How to Build the BEST PC for DaVinci Resolve - Ultimate Guide to GPU, CPU, and more!

Puget Systems will build a powerful PC but Chris, it's not that complicated anymore. The most important thing is to start with an oversized tower case supporting a 1000 watt power supply, and NVIDIA RTX4090 or 3090 card with 24GB dedicated video ram and more than 1 HDMI output. The NVIDIA will take up 3 slots by itself and another 1 or 2 for a Decklink card. A motherboard with extra slots, Realtek digital sound or similar, network adapter, an Intel or AMD processor and 32-64 GB or ram. I don't think Resolve ever uses more than 32GB, but will use all available video ram, thus the recommendation for the RTX4090/3090. I shoot 12K 60fps BRAW and render 8K/60 HEVC with the NVIDIA hardware encoder NVENC. I don't fret about eeking out the last bit of gaming performance or spec, just solid Resolve experience to include multicam timelines and HDR. I'm not a PC builder by hobby, just wanted a usable, workable machine and don't worry about the latest spec or number of cores, I think anything of recent manufacture is going to be fine except this; better to stay away from the consumer branded PC's, the cases are too small and the power supplies too weak, and not enough expansion slots, and if you're serious, don't use a laptop, which can certainly run Resolve but will leave you unfulfilled in unspecified ways related to connectivity, or less than full performance from NVIDIA video cards for the ones that have them. For a laptop, probably better to go with M3.
 
Tom Roper said:
Puget Systems will build a powerful PC but Chris, it's not that complicated anymore. The most important thing is to start with an oversized tower case supporting a 1000 watt power supply, and NVIDIA RTX4090 or 3090 card with 24GB dedicated video ram and more than 1 HDMI output. The NVIDIA will take up 3 slots by itself and another 1 or 2 for a Decklink card. A motherboard with extra slots, Realtek digital sound or similar, network adapter, an Intel or AMD processor and 32-64 GB or ram. I don't think Resolve ever uses more than 32GB, but will use all available video ram, thus the recommendation for the RTX4090/3090. I shoot 12K 60fps BRAW and render 8K/60 HEVC with the NVIDIA hardware encoder NVENC. I don't fret about eeking out the last bit of gaming performance or spec, just solid Resolve experience to include multicam timelines and HDR. I'm not a PC builder by hobby, just wanted a usable, workable machine and don't worry about the latest spec or number of cores, I think anything of recent manufacture is going to be fine except this; better to stay away from the consumer branded PC's, the cases are too small and the power supplies too weak, and not enough expansion slots, and if you're serious, don't use a laptop, which can certainly run Resolve but will leave you unfulfilled in unspecified ways related to connectivity, or less than full performance from NVIDIA video cards for the ones that have them. For a laptop, probably better to go with M3.
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100% agree with all you've said, Tom. I always build my own PCs and have done since Windows 2000 when we were running Avid and Discreet edit*. I have always spec'd 1000 watt PS units, as any PS should never run much above 70% duty cycle. With half a dozen drives, four monitors and a couple of hungry Nvidia GPUs under full load with a couple of 200 mm Noctua NH series running full blast plus the MOBO, Ram and all other associated peripherals I've seen in excess of 600 watts consumption quite frequently, especially on hot days.

Chris Young

Ah! The edit* days. That was a revolution.

https://theditspot.com/2011/04/20/editors-wake-discreet-edit/
 
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