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AJA Crashing 1080i in FCP
Hi Everyone
I have a client that is having some major crashing issues with their new system and I’m about out of ideas at this point maybe someone can give me some suggestions.
Here’s what’s going on:
The system installed is a new 8 core 3.2 Ghz Mac Pro running 8 gig’s of Ram Leopard OS, FCP Studio (current release) AJA Kona Lhe with Driver 5.1( it was 6.1 now it’s back 5.1) The client is editing XDCAM EX HD footage at 1080p. Current sequence is the same as footage. To monitor the footage they do not have 1080p monitor so they are running 1080i so they can see the image. Storage is the 8TB EVO Maxx drive (Raid 5)
So now the issue is crashing. When they scan through the footage doing a digital scrub quickly, click on random points in the sequence the program will crash out. This averages 10-20 times a day. Usually they will get a green screen in the canvas prior to the crash. They had told me when they turn the viewer off it was working fine when working in 1080p mode.
I did a house call checked the system out and found that it was not crashing in 1080p but was in 1080i.
I called AJA support and they had me check that the card was in Slot 2 then reloaded the drivers which we did and then they suggested swapping the card out. I did that with a card from another machine and we were still having the same issue.
The client has 2 other systems with the same set up except the CPU is an older machine. We tried to make the machine crash in 1080p and we couldn’t. We tried to make it crash in 1080i and it did but after banging on the machine for about 15 – 20 minutes. I told them the card which is not supposed to cross convert anything is not going to work in 1080i they should get a new 1080p monitor and work at 1080p. The client tired working in 1080p the next day with viewer on and they were now experiencing the crashing again. They turned off the viewer same deal
My last thought was to reinstall FCP which I was told they did they this weekend. They had already tried to kill the FCP pref’s. Apparently the issue is still present.
So at this point I’m at a loss for where this issue is. I sure it’s not the storage and I also am pretty sure it’s not the card or the drivers because the 2 other systems they have are not experiencing these issues.
So what else could it be? I know I’m missing something.Thanks,
Jason Gillet
Engineer
Gillet Productions -
12 Replies
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Are all set-ups running the same AJA version of firmaware and driver?
Cheers,
Ramona -
Frame rate is 29.97 1080p. It works on 2 other identical systems just not this particular one.
As for the other response I am having my guy send me a screen grab of the info tab. That was one thing I hadn’t thought about so I will give that a shot.
Thanks, -
What frame rate are you running and do you have house sync?
If you are running a 23.98 timeline and have 29.97 sync, you might experince these issues.
Jeremy
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Hi again,
I just spoke with my client and what I’m now hearing is the system is crashing with the Kona video out off at 1080p thus not even using the card. Any idea’s why this is happening?
Jason Gillet
Gillet Productions
Editor/Engineer -
[Jason Gillet] “Any idea’s why this is happening?”
I just don’t se this as being a problem with the card. I was doing tests here (slow day today) and nothing carshes in 1080p or 1080i. Do you have house sync going to this machine (you didn’t answer that one before).
What are the exact timeline specs?
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I would have to say you have a bit of a hardware issue, and not the AJA hardware. I would recommend going back to the builder/integrater/installer to see if they can narrow it down as it could be everything from components in the system to missing files in the OS or application install. The gap is just to wide to narrow down via a forum. We pointed out all the obvious ones in regards to the AJA hardware.
In my experience (and it isn’t with a Mac, sorry) I have never seen a crashing issue in regards to the AJA hardware. It usually acts other ways to show a problem but doesn’t crash. The crashing usually comes from a conflict on the system, missing information or just faulty hardware.
Even a reference issue shouldn’t cause a crash, it should just result in problems capturing, laying off or picture quality.
Best of luck on this.
Cheers,
Ramona -
[Jason Gillet] “Frame rate is 29.97 1080p. It works on 2 other identical systems just not this particular one.”
OK
1) are they using the XDcamEX set up or the Kona Setup
2) With the Kona Card installed there is a difference between 1080 Psf that is shot by the EX (along with most all of 1080 cameras) and 1080p which is only shot by RED and Phantom.
you should be using the AJA Kona 1080i 29.97
gary adcock
Studio37
HD & Film Consultation
Post and Production Workflows -
I’m in agreement with you guys that it is not a card issue. Since I did some testing and swapped out the cards and Kona Drivers the issue still persists. Could this be a Ram issue? They started with 4 gigs and had same issue and then added another 4 thinking there wasn’t enough ram. But issue still remained.
Oh big thing I’m not sure if I mentioned before. Before the crash a green screen shows up in the canvas monitor. Then a few seconds later it crashes. I’ve been told this happens often.
We already tried to uninstall and reinstall FCP but the problem is still present. What else could be causing this? Logic board?
Is there anyway to prove this to apple so that I could get it replaced if this is the underlying cause?
Jason Gillet
Jason Gillet
Gillet Productions
Editor/Engineer -
[Jason Gillet] “Could this be a Ram issue? They started with 4 gigs and had same issue and then added another 4 thinking there wasn’t enough ram. But issue still remained.
“Yes, that was my first thought actually, although I rethought it as 8 gigs usually works okay. What else is connected to this machine? Can you take out the original RAM and leave in the newer RAM and see is that makes a difference? Are you sure the RAM is seated properly?
Jeremy
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have been having a similar problem. green frames show up often leading to a crash. also crashing when using compressor. Koan card, 1080i prores files, 8gb RAM, 8 quad Mac. replaced kona card. reinstalled FCP and QT. same issues
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