Final Cut is so slow for some reason

2022-09-07 14:39:26 VTDecoderXPCService High CPU Use
    Executable: /System/Library/Frameworks/VideoToolbox.framework/Versions/A/XPCServices/VTDecoderXPCService.xpc/Contents/MacOS/VTDecoderXPCService

This is likely caused by this

 [Loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist (Google LLC - installed 2022-04-18)
  [Loaded] com.google.keystone.xpcservice.plist (Google LLC - installed 2022-04-18)

You have Chrome and its keystone daemons. They kill video applications by hogging the system videotoolbox. See https://chromeisbad.com for why this is, and how to remove them completely. After removing them you will need to delete and reinstall FCP.

Not sure what all your separate drives are doing, but one is completely full beyond use. You need to clear space off it before further use damages the contents. You should keep 15% of the drive free.

disk2 - WD My Passport 2627 4.00 TB
  External USB 5 Gbit/s USB
    disk2s1 - EFI (MS-DOS FAT32) [EFI] 210 MB
    disk2s2 - F*****E 4.00 TB (3.98 TB used)

 disk2s2 - F*****E
        Mount point: /Volumes/F*****E
    Used: 3.98 TB
    Size: 4.00 TB
    Free: 16.59 GB
    Available: 16.80 GB

I notice two things:

One of your drives is full. You should have a minimum of 10%-15% free space.

You have the nasty Google keystone agents installed. These break the video toolbox and cause trouble for the ProApps. For more info and instructions on how to completely remove, follow the directions at https://chromeisbad.com Simply trashing Chrome is not enough.

After you've completely removed them you'll need to download a fresh copy of FCP from the App Store and reinstall.

Neat Video is extremely processor intensive, so I don't know if that's factored into your comparisons.

Others may see additional items of concern.

Hi(bonjour),

I see that you use USB drives. Does your media or library are stored on those drives?

What are your project’s settings?

It seems that there is a data flow problem. I’m currently using this iMac model, and it is blazing fast, even with 4K. But I use a thunderbolt SSD drive.

In FCP, close all open library. Try to create a new FCP library on your internal drive for testing purpose only. Import some 4K media in the library itself and do some edits and playback.

If the problem is solved, that’s an evidence that your drives or their connection are the problem. Note that FAT 32 format is not compatible with FCP.

Michel

If it’s a playback problem it’s probably media related. Give details of the clips and the project properties. Is the problem in the browser or the project or both? Where is the media stored, what drive, and how is it connected? Do you have Neat applied to these clips?

Were is the media that you’re playing back? Left on the original 4 TB drive or imported into the FCP library bundle? Where is the library stored? 4K files can be very large depending on the codec. The render files for 4K are probably ProRes HQ and much larger. An HDD may not be adequate, especially if there are multiple streams of video.

You have a 4 TB drive that’s full and should not be used for anything. Space should be cleared on it and if it’s not needed for the production it should be disconnected. Please give details as you did about your computer specs.

@prestigeknows - So when you did the migration from the laptop to the Mac, you chose *only* Users in the migration dialog? You didn't select Applications, System Files, etc.? In other words, when the migration finished you then had to go to the App Store and 3rd party developers to download and install fresh copies of the applications you use, right?

This speed test is for the internal drive.

Is that where your media and libraries are?

If they live on a slow external drive, that is the bottleneck.

In BlackMagic Disk Speed Test, click the little gear button about the start, choose "Select Target Drive", and select a location on your drive, then click Start.

Try the app speed disk test from black magic, free on AppStore. It will test all your drives vs resolution and media codec.

Michel B.

What about disk speed test app results?

Your iMac is powerfull enough for this task. The bottleneck is the USB connection and fat 32 format. Try to use your internal HD with a new library.

Michel

You really should never migrate your whole System To another computer, just the users.

For what disks? I get similar such result with my Samsung X5 Thunderbolt SSD.

If FCP doesn’t work with those speeds, it’s probably an installation problem. Did you try to erase FCP app and doing a fresh install from AppStore?

Michel

Do both machines have the same hardware decode/encode for media? Many late version MBPs have H.264 hardware encoding, which makes a big difference in performance.