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PPro rears its ugly “headless”
This issue was touched on in other threads, but I have not seen a definitive answer as to why I and so many others get the PProheadless.exe error message when encoding with the Adobe Media Encoder CS4. At times the encode will continue after I agree to shut down Pproheadless.exe, but it usually stops soon after that.
The specifics in this case: I’ve edited an 8 minute video in 1920x1080i, originally shot in XDCAM HD MP4 … with some standard DV .AVI shots incorporated into the piece.
I’m trying to export this timeline to a blu-ray MPEG 2 file – have tried VBR 2-pass, the preset 1-pass and also CBR. I have never made it through without a freeze on any of these MPEG-2 encodes, although using H.264 it got through twice with success..
Thanks very much for any suggestions about the dreaded headless message.
Paul Budline
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11 Replies
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Something is tripping up the long GOP encoding is what it sounds like…though H.264 is not usually intra-frame…
What if you export the entire thing as a master-quality movie and run it back through as a clip?
PPro headless is what needs to run to read the sequence from PPro. If it’s erroring out, something is getting funky on the timeline most likely. You’ve never had any problem preview rendering this sequence have you?
TimK,
Director, Consultant
Kolb Productions, -
Thanks for that suggestion. I won’t often be working with material shot at full 1920 like this, but it still shouldn’t be happening.
And one question – what is the best way to export to a master-quality HD movie?
Thanks
Paul -
Yes, I don’t mean that it should be happening…
usually when something like this happens, it ends up being one media file somewhere that is somehow funky…remove that file from the timeline and everyone is happy…finding which file that is can be difficult unless you can see where on the timeline the cursor is when it crashes. (which you can’t do with headless running behind AME)
HD files… (I was hoping mostly to see if you could get a master clip exported from the project to then run through the media encoder.) I typically use uncompressed (compression:none), but it makes a big file… If you have QT, you can use the animation codec, which isn’t much smaller…
TimK,
Director, Consultant
Kolb Productions, -
If I can call on your expertise one more time:
I took your advice and made a high quality, uncompressed 1920×1080 AVI from the 8 minute timeline … final size was about 73 GB. Using Adobe media encoder, I did a 2-pass VBR encode of that AVI, winding up with a 1.6 MB .m2v file. Do you think that will be superior to the 1-pass H.264 encode that resulted in a 1.3 MB .m4v file? The H.264 came directly from the timeline, while the MPEG-2 came from the intermediary .AVI file.
Lots of numbers.
Thank you again,
Paul Budline -
Using the uncompressed master clip should not create any degradation…
For the two output files you’re talking about, I suspect they’re more similar than different. If you find you have a personal preference, you could probably choose either and have a good result.
(H.264 is technically a newer codec, but with the MPEG being 2 pass VBR, I’m guessing they’re pretty similar.)
TimK,
Director, Consultant
Kolb Productions, -
Thanks for your help. I should advise folks that encoder seems to work better when Premiere Pro is not running … I’m not sure if people know that you can add a project to encoder under CS4 without PP being active.
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Hello,
Sorry for writtng in this post but I have a similar problem with Pro Headlees.
The error appears when Encoder CS4 is rendering MPG2-DVD file, and it stops de render file so I don’t know waht to do, I’ve been searching an answer at the net for my problem but I haven’t find it.
Somebody knows waht to do to fix it?
Thank you very much.
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Two suggestions that seem to help: 1, even after the error message pops up and you click “don’t send,” wait for a couple of minutes. The encoder often starts again and may even make it to completion. 2, it seems a little better to start AME CS4 on its own, without Premiere even running. Then go to “add premiere pro project,” click on the one you wish to add, give AME a minute to find the project and its associated files, then go ahead and do the settings.
Regardless, this is a very annoying bug.
Paul
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Hello,
Sorry for writting again in this message but before I didn’t know that my post already appeared (I’m a new member)
I have chequed what you said and it works, If you wait a cuple of minuts seams that the AME finish the process, but the question is:
Do you know if any thing happens to the final archive, any error will be in there?
Thank you very much,
Manel
PD: Sorry for my english (I’m spanish)
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I have been working in a project that is serious HD – 1920 x 1080 – and the encoding time is lengthy. One or two times it finished and then I spotted an error in the encoding – it was really having problem with a still photo that was too large.
I suggest that you just check the encoded file, even if you do it in fast forward, to make sure there are no black holes in it.
I’m getting back to a regular 720 x 480 DV project today and I think the encoding will be much easier.
Paul
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