Capture Card Magewell

Community reference (2026-11-05 snapshot). Check the latest drivers, firmware and individual model revision. All capture cards · Troubleshooting

Capture Card · Magewell

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Capture Card Volume · Magewell (abbreviated as "mlw"/"11152" in the group) [In-Depth Edition]

One-line positioning: the "ceiling / outer-space contender" of USB capture cards — the only USB card that can do 4K60 HDR; but the bar is high (a 20G port is mandatory), it is expensive, and the latency data is disputed (5-10ms vs 55ms measured).

Models involved: Magewell 4K Pro (USB, 20G) / 11152 (PCIe) Last updated: 2026-10-06 (in-depth rewrite)

════════════════ 0. The 30-second verdict ════════════════ [Who it's for] Users with a 2500+ budget, a 20G C port on the motherboard, and a taste for the USB extreme (4K60HDR); players who don't want to go PCIe [Who it's not for] Motherboards with only a 10G port (it won't run), limited budgets, and those who need low-latency mode (the USB Magewell can't use that feature) [In one line] "so far this is the only external one I've seen that still supports 4k60hdr, everything else is uniformly 4k30hdr at best" (Hi); but "an outer-space contender among usb cards, and nobody in the group has bought one yet" — most of the data is from one person's testing, so treat the latency claims rationally before buying.

════════════════ 1. Specs and capabilities ════════════════

════════════════ 2. Recommended settings (follow step by step) ════════════════

1. [Before buying] Confirm the motherboard has a 20Gbps C port ("go look at the motherboard's detail page or check the official site"); a 10G port won't do, Thunderbolt 3 (20G) is fine
2. [Wiring] 4K Pro USB → 20G C port; 11152 PCIe → "with the card oriented the way it goes into the pcie slot, passthrough is on the left, input is on the right" (Draco)
3. [Install drivers] The official driver is mandatory ("you have to download the driver")
4. [Capture format] P010 for HDR; RGB works for 4K60 SDR ("you can max out the format")
5. [HDR settings] Manually specify PQ hdr10 inside Veyra (二大爷's test: washed out → "change it to hdr10 pq" → "the colors are correct now")
6. [Audio] Prefer the normal audio channel; no sound with wasapi is a known issue, so if you hit it, switch to another audio interface method

════════════════ 3. ★ Complete troubleshooting manual for common problems (copy and use) ════════════════

── Q1 [Most disputed] How much latency does Magewell actually have? [The optimistic version (official / a single screenshot)]

• The author: "Magewell 4kpro at 3000, so far I've only seen one person using it, 4k60 5-10ms"

• 宁静致远: "the Magewell has the lowest latency" "foreigners all use Magewell capture cards to run ai aimbots in cod" "single-digit latency"

• iexyX's first test: "4K Pro latency is around 4-10ms" "it's about the same at all resolutions and color formats" "stable at 5ms" [Doubts and retesting]

• Hi questioned the test method on the spot: "@iexyX go use a Baidu millisecond timer, that's more accurate" "the Apple stopwatch can measure 10ms at best" "is this a video screenshot? or did you take it with another device while the timer was running? don't tell me you shot it after pausing [旺柴]"

• iexyX's retest (in the chain they specified: capture dock adapter + 1.5m HDMI cable + 1.5m hub): "45-90ms, stable at around 55ms"

• "connected straight to the graphics card's hdmi, the latency is still around 65ms" "plugged directly into pcie it should be around 25-35ms" (iexyX's estimate)

• three strikes' return test: "I returned it a day after buying it, measured the latency at 67ms, it doesn't feel responsive when playing, I couldn't stand it" [How to read this] The test method (millisecond timer precision / how the photo was taken / the cable chain) heavily affects the result; a USB card theoretically can't have single-digit latency (for comparison: USB 4K60 NV12 is generally 35-45ms). Reasonable expectation: the USB Magewell's 4K60 HDR latency is in the "top USB tier", but don't expect the advertised 5ms. [Verify it yourself] Use the group's standard method: cross-check OBS/PotPlayer + a web millisecond timer https://miaobiao.r239.com/ + dual-screen comparison (see chapter F of manual 01 for details)

── Q2 Can my computer run it? (the 20G port issue — must check before buying)

• "the motherboard must have 20g or more"; "only a type-c port can exceed 10g" "the Magewell needs 20g" (Hi)

• Counterexamples: "my motherboard doesn't have a 20g port, saved money again, no need to switch to the Magewell 4k pro" (Charles); "mine only has a 10 USB3.2 port, otherwise I'd have bought this" (Wwz)

• Thunderbolt 3 (20G) works: "Thunderbolt 3 20G should be enough"; "there's no Thunderbolt 4 for now" (Thunderbolt 4 capture cards don't exist yet)

• How to check: look at the C port specs on the motherboard's official site / detail page; "a 20g c port is fine" (the author)

── Q3 How do I install the 11152? Which side is IN and which is OUT?

• Verbatim (Draco): "with the card oriented the way it goes into the pcie slot, passthrough is on the left, input is on the right" (some users asked, "it isn't written anywhere")

• If the graphics card blocks it: you can take the shell off and plug in the bare board; with a mid-board you can use an extension cable and mount it vertically

• Cooling reminder for old cards: "get some cooling for the capture card" "when it gets too hot the performance degrades" (二大爷, speaking generally about PCIe cards)

── Q4 No sound with wasapi audio / various audio problems

• "why is there no sound when the 11152 uses wasapi audio" — no answer in the group; if you hit it, switch to another audio interface method (DirectShow, etc.) and report the logs to the author

• Standard checks: select the capture card as the Windows output, and select the capture card + listen in the software

── Q5 Why doesn't my low-latency mode have any effect?

• "the mlw usb can't use low-latency mode" (Draco) — the USB version doesn't get the acceleration from that feature, which is normal

• Low-latency mode only takes effect on the "DLSS5 + upscaling" processing order (see doc 02 on settings for details)

── Q6 HDR settings / what if the picture is washed out?

• 二大爷's case: "after changing the capture, turning on HDR in the PS system still washes out the picture" → Hi: "change it to hdr10 pq" → "the colors are correct now"

• Later: "the colors are correct in the PS system UI, but washed out in-game" "do I need to restart the game?" — restart the game/software first, then observe

── Q7 How do I choose between this and the 573 / Elgato / 4K X?

• For USB + 4K60HDR: Magewell is the only choice (other USB cards top out at 4K30HDR)

• For 4K60HDR + low latency + a budget under 1500: PCIe (573/mk2) is a better deal

• "apart from Magewell, only a directly plugged card will do" (Hi)

• "feels worse than the Elgato 4kx" (Draco's comment when comparing the 4K X — the 4K X is much cheaper but only does 4K30HDR)

════════════════ 4. Prices and channels (at the time of writing) ════════════════

• 4K Pro: 2699 for the China version (two-year warranty) / about 2000 new on Amazon (no warranty) / 2000-2200 second-hand

• 11152: about 6000 (Hi: "a 6000 capture card, group 3 really is different")

• Xianyu bargains: "you can camp out for one at 3k or 3.5k" (11152); "a brand-new Magewell 4kpro on Xianyu is only 2.2k"

• Channel advice: a China-version warranty is a must for expensive gear; for second-hand, watch the driver/firmware version

════════════════ 5. Selected quotes from group members ════════════════

• "the Magewell has the lowest latency" (宁静致远)

• "Magewell is a film/TV or medical capture card, the latency is very low" "Magewell is expensive because the console-cheating hype drove the price up" (5090夜神)

• "Magewell is at outer-space level even in group 1" (Hi)

• "no need to ask, Magewell leads by a landslide…" (5090夜神, when asked about the 11152's latency)

• "the Magewell's USB doesn't seem to have much of an advantage… though it isn't expensive itself" (泽南, the rational camp)

• "I returned it a day after buying it, measured the latency at 67ms, it doesn't feel responsive when playing, I couldn't stand it" (three strikes, return test) ================================================================

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This update (2026-11-05)

• The only USB 4K60 HDR, requires a 20G C port; claims of 5-10ms and 55ms both persist, and the test methods differ widely.

This update and expansion (2026-10-06 – 11-05)

Filtered out of the records of 7 chat groups from 2026-10-06 – 11-05: 92 relevant remarks in total, with the speaker and the date kept.

• The only USB 4K60 HDR, requires a 20G C port; there are two versions of the latency, 5-10ms and 55ms.

Fixes and reminders

• Magewell's 20G, but that one is 3.2gen2 shared between the up and down links, amd doesn't support it [捂脸] (杨雷 10-30)
• Theirs, the Magewell, is also 59.94, but not filling in 59.94 is no problem either, it's normal (the author 10-10)
• 周: @5090夜神 + Magewell 11152 bro, setting it up like this should work, right (星辰体重管理 10-06)
• 周: @Likely7 bro I found a problem, I have a Magewell 11152 capture card, and as soon as I click that Magewell reduce-latency switch the frame rate is only accurate when capturing in rgb 24 format, other formats are unstable at that point, but once I turn it off the other formats are fine (星辰体重管理 10-07)
• Unless you have a Magewell, or a bmd capture card, the kind that can change edid (Hi 10-08)
• I've explained this many times already: apart from Magewell and professional cards like BMD that can change edid, forget about full-blooded Dolby (Hi 10-20)

Group members' own words

"but there seems to be Magewell above that, though I saw a test before where this latency was fairly low, but it seems it wasn't a recording test under 4k30hdr, this thing you can only try yourself, there's way too little side-by-side comparison online to go on.."

— Focus (10-06)

"周: @Likely7 bro I found a problem, I have a Magewell 11152 capture card, and as soon as I click that Magewell reduce-latency switch the frame rate is only accurate when capturing in rgb 24 format, other formats are unstable at that point, but once I turn it off the other formats are fine"

— 星辰体重管理 (10-07)

"the latency on the Magewell really is quite low"

— EZBOY (10-21)

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Related reading: 03 Capture Card Buying Guide · 04 Capture Card Analysis · 07 M.2 to PCIe · 08 PCIe Riser Cable