Premiere Pro 25.1 - iGPU stopped decoding my footage

[AndrewTheGreat]

Ok, just updated to v 25.1 opened my projects in progress to find out that none of them uses my iGPU to decode.

Went on checking it with different formats that are decoded (h264 8-bit 4:2:0, h265 8-bit 4:2:0, h265 10-bit 4:2:0, h265 10-bit 4:2:2) by the iGPU - all of them show 0% load.

What is going on, guys? Why is it "new version - new bugs" thing every time? My CPU immediately started being loaded more, like by 60% all the time, even though my GPU does the decoding, whereas on the previous versions the average CPU load was 20-30% with the iGPU doing all the decoding job.

Yes, I tried reinstalling both Premiere Pro (as well as resetting its cache, preferences and plugins via the start+shift menu) and all the drivers. 

Steps to reproduce? Open a project or create one, import a knowingly decoded video, put it on your timeline, press Play. Watch the the Windows Task manager - Performance graphs.

i7 14700K, RTX 4080, 64 Gb ram, SSDs, Win 11 24h2

[Fergus H]

@midjournalist_7435 Performance issues can be caused by many different things and quite possibly not related to the thread here. I'd request that you create a new post, following the directions here: https://community.adobe.com/t5/premiere-pro-bugs/how-do-i-write-a-bug-report/idi-p/13361863. 

Regards,

Fergus

[midjournalist_7435]

I did go back to version 24.6.3 and somehow I do not have either lags ar freezes, my timeline is always responsive and the export times are fast. I haven't come across any problem I had with the 25.1, in particular there hasn't been a single time when I would have a "rendering audio files" problem that these forums are full of. Also there's no transform effect bug (with the footage jumping to the left hand corner when you change its position with this effect, the problem people have complained about too). I don't even have any problems with the dynamic link I had in 25.1 when AE comps become unlink on loading the project ar return an error. Everything is perfectly fine. I'll stick to v. 24 for now... Too many problems and too power hungry the latest version is.

[Fergus H]

@midjournalist_7435 What you're experiencing is definitely not normal. I have sent you an email to see if you'd be interesting in getting on a video call to do some troubleshooting. 

Regards,

Fergus

[midjournalist_7435]

Thanks for your suggestion but right now I'm working on a documentary I have to finish soon. I've spent too much time struggling with version 25.1 so I'll stick to 24.6.3 until I finish the film. 

[Fergus H]

Ah, completely understood! Good luck on the documentary and, whenever is convenient, feel free to follow-up to my email and we'll figure out what's going on. 

Regards,

Fergus

[남수김68798891]

I am experiencing the same issue. I am using an AMD 5900X and an Nvidia 3070. While editing in Premiere Pro version 25 or higher, the video RAM fills up, reaching 100% usage, causing the editing process to halt. Once this issue occurs, editing becomes impossible until I restart Premiere Pro.

Thinking it might be a system issue, I replaced my graphics card with an Intel Arc B580 and tested it, but the same issue persisted, making editing impossible. I even reinstalled Windows 11, but the problem remained.

In the end, I downgraded to version 24.6.3, and now everything is very stable, allowing me to edit quickly and smoothly.

[Fergus H]

@남수김68798891 the issue you describe is unlikely to be related to the issue described in this thread. I would encourage you to make a new post about what you are experiencing, following the instructions in this post: https://community.adobe.com/t5/premiere-pro-bugs/how-do-i-write-a-bug-report/idi-p/13361863. 

Regards,

Fergus

[JonesVid]

@Fergus H @R Neil Haugen @jamieclarke @AndrewTheGreat

Hi all, just got back from 17 days away and see my email has been doing overtime on this discussion thread !.

Taking a step back and looking at all this it seems that many users who look at what their editing platforms  are doing (more closely) have agreed 25.1 versus 25.0 and 24.6.3 performance seems to go backwards for them (including myself).

What we lack here is a standardised tool for comparing apples with apples.

The Premiere team say that they do not see a performance degradation versus 25.0 - but exactly HOW is this conclusion being derived?.

It is opposite to what some users are seeing on this thread. The platforms we have are nothing too weird, in fact fairly standard type of build.

What we need is a standardised Adobe Premiere tool that everyone runs.

We have used Puget Benchmark Systems test - but  from what I see this has not really revealed a true comparison on this discussion thread topic.

A number of us used the 9 video matrix  test which revealed many dropped frames on 25.1 versus 25.0. In fact my old i9900K machine out performed my current platform with an much inferior dGPU runnng 25.0 versus 25.1 on my current machine.

This was a sobering revelation.

At the moment we are not comparing Apples with Apples ...or even bananas with bananas....

For me selecting which GPU to use for decoding H264 or H265  is not the answer. Intel iGPU is still very good at that and I want my dGPU dedicated to other tasks for faster encoding.

I know the team went away to look at this, but I feel we are still lacking a standardised way which helps define a finite performance measurement that aligns with what the dev/support teams are doing.

We otherwise risk having an infinite discussion thread on this topic.

Conclusion -

1) we don't have a solution yet to see 25.1 perform as good as 25.0 and 24.6.3 using iGPU/dGPU and

2) an 'agreed standardised way' to measure performance between future Premiere Pro releases in the future

[R Neil Haugen]

This thread is another which to me illustrates a very difficult part of the pro video post app development at this time. There is such a wide array of hardware all down the chain, cameras to computers ... and media ... not even counting what various software apps may be on any particular machine.

And then throw in OS updates ... both PCs and Macs have had OS updates recently that really bit some users ... and it's difficult to see how you can predict everything everywhere.

My main rig is a 3960X with 128GB of RAM, twin Nvme drives one for OS/programs, the other for all cache files ... and a 2080Ti. It is doing fab with 25.x, all versions. I've seen another very close rig to mine on another forum, where the user was having troubles even with some larger/deeper ProRes files.

Those scream through on mine ... as does BRAW and ProRes RAW and even some long-GOP 1080 mp4 files. I'm wondering though, if I would notice a difference if I was working with Fx3/Fx6 XAVC files, which are a mildly nasty form of long-GOP. I haven't had a chance to test any of that stuff.

It's enough to drive ya around the bend, trying to sort why so often nearly identical setups get wildly different behaviors. 

[JonesVid]

Yep - so many parameters to juggle

In fact, I just realised I also omitted to mention that Windows 11 24H2  introduced yet another dimension of confusion which for some users (and gamers on Microsoft Community) messed up their graphics completely.

This did affect H265 decoding for some users as well. Intel have since released more driver updates.

I've not seen any new release notes on Win 11 24H2 addressing graphics fixes where iGPU is used.

I have still stuck with Win 11 23H2 for now

If we stick to H264 media performance comparisons for now - that narrows down the field as that is the media that has been affected by 25.1 re-work. It would seem the 25.1 change affects Intel users most using Processors with an 'on board iGPU'. The performance drop is not counteracted by a more powerful GPU. Even an NVidia 4080 Super doesn't do it for me when exporting a timeline with H264 media and encoding into a different codec.

I still therefore cannot understand the claimed 'performance improvement for H264' on 25.1.

Running say a 3960X and one dedicated GPU I assume you are unlikley to see much difference in H264 decoding running on Premiere 25.0 or 25.1 as there is no integrated GPU in the 3960X.

[R Neil Haugen]

All correct.

I chose the 3960X in consultation with Puget Systems on the basis of overall performance in both Premiere and Resolve, with the understanding that I didn't have to use any big-K long-GOP media, and if I did, would be quite willing to either proxy or transcode.

For those with heavy need of long-GOP capabilities, the options are all ... well, it's possible, of course, if everything goes right, the camera makers don't change their settings, and the OS makers don't mess up with an update.

What a glorious ... possibility ... for messes to happen.

[JonesVid]

This discussion topic has never been concluded with any proof to illustrate how the claim of more efficient deciding of H264 in 25.1 has been made

We still await practical evidence from Adobe to demonstrate 25.1 is actually more efficent at H264 handling versus 25.0 which uses the existing mechanisms to route media via Intel iGPU, but does not kill the NVidia decode function competely either

All conclusions drawn from this whole discussion thread so far and experience with my own PC builds (both systems) shows the complete oppposite for any H264 footage using 25.1.

On the latest Beta 25.3 Build 27, it still performs the same way from initial tests, so if you want to use the iGPU you to need to make a specific action in Prefs/Meda to disable any NVidia GPU decode. This was automatic before in 25.0 and releases before even though NVidia Decode was still enabled.

The burning question is if the actual performance of H264 handling  is any better with NVidia decode disabled using 25.1 versus any other previous release of Premiere Pro.

I just hate claims of improved performance on systems being made when nobody in Adobe has stepped forward to demonstrate this claim.

As an engineering guy for over 40 years this does not sit right, and any similar claim like this on  a software improvement we might have done would have been thrown out  of the water if you could not prove and demonstrate the gains.

Its therefore a bit disappointing the Adobe team have left this subject hanging.

[G.H_]

I found this thread deeply insightful. I currently use an ASUS Z890 ProArt motherboard with an Intel 285K CPU, DDR5 6400MHz 64GB RAM, an NVIDIA 5070 Ti, and an Intel Arc B580 — yet only the 5070 Ti is doing all the work. It’s frustrating to see such a capable system being underutilized.

One thought that keeps coming to mind is that Adobe shouldn’t lock users into rigid functionality. The ability to define processing priority based on each user’s specific setup is essential. That kind of flexibility is what a creative-focused company like Adobe should stand for. If better performance can be achieved through multi-GPU configurations, users will absolutely take advantage of that — even if it means pushing their PCs to the limit.

As AI workloads and dual-GPU systems become more common, I sincerely hope Adobe provides users with the freedom to set priorities and better utilize multi-GPU setups for increased efficiency.

Wishing you a great day!

[mayjain]

Hi @G.H_ ,

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Have you noticed any performance issues in the latest Premiere Pro? If so, please share your Premiere version along with the project and media files so we can verify the behavior on our end.

Just to clarify, as mentioned earlier in this thread:

"In Premiere Pro 25.1, we’ve updated the decoder priority order to Nvidia > Intel specifically for H.264 4:2:0 8-bit files. This doesn’t mean the Intel iGPU won’t be used; rather, it prioritizes Nvidia, with Intel stepping in only when Nvidia reaches its capacity."

To further illustrate this, I previously shared a recording showing how both Intel iGPU and Nvidia GPU are utilized during high-speed playback of multiple files in a sequence. You can check it out here: https://f.io/8EtSq_Nb.

A similar behavior can also be observed in a multi-track UHD project.

That said, we will continue to discuss the concerns raised in this thread and consider possible actions in the future.

Thanks,
Mayjain

[JonesVid]

Hi @mayjain 

So as of today Adobe have still not demonstrated the actual higher efficiency of your newly coded method for H264 handling for 4.2.0. Its a claim but it it a fact?

I made a constructive suggestion that we should all be using a standardised 'Tool/ Project (or whatever method)  to conduct tests.

Asking individual users to go off and conduct random tests is not the correct way to arrive at meaningful results.

I've just looked at your video (shared in your link) again, but this only shows a rough indication of the iGPU kicking in from time to time. I dont get much meaningful information from it.

I'll repeat my questions above -

1) How have you determined in your development tests (by what test method, platform and setup) that by diverting  H264 4-2-0 footage for decode to NVidia dGPU is more efficient than allowing Quicksync to do its job.

2) Can we have a test project/procedure from the Adobe team that all users can use so we all have a common base from which each users tests can be compared.

If we all go off doing our own thing again it will be a mess.

[G.H_]

I have used every version of Premiere Pro up to and including 25.2. Currently, in an environment where only an NVIDIA 50 series graphics card is being used, I haven't noticed a significant difference in preview performance compared to previous setups.

However, I believe it is Adobe's responsibility to provide data demonstrating whether the current environment, where Intel Quick Sync is not being utilized, is a better solution. This is because I believe that utilizing the maximum available system resources would positively impact the user experience.

I look forward to new updates regarding changes to the prioritization of hardware resource utilization in the preview engine. Please help Premiere Pro leverage the maximum available resources to deliver even better performance.

Thank you.

[AndrewTheGreat]

Can anyone explain this? This is one and the same project my friend is working on. Nothing is changed - the project is opened in 25.0 and then in 25.2. See the dropped frames during the playback. This is exactly the thing I was talking about when I added screenshots of Puget bench test a couple of pages ago, comparing the performance of 25.0 and 25.1. Now as we can see the performance drop is even worse. 

As far as I can judge, this new priority system is beneficial only to NVidia 5000 cards, making the older ones perform even worse.

AVC 4k 420 8 bit 

One thing to consider. It doesn't matter what the project consists of, how my pal edited it and with what tools. What does matter is there's a risk - has been since v. 25.0 - to update Premiere Pro now that every new version drops the performance more and more. 

[mayjain]

Hi @AndrewTheGreat ,

Thanks for bringing this up. This issue doesn’t appear to be related to the 25.1 changes we’ve been discussing in this thread.

Based on the screenshots you shared, the drop rate in 25.0 (Dropped/Total: 138/140) is 98.5%, while in 25.2, it’s 84.1%. This indicates that 25.2 is actually performing better than 25.0, not worse.

That said, we’d like to investigate further. Please share the project and media files so we can take a closer look.

Thanks,
Mayjain

[MyerPj]

I'm pretty happy with this, a 1 hour multicam, going backwards at full tilt, 3 cams of all h.264, 1 UHD, PP 25.2, Win11 23H2

[andreik18371608]

Most likely the answer lies in WIn11 23h2... for the most part those who do not experience problems did not update windows to version 24h2

[MyerPj]

BTW: I saw an article today regards the game version nvidia driver, and the article recommended users go back to 566.36. The theory being the updates for the 5000 series have comprimised 4000 and probably 3000 users. It's on my tablet, I try to drag it out later.

I've been running 572.16 for a little while, (Studio of course) with no instability issues.

[JonesVid]

Hi @MyerPj  

Did you get any more info around the articles on NVidia drivers?

I see this whole topic of GPU drivers a bit of an unknown dark art

NVidia constantly release updates (mainly focused on Gamers fixing gaming glitches ) but then Studio drivers appear a bit later which, one would hope, have undergone some more extensive testing and validation focused on interoperability with creative apps.

Exactly what Adobe & NVidia Teams test we don't  know. It would be good to know this however ......

Stability under load and Real time Performance under load (with selected Codecs) are key areas.

But then you have multiple options of  type of GPU, operating system etc.

So one assumes tests are very limited ?.

I think we just have to continue playing the end user lottery game of installing new software and new drivers and hope it all works (properly), and what surprises might hit us again.

Keeping each other updated and sharing experience of App versions/ Driver versions  seems the best way these days.

[MyerPj]

Hey JV: Here's two of the articles I read. 

https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/geforce/forums/game-ready-drivers/13/556589/driver-57216-causing-massiv...

https://wccftech.com/nvidia-gpu-driver-572-xx-is-reportedly-causing-serious-problems-for-rtx-40/

[MyerPj]

BTW: My most recent screenshot above seemed way easier to achive in v25.2 than 25.1, so maybe they tweaked the balance a bit. Works well!

[andreik18371608]

I sincerely do not understand what Adobe has been doing for 4 months, but in 25.2 everything is the same - the absolute majority of frames are processed by the processor. This is some kind of nonsense. You just broke a normally working program. I have fresh drivers. I have not weak computers (12700k / h, 3080 / 3070ti), I have a fresh clean Windows. And still - everything works and spins very poorly. I have the usual for today 4k25/50 8/10 bit frame rate with Lumix, GoPro and DJI. The processor is loaded by 60-100%. Video cards are loaded little and do not show code / decode loads. It was not like this! Bring back how it worked in 24.6. There was a weakly loaded processor, loaded iGPU and GPU. The fans on my laptop were spinning at normal speed and the video was easily spinning on the timeline. How can you not understand that what you did in the latest updates does not work! It works poorly! Let's teach your program to work normally on pre-top PCs with video, because it is (imagine) a VIDEO editor, and then we will add Ai and other things to it. I am tired of playing with these versions of Premiere - this is not what I want from a professional program.