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Q: Should it take 40 minutes to render and transcode a 3 min video?

I was using FCE on a 2009 unibody MacBook Pro.  It was starting to drive me crazy, so I stepped up to the plate and bought a new Quad Core 2011 MBP and FCPX.  I'm editing 1080P from a Canon 60D and my typical video is about 3 minutes with several transitions and a graphic overlay.  I'm typically saving the video locally using compressor's pre-configured YouTube 720P format. 

 

Doing this seems to bring my machine to its knees for about 40 minutes to render and transcode the 3 minute video.  All my other programs become somewhat unresponsive.  Is this what I should be expecting, or is my computer having issues?  I was hoping my shiny new $2300 machine was going to eliminate this problem, but it doesn't appear so.  I've seen people mention that Qmaster isn't worth it for short videos, but if it's taking 40 minutes, I'm wondering if clustering is needed, or my computer has problems. 

 

Thanks!

MacBook Pro, Macbook, 20" iMac, AppleTV, Mac OS X (10.5.5)

Posted on Aug 24, 2011 10:00 PM

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Q: Should it take 40 minutes to render and transcode a 3 min video?

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  • by whitemank,

    whitemank whitemank Aug 24, 2011 10:20 PM in response to whitemank
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 24, 2011 10:20 PM in response to whitemank

    By the way, all the media is stored and accessed on my local, 7200RPM drive...

  • by danwayfilms,

    danwayfilms danwayfilms Aug 24, 2011 11:05 PM in response to whitemank
    Level 1 (75 points)
    Aug 24, 2011 11:05 PM in response to whitemank

    Well.. i'm using a 2009 unibody macbook pro and have no issues whatsoever. So lets try and see what your doing wrong.

     

    When you say "I'm typically saving the video locally using compressor's pre-configured YouTube 720P format" do you mean you are importing the files from the camera and then converting them to this format before working with them in Final Cut?

     

    Unless i'm mistaken, "YouTube format" seems to be .MP4 H264 codec. For working in Final Cut, that is a BIG no no, and might explain why your machines take forever. Final Cut likes ProRes 422. You can import and transcode to ProRes right in FCP in the Log and Transfer Window.

     

    Or save the raw files onto your computer and use MPEG Streamclip to convert them to ProRes.

     

    It is very important to do some research and figure out the best workflow for a particular NLE, before going out and spilling another 1.7k for something that still gives you trouble because of something you are overlooking.

  • by danwayfilms,

    danwayfilms danwayfilms Aug 24, 2011 11:07 PM in response to whitemank
    Level 1 (75 points)
    Aug 24, 2011 11:07 PM in response to whitemank

    Also, you should never store the video files you are working with on the same drive as your OS. It is always preferred to use an external hdd (NOT USB). FW 800 is a good option, and look out for those thunderbolt drives that make use of the shiny new features on your MBP

     

    P.S. I sometimes end up making the mistake of working with files on my local drive. It's a bad habit that needs to stop.

  • by Russ H,

    Russ H Russ H Aug 25, 2011 5:57 AM in response to whitemank
    Level 7 (21,800 points)
    Quicktime
    Aug 25, 2011 5:57 AM in response to whitemank

    Shane Ross has a great tutorial on tapeless workflow - including the DSLR workflow. Solved a lot of mysteries.

     

    If you want to keep Time Code in the Pro Res files, download the Canon FCP plug-in from Canon. Works very well.

     

    Russ

  • by David Bogie Chq-1,

    David Bogie Chq-1 David Bogie Chq-1 Aug 25, 2011 8:48 AM in response to whitemank
    Level 7 (25,777 points)
    Video
    Aug 25, 2011 8:48 AM in response to whitemank

    Your problems are not with your machine. They lie with your workflow and your expectations. H.264 is incredibly processor intensive and requires massive computational and memory resources. If you do not convert your H.264 to an easy to use and editable format, when you attempt to export, the process occurs twice; access original (highly compressed) footage, decompress it one frame at a time, store it, render effects (whihc cannot be done without real frames), store the new media, access the new media, and recompress to H.264.

     

    Working in high definition on a portable, using Final Cut Pro, will try your patience. You might be a very happy user of FCPX.

  • by whitemank,

    whitemank whitemank Aug 25, 2011 9:37 AM in response to danwayfilms
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 25, 2011 9:37 AM in response to danwayfilms

    My workflow involves getting the video files off my Canon 60D using Adobe Lightroom and then dragging the files over to FCPX's event library.  The project properties show that I'm using 1080P 29.97p and it is rendering in ProRes422.  Then, when I export, I'm using "Video Sharing Services" -> "HD 720p Video Sharing" settings in Compressor 4 which is based on H.264. 

     

    Is it possible to export video to Youtube without converting to H.264? 

     

    I've started looking into the Canon plugin and that looks encouraging.  Given what I'm trying to do, what is the optimal workflow? 

  • by Russ H,

    Russ H Russ H Aug 25, 2011 9:50 AM in response to whitemank
    Level 7 (21,800 points)
    Quicktime
    Aug 25, 2011 9:50 AM in response to whitemank

    I had read your initial post too quickly and assumed you were working in Final Cut Studio - because FCS is what this forum is about. My experience in DSLR files is limited to FCP 6 and 7; I don't use X, so I probably shouldn't make any suggestions beyond referring you to Shane's tutorial. But if you have Compressor, why not try exporting as Pro Res and bring that into Compressor to transcode to H.264.

     

    Russ

  • by whitemank,

    whitemank whitemank Aug 25, 2011 11:49 AM in response to Russ H
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 25, 2011 11:49 AM in response to Russ H

    Oops.  I must have posted in the wrong forum by mistake.  Sorry about that.  Shane's tutorial seems to only apply to FCP 7, as there doesn't appear to be a log and transfer equivalent in FCPX.  Also, I've read that the canon plugin is integrated into FCPX.  I'll try the prores export idea.