Which is the greatest seize card for PC players? Grabbing the proper seize card is the easiest way to make sure a high quality reside stream, because it interprets gameplay right into a language higher fitted to Twitch and YouTube.
Whereas one of the best graphics playing cards from Nvidia and AMD can document your PC’s gameplay instantly, these strategies generally include a efficiency tax that lowers your sport’s body charge and makes your stream stutter. Utilizing top-of-the-line seize playing cards lowers the overhead in your {hardware} and helps you enhance fps. It’s additionally the one manner you’ll get all the advantages of one of the best gaming PC when live-streaming from consoles – however selecting the best one will be troublesome, and that’s why we have now these suggestions for you.
Why you’ll be able to belief our recommendation ✔ At PCGamesN, our consultants spend hours testing {hardware} and reviewing video games and VPNs. We share sincere, unbiased opinions that will help you purchase one of the best. Discover out how we take a look at.
Elgato HD60 S+
The perfect seize card general
Elgato HD60 S+ specs:
Seize high quality |
1080p at 60Hz |
Passthrough high quality |
4K at 60Hz |
Connections |
HDMI In + Out + USB |
Causes to purchase
- Wonderful 4K HDR playthrough
- Simple-to-use software program
Causes to keep away from
- 4K Seize software program gives no HDR preview or playback
- Struggles with increased framerates
Elgato’s HD60 S+ is one of the best seize card for 1080p streaming at 60fps. Whereas it data gameplay in HD, it nonetheless means that you can see the picture at a better decision because of its passthrough supporting 4K, 60fps, HDR10, and 0 latency – which is good for those who’re utilizing it with one of the best gaming monitor.
Although it does battle just a little bit with regards to capturing increased framerates, it gives completely incredible 4K HDR playthrough. In the meantime, its native software program is tremendous simple to make use of and very best for anybody simply entering into capturing their gameplay.
It’s an exterior mannequin that connects to your recording machine through USB, supported by an app that makes it tremendous simple to arrange along with your favourite streaming software program, reminiscent of OBS or XSplit. It’s a incredible all-rounder and that’s why it will get our prime suggestion.
AVerMedia Stay Gamer 4K
The perfect 144Hz seize card.
AVerMedia Stay Gamer 4K specs:
Seize high quality |
1080p at 240Hz | 1440p at 144Hz | 4K at 60Hz |
Passthrough high quality |
1080p at 240Hz | 1440p at 144Hz | 4K at 60Hz |
Connections |
HDMI In + Out + PCle x 4 |
Causes to purchase
- Can attain as much as 240fps
- Three RGB configurations
Causes to keep away from
- Want a strong PC to make the most of it
- Native software program not very best
Streaming a aggressive sport reminiscent of CS:GO or Dota 2? You’ll need the potential of a excessive refresh charge passthrough. This mannequin can deal with passthrough and recording of 4K decision at 60Hz, 1440p at as much as 144Hz, or 1080p at 240Hz, preserving gameplay as clean as butter for you and your viewers.
It’s an inside seize card that slots right into a PCIe x4 slot, so ensure you’ve acquired one spare on one of the best gaming motherboard. Oh, and there’s RGB lighting, which received’t enhance streaming high quality, however it’ll look rattling good as it really works its magic.
Price preserving in thoughts that you simply’ll want a reasonably highly effective setup so as to use this with none points. In the event you’re utilizing an older PC, or a finances choice, you then would possibly wish to take into consideration upgrading for those who’re set on utilizing the AverMedia Stay Gamer 4K- although for those who’re already taking part in 4K video games in your PC, it’ll in all probability be effective.
Greatest plug-and-play seize card
AVerMedia Stay Gamer Extremely 2.1 specs:
Seize high quality |
2160p, 1440p, 1080p, 1080i, 720p, 576p, 576i, 480p, 480i |
Passthrough high quality |
2160p144 HDR/VRR, 1440p144 HDR/VRR, 1080p240 HDR/VRR |
Connections |
HDMI 2.1, USB 3.2 Gen2 Kind-C |
Causes to purchase
- Easy plug-and-play format
- Phenomenal efficiency and suppleness
- Small kind with RGB
Causes to keep away from
- Designed for PS5 and Xbox consoles
- Costly
- Port place may very well be higher
AVerMedia’s Stay Gamer Extremely 2.1 seize card makes use of an HDMI 2.1 connection – which implies it could help increased resolutions. With a max 4K144 pass-through, it captures clean, lifelike gameplay and makes your streaming extremely high-end. However this comes at a excessive value. It’s additionally designed particularly for PS5 and Xbox Sequence X/S consoles, however that doesn’t imply you’ll be able to’t apply it to a PC or macOS.
Our skilled reviewer discovered the seize card simple to make use of, and the output was very good, with zero glitching or tearing. Whereas footage from the Extremely 2.1 is gorgeous, be cautious of file dimension. You’ll possible want an exterior SSD for gaming to retailer 4K seize recordsdata.
The Extremely 2.1’s design is pleasant, with RGB lighting which you can customise. It’s compact too, so sits unobtrusively on a gaming desk or media unit. We’d wish to see a USB-C enter so as to add an exterior streaming microphone along with the three.5mm headset choice. For reside streaming, it’d maintain all of the audio inputs going by way of one machine.
The AVerMedia Stay Gamer Extremely 2.1 is a premium seize card for PC (and next-gen consoles). I like to recommend it for those who want one of the best footage cash should purchase.
Learn our AVerMedia Stay Gamer Extremely 2.1 assessment
Elgato Sport Seize 4K60 Professional MK.2
The perfect seize card for streaming.
Elgato Sport Seize 4K60 Professional MK.2 specs:
Seize high quality |
1080p at 120 Hz | 1440p at 144 Hz | 1080p at 240 Hz |
Passthrough high quality |
1080p at 120 Hz | 1440p at 144 Hz | 1080p at 240 Hz |
Connections |
HDMI In + Out +PCIe x 4 |
Causes to purchase
- Can push video output to 2 sources
- Simple to make use of
- Captures 4k gameplay at 60fps
Causes to keep away from
- It’s an costly seize card
- Higher with twin PC setup
The second look of Elgato on this checklist. Whereas the Elgato HD60 S+ is a incredible all-rounder kind of seize card, the 4K60 Professional MK.2 has been made particularly to attraction to streamers. The power to seize 4k footage at 60fps is little doubt going to be tantalizing for anyone who likes to showcase spectacular next-gen titles.
Past the standard, this seize card additionally boasts the flexibility to push two video output sources directly. Sadly, when used to its full capability, it may be fairly taxing in your PC, so until you’ve gotten one of the best gaming PC, or a twin PC setup, issues would possibly run just a little slowly.
Nonetheless, for those who’ve acquired the money to spare and a strong sufficient rig, then that is going to be a incredible selection of seize card. You’ll battle to search out something that may seize sport footage with this degree of element, and with out-of-the-box compatibility with most streaming and enhancing platforms, it’s splendidly easy to make use of too,
NZXT Sign HD60
The perfect finances seize card.
NZXT Sign HD60 specs:
Seize high quality |
4K at 60Hz |
Passthrough high quality |
4K at 60Hz |
Connections |
USB-C to USB-A |
Causes to purchase
- Fantastically low value
- Simple to make use of
- First rate seize high quality
Causes to keep away from
- Captures decrease fps than others
- Footage lacks the element of others
That is in all probability the most affordable seize card you may get that’s really good. Go any cheaper and also you threat utilizing unreliable merchandise from dodgy, unknown manufacturers. NZXT, after all, is well-known for creating incredible parts for gaming PCs and this seize card shouldn’t be under the usual you’d anticipate from them.
Admittedly, you’ll get a decrease fps charge and the image high quality received’t be fairly as spectacular because the extra premium choices on the checklist. Nonetheless, it nonetheless boasts zero-lag passthrough help for 4K at 60Hz along with HDR and 1080p at 240Hz. It’s not such as you’ll get potato-quality footage.
In the meantime, that is additionally a good selection for anyone buying their first seize card. It’s simple to make use of and set up and doesn’t require that you simply obtain any additional items of software program to stream or document your gameplay. Contemplating all of that and its low value, it’s onerous to criticize the NZXT Sign HD60.
Genki Shadowcast
The perfect small kind issue seize card.
Genki Shadowcast specs:
Seize high quality |
varies extensively based mostly on machine |
Appropriate with |
PC, Mac, Nintendo Swap, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Sequence X|S, and extra |
Connection |
HDMI in, USB-C |
Causes to purchase
- Compact and moveable
- Plug-and-play on all gadgets with a HDMI
Causes to keep away from
- Seize high quality varies by machine
Want a tiny seize card which you can simply transport and swap between gadgets? You’ll battle to search out one thing as nifty and handy because the Genki Shadowcast. You simply plug it into the machine you wish to seize footage from through an HDMI out port, then stick a USB into the opposite finish to attach it to the machine you wish to stream by way of.
As soon as that’s all arrange, you utilize the Genki Arcade app in your PC or laptop computer and you’ll then do no matter you need with the footage you’re capturing. This will likely be notably interesting to anybody who needs, not solely to stream PC video games, but in addition PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Swap content material.
This a really low cost seize card, and because of this, the seize high quality received’t be fairly pretty much as good as you’ll see with different gadgets. On prime of that, the standard will range from machine to machine, however due to its dimension and comfort, we stay very impressed with it.
What’s a seize card?
Seize playing cards are gadgets that assist you document gameplay and stream on Twitch, YouTube, or every other platform. They’re not fairly plug-and-play, on condition that there’s software program to arrange and tinker with, however they streamline the method and make encoding simpler so there’s much less of a efficiency hit in your system.
Which seize card must you select?
The perfect seize playing cards come from established manufacturers within the area like Elgato and Avermedia, however that doesn’t imply it’s essential pay a premium value. The little guys can usually shock you with regards to gaming {hardware}, however there’s a cause Elgato and Avermedia seem prominently on our checklist, and that’s as a result of they’re tried-and-tested gadgets, backed by feature-packed software program that’s well-supported and steadily up to date.
The seize card you select must work along with your general setup. Test the specs to make sure it’s suitable along with your pc’s working system and fave streaming platform, in addition to any video enhancing software program. Seize playing cards sometimes have enter ports to attach completely different video sources, and these embrace DisplayPort, HDMI DVI, or VGA. If you wish to seize gameplay from a console, you’ll want a card with HDMI or element video inputs. Test that the output will hook up with your pc, often through Thunderbolt on a Mac machine or USB.
To maintain your streams trying and really feel clean (immediately or lag) you’ll desire a seize card with specs reminiscent of low latency and excessive body charge help.
Do you want a seize card to stream?
The brief reply is not any, however seize playing cards are an incredible assist. Nvidia Shadowplay and AMD’s Radeon ReLive software program are each good at capturing shorter snippets of your gameplay, and you’ll stream instantly by way of OBS or Xsplit, however a seize card usually supplies a cleaner picture and smoother gameplay it doesn’t matter what machine you’re rocking. They’re particularly useful gadgets when making an attempt to stream from a number of PC setups and consoles, too.
What manufacturers make seize playing cards?
There are a lot of manufacturers on the market making high quality seize playing cards – a few of them particular to gaming and others designed for common video manufacturing. Listed below are a few of the hottest manufacturers:
- Elgato: An offshoot of in style gaming gear model Corsair, Elgato is understood for its high-quality streaming merchandise, which embrace seize playing cards. It gives playing cards for a spread of budgets, together with the Elgato HD60 X with native Xbox and PS5 help, and the Elgato 4K60 S+ with full 4K help.
- Razer: One other well-loved gaming {hardware} producer, Razer has seize playing cards optimized for sport streaming, such because the Razer Ripsaw HD which gives sensible ease of use.
- Hauppauge: Hauppauge producers seize playing cards for players, streamers, and content material creators. We’d suggest particular gaming editions just like the HD PVR2 Gaming Version, which comes with cables for Xbox and PlayStation consoles, and allows you to share your clips on YouTube in only a few clicks.
For extra streaming gear to finish your setup, take a look at our information to the greatest gaming microphone and the greatest webcams.