Build yourself a desk-friendly

videographer’s machine

H

igh-end videography work (whether

that’s live streaming, post-

production editing, or something

else entirely) often demands a powerful

PC. 4K video editing, exporting, and

encoding are all resource-intensive tasks,

and trying to do them with a sub-par or

ageing machine is sure to lead to lengthy

processing times and general frustration.

Such powerhouse machines are also

often pretty chunky. It’s part of the reason

that Apple’s desktop products have

become successful within the creative

industry; the all-in-one form factor of

Macs is a great space-saver, tucking a

purpose-built compact machine away

behind a large monitor. But for those who

prefer PCs, a system that can comfortably

handle demanding video tasks is often

COMPACT

COMPUTING

going to be large, heavy, and potentially

quite loud.

Such machines either take up a

significant amount of available desk space

or need to be placed underneath the desk

itself, making cabling and access a hassle

as well as potentially worsening airflow,

since the system is closer to the floor.

Fortunately, your friendly neighborhood

computer magazine is here to show you

how to make a videography machine that

has both a compact desktop footprint and

a ton of powerhouse components.

Whether you would choose PC over

Mac for software and OS reasons or

just the superior customizability of PC

hardware, there are a few benefits to

consider here. Windows is obviously one

of them; the world’s most widely used

operating system is ideal when it comes

to compatibility and familiarity. We’re

deviating from the norm, though. You’ll

notice in our list of ingredients that we’ve

opted for Windows 10 Pro, the more

powerful version of Microsoft’s flagship

OS. It’s also more expensive than Windows

10 Home, so if you don’t need the Pro

upgrade, consider it merely a suggestion.

Pro’s main benefits are improved

security (with BitLocker encryption) and

a suite of various enterprise features; it’s

up to you to decide whether you actually

need that in your professional capacity.

This isn’t a cheap system, so if you want to

save some cash you can buy Home.

Now, without further ado, let’s take a

look at the physical parts we’re using to

build this system. –CHRISTIAN GUYTON

maximumpc.com SEP 2020 MAXIMUM PC 17

BUILD IT

PG.