QuickShow & BEYOND System Requirements: PC Specs for Laser Shows

This guide breaks down QuickShow system requirements and BEYOND system requirements in plain, real-world terms so you can choose the right PC specs for laser shows—whether you’re running stage laser lights, doing wedding and club gigs, or managing a bigger outdoor laser show with multiple controllers.

• Use Windows 64-bit. Don’t gamble with unsupported setups.
• SSD is basically required for smooth cue switching.
• 16GB RAM is the safest baseline for live shows.
• Multi-controller rigs need stronger CPU/RAM (and often a dedicated GPU).
• Fix Windows power/USB settings before show day to prevent disconnects.

Written by: Laser Show Technician / Lighting Consultant
Last updated: December 19, 2025

People ask: “My laptop is almost good enough—can I run QuickShow or BEYOND anyway?” You might get away with it at home. Live shows are different: you’re switching cues fast, running audio, sometimes running lighting control, and you can’t afford freezes or controller dropouts.

The most common live failures are:

• Cue switching lag (late by a beat, looks unprofessional)
• Stutter or frame drops when layering effects
• Controller not recognized / random disconnect
• Full software crash at the worst moment

That’s why these “boring” requirements—Windows version, SSD, RAM—matter more than most beginners think.

QuickShow and BEYOND share a similar baseline. BEYOND can scale harder (more layers, bigger timelines, more complex show control), so it benefits more from stronger hardware—but the fundamentals are the same.

• Windows 64-bit
• Modern CPU (avoid ultra-low-power “office” chips)
• 8GB RAM minimum (works for very simple projects)
• SSD strongly recommended
• Stable USB ports/drivers for your laser control hardware

• Windows 64-bit + SSD
• 16GB RAM
• Strong CPU (think i7-class performance or equivalent)
• Dedicated GPU helps if you run heavy timelines, capture/streaming, or extra show tools

Below are three practical “build paths.” Pick the one that matches your gigs.

Best for: wedding DJs, small venues, basic cue sets
Recommended:

• Windows 64-bit laptop
• SSD
• 16GB RAM
• Stable USB (avoid cheap hubs)
• Keep files clean: fewer layers, fewer heavy background animations

If your setup includes other lighting, this pairs well with a basic wedding DJ light setup: simple cues, clean hits, and reliable switching.

Best for: nightclub nights, mobile production, repeat gigs
Recommended:

• Windows 64-bit
• SSD
• 16–32GB RAM
• Strong CPU
• Dedicated GPU recommended if you also run visuals or video

This is also where “everything is running at once”—DJ software, lighting control, lasers—so you want headroom.

Best for: rooftops, parks, building-scale shows, multiple controllers
Recommended:

• Windows 64-bit
• SSD (non-negotiable)
• Strong CPU
• 16–32GB RAM
• Dedicated GPU recommended
• Clean power + a backup plan (UPS if possible)

Outdoor work introduces more variables (longer cables, environment changes, bigger coverage), so build extra margin.

A lot of beginners underestimate storage. But cue switching can involve loading assets and recalculating layers—especially with complex scenes.

Real-world difference:

• HDD may cause noticeable delays during cue changes
• SSD makes switching smoother and reduces “wait time” moments

If you’re serious about performance, SSD isn’t a “nice to have.” It’s one of the cheapest upgrades that prevents the most show-night problems.

Quick buying tip:

• NVMe SSD is faster, SATA SSD is still a big improvement over HDD. Either is better than spinning disk for show work.

If you’re running multiple controllers or multiple output zones, your computer must handle:

• More real-time computation
• More device I/O
• More synchronization overhead
• More complex show files

What usually breaks first:

• 8GB RAM fills up → stutter, slow UI, warnings
• CPU hits 100% → cue switching delays and frame drops

Upgrade order (best value first):

1. SSD
2. RAM (go to 16GB minimum)
3. CPU performance (stronger laptop / desktop)
4. Dedicated GPU (if you’re pushing heavy visuals + multi-tasking)

People often ask this while shopping for gear:

• Great for traditional laser projector control and clean graphic output
• Common in professional projector workflows
• Often paired with an ILDA interface/controller

Choose ILDA if: you want clean graphics output and traditional laser control workflows.

• Useful when lasers need to integrate with a lighting console and show control
• Common in venues where lighting departments already run DMX networks

Choose DMX if: you want lasers synchronized with the wider lighting rig.

Many real productions use both depending on the venue and workflow.

• Likely cause: HDD, low RAM, heavy layers
• Fix: SSD + 16GB RAM, simplify layers, close background apps

• Likely cause: USB power saving, unstable hub, driver issues
• Fix: disable USB selective suspend, use direct USB, avoid cheap hubs

• Likely cause: CPU overloaded, multi-tasking, too many effects
• Fix: reduce layers, upgrade CPU/RAM, avoid running extra software

• Likely cause: default Windows update settings
• Fix: pause updates before events, use a dedicated “show” user profile

Do these before every gig:

• Set Power Plan to High Performance
• Disable Sleep / Hibernate
• Disable USB selective suspend
• Turn off automatic updates (pause updates before show day)
• Close cloud sync apps (Drive/Dropbox/OneDrive)
• Confirm controller detection and output in the exact live setup
• Bring backups: show files, critical assets, spare cables, a USB drive

If you want a “zero drama” reputation, this checklist matters as much as your programming.

• “laser show projector for stage shows”
• “DMX laser controller”
• “ILDA interface / ILDA cable guide”
• “outdoor laser show setup checklist”