mxf transcoding and encoding help

[dirkc3732663]

This is my first post ever in a forum asking for help so please bear with me.   I have a brand new PC 64-bit system running windows 10. i7-8700k CPU with 32GB RAM.  Graphics Card GeForce 1070 8GB. Running the new current version of Premiere CC.

I edit long events.  Usually 2-3.5 hours in duration with multiple cameras.  I use Canon XF 105s which use a MXF wrap.  Shooting 1920 x 1080 at 29.97 frame rate.  50MBPS.   I use Media Brower to bring them into the project.  Everything edits fine.  I do use Lumetri Color on all footage plus I have effects about every 10 minutes.  The current project is 2 hours long AND looks great in the timeline.   I have to export a couple ways.  They want a digital file so I export to H.264 in VBR  1 pass.   I put the Target bitrate around 5.   Graphics Card is set to help.   It wanted to take 33 hours which is just stupid.  So I transcoded files first and now footage looks diluted already.  I just used the only setting to transcode that I could find.   This is where I'm lost and feel stupid suddenly.    Do I need to transcode files before editing them?  What is the proper procedure with this format and editng in general.   Never had these issues before.

Thanks,

Dirk

[Ann Bens]

Are you sure it will take 33 hours as Adobe hours are like window hours. It calculates the time from the point it is encoding.

So if its encoding lots of effects then yes it will tell you it will take a long time. Did you actually let it encode?

No need to transcode the files, the camera produces easy to edit files. (I used to have the xf100).

H.264 at a bitrate of 5 sounds very low.

What is the end destination of the file.

[dirkc3732663]

The end destination on this particular file is a online sports network.   They actually request a bitrate of 1.7 which I think is way too low.   I did not let it do the 33 hours as I transcoded and went with 5 hours which I didn't like the end result.    I did a 20 minute clip of it yesterday that took nearly 3 hours!  That clip looked really good but the time just doesn't seem right for this new computer.   My old system seemed faster.  I also have to put this footage to DVD......

[Ann Bens]

What effects have you applied and what kind of hard drives do you operate from?

[dirkc3732663]

Lumetri Color.  Title Graphics with Lower Thirds. All have simple dissolves.   Have a graphic for each match with zooms and VRblurs.   An AE Open.

Adobe is installed on WD Gold 2TB Sata

Project is saved to a Samsung 960 EVO 1 TB SSD (Also exporting to this drive)

Footage is on a External Samsung USB 3.     Should I move files to the SSD?

Thanks.

[Ann Bens]

dirkc3732663  wrote

Footage is on a External Samsung USB 3.     Should I move files to the SSD?

Might not be such a bad idea.

[dirkc3732663]

Well I tried that.  Saving my HQ version now.  Matching source.  Files are now on the SSD.  I did change Premiere to focus on Memory rather than performance to see if that helps.     Results are worse.  It's been encoding for 15 hours.   Says it has 43 hours left!

[Ann Bens]

Well that sound odd.

Make a new project and import old one.

See how that goes.

[Kevin-Monahan]

Still facing this issue, DirkC? Let us know how it's going.

Thanks,
Kevin

[dirkc3732663]

Still facing same issue.  Talking to Puget Systems who has built my last 2 systems.   Going to try and export to something other than the H.264.  That is my favorite codec though.   Will let you know how it goes

[dirkc3732663]

So I exported the file this time as a Lossless DNX HD mxf file.   Only took it 58 minutes.  File is HUGE 182 GB.   I am now exporting that as a High Quality H.264.   Says it will take an hour.  I'll compare that with original footage and let you know how that looks.   Sucks to take 2 steps but 2 hours vs 67 hours...….   Might just be a file it doesn't like for the one conversion.

[dirkc3732663]

Going from Lossloss DNxHD mxf to H.264 worked fine.   I can see no difference with my eyes during the action or still from the original.  I'm going check another file shortly and see if I have the same issues.  I'll try a 2 hour file with similar effects going straight o H.264.

[dirkc3732663 · Accepted solution]

Alright it all boiled down to a jpg file in my timeline that it didn't like.  Very weird.  It is flying now.    Straight to H.264 in under an hour for a 2 hour event.    Thanks for the help.