-
More RT … what’s the best upgrade?
Specs:
– 3.0 GHz x 8 MacPro (early 2008)
– 8 GB RAM
– 3 TB internal SATA (striped)
– 6 TB external FW800 (backup, offline)
– ATI 2600 XT 256MB (workspace)
– BMD Intensity Pro (monitoring)
– 30″ Cinema Display (workspace)
– JVC DT-V24L1U (monitoring)Workflow:
1080/24p ProResMy question is, given what I’ve got, what’s the best upgrade to get better performance out of FCP and Color, and to a lesser degree, Motion? My first assumption was to upgrade the stock video card, but tests on Barefeats seem to indicate that the “better” cards actually do worse with the Pro apps.
I’m just not seeing the RTExtreme performance I would have expected, given that I’m not really doing anything too fancy. Pretty straight editing of 2-4 tracks, mostly cuts, some dissolves, 3-way color corrector.
-
12 Replies
-
Replace the Graphics card. The x1900XT is the one that works best with Color and makes Motion scream.
Shane
GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD now for sale!
http://www.LFHD.net
Read my blog! -
If you have three drives stripped as a RAID 0, then you’re probably getting somewhere around 200MB/sec read off of them. If you have ProRes 1080P files, then you’re dealing with somewhere around 30MB/sec. So you would max out at a theoretical 6 streams of ProRes.
If you set up a faster RAID, say 400-500MB/sec, then you could theoretically do 10-15 streams of ProRes.
But at some point, it’s going to be too much for your processor depending on what FX you have in your sequence.
So what are your RT settings currently for quality? Dynamic, High, Medium, Low? I personally can’t stand to edit with the Frame Rate set to anything but high, so that’s when I render.
-Russ
Russell Lasson
Kaleidoscope Pictures
Provo, UT -
Thanks, Shane. I don’t have ready access to an older MacPro to flash it, so I’m wondering if the x1900XT is on option for me? I thought maybe I had heard rumblings that there is a newer version that works with the early 2008 models, but I can’t seem to verify this.
-
Joseph
What sort of RT performance do you get?
The reason I’m asking is that I’m on a MacBookPro 2.33 and thinking about upgrading to a MacPro. I work in 1080psf25 ProRes so only a frame more per second then you. I monitor via the ioHD. Drives are Raid0 Sata.
I get 2 stable streams and with luck 3. None of the filters is fully real time but many are preview quality (green). But when stacking more then 2 things quickly go red.
Cheers
Carsten
-
Russ,
I’ve got it set on dynamic, I think. Still, I’m getting red bars with very little effort.I’m only using Disk Utility’s software RAID capabilities … I wonder if getting a hardware RAID card would offload a meaningful amount of work from the CPU’s? Somehow I doubt it, because my processors don’t seem to be max’ing out no matter what I throw at it.
-
Carsten,
For example, today I’m editing a live concert. It’s a four camera multiclip edit. Each of the angles has the 3 way cc filter on it, and that’s it. If I add a simple cross dissolve between cuts, I get a red line. -
RT Pop Up > Dynamic > Frame Rate: Dynamic > Quality: Dynamic ? That’s the most RT horsepower you can have.
Kevin Monahan
http://www.fcpworld.com
Author – Motion Graphics and Effects in Final Cut Pro -
Is your RT set to safe or unlimited?
-Russ
Russell Lasson
Kaleidoscope Pictures
Provo, UT -
Thanks, Kevin. I understand the settings that let FCP bail to a lower preview quality in order to avoid rendering … what I’m looking for are the hardware improvements I can make to avoid doing so more of the time.
-
THe only hardware that will increase RT and render times are processors…machines with faster processors. And you can’t swap out the ones in the computer for new ones so that means new computers.
Not like the FCP 3 days with the Cinewave card or RT Mac or the Ice boards.
Shane
GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD now for sale!
http://www.LFHD.net
Read my blog!
Reply to this Discussion! Login or Sign Up