RENDER PROBLEM - AME and Premiere Pro CC causing random horizontal lines on H.264 Renders

[JesseSchluntz]

I just got the new mac pro with freshly installed, up to date software, so of course something isn't working right...

When exporting batches of H.264s from Premiere Pro CC using AME, I get random horizontal lines on screen for most videos. (see below image for a clear example of one of these random horizontal bugs. the line below the logo is the issue)

Tried restarting the app a few times, which gave me a clean render here and there, but mostly the issue persists and it's taking me forever to produce clean renders. I notice this problem less when exporting straight from the timeline in Premiere Pro, but alas it still happens.

This random issue is catastrophic for my workflow. Help?!

[Text formatting corrected.  Please type your posts directly into the forums, as copy/paste often leaves unwanted code throughout.]

Message was edited by: Jim Simon

[kefirux]

Are you on El Capitan?

[chfilm]

yes, everything updated to the latest version. Really, didnt have any problems whatsoever in a loooong time.

[willaeast02]

Thanks for posting your temps Kefirux - My idle temp for the gpu with the highest temp. is 57℃. When I did a render with a scene guaranteed to give me the horizontal line glitch using MPE GPU Acceleration, the temperature of my gpus went up to about 89℃ then the fans went up to about 1700 to keep it in the mid 80's. Also, the glitches don't seem to come in to half way through the video. This is an assumption but it looks like in my case, I'm more likely to get the glitch when my gpus are hot. Anyways, it seems like it is both a combination of software and hardware (like you said before). I had someone else render my same files on their Mac Pro (this Mac Pro had similar problems like mine but Apple actually swapped out some of it's hardware), and only saw the glitch occur once out of rendered set of four videos (compared to my reneders - the glitches are really bad and through all four videos).

[kefirux]

It seems like Apple somehow eases the glitch with hardware replacement, but doesn't solve the problem completely. Good to know, thank you for the information.

[Guest]

@Kevin-Monahan, Any luck with Apple on how to fix this? Unfortunately for a lot of us, using software renderer does not cut it. I know this problem has been going on for a long while. I read in this thread or another a possible update to openCL 2.0 might help. For the most part hardware replacement has not done it for a lot. It sounds like Apple needs to make an update to drivers wise to make this work. Is apple working on anything to alleviate the problem?

Thanks again for the understanding. I'm sure you can understand the massive amount of frustration.

[Kevin-Monahan]

Hi Mildmanneredman,

Any luck with Apple on how to fix this?

Nothing noteworthy, sorry.

I read in this thread or another a possible update to openCL 2.0 might help.

I don't know anything about that detail.

For the most part hardware replacement has not done it for a lot. It sounds like Apple needs to make an update to drivers wise to make this work.

Actually, hardware replacement is the one thing that has worked for some of our broadcast and enterprise customers. These customers claim that excessive heat is the culprit for GPU anomalies, like those that are reported in these threads. They also claim that if you can get your GPUs swapped out, it's possible to solve the issue. 

They report that the GPUs that are replaced might be reconditioned (not new) ones that exhibit no other errors in testing, but can still be faulty. When having the GPUs replaced, insist on brand new GPUs or you may have the same issue.

After the GPUs are replaced with brand new ones, monitor and control the heating of the interior of your Mac to be much cooler. Some have reported that additional software to run the fans more often keeps their case cooler, which prevents GPUs from failing again. Also, make sure the Mac is in the coolest part of the office, not in the back corner or somewhere heat can build up. Next to the AC unit would be good.

I'm not saying that the absolute cause of this issue is related to overheating, nor is it what we've found in our testing. I'm just reporting on what has worked for some of our customers and what might work for you.

Apple needs to make an update to drivers wise to make this work. Is apple working on anything to alleviate the problem?

No idea on that, sorry.

Thanks again for the understanding. I'm sure you can understand the massive amount of frustration.

Sure. Sorry I can't be more helpful.

Thanks,

Kevin

[Kevin-Monahan]

It seems like Apple somehow eases the glitch with hardware replacement, but doesn't solve the problem completely. Good to know, thank you for the information.

Thanks for all the info. Sorry that you are going through so much to try an fix this issue.

Best,

Kevin

[Kevin-Monahan]

Hi Will A East,

• My idle temp for the gpu with the highest temp. is 57℃.
• When I did a render with a scene guaranteed to give me the horizontal line glitch using MPE GPU Acceleration, the temperature of my gpus went up to about 89℃ then the fans went up to about 1700 to keep it in the mid 80's.
• It looks like in my case, I'm more likely to get the glitch when my gpus are hot.
• Anyways, it seems like it is both a combination of software and hardware (like you said before).
• I had someone else render my same files on their Mac Pro and only saw the glitch occur once out of rendered set of four videos

Thanks for your info and feedback.

Kevin

[Sethco]

Has anyone played around with the custom settings with the Macs Fan Control app?  If so, what are you setting the maximum temp for the GPU in order to eliminate the lines?

[kefirux]

With the old GPU I used to set the range to 65-75℃, now it's 60-70℃

[julien0047]

Mac Pro (fin 2013) - 3 GHz 8-Core Intel Xeon E5 - 64 Go 1866 MHz DDR3 ECC - AMD FirePro D700 6144 Mo

El Capitan Mis à jour

Adobe CC mis à jour

Cela fait maintenant 15 mois que j'ai ce problème. Je ne peu pas exporter mes projets sans le Glitch.

Je suis très très déçu de la part d'Apple et Adobe de ne pas prendre ce problème sérieusement. Ce sont tout de même des ordinateur à plus de 8000€ (8500$), tout devrait fonctionner !!!!

Je vais encore appeler Apple. Perdre mon temps de travail.

[julien0047]

Hello,

I did two tests on Mac Pro :

1) normal test without acceleration of the fan. GPU temperature 85°C. Glitch effect on the video below as if the film at different time and frequent.

2) Fan 1900Tr / min. Glitch effect very small and a single moment on film. Temperature max GPUs. 68°C.

Conclusion :

GPU temperature has a direct effect on the final rendering video export.

This does not solve the problem in its entirety, but nevertheless proves that Apple should respond to this problem.

Personally I'm going to share this failure that has lasted too long and remains in silence from Apple to French specialized media maybe it will react this company.

If Apple does not respond I will ask them the repayment of this MacPro (2013)

It would create a collective GPUs that heat! to be better represented from Apple.

Thank you all for your test ...

[kefirux]

BTW, I found a temporary solution. It's an awful solution, but when you're in hurry, and the deadline was yesterday, it could help.

NeatVideo 4 can vanish those random lines in Dust and Scratches mode.

[kylec23872453]

Hey All,

I realize some of you have said this solution is temporary, but I've downloaded Macs Fan Control, and so far for renders of videos less than 10 minutes in length it's working for me. Haven't tried any 10+ minutes videos but I'll let you know if I come across errors there.

Basically, I use the fan control app to crank the internal fan to 85%-90%, start the render, and then turn the fans back to auto afterwards and it seems to be working for now.

Also, FWIW, since I joined this discussion I've built my own PC and with Windows 10, a single GTX 980ti, and the newest version of CC 2015 my h.264 renders are clean, the render time is almost equivalent to my Mac Pro with two d700s gpu acceleration turned on, and things run really very smoothly.

[willaeast02]

Thanks for adding the bit about your PC build and render kylec2387245. The more I deal with this issue on my end (and read post like yours), the more I figure that the problem is leaning more on Apple. I tried rendering one of my scenes (that gave me trouble with the horizontal lines ) on a friends PC running a Gigabite GTX 770 and it actually rendered without a hitch. This issue with the Mac Pro is definitely a bummer.

[BobMov]

Does anybody have a tool recommendation for scanning the exports for artifacts?

It is ridiculously time-consuming having to watch the entire exports and manually look for those horizontal lines.

Also, any success with forcing the fans to run faster?

Thanks!

[libsimpso]

roberto@lynda‌I haven't yet tried the manual fan controls, but I did move my tower (aka trash can) to a new location on my desk allowing for more airflow and less radiant heat from neighboring RAIDs.  Since I have made this simple effort, I am seeing greatly improved results! I am now able to use GPU-accelerated rendering for various export formats (H264/ProRes/MXF) without my end product being littered with weird glitchy horizontal lines. Of course I haven't tested every possible export scenario yet., but so far the results are promising. I'm not crossing my fingers or holding my breath, but am relieved to experience improved results over the last couple of weeks.

If/when the GPU-accelerated render glitches become a problem again, I would likely try the Fan Control software solution.

As far identifying these glitches in a final export, the only means I'm aware to do so are by watching the exported video through its entirety. This is generally good practice before distribution anyhow, and a regular part of my workflow before final delivery.

[BobanskyBh]

‌Hi guys,

Found the interesting article - looks like Apple finally admits the GPU issue. Took them 3 years to realize the problem!

Apple Launches Repair Program for Late 2013 Mac Pro Video Issues - Mac Rumors

[kefirux]

I wonder, how are they going to fix this problem? The GPU replacement doesn't solve the issue. I believe, they're waiting till they can finally say "Well, we had some issues with Mac Pros, but now they are in the past... Meet the New New Mac Pro: 8 usb ports, NVIDIA GPUs, no overheating problems. Just spend another $10k".

[JesseSchluntz]

THANK YOU BobanskyBh‌ !

I will call Apple to discuss. The thing is, they replaced my cards over a year ago and no fix. So unless they can convince me that they can 100% fix the issue, I won't waste my time.

[Transposition Films]

Interesting note from Apple that is related to this issue.

Apple Launches Repair Program for Late 2013 Mac Pro Video Issues - Mac Rumors

"Apple has determined that graphics cards in some late 2013 Mac Pros, manufactured between February 8, 2015 and April 11, 2015, may cause distorted video, no video, system instability, freezing, restarts, shut downs, or may prevent system start up."

What's interesting is that it's a narrow window of manufacture dates, and the problem seems more severe than what we're experiencing. I wonder if they have yet to acknowledge that the problem is more widespread than they currently believe.

[libsimpso]

JesseSchluntz  I've had the same experience. Almost a year ago my late-2013 MacPro began having debilitating start-up issues in addition to being unable to GPU-render a clean export. The tower was was serviced by an Apple authorized provider and the mass majority of the hardware was replaced from RAM to motherboard, etc.  My memory is a little rusty on exactly which components were replaced and I can't recall if the GPUs were part of that over haul. Regardless, while the start-up issues are no longer a problem, I still experience some GPU-render issues as well as strange errors with video-related tasks from corrupt projects to difficulty refreshing displays in Premiere to exports with ghosted audio or black video in the middle of a project. As of the last couple of weeks I am so far able to use GPU-accelerated renders having addressed the potential overheating issue by relocating my MacPro to allow for better airflow and less radiant heating. But alas the latter video issues still persist though they are difficult to pattern and determine what the trigger might be.

I will touch base with Apple regarding this proposed GPU replacement for the time window they've specified.

Glad to see some sort of movement on the issue...

[kylec23872453]

I actually just dropped off my Mac Pro at an Apple store last night.  Genius bar guy confirmed they've started the program, and that he's already made repairs on a number of machines for this specific issue.  I'm an optimist, and I'm taking the replacement program as a sign that they actually have a working solution.  I'm banking that they wouldn't waste the money or effort covering people out of warranty if they couldn't offer an actual solution, but who knows.

I'll post again a few days after I get my machine back to let you all know if it was worth it.  They're telling me it's a min of 3 days and a max of 7.

[Kevin-Monahan]

I actually just dropped off my Mac Pro at an Apple store last night.  Genius bar guy confirmed they've started the program, and that he's already made repairs on a number of machines for this specific issue. 

I'll post again a few days after I get my machine back to let you all know if it was worth it.  They're telling me it's a min of 3 days and a max of 7.

Thanks for the feedback and report, KyleC. Please let us know if it worked out.

Kevin

[anton.ligaarden]

I actually just talked to Apple here in Norway, and they said the repair program didn't address these problems. However, I'm not sure if they actually understood the problem or not - but they said they would swap the D700s for me. I don't know, I fear this might be a never ending saga, only fixed by a new Mac Pro.