Timeline lags when “Selection Follows Playhead” is enabled

[miroslav belančin]

Premiere Pro version: 25.2.3

Input device: Trackpad / TourBox / Magic Mouse

OS: Last update macOS [Mac Pro M1 MAX (32GB RAM, 2 TB SSD)]

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Problem description:

When “Selection Follows Playhead” is enabled, scrubbing or navigating the timeline using a trackpad or jog wheel becomes noticeably laggy and unresponsive.

As soon as the option is disabled, the timeline becomes smooth and responsive again – both forward and backward scrolling works flawlessly.

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Temporary workaround:

• Disable Selection Follows Playhead via Sequence > Selection Follows Playhead

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Request:

Please optimize this feature. In its current form, it severely impacts timeline usability during precise editing work.

[Sami Succar]

Yeah, this has always kind of been “inherent” to that option. My guess is that when Selection Follows Playhead is enabled, Premiere has to constantly load each clip’s info, effects, and other metadata into their panels as the playhead moves.

My workaround is that I’ve assigned a keyboard shortcut to toggle the option, so I can quickly enable or disable it as needed.

[Dani_V.]

Hi @miroslav belančin,

Thank you for reporting a problem. We need a few more details to help with the issue.

Did this start in version 25.2.3 and is this also affecting playback? Is this happening across all your projects or is it more noticeable in a specific one or with specific media files? What kind of media files do you usually work with (format, frame rate, resolution)? Any multicams or proxies being used?

Sorry for the frustration,
Dani

[miroslav belančin]

Hi Dani,

thanks for getting back to me!

I started noticing a significant responsiveness drop in version 25.2.3, specifically when “Selection Follows Playhead” is enabled.

The issue occurs during manual timeline navigation – for example when using Apple Magic Mouse, trackpad, or TourBox dial to scroll or jog through the timeline.

Just to clarify:

This does not affect standard playback (e.g. pressing spacebar).

The issue appears only during manual scrubbing, where the UI becomes sluggish – likely due to real-time clip selection updates triggered with each frame move.

It happens across all project types, regardless of format or resolution. I mostly work with:

• MP4 (H.264) and ProRes 422 HQ

• 25 fps, FullHD and 4K sequences

• I rarely use proxies – but the issue still occurs even when proxies are enabled

Interestingly, the issue worsens when the timeline is more zoomed out (i.e. showing more content at once). The more zoomed out it is, the worse the lag becomes.

Let me know if a screen recording or system info would help!

Thanks again,

Miroslav

[Dani_V.]

Thank you for the information @miroslav belančin. You mentioned a TourBox, do you have a panel installed for it and is it up-to-date? Have you tried working without it or disabling it, just to rule that combination with 'Selection Follows Playhead' out? It sounds like this is more noticeable in longer sequences. Is it happening even with really simple and short ones too? Screen recording could be very helpful if you're able to share!