@browj2

Hi Ray

. . . . Exporting the project at 1080p is also slower... Old best time was 5:33 ...New best time is 5:53 . . . .

Using MEP the export times for MP4 1080p is slightly longer at +4 secs (7:04), but not large enough to say it is a definite change, HEVC is 10 secs faster for some reason*.

Why it is slower than yours is because the intro and outro rely heavily on the CPU and are very slow to render taking up ~ 70% of the total render time for me, the higher core count of your CPU would favour this aspect of the render.

* I have noticed on other projects, I have which utilise the iGPU more that I am getting a higher loading in the iGPU when exporting ~ +10% increase for MP4 and ~ +20 - 25% for HEVC - this may be due to the newer Intel drivers.

John EB

@browj2 @johnebaker

Hi John EB.

For some reason again I can't add anyone else into this comment.

Well I'm still at it.

Because I realised that after I had made some changes again to be more faithful to my original Best export time I had not rebooted the PC properly.

So with the same settings as my last attempt but having rebooted the system I have a slightly better result.

4K 50fps BEST setting MP4. = 15:15 without ticking the Calculate video effects on GPU .

I say best result but really this is where my other results gave me some surprises.

Ticking Calculate video effects on GPU I got an export time of 15:17

But. Having MEP in graphics settings with Power Saving used or Let Windows Decide, or not having it entered at all did not produce a markedly different result. All were within +4 additional seconds. Setting to High Performance always ended up in no GPU usage at all.

Ticking or not ticking Calculate video effects on GPU only made a difference of + 2 secs. (worse for ticked) but there was another surprise.

Notice anything?

Now with unticked.

All that changed between those setting differences was how much of each bit of the PC did at what point in the timeline and how much ram was in use at any one time. Drive speeds did not seem to matter but I never used a disc with specs less than a WD Black. A project was always placed on a drive other than C: and the export was always to another drive.

I my case drives D: I: and H: were used in various combinations. ( My SSD freeze problem went when I uninstalled the Intel auto update program)

As with John's observations, I noticed slowdowns on graphics intensive sections but sometimes the slowdowns were not as great, but the video rendered a little slower. Other times and settings, the video clip rendering sped up more but slowed down the Graphics sections more so I can see where one type of project containing more of one type of content over another, there may be a benefit from a settings change.

Ray.

@CubeAce

How many cores does your processor have and does it split into logical processors? (double up)

Also did you get your numbers mixed up?

When set to High performance did you notice there was no activity on the Intel GPU?

HRD if I selected it would be a mistake as it would slow down the export. Streamable doesn't make any difference that I can see.

Yes it is a reversal of ticking "Calculate FX on GPU,"

4 cores. No hyperthreading.

I don't think I got my numbers mixed up. Which ones? (MEP 2021 still slower than MEP 2020.)

When I set to High Performance in Graphics Settings, my iGPU showed near 100% at times. Odd.

HRD was automatically selected when I went to export your benchmark in MEP 2021. (Under advanced settings.)

Agreed that clicking on "Calculate FX on GPU" now helps instead of hurts.

@browj2 @johnebaker @pmikep

Hi Mike.

Yes, sorry, I misread your MEP versions when quoting your render times.

High Performance renders both my GPUs inactive. CPU goes to above 87% close to 97% at times. Still weirdly a lot slower to render the project.

Not solely concentrating on the rendering, I have enjoyed better audio performance when using the scrub wheel. No idea why but it's a bit smoother now. Monitor image seems sharper, much less need for using proxy files or preview rendering than before. Importing clip times has improved slightly.

Ray.

We're clearly getting different results when High Performance is selected. No idea why, since you and I both have UHD 630's and GTX'1050 Super's. Perhaps Magix makes some decision that if you have enough cores, it will go all cores instead of GPU in certain circumstances. 'Cause I don't recall seeing much more than 40% of my CPU used.

In previous editions MEP sniffed ones computer, to optimize performance. Is it still doing that? Can I force a new sniff? (Aside from a total uninstall, clean, reinstall?)

@browj2 @johnebaker @pmikep

No idea Mike.

I'm guessing it 'sniffed' when it updated. (If it sniffed at all).

Are you seeing the same nvidia usage on export? I've never seen video decode on nvidia come up before.

Ray.

Upgraded to 2021 Premium, now none of my videos are displaying. I hear sound but no video.

@Jimmy-Ellis

Hi Jimmy.

Have you checked your program settings? Make sure nothing has got disabled.

Ray.

Yes, checked all settings. Just discovered that .avi videos are working but not .mov or mp4 (Preview or in timeline).

@pmikep

Hi

. . . . Magix makes some decision that if you have enough cores, it will go all cores instead of GPU in certain circumstances . . . .

I have found the the CPU will be used intensively/exclusively for Titles, Transitions, collage effects, exporting other file formats than h.264, AVCHD and HEVC ie they are not hardware accelerated.

Some - 3rd party effects and titling are accelerated others not.

John EB

Here is a screen shot of TaskManager showing my nVidia decode at the same timestamp as Ray's first. I am showing only 1% usage, compared to his 11%. I have a feeling that we're not comparing apples to apples. Something is different in our settings somewhere.

Notice that I am using more video RAM than he is. And he has a big spike in his CPU graph just before his screen shot. Whereas I do not.

NTSC vs. PAL? (I'm encoding to NTSC.)

@pmikep

Hi Mike.

NTSC at 50fps? It should be PAL. Maybe when it downloaded it noticed you were in an NTSC region or MEP changed it?

I am going by the Program Settings.

But perhaps this sets the settings for a new video.

@pmikep

Hi Mike.

I'm pretty sure that the program would download to the regional settings when it's first activated unless changed.

Remember you are asked at download which country / region you are in when downloading most programs.

Sorry it's not something normally I think any of us would think about. I watch so much on the internet I don't think I've ever thought about where the original content was recorded or which profile was used. I certainly have never really thought about any colour changes I may be seeing as a result. I'm not sure what the difference it would make to the export either. You can only try changing it.

Ray.

@CubeAce @pmikep @johnebaker

Hi

Ray you had some SS's of your export in progress in recent days where the encoding window preview showed the current frame with what looked like a PinP and some text I did not recognise from our original Tech talk test project so I am wondering if we are still looking at the same project after you rebuilt it? I have not been able to locate the SS's again since - did you take then down or exchange them?

I've never seen video decode on nvidia come up before.

I only recently noticed that with VPX12 so it appears that Infusion 2 is carrying out decode in conjunction with the Intel during H.264 export ( as well as playback) which I had not determined before. Unfortunately this does not appear to be speeding up export rendering at all!

And he has a big spike in his CPU graph just before his screen shot.

Mike - that will be the blur dissolve being processed on the CPU only and it does the same on my machine.

Also Mike do you have "Overload optimisation for realtime playback" checked in the Program Settings > Playback tab? When i opened Rays project a couple of months back it had set a greyed out tick in there which I normally avoid because it slows down playback on higher end machines.

Still to test MEP2020 but VPX12 has added about 1min on to my best Tech Talk Export to UHD 50P time of 17secs obtained in VPX11.

Peter

When I installed MEP 2021, it had Enabled the "Overload Optimization for Realtime Playback." Is that an MEP default? Or the result of sniffing my system? (In the MEP 2020 days, I recall it asking me if I wanted it to sniff to "enhance performance." Is that correct? Or am I confused?)

I remember you all saying to disable it. So I did. (Even tho this a Playback setting and not an Encode setting, per se.)

I'm not seeing the big spike in the CPU during the dissolve. But I don't have the playback of the encode going during my testing, if that makes a difference.

I'm gonna have to go thru my notes and try some 4K benchmarks that I used when I first installed MEP 2021 to see how MEP 2021 is doing with raw video.

It just occurred to me that, as to the dissolve, I was going by Ray's encoding time. Which is faster than my time. I should have gone by the movie time. So I'll run it again and wait until 22:43 minutes of movie time. Maybe my nVidia will jump to 11% there too.

@Scenestealer

Hi Peter.

I did change a picture I put up within minutes of posting because I realised It was from the wrong project.

I currently have eight different Tech tips master copies covering Audio, Video, Effects, Editing, Photography, Filters, Camera Settings, and News. Each has different opening graphics and temp titles. I have done trials with some of the others and accidentally put up a couple of wrong images from the wrong folder. I noticed it a few minutes after posting. I think I actually changed three images.

I think you saw an image from my 'Filters' opening credits. I think the gap between the postings was less than five minutes. I often change posts after checking them so possibly sometimes it's as long as ten to fifteen minutes before I leave them alone if the post has things I like to check. You can see how often a post is changed. Some of mine have quite a few 😂. If some time has passed or I add something after I feel should be added is when I add [Edit] before the additional information.

I'm not sure MEP 2021 was the first time I've seen my nvidia card doing something on exports. Certainly the reported usage is higher in this version of MEP and the first time I have seen it report any video decoding in Task Manager. As you say it doesn't speed up the export but some settings seem to use less power than others. I've observed but not recorded some settings produce more heat on average than others and used a lot more power for the same length of export on selected components but I've not made accurate comparisons to give any type of informed results.

Yes, the radial blur gives a huge spike in the CPU recoded data but again depending on the combination of card selection, program and Windows settings I can get that pretty much all the time. Before I added the video files again on the repaired project I did one export that had the CPU pretty much maxed out for the duration of the export.That completed in under five minutes but was irrelevant due to the project not containing the video clips and If I remember correctly I was exporting at 1080p in that instance. I try to not report on other experiments unless I see improvement. It would only add to the confusing emerging picture so far on what the current changes to MEP mean.

I think whatever they have done I think they have gone for a more balanced feel to the whole experience of editing on perhaps a wider range of machine capabilities.

As annoying as it is to end up with slightly longer export times it is possibly a better overall editing experience for those with lower specified machines than it was before.

You are correct as well about Overload optimization for realtime playback and that should still come up greyed out.

I haven't yet done any testing of this project in VPX 11.

Ray.

@Jimmy-Ellis @Scenestealer @browj2 @johnebaker @pmikep

On a different subject, I notice I can now import DNG files but they only show as icons in the import section.

Is there any way to get them to show an image in that window? If I have a lot of DNG files in a folder it's impossible to tell which is which unless I click on them to show up in the editing viewer.

DNG files should have an embedded jpg within for generating thumbnail views (The DNG files show a thumbnail image in Windows explorer) Why don't they show in MEP? Would this be considered a bug?

Ray.

Cutting to the chase, anyone found any reason to upgrade to MEP 2021 yet? I've got one or two minor issues with 2019 and would like to upgrade to obviate them, but given the comments here 2021 looks to be more of the same.

@Richard-Curtis

Hi Richard

Definitely a smoother playback on more complex projects. Better, sharper image in the editor window. Sharper look to the program altogether. Quicker importing of files.

Additional abilities or fixes to older problems though, not so sure. Then I haven't had some of the problems others have had down to I possibly don't use those parts of the program.

ray.