Figured it's worth noting that I did a fresh install of Windows 10 (not an upgrade) - and as you guys suspected, there was no change. Getting about 25% CPU usage across all core.
I'm baffled. What is my bottleneck?
Josepha,
I'm late to the party, but I may have something to contribute to this thread.
I just did some testing on my system trying to study hardware utilization of your 60Hz H.264 output workflow:
- from HD to HD, from HD to 4k, and from 4k to 4k (timeline to output)
- using various options of cores, Hyperthreads, and single/dual CPU up to 24 threads
- exporting from Premiere Pro, Media Encoder, and both at the same time (CC 2017 versions)
- using RAM available for Adobe up to 128GB
- using an 8x Intel s3700 SSD array on a LSI 12Gb SAS controller that can keep up with any possible workflow
- using a single GTX 980 Ti video card
My conclusions are:
1) There does not seem to be any hard coded limit on CPU threads for H.264 output workflow for Premiere Pro (ie 4k to 4k utilizes 100% CPU on 24 threads -- dual Xeon 6-core w/ HT's)
2) However, there is a definite limit as to how may CPU threads will get utilized for a HD to HD H.264 output workflow; I was seeing 90+ % CPU utilization, but only when I had dropped available cores to around 12 threads. With 24 threads available, I was only seeing about 50% CPU utilization (think about that as closer to 100% utilization on 12 cores and the rest are just sitting around).
3) Both Premiere Pro and Media Encoder can run at the same time and utilize more cores than either will by itself (for HD workflows and lots of available CPU cores) When I ran both simultaneously, total CPU utilization was hitting just above 90% (w/ 24 threads available).
All conclusions are based on reverse engineering and speculation. It sure would be helpful to us users if Adobe engineering would help weigh in on threads like this one!
Possible changes to your workflow:
A) Stack up output Render jobs in Media Encoder while you do other things
B) Run Media encoder and Premiere Pro on separate jobs at the same time; yeah, that's an extra step but for all practical purposes it will essentially double the work output that your PC can do for your workflow and using Adobe
And, sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but you would have been much better served for your particular workflow by buying an overclocked i7-6950x system for the use case of HD timeline media to HD H.264 outputs using Premiere Pro. On the other hand, if you ever update to higher-pixel timelines like 4K, 6K, or more, you will likely see full benefit from your monstrous number of cores.
Some interesting results:
- exporting a 4-layer 4K RED timeline to 4K utilized 96% of GPU and 100% of 24 CPU threads, but only 15GB of the 128GB available
- exporting HD to HD barely uses the GPU at all, but disabling the GPU (from within Adobe) dramatically increased render times
Regards,
Jim
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