craigbuckley

Q: Final Cut pro x is running really slow all of a sudden, how do I get my footage on my external hard drive?

Ok so I have been using Final Cut pro x on my new 2012 macbook pro, 8gb ram , 2.6 ghz, and it has been working pretty good, some minor crashes here and there, but now my program is running very slow. I am editing a rather large documentary on my computer (tons of HD footage), and it already 12 minutes long and will be much longer. My concern is if its running this slow with 10 minutes into the film, I couldn't see Final cut pro even running when it gets to 30 minutes long. I have been reading about final cut being slow and I have mostly seen people post about external hard drive... I just got  a 3 TB external hard drive from WD, and I hope to use it. My confusion is just how to keep my files and my project on my external hard drive. I understand how to drag files onto the external hard drive, but then they are not on final cut? How do I get it so my files are on my external hard drive, and then when I open and turn on my external, I can edit my current project? Thanks!

Final Cut Pro X, Mac OS X (10.7.4), Brand new computer...

Posted on Sep 25, 2012 7:09 AM

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Q: Final Cut pro x is running really slow all of a sudden, how do I get my footage on my external hard drive?

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  • Helpful answers

  • by Russ H,Helpful

    Russ H Russ H Sep 25, 2012 8:51 AM in response to craigbuckley
    Level 7 (21,835 points)
    Quicktime
    Sep 25, 2012 8:51 AM in response to craigbuckley

    Within FCP's File dropdown menu, select Move Event and then specfy what drive you want it on (assuming it;s mounted).

     

    Russ

  • by andynick,Helpful

    andynick andynick Sep 25, 2012 11:03 AM in response to craigbuckley
    Level 5 (4,938 points)
    Video
    Sep 25, 2012 11:03 AM in response to craigbuckley

    This is my pet checklist for questions regarding FCP X performance - you may have already addressed some of the items but it's worth checking.

     

    Make sure you're using the latest version of the application - FCP X 10.0.5 runs very well on my 2009 MacPro 2 x 2.26 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon with 16 GB RAM and ATI Radeon HD 5870 1024 MB. I run it with Lion 10.7.5.

     

    First, check that you have at least 20% free space on your system drive.

     

     

    For smooth playback without dropping frames, make sure 'Better Performance' is selected in the FCP X Preferences - Playback Tab.

     

     

    If you have not already done so, move your Projects and Events to a fast (Firewire 800 or faster) external HD. Make sure the drive's formatted OS Extended (journalling's not required for video). You should always keep at least 20% free space on the Hard Drives that your Media, Projects and Events are on.

     

    Check the spec of your Mac against the system requirements:

    http://www.apple.com/finalcutpro/specs/

     

    Check the spec of your graphics card. If it's listed here, it's not suitable:

    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4664

     

    If you are getting crashes, there is some conflict on the OS. Create a new (admin) user account on your system and use FCP X from there - if it runs a lot better, there's a conflict and a clean install of the OS would be recommended.

     

    Keep projects to 20 mins or less. If you have a long project, work on 20 min sections then paste these into a final project for export.

     

    If your playback in FCP X is not good, I strongly recommend you use ProRes 422 Proxy - it edits and plays back like silk because the files are small but lightly compressed (not much packing and unpacking to do) - but remember to select 'Original or Optimised Media' (FCP X Preferences > Playback) just before you export your movie, otherwise it will be exported at low resolution.

     

     

    The downside of 'Proxy' is that it looks awful. DON'T use Proxy when you're assessing things like video quality - especially focus.

     

    If you have plenty of processor power, for the ultimate editing experience, create Optimised Media - most camera native files are highly compressed and need a great deal of processor power to play back - particularly if you add titles, filters or effects. ProRes 422 takes up much more hard drive space but is very lightly compressed. It edits and plays back superbly.

     

     

    Personally, I work with XDCAM EX and h.264 from a Canon DSLR. Both of these run fine with my system, but I do transcode multicam clips.

     

    Hide Audio Waveforms at all times when you don't need them (both in Browser and Storyline / Timeline). They take up a lot of processor power. (Use the switch icon at the bottom-right of your timeline to select a format without waveforms if you don't need them at the moment, then switch back when you do).

     

    Create folders in the Project and Events libraries and put any projects you are not working on currently, in those folders. This will help a lot. There's a great application for this, called Event Manager X - for the tiny cost it's an invaluable application.

    http://assistedediting.intelligentassistance.com/EventManagerX/

     

    Unless you cannot edit and playback without it, turn off Background Rendering in Preferences (under Playback) - this will help general performance and you can always render when you need to by selecting the clip (or clips) and pressing Ctrl+R.

     

    The biggest single improvement I saw in performance was when I upgraded the RAM from 8 GB to 16.

    Andy

  • by craigbuckley,

    craigbuckley craigbuckley Sep 25, 2012 12:19 PM in response to andynick
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 25, 2012 12:19 PM in response to andynick

    Thanks for the response guys. I am checking through all your assessments andynick... So I will keep my vids to 20 mins or less and then paste all together... Is there a way I can save my project to my external hard drive, (move my project to my external), like I could with the events? and will this make it so I can only edit my project with my external hard drive?

     

    And if I have to create a new user on my computer, and re download final cut, will I have to start over? Because I am in the middle of a project...

     

     

     

    I also may have to go from 8b to 16gb.. what does this cost on a macbook pro 2012? Thanks again for all the help.. still trying to figure things out.

  • by Russ H,

    Russ H Russ H Sep 25, 2012 2:26 PM in response to craigbuckley
    Level 7 (21,835 points)
    Quicktime
    Sep 25, 2012 2:26 PM in response to craigbuckley

    Hi Craig,

     

    If you select your project, that same File menu will give you a Move Project option.

     

    Note that one of Andy's tips was to invest ($5 or $10, I can't remember) in EventManagerX.  It makes organizing FCP easier – such as some of the things you are trying to do.

     

    One thing I would add to his list is to check your Activity monitor when things get really bogged down. Even though it's improved in latest versions, I find that sometimes FCP doesn't always release RAM. Usually a re=launch cures that.

     

    Good luck.

     

    Russ

  • by craigbuckley,

    craigbuckley craigbuckley Sep 25, 2012 3:19 PM in response to Russ H
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 25, 2012 3:19 PM in response to Russ H

    Thanks everyone. I clicked on my project, but there was still no move project option under the file tab. Is there something else I have to click?

  • by Tom Wolsky,

    Tom Wolsky Tom Wolsky Sep 25, 2012 3:20 PM in response to craigbuckley
    Level 10 (118,348 points)
    Apple TV
    Sep 25, 2012 3:20 PM in response to craigbuckley

    Are you in the project libary? This can only be done from the project library.

  • by View_Findr,

    View_Findr View_Findr Jan 30, 2013 8:13 AM in response to craigbuckley
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 30, 2013 8:13 AM in response to craigbuckley

    Quick question concerning FCPX & speed: do you have to update your OS for it to run optimumly? I am using Snow Leopard & everytime I open it, it gives me a warning to update my OS, I guess to Lion, but then I hit ENTER and it goes ahead and boots up anyway. I've edited just fine, kicked out a finished H.264 & everything. But its atarting to run freakishly slow, and I wonder if that's got anything to do w/ it? I haven't upgraded b/c its at my job, and I would like to keep FCP 7 as a back-up while transitioning to X. Ty!

  • by Tom Wolsky,

    Tom Wolsky Tom Wolsky Jan 30, 2013 8:18 AM in response to View_Findr
    Level 10 (118,348 points)
    Apple TV
    Jan 30, 2013 8:18 AM in response to View_Findr

    Exactly what OS version are you talking about? FCP7 runs in the current OS.

  • by View_Findr,

    View_Findr View_Findr Jan 30, 2013 8:35 AM in response to craigbuckley
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 30, 2013 8:35 AM in response to craigbuckley

    I was told that we'd have to have the new X on the rebooted machines instead of 7, due to registration issues (?) I'll have to clarify that one. But-- does that warning message from X indicate it doesn't operate under max capacity if the OS isn't updated? Or does it really matter?

  • by Tom Wolsky,

    Tom Wolsky Tom Wolsky Jan 30, 2013 8:44 AM in response to View_Findr
    Level 10 (118,348 points)
    Apple TV
    Jan 30, 2013 8:44 AM in response to View_Findr

    One more time: exactly what version of the OS are you using?

  • by View_Findr,

    View_Findr View_Findr Jan 30, 2013 8:48 AM in response to Tom Wolsky
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 30, 2013 8:48 AM in response to Tom Wolsky

    My bad. OS X 10.7.4.