Watch me build a $1,200 video production PC

This mid-range PC can game pretty well too!

Credit: Adam Patrick Murray/IDG

While it’s hard to find the latest and greatest PC hardware right now, there are still great options for mid-range PC builds—especially if you focus on video production in Adobe Premiere Pro, something I care about as the Lead Video Producer here at PCWorld.

I’ve personally built many Intel-based systems over the years, but this time I wanted to build a PC based on an AMD Ryzen CPU—my first try at relying on Team Red for a production machine. I have a separate gaming rig, so I wasn’t too concerned about gaming performance. But luckily the GPU I put in this machine can still hold its own at 1080p.

Watch me build this PC live on PCWorld’s YouTube channel:

Here is the full parts list for this system:

At the heart of the system is an 8-core Ryzen 7 3800X. Would I have loved to plop the monster 16-core 5950X into this build? Hell yeah! Premiere Pro also scales well with more cores (to a point). But even if I could afford that chip on my budget, it's impossible to find right now. Thus you find me with the modest 8-core chip that was actually attainable (and a lot more affordable). I did choose a higher-end B550 board that could handle an upgrade down the road when stocks replenish.

High-end PC gamers out there may scoff at the inclusion of a GTX 1660 Super, but once again stock is limited in newer RTX cards, and paying for a 20-series Nvidia GPU doesn’t make sense. AMD cards were out of the question as well, because Premiere Pro and OBS play better with Nvidia GPUs. Whatever Nvidia releases for the low end in 2021 will most likely overpower this 1660 Super, but if you can’t wait it’s still a great part. Here at PCWorld we mostly deal in 1080p deliverables and don’t rely on many graphical effects that would warrant a jump in processing power.

The last crucial part of any PC I build is a digital-to-audio converter, or DAC, for high-quality audio playback. My go-to pick for a DAC that works great in both professional and gaming uses is the Creative Sound Blaster X3, a USB-C based outboard DAC that also features the fantastic Super X-Fi technology. As an audio engineer by trade sound is important to me, so I’ve never relied on motherboard audio. I’m so serious about it that when I build PCs I don’t even hook up the front panel audio connection, because it’s never going to be used.

At the time of this build I had priced out just over $1,200 for this system, but for many reasons the prices have continued to fluctuate. I’ll be updating this article in the coming months to highlight the performance on this system and give some recommendations on newer parts if something releases.

Join the newsletter!

Or

Sign up to gain exclusive access to email subscriptions, event invitations, competitions, giveaways, and much more.

Membership is free, and your security and privacy remain protected. View our privacy policy before signing up.

Error: Please check your email address.
Keep up with the latest tech news, reviews and previews by subscribing to the Good Gear Guide newsletter.

Adam Patrick Murray

PC World (US online)
Show Comments

Most Popular Reviews

Latest Articles

Resources

PCW Evaluation Team

Cate Bacon

Aruba Instant On AP11D

The strength of the Aruba Instant On AP11D is that the design and feature set support the modern, flexible, and mobile way of working.

Dr Prabigya Shiwakoti

Aruba Instant On AP11D

Aruba backs the AP11D up with a two-year warranty and 24/7 phone support.

Tom Pope

Dynabook Portégé X30L-G

Ultimately this laptop has achieved everything I would hope for in a laptop for work, while fitting that into a form factor and weight that is remarkable.

Tom Sellers

MSI P65

This smart laptop was enjoyable to use and great to work on – creating content was super simple.

Lolita Wang

MSI GT76

It really doesn’t get more “gaming laptop” than this.

Featured Content

Product Launch Showcase

Don’t have an account? Sign up here

Don't have an account? Sign up now

Forgot password?