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Irregular Sequence size; animation codec; render problem
I have a sequence that is 1892×576. It is a composition which recreates a widescreen projection. It combines 3 720×576 QTs with overlap.
Technically, rebuilding this projection piece is simple. It just combines the 3 QTs on 3 layers with Basic Motion adjustments (size & reposition) and a change to the Composite mode to use the feathering-to-black in the QTs to blend the overlap.
To me, it shouldn’t push the FCP system. (Dual 2.5gHz with 3.5gb RAM with Decklink HD card)
When I set this SEQ to use the animation codec, it requires rendering. Before I render, I can jump along the SEQ and the frame updates quickly (near-instant) That’s fine.
After I render the SEQ, and try to jump around the timeline, I get the Coloured Ball for as much as 10 secs before the frame updates.
I deleted the render file and tried it again, several times, and the fault always occurred.
If I go to Finder and play the render file in QuickTime, it has basically the same problem.As an experiment, I deleted the rendered file, changed the SEQ codec to None and re-rendered. This time, the SEQ is fine.
So, while I ‘fixed’ the problem, I don’t know exactly what the fault was.
Is it a FCP fault?
Ist it a Animation Codec fault?
or what?Appreciate any thoughts, as I’ve worked around it but not solved the problem for the future.
with thanks.
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3 Replies
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I think the Animation codec on a sequence that size is too much for your drives possibly? What’s the data rate of one of these guys? I’ll bet it’s huge.
Jerry
Apple Certified Trainer
Author: “Jerry Hofmann on Final Cut Pro 4” Click here
Dual 2 gig G5, AJA Kona SD, AJA Kona 2, Huge Systems Array UL3D
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Animation codec should not be used for playback, it’s only an intermediary codec. You need to find a codec with a lower data rate that can handle an odd frame size if you want to play it back.
Kevin Monahan
Author – Motion Graphics and Effects in Final Cut Pro
fcpworld.com -
[Jerry Hofmann] “I think the Animation codec on a sequence that size is too much for your drives possibly? What’s the data rate of one of these guys? I’ll bet it’s huge.”
FCP doesn’t show the data rate for a seq – only sources. However, I opened the Animation render file in QuickTime and it says the datarate is 215.23 mbits/sec.
My render file that worked, with ‘None’ as the codec in FCP Sequence settings, showed in QuickTime as a BlackMagic RGB codec and a datarate of 659 mbits/sec.
Much larger datarate than the Animation codec, yet it plays in realtime, whereas the slower rate Animation file struggles …
The drives are a SANman disk array. BlackMagic’s Disk Speed Test rates them as 182MB/sec. Allowing for the bits/bytes conversion, the drives should handle the datarate of both the above files …
So maybe its not a data rate issue:
[Kevin Monahan] “Animation codec should not be used for playback, it’s only an intermediary codec”
This sounds like the issue. Strange though, that it has trouble even updating by clicking down the timeline and not trying play realtime…I’ll assume its an issue with codec, but I’d still love a definitive answer.
Many thanks for your help,
Neil.
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