PC36 Creator Studio Two | Intel Ultra 5 250K Plus + RTX 5070 12GB + 32GB DDR5 + Thunderbolt 4 | Creator PC | PC36

🎨 PC36 Creator Studio Two

A Thunderbolt 4 editing workstation built around fast external storage

Most of the working day on a creator machine is not spent rendering. It is spent scrubbing, trimming, stacking adjustment layers, jumping between a browser, a chat window and a 4K timeline, and plugging in whatever drive today's footage arrived on. Creator Studio Two is specced for that part of the job. Two rear Thunderbolt 4 ports running at 40Gb/s mean a portable SSD or a Thunderbolt dock behaves like internal storage, so you can cut straight off a client drive instead of copying everything across first and hoping you have the space.

Inside, the work is split sensibly. An Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus handles decode and playback with QuickSync doing the heavy lifting on long-GOP camera files, an RTX 5070 takes the CUDA and effects load, and two separate NVMe drives keep Windows and your applications off the same disk as your project cache and scratch files. A Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 air cooler sits over the CPU because a dual tower cooler holds its noise level steady through a forty minute export in a way a pump rarely does.

It is the middle of the Creator range and we would rather say so plainly. This is a machine for 4K editing, colour work, photo retouching and design with real headroom, not an 8K finishing station. If your timelines are heavier than that, the notes below tell you exactly which parts to move first, and the ASRock Z890 LiveMixer WiFi board underneath leaves room to do it.

📃 Specifications

• 🧠 CPU: Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus
  Click or tap for deeper spec info

  • LGA1851 socket, Arrow Lake Refresh generation. The hybrid core layout matters more than the headline number here: background jobs like media cache building, file syncing and a browser full of reference tabs sit on the efficiency cores while the performance cores stay free for the work you are actually watching.
  • QuickSync gives hardware decode and encode for H.264, HEVC and AV1. In practice that is why compressed camera footage scrubs cleanly in Premiere Pro and Resolve without transcoding to proxies first, and why a straightforward delivery export finishes quickly without touching the CPU cores hard.
  • Honest limit: if your work is dominated by long CPU-side renders, heavy simulation or After Effects projects that lean on raw core count, an Ultra 7 or Ultra 9 will pull ahead. For editing, grading, photo work and design, this chip is not the thing holding you up.
  • LGA1851 is a live socket, so a CPU upgrade later is a board-in-place job rather than a rebuild.
• ❄️ CPU Cooler: Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120, black dual tower air cooler
  Click or tap for deeper spec info

  • Dual tower, twin 120mm fans, all black. We fit air here deliberately: there is no pump to fail, no coolant to degrade over three years, and the acoustic behaviour is predictable rather than rising and falling with a pump curve.
  • Sustained load is the real test for a creator machine. This cooler keeps the CPU at its boost behaviour through a full export or a long batch process instead of holding well for two minutes and then backing off.
  • Caveat worth knowing: a large tower cooler is tall and heavy. It is fitted, torqued and checked by hand before the machine goes anywhere, and the Corsair Frame 4000D has the clearance for it comfortably.
• 🔲 Motherboard: ASRock Z890 LiveMixer WiFi (ATX)
  Click or tap for deeper spec info

  • This board is the reason the build exists in this shape. Two rear Thunderbolt 4 / USB4 Type-C ports at 40Gb/s are rare at this level, and they turn external storage from a bottleneck into a working drive.
  • Four M.2 slots, one of them PCIe Gen5, plus a PCIe 5.0 x16 graphics slot. Two M.2 slots are used by the drives below, so there is room for a project drive and a dedicated cache drive later without opening up anything else.
  • Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4 and 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet as standard. The 2.5Gb port is the one that matters if you pull footage from a NAS.
  • Power delivery on a Z890 board of this class is comfortably ahead of what an Ultra 5 asks of it, which means clocks hold under long all-core load rather than being trimmed back by the board.
• 📏 Memory: 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5-5200 CL40
  Click or tap for deeper spec info

  • Two sticks in dual channel, leaving two slots free on the board for a straightforward capacity increase later.
  • We will be straight with you about the speed: DDR5-5200 CL40 is a baseline kit, not a tuned high frequency one. For creative applications, capacity and platform stability are what you feel day to day. Memory frequency is a gaming benchmark story far more than an editing one.
  • 32GB is comfortable for 4K editing with a sensible effects stack, Photoshop on large layered files, Lightroom catalogues and having a design app, a browser and a chat client open alongside all of it.
  • Where 32GB runs out: long After Effects RAM previews, big 3D scenes, and timelines with a lot of noise reduction or heavy temporal effects. If that is your work, take the 64GB option rather than finding out later.
• 💾 Storage 1 (OS and applications): 500GB NVMe PCIe 4.0 SSD (TLC)
  Click or tap for deeper spec info

  • Windows and your applications live here on their own drive. Keeping the system disk away from project media is the difference between a machine that still feels quick in year two and one that does not.
  • TLC flash, not QLC. TLC holds its write speed far better once a drive is part full, which is exactly the condition a working machine is always in.
  • Caveat: as standard this drive is host memory buffer rather than DRAM buffered. For an OS and applications drive that is the right call and you will not notice it. DRAM buffered drives are available on this build through live chat if you want them.
• 💾 Storage 2 (Projects, cache and scratch): 2TB NVMe PCIe 4.0 SSD (TLC)
  Click or tap for deeper spec info

  • Active projects, media cache and scratch files sit here. Splitting cache away from the OS drive is one of the cheapest real speed improvements in an editing workflow, and it is done for you before the machine ships.
  • PCIe 4.0 sequential throughput is well clear of what any camera format on a single timeline demands, so playback stalls come from effects and decode rather than from the disk.
  • TLC again, for sustained write behaviour when you are ingesting a full card or writing out a large intermediate file.
  • Same honest note as above: DRAM buffered is a live chat option on this build rather than the standard fit. It is worth asking about if you regularly write very large files back to this drive.
• 🎮 Graphics: NVIDIA RTX 5070 12GB
  Click or tap for deeper spec info

  • CUDA acceleration is what the creator applications actually want. In Resolve it drives node processing and playback of a graded timeline, in Premiere Pro and After Effects it accelerates a long list of effects, and in Photoshop and Lightroom it carries the neural and AI-assisted tools.
  • Hardware encoders including AV1 mean GPU exports and screen recording run without loading the CPU, which is what keeps the machine responsive while a render is going.
  • The real limit is 12GB of VRAM. That is comfortable for 4K work with a normal effects and node stack. It is not comfortable for 8K timelines, very heavy temporal noise reduction at high resolution, or loading large local AI models. If any of those describe your week, move to a 16GB card.
  • Fitted in the PCIe 5.0 x16 slot, so a future card is a straight swap.
• 🧰 Case: Corsair Frame 4000D, Black (ATX mid tower)
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  • Mesh front, sensible cable routing behind the tray, and enough internal volume for a full length graphics card and a tall air cooler without anything being a fight to service.
  • Plain black inside and out. A colour-critical desk does not need anything competing with the monitor for your attention.
  • Room to grow is part of why we use it: drive mounts, fan positions and clearance are all there for the upgrades below rather than being used up on day one.
• 🌬️ Case cooling: 4 x 120mm black fans
  Click or tap for deeper spec info

  • Configured as intake and exhaust with a slight positive pressure bias, which keeps dust out of the filters rather than off the components.
  • Fan curves are set in the BIOS so the machine stays quiet at idle and during editing, and only ramps when there is genuine sustained load such as an export.
  • Fan brand and model can vary with supply. The count, size, colour and airflow target do not.
• ⚡ Power Supply: Montech Century II 850W 80+ Gold, fully modular
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  • 850W is deliberate headroom rather than a number for the sake of it. It covers a move to a 16GB card later with no PSU change, and it keeps the unit operating in its quiet, efficient band during normal editing load.
  • 80+ Gold efficiency, which matters more than it sounds when the machine is running for eight hours a day.
  • Fully modular, so only the cables this build needs are fitted. Less clutter behind the tray means better airflow and an easier job when a component changes.
• 🔌 Cabling: Stock cabling
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  • The modular cables supplied with the power supply, routed and tied behind the motherboard tray.
  • Custom sleeved or colour matched cabling is available on request through live chat if you want it.
• 🪟 Operating System: As chosen by you from the listing options
• 🧹 Setup: Clean Windows install, drivers updated, BIOS configured, memory profile enabled
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  • No bloat, no trial software, no third party utilities you did not ask for. The machine boots to a clean desktop with current drivers already in place.
  • BIOS is configured and the XMP or EXPO memory profile is enabled before dispatch, so the memory runs at its rated speed rather than a default fallback.
  • Every machine is hand-built and stress tested on CPU, RAM and GPU before it leaves us, and ships with a certificate recording the result.
• 🛡️ Warranty: 3 years parts and labour, return to base
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  • Three years as standard, covering parts and labour. Return to base means the machine comes back to us for repair rather than being handed to a third party.
  • Technical support is a real person on live chat, before and after you buy.

🔌 Connectivity & Expansion

• ⚡ Thunderbolt 4 / USB4: 2 rear Type-C ports at 40Gb/s, for external SSDs, docks and capture hardware that behave like internal devices
• 🔌 USB ports (rear): 2 x USB 2.0, 4 x USB 3, 2 x USB 3.2, plus the 2 Thunderbolt 4 / USB4 Type-C ports above
• 🔌 USB ports (front): 2 x USB 3.0, 1 x USB-C
• 📁 M.2 slots: 4 in total, one of them PCIe Gen5. Two are used by the drives fitted, leaving 2 free
• 🎮 Graphics slot: PCIe 5.0 x16, occupied by the RTX 5070 and ready for a larger card
• 💽 SATA support: 4 x 2.5 inch drives, 2 x 3.5 inch drives
• 📶 Networking: Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet

🛠️ Popular Upgrades

• 🎮 Step up to a 16GB graphics card (click/tap to learn more)

  Worth it when VRAM is your ceiling rather than raw speed: 8K or heavily stacked 4K timelines, high resolution temporal noise reduction, large After Effects and Fusion compositions, or running local AI models. If you edit 4K with a normal effects stack, the RTX 5070 fitted as standard is not what is slowing you down and this upgrade will change very little.
• 📏 64GB memory (click/tap to learn more)

  Take this if you live in After Effects RAM previews, work in 3D alongside your edit, or routinely have a heavy timeline, a photo session and a design file open at once. If your day is editing plus a browser, 32GB is genuinely enough and the two free slots mean you can add capacity later without replacing anything.
• 💾 DRAM buffered NVMe drives (click/tap to learn more)

  The standard drives are TLC with host memory buffer, which is the right fit for an OS drive and for normal project work. DRAM buffered drives hold their speed better during long sustained writes, so they earn their place if you ingest full cards daily or regularly write large intermediate and master files back to the project drive. Ask us on live chat and we will fit them.
• 💾 A larger or additional project drive (click/tap to learn more)

  Two M.2 slots stay free, so this can be done now or in a year. Add capacity when 2TB of active projects starts forcing you to archive mid-job, or add a third drive when you want cache and scratch on a disk of their own, separate from both Windows and your media. Additional and larger drives appear in the listing options below.
• 🔇 Noctua Pure Silence Setup (click/tap to learn more)

  Every case fan is replaced with a Noctua silence-optimised fan and the curves are retuned in the BIOS for near-silent running. Worth it if you record voiceover or audio in the same room as the machine, or if you simply work long days next to it. Less relevant if the PC sits under a desk in a separate space.
• 🔋 Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) (click/tap to learn more)

  Holds the system up for around ten minutes during a power cut, long enough to save and shut down cleanly. The case for it is not the hardware, it is the project file and the render you would otherwise lose. Strongly worth considering if you work to client deadlines or your supply is unreliable.
• 🎥 Camera and gameplay capture hardware (click/tap to learn more)

  Relevant if you record talking-head video, run a live show, or capture a console or second machine. Simple USB capture handles most HDMI cameras at 1080p60, and higher-end USB capture reaches 4K60 depending on the camera. Tell us your camera, resolution and frame rate on live chat and we will recommend the right one. Cables, adapters and cameras are not included.
• 🗄️ NAS storage for backup and shared projects (click/tap to learn more)

  The point at which this makes sense is when you are juggling external drives to find last month's project, or when a second editor needs the same media. The 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet port on this board is fast enough to edit proxies straight off a NAS. We can design a Synology or QNAP setup around your capacity and workflow.

👁️ Transparency Notes

• The graphics card carries 12GB of VRAM, which sets a real ceiling on very heavy timelines (click or tap to read more)

  For 4K editing, colour work, photo retouching and design this is comfortable and rarely the limiting factor. Where it bites is 8K footage, high resolution temporal noise reduction, very large compositions and local AI models. We would rather point at that before you buy than have you find it in month three. A 16GB card is a straight swap in the PCIe 5.0 slot.

• The memory kit fitted as standard is DDR5-5200 CL40, a baseline speed rather than a tuned high frequency kit (click or tap to read more)

  This is a deliberate choice, not a corner cut. Creative applications respond to capacity and platform stability far more than to memory frequency, and the difference between kits shows up in gaming benchmarks rather than export times. The profile is enabled in the BIOS before dispatch so the memory runs at its rated speed.

• Both NVMe drives are TLC with host memory buffer as standard, not DRAM buffered (click or tap to read more)

  TLC flash is the important part here and it is what keeps sustained write performance sensible once a drive is part full. The buffering difference shows up only in long continuous writes. DRAM buffered drives are available on this build as a live chat option, and we will tell you honestly whether your workflow will notice.

• Where a component is described generically rather than by model, the exact part can vary with supply (click or tap to read more)

  Case fans and cabling are the usual examples. Named models are fitted as named, and if a named part becomes unavailable we substitute an equivalent or better alternative. If a specific brand matters to you, confirm it with us on live chat before ordering and we will put it in writing.

• Photographs may show a different specification built in the same case (click or tap to read more)

  Your machine will look very similar but not identical, since internal components and cable runs differ between builds. Ask on live chat if you want to see photographs of a build closer to this exact specification.

• NVIDIA cards suit the great majority of creator applications, but a few workflows have specific requirements (click or tap to read more)

  CUDA support is broad across editing, colour, photo and design software, which is why we fit it. If you depend on a particular plugin, codec or professional capture ecosystem, tell us which one and we will confirm compatibility or suggest a different configuration before you order.

🎯 What is this PC best for?

• 4K video editing in Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve and Final Cut alternatives
• Colour grading and finishing on graded 4K timelines
• Editing directly from Thunderbolt 4 external SSDs and docks
• Photo retouching and large layered files in Photoshop and Lightroom
• Motion graphics and moderate After Effects compositions
• Graphic design, illustration and layout work
• Streaming, screen recording and podcast production
• Running an edit, an audio app, a design app and a browser at the same time without the machine complaining

💬 Need help?

Not sure if this is the right spec for your workflow? Ping us on live chat and we will help you choose the perfect creator PC.