Hi, i have mid 2011 27 inch i7 iMac with 24 GB RAM and 2 gb graphics video card and 1 tb ssd. Will adding a 2nd eGPU help in the future? I’m primarily going to work with the 2.5k BMCC, is the 2gb GPU enough for me to work RAW files on Resolve without problems? I have a black magic pocket cinema camera 6k and shooting raw the file sizes are big. Whichever one you choose, you will only get hardware H.264 acceleration with Resolve Studio on Windows, so it’s definitely worth the $299 for the extra boost that gives if you’re working with AVC/H.264. If you need these features, please download DaVinci Resolve 16 from the Blackmagic Design support website. Processor: 3.4 GHz Intel Core i7 Memory: 16 GB 1333 MHz DDR3 I am running the OS off an external 512 GB SSD Graphics: AMD Radeon HD 6970M 1024 MB. To answer your questions. I think it’s 2GB), an A10 CPU, 32 GB ram and some RAID HHDs. It sounds counter-intuitive, but the “heavier” in terms of file size, large formats with less compression, or at least mathematically less complex compression are simpler, easier and faster for Resolve to work with on any given system. The systems with serious multi-GPU configurations are all running on Linux, and that’s a different setup. Storage isnât only important because of needing space for large files, but also because the more resources you can take off one drive, the better. Sistema operativo Windows 10 Home 64 Memória (RAM) 8GB Processador Processador Intel® Core™ i5 de 8.ª geração Tamanho do ecrã 39,6 cm (15,6 pol.). Thank you for your time. It’s just not as important as it used to be. installed memory (RAM) 8.0 GB. I’ve listed some good options below (as of 2020) at different budget levels. Resolve Studio supports hardware GPU decoding and encoding of h.264/h.265 video codecs, which will make a big difference to performance if you’re working with those types of video files. You’ll need something with a newer CPU, at least 16GB ram, and a recent GPU with 4GB video memory. That being said, I did struggle to run Resolve on my system and I was not able to apply the full node tree I had in mind, because Resolve would crash every time I tried to add grain/glow/any other effect. processor:Intel Core i7-6700K Skylake Cooler:Corsair Hydro Series H55 CPU Cooler MB: ASUS Z170-E, Socket-1151 MB (6xsata) Ram: HyperX Savage DDR4 2400MHz 32GB ASUS GeForce GTX 1080 ROG Strix Gaming Samsung PM961 SSD 512GB M.2 NVMe Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5” HDD, Opp, somthing went wrong at I posted before finishing. My workplace provides laptops as we are in a very secure environment and there is very little to choose from. Thanks! Hi Ohad, for basic HD editing, most of the specs are ok, except the GPU. If budget is not an issue, build a proper workstation class system on Xeon and Quadro. I don't do 4K, mostly just HD footage. If you’re looking for a laptop rather than a desktop, I’ve also assembled a list of the The Best Budget Laptops for DaVinci Resolve In 2020 with Thunderbolt 3 in a separate article. If I were to send you some specs would you be able to look over them for me and advise if it would make a wise purchase…? Hi Elizabeth, usually in a dual GPU system one GPU is for running the normal GUI desktop and the other is for intensive processing tasks. Thank you for sharing this article and everything you’ve written about DaVinci Resolve and computer systems requirements. Your website is a great wealth of knowledge regarding video production. Hi Richard. Thanks! However that configuration (using both cards) is only possible with Resolve Studio. … is it true ??! As of now we continue to use the free edition – and will consider a shift to the studio version when there is some budget. Is 24GB RAM strong enough for adjusting colours in 4K? During this time I’m going to be working on training myself up better in DaVinci and getting better on the panel. And I frequently Face crash, hang, freeze and other sort of problem. If your existing GPU has at least 2GB video memory then it’s better to buy more system RAM. I didn’t try to run any newer versions because my system is very limited and I was forcing it to the max. This is the official DaVinci Resolve info based on Laptops. Hi Larry, there is definitely a point of diminishing returns. The transcoded file sizes will be larger, but they will be much easier for playback and I think you’ll get the kind of performance you’re looking for. Nothing higher than 1080p. Later on, you could add another GPU, but to begin with it will be fine. Main thing are to look for these points: 1. Hi My question, what is better solve: AMD Radeon™ RX 570 RS 8GB XXX Edition + 16gb ddr4 or GTX 1050Ti 4GB + 32 gb(but i must pay extra about 65usd). https://www.asus.com/ROG-Republic-Of-Gamers/ROG-Zephyrus-M15/Tech-Specs/ Do you think this notebook with RTX2070 mobile will work perfectly fine for the purposes I want to use it for in DR? 16 GB of system memory. The first was that I got an error message that there was no OpenCL Acceleration Hardware detected. The list of recommended GPU’s are very old. Looks good though, I don’t think you’ll have a problem with that. Any particular plugin or operation? If it can get solid performance I want to upgrade the GPU. …, for me , Win 7 is still the best platform & i didn’t have plan to upgrade to Win 8 , 8.1 or 10 …, also , regarding hardware … does Resolve run better with (single) Xeon – Quadro combo or i7 – GTX combo ??! It’s borderline, if you’re working in a HD resolution timeline, then it should work for basic correction. Hi Alex, good question. But all gaming laptops are not created equal. Im probably going to jump on the Wolfe eGPU solution just to see how much improvement it gives me and then if as you suspect im still underpowered to grade RED 5k (im becoming an owner/operator in the new year), i will build a proper workstation. Saying that, the free version is very capable and you can always use it to begin with, and buy the license whenever you want. If I’m running Resolve, or FCPX or any heavy software I always plug it in to power in any case. I should add a “last updated” date, that might be helpful. Hi Sascha, thank you very much for shareing this information. Hi Richard, I’m using GoPro Hero 8 Black in 4k. You have been awesome. I am happy to spend the necessary amount to get a system that will run smoothly. Now, business is slowing picking up and I’ve decided to upgrade. Hi Andrea, yes multi-GPU support is only on DaVinci Resolve Studio. If your budget stretches, the RTX2080TI has unbeatable performance per dollar, but the cost represents that. I would like to use DaVinci Resolve 12.5 full version. This is where its new "Cut" page comes into play. e.g. Sorry to bother you again, but if you have any additional opinion assuming EXP GDC Beast Adapter will work? While working in DR I oberved in windows task Manager that my maximum cpu usage is around 95% and maximum gpu usage is Around 30%. Your media should definitely be on some fast storage, that could be SSD or a RAID. It’s not ideal but if you are patient with it, and willing to use optimised media and render cache, you can probably make it work. I come to you so you can give me advice, I am currently trying to build a system for da vinci resolve and would like to know which of these 2 system and the best to go with resolve: intel core i7 4790 K 4.00 GHz (4 cores and 4 threads) sli gtx 970 2x 4GB DDR5 Samsung SSD 850 EVO 500GB (system) 2x 240 ssd samsung evo (raid) (cache and media) 1600 mhz ram ddr3 32gb Z97 motherboard, gaming 5 windows 10 pro, intel core i7 3.3 Ghz K 5820 (6 cores and 6 threads) nvidia gtx 980 ti 6GB DDR5 Samsung SSD 850 EVO 500GB (system) 2x 240 ssd samsung evo (raid) (cache and media) ram DDR4 2300 MHz 32 GB S X99 motherboard, gaming 7 windows 10 pro. Spending a little extra on the Ryzen 5900X is not a bad idea though if you have an extra $100 to invest. Is there a way i can use egpu with this system? And it’s going to cost quite a lot, together with new memory. If I could get away with a 12” MacBook I would, but these only offer 8GB RAM & Intel HD Graphics 515 so I doubt this would cut it. # Graphics Radeon Pro 5300 with 4GB of GDDR6 memory, #Blackmagic Decklink card to monitor (for 2k output 2048 x 1152) I would like to use DaVinci Resolve Studio and Autodesk Flame or Smoke. I won’t take any responsibility for pointing you to this if something goes wrong! You could look at gaming desktops, like those from HP (Omen). With those formats, definitely your hard drive bandwidth and GPU then become the limiting factor as file sizes are significantly larger, requiring higher read throughput from storage. Thank you very much for your helpful response. If you want to monitor properly to an external monitor, you’ll need a video output card. I’ve heard the hits are due to Apple driver issues. Pleasure to read u’r fast reply. Hello, currently I’m using Ryzen 5 3600 with 16GB dual channel RAM and a very basic GPU like GTX 1050..Now I’m planning to add more 16Gb RAM and Upgrade my GPU. I’d recommend a GPU with at least 4GB memory if possible. Hi Richard, I am going to buy gtx 1080 for my HP Z820 workstation (base model/rack minitower). I think that would be my choice too, just to keep things a bit simpler. this is awesome, ok I have a mac book pro osx Yosemite version 10.10.3 2.5 GHZ inttel core I5 8gb memory 1600 MHz DDR3 GFX intel HD graphics 4000 1024MB, now I can run resolve fine, but can i get a used Imac which has 16gb ram and a ssd drive? Maybe it is a grass greener on other side, or maybe he has lag that he doesn’t mention when on battery. These can easily be upgraded with more RAM, and all have Thunderbolt 3, which opens the possibility of using an eGPU. You don’t gain any quality making the larger files, that’s also important to understand, but they will be easier and faster for Resolve to work with. DPX will not be intensive on your GPU but will be far more intensive on your storage bandwidth. do i make a good choice? DaVinci Resolve 16 Hollywoodâs most powerful tools for professional editing, color correction, audio post and visual effects! Sadly I don’t think I can increase the overall RAM. Hi Robbie, as far as I can see you should be good to go with that build. You’ll want to stay away from any noise reduction or optical flow effects. Ah, I see! I got a great deal on a Mac Pro 5.1 12 core 3.46ghz so am going to give it a try rather than go full hackintosh for now. It depends on how you intend to use the SSD. What about hardware acceleration with AMD OpenCL? On the contrary, you should always strive to have the necessary tools for you to work with. How much difference should I expect between these 2 systems? If you generate optimized media in Resolve, it will create new temporary versions of your video files in a format that your computer can play back more easily. However, you may want to use it for Resolve’s cache files and optimised media, in which case the 512GB flash is the way to go. Make sure every ârequirementâ for that software meets your computerâs capability. For only $100 difference however I’d probably choose the 5900X. It all depends on your budget, and whether you see yourself wanting to do more involved videos in future where you might need a bit more performance. Apart from this my wife is working part time as online tutor. Currently i edit with 4k prores on this macbook and do simple grades in Premiere, which i can just about make work. This course takes you through the Resolve system requirements and a hands-on with all the pages in the Davinci Resolve interface. I wouldn’t worry about adding a second GPU to begin with. Scroll down until you see the section called “Optimized Media and Render Cache” Set the “Optimized Media Format” to “DNxHR HQ”. Hi Renan, it’s not important to install Resolve on the SSD, but it will help to have your video files on the SSD, and to set Resolve’s cache directory to use the SSD. DaVinci Resolve Plugin ... Resolve 16 (The M1 version of the Resolve 17 beta will not work currently) Metal or OpenCL Windows Windows 10 Resolve 16 CUDA 10.1 or OpenCL 1.1 ... See individual plugin details for System Requirements. I should add I’m breaking down my MacPro 5.1s which have Titan X’s and Titan XP founders in them. I’m not entirely sure which drive they ship the OS installed, but you can get in touch with them from the website. Also i would like to run 3 monitors incl a fully calibrated one for grading as ive always used a dual monitor configuration in the past and would like to have a 3rd TV HD display to see finished videos in all their 4K glory. Both H.264 and MP4. starting with dr. my plan in to buy in 2 yrs a proper desktop. The purpose of this particular post is to (first) attain the exact system requirements for operating the Davinci Resolve 12 software on a PC and (second) to attain the certified list of approved computers to operate the Davinci Resolve 12 software. That spec looks good to me, you should have no issues. I have to say though this is one question I don’t know enough to answer so specifically. i feel like i5 2-core 2gb gpu did meet the req 3 years back. The thing is that as X99 motherboards are not as easy to find though my distributors I’ve been looking for dual PCI Gen3 x16 on motherboards with LGA1151 sockets. Would that work fine or do I need a workstation GPU? Also a 512GB SATA SSD is there also, which I’d use for the OS and software. There is a lot going on so would be good to create some room. currently use 240gb SSD for operating system and 1TB x2 hard drives for storage. I am getting into more video editing and after using Premiere Pro for one project a few years ago, I have decided to go with Davinci 16 as my software for current and future projects. I got the computer quite cheap, the 2gb GPU on ebay are expensive, so I will see how this one goes for now and upgrade in future, if too slow for my needs. Kind regards, Nick, Hi Nick, I am so sorry for taking so long to reply to you! Would it be better to stick with Asus for both motherboard and GPU or is it ok to combine between Asus motherboard and MSI GPU? What would you prefer? Hi Daniel, debayering R3D is always going to be CPU intensive. Thanks in advance for your assistance. 3. Can you rather get a newer generation iMac? i will be playing with 4k all the time. It works for me. You’ll need a Blackmagic Decklink card to give you the output for your dedicated monitor. You might want to look at working off a USB 3 external SSD drive sometime in future. MacBook Pro 13in Mid 2012; OS X High Sierra 10.13.6; 2.9GHz Intel Core i7; 16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3; Intel HD GPU Graphics 4000 1536 MB; Firewire up to 800 Mb/sec; Thunderbolt Speed up to 10Gb/s x2 (I note you comments on GPU Memory, I am pretty sure my Thunderbolt is not v3) Thank you, Kind regards David. Hi Angel, with only 8GB RAM and i5 I don’t think so. Hi Oleg, I don’t think it needs to be stated. The sweet spot for performance vs price in my opinion is the RTX 2060 Super at well under $500. You will most likely need to make use of Resolve’s render cache and optimized media regardless, and consider working in a 1080p timeline until you’re ready to export. Free version or Paid? I am also very beginner. From what I’ve seen in early videos about the Apple M1 Macs, DaVinci Resolve runs happily enough on an M1 Mac Mini with only 8GB of unified memory and plays 4K media on a 4K timeline with most operations on the Resolve Color Page processed in real time. Really GPU memory is your 1st most important consideration, and storage speed is your 2nd most important thing to look at. Thanks for the great post it helped clarify things a lot. I have been looking on switching to Macbook for a while. if I add SSD will it help to speed up the playback? What resolutions and camera media? What is your budget? There’s not a chance it’s going to be a useable solution. Spreading your resources across multiple hard drives will improve DaVinci Resolveâs overall performance. Good luck! I’m running Resolve 16 on a 2015 MacBook Pro with an integrated 1.5GB GPU. This is my system configuration : PC : HP Elite 8200 SFF (I want your advice , keeping in mind that this is a small factor case with a PSU 240W) Inter Core i7 -2600 3.40GHz 16 Gb RAM Nvidia GeForce GT 710 (I think the problem is here). Can I compare it to a RTX2060 desktop GPU? I’d be tempted to go with the XPS 15 with the GTX1650, if I’m not mistaken it has Thunderbolt 3, so you can also look at adding an eGPU if you find that you need a boost. Can you recommend any egpu which works with this system? The release requires a database update â both DiskDB and PostgreSQL â from DaVinci Resolve ⦠I think it will be just fine for a lot of normal work in Resolve. I’m planning on doing simple grades though I’d like to add more complex ones but, after reading your article, I know my GPU with 0.5GB memory won’t take it. Their response is as follows: “Your XPS 9350 has 8GB memory and an inbuilt Intel HD Graphics card that can use upto 2GB of internal memory if needed. A quick Google search brought up this, but no idea about compatibility with the later MacOS versions. Internal or external SSD or desktop RAID over Thunderbolt or USB3 should be fine. It’s a 1GB card, and you’ll need a 1.5GB – 2GB minimum to work even at HD. I recommend 32GB. Hi James, the specs look fine but I doubt you will get smooth real time playback of 4K media in a 4K timeline depending on what format and codec it is. Do you maybe know a workaround to prevent the memory error? I also have a lot of questions but unfortunately I don’t have answers yet. You can send to richard @ richardlackey.com. My current system is a 2010 Mac Pro dual 6 core 2.96 ghz with 1 GTX 570 and 1 GTX 470. When Mac products will give to us the real opportunity to upgrade the machine under 3000$? I will definitely take your advice about the external SSD storage with the imac. The main thing is GPU memory, I’d aim for 4GB GPU RAM. However, it does limit project mastering and output to Ultra HD resolutions or lower. Of course that won’t be shared storage between the two systems. Hi Steve, thanks for the question! Thanks. An Online course in Davinci Resolve 16, a course designed for beginners to intermediate users. Resolve Studio will give you hardware h.264 decoding which could be the difference between bad playback and smoother playback. Organize, touch up, and share your photographed world with Adobe Lightroom. Out of interest, what spec is your Macbook Pro? I don’t care if it takes too long to render or if sometimes playback is not smooth. I highly recommend giving this video a watch for monitor recommendations. The 1TB SSD is good enough, and you can use external SSD drives also, just avoid any single spinning disk external drives, they are far too slow. Resolve comes from a high-end finishing background, and that’s a world where compressed long-GOP mp4, H.264 simply doesn’t exist. Does this mean you can’t really make use of a dual GPU setup on any other computer with the free version of resolve – so the MacPro really offers a distinct advantage here? It actually doesn’t necessarily have to cost a lot, unless you’re heart is set on a Mac, then it kind of does. That’s an interesting one because I don’t think the RX580 and RX5600 will differ that much, however I am not 100% sure. You’re best bet is to get something much newer, even if it’s inexpensive, that has a newer generation CPU and GPU. Let me know how you get on. Hi Shehroz, unfortunately there’s no way Resolve can run on that machine. I would recommend Windows 10 to be honest, I don’t know if 12.5 will run on Win 7 x64 but consider that’s a 7 year old OS now. Thanks for your answer. You’ll easily be able to upgrade this system as time goes on. I don’t need anything super fancy but would like my system to be capable of grading 4K material, mostly ProRes and h264. Of course you need a calibrated monitor as well to take full advantage. Can upgrade RAM till 24 GB. Hi Mark, it’s really going to come down to three things, most important to get Resolve running is the amount of GPU memory your GTX 940 has. Here is what is new: Added support for Blackmagic RAW 2.0 on Windows. This means you simply donât need to have the most expensive and up to date rig to run DaVinci Resolve properly. Nothing wrong with Premiere Pro at all. . Hi Sam, to be totally honest I wouldn’t consider the 13″ but I am saying that without having ever tried to run Resolve on one. It looks like a really GREAT software! https://www.ifixit.com/Story/18646/Successful_iMac_Upgrade_to_GTX_880M. However, it’s worth looking at the recommended configurations listed in the guide as a starting point. My iMac meets the requirements to run it. You’ll need a minimum of 16GB RAM to run DaVinci Resolve well. But its not smooth at all. There are two SSD’s one 500GB Samsung EVO Plus PCIe M.2 which will be great for Resolve’s cache directory. When I add some jpgs to the timeline I get GPU memory errors. I know these new GPU’s handle debaying at incredible rates so spending over $6500 rather than $600-$1200 might be a hard sell; especially when we are only working with 1/4 – 1/2 debayer. Due to the fact that I’m running an Apple MacPro, I’m limited to some special graphics cards that have an flashed BIOS as I need the BootScreen some times. I use optimized media, FHD timeline, render color output, render settings – user. I will be editing mp4 drone footage either 2.7k or 4k. Just tried Resolve 12.5. I would definitely run Windows. DaVinci Resolve 16. What is the best GPU upgrade I should go for out there, that will have a great impact on Davinci, even at 2k files. Im currently researching a new computer and found one with the following Specs. are these specs enough? What camera do you shoot with? Update accordingly. Great article, Richard! Our camera records in 4k. I do it all the time that way, it works, and I can help you with that workflow when you get to it if you’ve got questions later. Performance still may not be real-time, especially at 4K, but there are ways to deal with that. Should i go for dual 8 gb 980m or dual 6gb 970m is enough. The ⦠Hi Art, you’re the second person to say they couldn’t reply to an existing comment. You will probably need to temporarily drop your timeline resolution down to 1080p while working and then change it back to 4K when you’re ready to export a file. I have come to your page time and again just to remember the minimum requirements, but now I finally ask advice. Virtually all the content I’m delivering is in Rec709 and HD but going to tinker with some other demo displays for HDR and 4K (nothing higher). So I wait. Single Licence [KUK-00001]. Is it even worth thing about a RAID 0 HDD set up? I’ve written a guide about this also. You can plug your GUI monitor into it also. My motherboard is a atx socket 1151 motherboard (Gigabyte GA-B150-HD3P). … i want a computer that can handle HD for now but 2k and 4k later … upgradable later : Asus M51AD-B08 Essentio Intel Core i7-4790S 3.2GHz 12GB RAM, NVIDIA GTX750 1GB, 2TB HDD, Windows 8.1, Not sure if I am doing something wrong. I’m looking into this for you, it will take a bit longer. I ask because we are having trouble with smooth play back. I haven’t run Resolve 16 on this iMac with this GPU, so although I think it should be ok, I can’t say that with certainty. the FPS the playback is running at says 59.00 but I’m not sure that’s right because its laggy. For someone who expects 4K+ RAW to debayer and play back real-time on a 4K timeline with a bunch of correction nodes (and god-forbid, noise reduction), it’s not going to work at all. Hi Jonathan, yes your system should be fine. I assume it is the same as “late 2013”?) Hello This system is good for the Davinci? Did you actually mean CUDA or OpenCL? I just updated my CUDA Driver and I am going to do the restart, etc, and see how it goes. Honestly, I think you’ll be good with that setup. That looks like a fantastic build Ben. I’m not 100% certain which one to suggest you go with, as I haven’t used either, so best to look for some additional opinions from people using these cards. I tried upgrading to DR16 and completely lost the ability to play any timeline in real time (went from being able to monitor at 60fps for 4k content down to 3-8fps even with lowly HD content). 1) i9 10th gen 10 core with the Radeon 5700XT (with 16GB video RAM) and a 512 GB SSD 2) i9 10th gen 10 core with the Radeon 5700 (with 8GB video RAM) and a 1 TB SSD 3) i7 10th gen 8 core with the with the Radeon 5700XT (with 16GB video RAM) and a 1 TB, I am just a little short of funding to get the i9 with the 5700XT and the 1 TB drive, which is what I want…. Even if you run into some things that don’t want to play smoothly (there are many reasons this might happen) you can always drop your working resolution down to 1080p temporarily, and/or use render cache features in Resolve or generate optimized media. If I wanted to have such a monitor set up what would I need in terms of video card? (depending on the likely demand in your area of course), If anyone can please help me. I don´t want to put to much here -im just very confused and im not a pro when it comes down to understanding the specs right. I hope they work as good as they sound. I want to start editing 4K videos particularly from my Gopro Hero 7 Black My pc specs: GPU: Zotac GeForce RTX 2060 – twin fan edition. Hi, your specs are perfectly fine. So, you would use a video output card such as a Decklink card, and run a HD monitor attached to it. Are you bonding two 10GbE ports on one card, or two cards? I would appreciate any feedback you may provide. or will resolve take advantage of them when rendering out as well? Sorry I can’t help with a solid answer. DaVinci Resolve offloads intensive image processing to the GPU. After that, check if you can launch and use the program properly. I am not sure if you can use a card straight out of a Mac on a Windows build as it has different firmware. Pricing and system requirements DaVinci Resolve 16.0 is available now for Windows 10, CentOS 7.3 Linux and macOS 10.14.6, although this forum thread suggests that the 16.x releases will still work with macOS 10.13. Note: I’m sourcing the monitors separately. The GPU is the most likely culprit. Hi Adrian, thanks for getting in touch. its the evga gtx 680 mac edition. Since I need a low profile card, would the gigabyte 750ti hp elite 8200 handle 4K ? My biggest concerns are GPU and SSD (as stated above, they are vitally important to the software) Let me know if this looks like a good build and where I could use more power. Pretty sure if it were me, I’d build the i7 / GTX 1080 / Titan X combo but I want to check some things first which I will do tomorrow and then reply here again , may i ask why you prefer i7 – GTX 1080 / Titan X combo instead of Xeon – Quadro combo ??! Because Resolve processes video in uncompressed 32-bit floating point accuracy regardless of the original camera media, your CPU has to decode all that first into memory, and then hand it over to your GPU for further processing. I keep mine plugged in because I notice the drop in performance in Resolve especially but it’s not so obvious in FCPX, it depends on the software. For most of us there is little real need for real-time 4K playback unless you’re monitoring in 4K.