Introduction

Three years after the launch of PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X we finally have a proper HDMI 2.1 USB-C capture card in our hands. The $300 AVerMedia Live Gamer Ultra 2.1 GC553G2 Capture Box, as it's called in its entirety, is without a doubt the most important capture card to launch in 2023 and recent years. While it's not the first such product to see the light of day, it's certainly the most ambitious one in terms of capture and passthrough capabilities. The "Capture Box" suffix hints at this being an external USB capture device, differentiating it from AVerMedia's other upcoming HDMI 2.1 product, the Live Gamer 4K 2.1 (GC575), which is a PCI Express card, so a "card" in the true sense of the word.



Let's not get tangled up in the naming schemes though, as there's much to unwrap. The AVerMedia Live Gamer Ultra 2.1 GC553G2 Capture Box, which I'll refer to as the AVerMedia Live Gamer Ultra 2.1 for the remainder of this review, enables live streamers and content creators to capture 4K video at 60 FPS while simultaneously gaming on their monitor in 4K at up to 144 Hz (120 Hz for console 4K gaming is natively supported as well), with full VRR and HDR support. The device also has a 3.5 mm combined audio input and output, as well as a 3.5 mm audio passthrough, which you can connect to your controller, to hear your game sound, and to make yourself audible both to your squad and your audience. All this works through a USB-C interface; AVerMedia finally puts 10 Gbps USB Type-C ports, lined up on the backs of modern motherboards, to good use.

Specifications

• Interface: USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C (10 Gbps)
• Input: HDMI 2.1
• Output: HDMI 2.1
• Video input resolution: 480i, 480p, 576i, 576p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p, 1440p, 2160p
• Maximum video passthrough resolution: 1080p @ 360 Hz HDR/VRR, 1440p @ 240 Hz HDR/VRR, 4K @ 144 Hz HDR/VRR
• Maximum capture resolution: 4K @ 60 FPS
• Video format: RAW (NV12, YUY2, RGB24, P010)
• Dimensions and weight: 120 x 70 x 27.6 mm, 115 g

The Package

The AVerMedia Live Gamer Ultra 2.1 comes in a simple box, depicting the capture card in actual size and going over its ports and technical specifications. Some of them are outdated, as they don't reflect the changes brought by a recent firmware update. For example, while the capture card initially supported 1080p240 and 1440p144 passthrough, that was pushed up to 1080p360 and 1440p240 in an October update. Other such changes are coming; more on those later in the review.


Inside the box, you'll find the AVerMedia Live Gamer Ultra 2.1, a printed quick start guide, an extended warranty pamphlet, high-speed USB-C and HDMI 2.1 cables, and a 3.5-mm audio passthrough cable. That's everything you need to get going quickly.