How much RAM do you need for video editing? 16GB, 32GB or 64GB? Does your computer freeze while previewing video on Adobe Premiere or Avid? Have you ever had your program crash during video editing? In this article I will try to help you by recommending the best RAM for video editing and tell you what to pay attention to when increasing the RAM on your computer for photo editing or video editing.
Why 8GB RAM is the best in class for any notebook. Even if you have an i9 processor with 2GB or 4GB of RAM on a notebook, it’s useless.
The software and games we have today consume a good amount of RAM to run smoothly and efficiently. So here, we will not only explain to you the best i7 8GB RAM notebook choices available, but you will also understand why 8GB RAM is the best in class for any notebook.
Is 8GB RAM Enough For Video Editing
Table of Contents
With the arrival of the “Alder Lake” processors, we have added a proposal for DDR5 memories, which are currently almost impossible to find and are particularly expensive. Memory prices stabilized after the skyrocketing prices in the hardware component market due to both the Covid-19 pandemic and the mining and cryptocurrency boom.
Is 8GB RAM Enough For Video Editing | Guide 2024
How much RAM is needed for video editing?
RAM is the main temporary storage area of the entire computer system as you well know. RAM is faster than a hard drive, so the goal of video editing is to save as much information as possible in RAM so that changes can be made in real-time.
While 8GB of RAM seems sufficient, a quarter of this is used by the operating system, leaving only 6GB for your video editor. Did you know that?
RAM memory can be classified by capacity if you consider the different variations of video editing. The list starts with the smallest, taking into account the capacities and formats of the video, clearly showing how much RAM is needed for video editing.
- 8 GB : for 720p file changes. 4K editing is impossible or will be unbearable.
- 16GB – will be enough if you are editing 1080p video without effects or if you want to edit 4K files. You will have problems with background tasks, so only Premiere or any other program to create videos. Is 16GB of RAM enough for 4K editing? Ni, it depends on the complexity of the video editing you do.
- 32GB: It will allow you to edit all types of files, including 4K. This is the optimal RAM capacity required for video editing.
- 64GB : That’s a really impressive amount of RAM. It is a must for those who intend to edit 8K files or work with advanced motion graphics in Adobe After Effects in combination with 3D modeling. Very few photos and video editing laptops support such memory.
So basically 16 GB of RAM is the minimum for editing videos and 32 GB of RAM is ideal without too many pretensions.
How to choose the RAM
The old DDR3 platforms are now disappearing, in favor of the more modern and faster DDR4. The new DDR5s has also recently appeared on the market and will be supported by specific Intel chipsets for the twelfth generation processors called “Alder Lake”. The prices of these new RAM banks are quite high, as they are the first models and the production process still needs to be optimized and improved. If you need to update your configuration (or create a new one) and you do not know which RAM to buy, here we will try to point you in the right direction, also based on the use you will make of your new system.
What to know before buying RAM?
You know that after installing the RAM, it simply may not give you the speed you need, it may not necessarily be compatible!
You may even not have the place to install it on the motherboard.
That’s why you need to take these points into consideration.
Free available slots
Make sure your computer has free memory slots before you think about the best RAM for video editing. A perfect way to check the maximum allowable amount of RAM is to check the motherboard datasheet.
If you have Windows 10, you can do this by running the Task Manager. Another option is to use software or an online service such as CPU-Z. It is a free utility that can scan your computer and inform you about the installed memory and available slots.
For example, there are 2 RAM slots on your laptop, the chipset supports a maximum amount of 16GB. Therefore, the best option for this model is to purchase two identical 8GB modules.
Always remember that you will benefit from the principle of dual-channel memory architecture (memory works with doubled bandwidth) , so two modules of the same size and speed in two slots.
Type, Format, and Dimensions
The three models currently on the market are DDR3, DDR4, and DDR5. It is important to choose the right model as the various formats are not compatible with each other due to design and power differences. It is also important to view the format of the RAM banks: as regards the banks for desktop computers, there are standard modules and others called “Low Profile”, which have a lower heatsink profile that allows them to be installed even on systems with CPU heatsinks bulky air, which cover part of the motherboard slots for RAM. The banks named instead as SO-DIMM is designed for notebook computers, or for mini PCs such as NUCs. On portable devices we also find LPDDR4X or LPDDR3X RAM: these are modules soldered to the motherboard, which cannot be replaced and which generally have low power consumption.
Speed
The RAM memories must store all those temporary information to allow the correct functioning and execution of the operating system and related programs. The speed (or frequency) at which they operate is therefore very important, as this will affect the speed at which this information is written and read.
To further improve performance, the dual-channel is used: by installing the memories in the slots indicated on the motherboard manual (usually alternating in a no-yes-no-yes pattern from left to right), the bandwidth is doubled (which goes from 64 bit to 128 bit), in fact, double the speed of data transfer from RAM to the memory controller. Instead of a single 64-bit channel, DDR5 RAM uses two 32-bit channels: this allows for quad-channel configurations with two banks of RAM, instead of four.
Transfer speeds are limited by the type of RAM used:
- DDR3 have transfer rates between 800 and 2666 MHz;
- DDR4 have transfer rates between 1600 and 4800 MHz;
- The current models on the market of DDR5 memory have speeds between 4800 and 6200 MHz.
Generally, for everyday use, two banks of DDR4 with speeds that are around 2666 or 3200 MHz are more than enough. For gaming, on the other hand, it is important to have more performing banks, with speeds of 3600 MHz or higher, also based on the processor used: the AMD Ryzen 5000 CPUs in fact scale very well with increasing frequency, but beyond 3733MHz the benefits are reduced.
The latest generation Intel Core processors, on the other hand, are also able to take advantage of RAM that reaches 4133MHz or even 4400MHz but, on a general level, the performance differences that are recorded with different RAM speeds are less marked than those seen with processors. AMD.
Before buying a RAM kit, however, it is very important to check, in the manual or on the website of the motherboard or notebook manufacturer, the actual compatibility of the hardware components with the memory banks chosen.
Timing
Another important parameter, especially for gamers and overclockers, is the timing of the memories. It is a series of four parameters that indicate the particular timing of the memory module:
- The first value, the CAS Latency (often referred to as CL) , indicates the time in cycles that the memory bank needs to respond to a request for information. To convert this value to nanoseconds (1 nanosecond = 10 -9 seconds) we need to divide it by the memory speed, then multiply the result by 2000.
- The second value is the tRCD . If we imagine the RAM memory as a huge table made up of rows and columns, this value indicates the time taken to find the information in the right column once the correct row has been found.
- The third value is the tRP , which is the time that passes between the reading of a row and the other.
- The fourth value is the tRAS , which is the minimum time that a row must remain open to allow the correct reading of the information.
The last three values in everyday use are not particularly relevant and at the performance level, generally, we tend to prefer a higher frequency than lower timing values. However, this doesn’t mean that latency isn’t important and, very often, the best kits are the ones that manage to achieve the best compromise between high frequency and low latency.
Capacity
In recent years, applications and operating systems have become more demanding and the canonical 4 GB of RAM for systems without too many needs is no longer sufficient. Obviously, it is always preferable to use two or four memory banks, in order to take advantage of the dual-channel or the quad-channel (usually only supported by CPUs such as AMD Threadripper and Intel Core X or Xeon).
Today, 8 GB of RAM is required for daily and basic use of the computer, while at least 16 GB is recommended for gamers. Users who, on the other hand, need to keep a lot of software open at the same time, or want to assemble a workstation for graphics, rendering, or video editing jobs, should consider installing 32GB of RAM or more, depending on the workloads to be handled.
Certifications:
- XMP : This is a manufacturer-certified overclocking profile. If the processor and motherboard are suitable, enabling XMP will automatically set the indicated frequencies and timings and the memories will operate with those values, without the need for user intervention.
- ECC : represents the presence of an additional chip called Error-Correcting Code, which takes care of identifying errors and correcting them before the data is stored in the RAM bank. Approximately a bank of non-ECC RAM is six times more error-prone than an ECC module. The presence of this additional chip that has to check and correct errors makes ECC memories slower than non-ECC ones. ECC modules are usually used in servers or workstations.
Frequently Asked Questions About 8GB RAM i7 Notebooks
1. Do I need more than 8GB of RAM for a notebook?
The 8GB RAM is sufficient for gaming but not AAA titles. However, suppose you want to perform other complex processes and games such as video editing, 3ds animation, or modeling. If so, you should opt for 16GB of RAM to be on the safe side.
2. Why is it necessary to increase the RAM?
Increasing RAM is one of the most popular ways to quickly upgrade a computer when you start to see the first slowdowns. However, are you sure that buying additional RAM will change your computer? What if that’s not the problem? First I suggest you find out what affects RAM.
Rendering speed
The RAM does not affect the rendering speed of the various programs much, the CPU and GPU are to blame. But if your computer has 8GB and you increase it to 16GB, you may notice a difference in the rendering speed.
The PC will be able to allocate more resources in RAM, also allowing the CPU and GPU to have more resources as a result. Remember that having a good video card, processor, and SSD is even more important than purchasing additional RAM.
If you are dealing with a lot of moving graphics in your editing, more RAM will help you work faster and more efficiently also because programs like Adobe After Effects require a significant amount of RAM, especially when using heavy effects like a particle.
Unlike video, in dynamic animation, graphics can become very complex.
Working with large files
If you’re editing 4K video or 42-megapixel RAW photos, storage and RAM is key here. A RAW image file can take up to 100MB, and 4K video files can be multi-gigabyte.
Your computer will process such files slowly without enough RAM.
Preview display
The primary use of RAM in video editing software, in addition to running the program, is caching preview files. Caching means preprocessing for a preview.
This usually happens automatically as soon as you play or view the timeline.
A 720p preview now requires significantly less RAM than a 4K video. There are quite complex compression algorithms that allow video editing programs to use compressed data, but the difference is still huge. Obviously, a high-resolution video requires more RAM.
Final remarks
So, 8 GRAM is for 720p file changes. ..So can also increase The RAM of your device for video editing
Well, you can go with the one that suits your wallet and desire best.
The choice is yours and the sky is the limit!
