No Hardware Encoding on M1 Pro

[NameTheJames]

Hello all, I am putting my new 14" Macbook Pro (base configuration 8-core M1 Pro) through its paces and noticed that I only have access to Software Encoding in Premiere and Media Encoder when using H.264 (Match source, high bitrate -- and I did try changing it to CBR rather than VBR per some other forum suggestions; that made no difference)

1. Is this an issue with the Apple Silicon chips that is yet to be updated? The GPU is a major draw for this computer to me and I'd love to be able to use it to encode more quickly.

2. Are there other codecs I should try? I tend to use H.264 for maximum cross-compatibility and have not dabbled with ProRes or any of the other multitude of options.

I am getting the "Your system's hardware does not support hardware acceleration for the current settings" message.

Thank you!

[NameTheJames]

For anyone who comes across this later -- it seems this issue was in my Memory settings. "Optimize rendering for:" was set to Performance, rather than Memory -- once I set it to Memory, Hardware Encoding became available.

[Steven J McConnell]

Hmm, that's really odd. I'm experiencing the same issue, but the switch to "memory" didn't fix it.

[NameTheJames]

Yeah, you know, going further with this I’ve found more exceptions. I’m not
sure exactly what is the cause anymore, but hardware encoding is working
for me now on ordinary MP4s.

[Zack P]

As someone who came across this later, this weirdly worked (even though, as you say below, it doesn't seem to be the actual root issue). Thanks!

[R Neil Haugen]

"Hardware" versus "Software" encoding for H.264/265 or "HEVC" exports is limited by your CPU, not your GPU.

It is only about whether your CPU has the extra hardware bits specifically used for 'hardware' long-GOP encoding. It has nothing whatever to do with your GPU or GPU accelerated effects within Premiere.

And the controls for long-GOP "Hardware" versus "Software" encoding are found in the Preferences dialog, and also in the Export dialog if you have chosen a long-GOP preset for H.264/265 HEVC.

Neil

[geekinit · Accepted solution]

For me, it was hitting "Match Source"  which apparently enabled settings from my camera's source that my GPU could not support. 

Thanks,

Eric

[moz30416923]

For me, it was unchecking "Export Audio" that causes Hardware acceleration to grey out.

[moz30416923]

Having the same issue. But I don't see "Optimize rendering for" in Memory settings (ver 22.3.0). The only customizable adjustment is the amount of memory allocated for non-Adobe CS apps. Any ideas?

[phatcorns]

I have also found that CBR encoding does not work for Hardware Encoding for h.264 or h.265. It has to be VBR it seems.