#Best hdmi capture card for live streaming 1080p

Both the AverMedia Live Gamer 4K and the Elgato 4K60 Pro passthrough high frame rate footage (1440p at 144 Hz, and 1080p at 240 Hz), but only the AVerMedia GC573 can actually capture 144 Hz and 240 Hz high frame rate footage. Neither card is strictly superior to the other but here are a few key differences: These specs make them the best capture cards for next gen consoles like the PS5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S.

AVerMedia Live Gamer 4K (GC573) vs Elgato 4K60 Pro MK.2īoth the AverMedia Live Gamer 4K (GC573) and Elgato 4K60 Pro MK.2 are internal capture cards that can capture and passthrough 4K, 60 FPS footage in HDR. Two of the best capture cards on the market are the AVerMedia Live Gamer 4K and the Elgato 4K 60 Pro MK.2 (Amazon). For instance, the Elgato 4K60 Pro works on both AMD and NVIDIA GPUs, but AMD users must switch to CPU encoding, and HDR recording is not possible on AMD cards.

#Best hdmi capture card for live streaming full

Some cards also only work at their full potential on certain graphics cards. Using a PC below the card’s listed minimum specs will end in a bad time. Lastly, capture cards can be very CPU and GPU taxing. Cards with very low latency even allow for gameplay by just looking at the preview window alone. All capture cards have some latency to the preview window, but the higher it is, the more out of sync other sources like microphone audio become. Latency refers to the amount of time that passes between when something happens on the capture source and when you see it in the preview window in your streaming or recording software. In regards to portability, not all external cards need a PC to work, and I’ll give several examples of which cards can be used standalone in the last section of this article. For laptop users or for those who want to capture footage at events without a PC at all, external cards are necessary. If you’re using a desktop computer, it’s really up to you which is more convenient. Internal vs external and portabilityĪs mentioned at the top, there are both internal and external capture cards. Not long ago, 1080p 60 FPS was enough, but the newest consoles the Xbox Series S/X and the Playstation 5 require top of the line capture cards to record their footage in the best quality possible. supported resolutions and frame rates - internal vs external - portability - latency - required PC specifications - passthrough support - supported input ports (older game consoles usually need composite cable ports) Resolutions and frame ratesĬapture cards can record at various different frame rates and resolutions, and the highest end cards can capture 4K 60 FPS in high dynamic range (HDR). The main differences between capture cards to consider are: Save yourself the money! What are the differences between capture cards?

With sufficient CPU and GPU performance, screen capturing software like OBS can be used without the need for additional hardware. The main reason to NOT opt for a capture card is when using a single PC setup to stream and record that PC’s footage.