used their 4k option to build a hypothetical machine for myself. Then I had this thought: what if I'm not communicating my intended purposes well? Others on this forum tell me that the specs I have are woefully inadequate... but then I'm directed to a website that sells machines for minimum 4k editing.

But, for the record: I have no intention of producing 4k video whatsoever. 1080, max. I'm not making full length movies or even going to do lots of intense post-production. I'm just producing simple, short instructional video that most will watch on a computer. No fancy effects. The final products will be less than 5 minutes, usually, 1920x1080 mp4 or webm, and mostly just clips of me talking and demonstrating. My main attraction to Premiere Pro is the multi-camera editing functions, which I will use a lot.

So... having said that, do the specs in my Surface Book 2 (see them listed above, reply #2) sound like they might be adequate? In other places on the forums, other people mention using Surface Book 2 and it working beautifully (until 2019, but that's another subject... I think ??? the 1903 update will take care of that when it comes to SB2... in any case, I asked about that in another discussion).

[Peru Bob]

jampff  wrote

• I then called Microsoft to ask about how to correctly update the NVIDIA drivers, since I cluelessly did it incorrectly on the previous computer. They said that their agreement with NVIDIA is that all necessary updates to NVIDIA drivers will be provided through Windows Update, so I should not go to any third-party sites to download drivers.

See reply #14 by allg33ks here:

Re: Premiere Pro 2019 bad performance on Surface Book

[allg33ks]

Nvidia Experience isn’t a third party site. It’s an application from Nvidia available on their site.

[jampff]

Thanks. I actually did try NVIDIA experience update method on the previous computer... and after that, it started shutting off by itself without warning. So I'm veeerrrryyyy nervous about it.

[RjL190365]

I think it all boils down to "standard" vs. "DCH" drivers. Generally speaking, if you have an OEM-specific version of the NVIDIA driver, you MUST use the DCH driver. A standard or "legacy" driver will not install at all on a system that's configured to use DCH drivers or is running an OEM-specific driver unless all traces of such preinstalled drivers are completely uninstalled and removed. Such a driver MUST be manually downloaded directly from the NVIDIA site; otherwise, the GeForce Experience may download and install the wrong type of drivers, thereby causing major stability issues.

Conversely, a system that's configured to use the legacy drivers cannot be updated to a DCH driver without uninstalling and removing all traces of the legacy driver.