Why is adobe premiere going so slow?

varxtis · Post by **varxtis** » Sun Aug 29, 2004 5:55 pm

Ok, so here my system specs
Windows XP
Pentium (4) 1.6GHz
1.0 GB of RAM
e-GeForce FX 5200 128MB DDR AGP video card
4 hard drives: 2 internal and 2 external, the external are connected through USB 2.0 hub.
All of my video material is off ONE exteral harddrive (so far totol space of drive=120GB Used=36.4GB

Now, with all that said and done... can anyone tell me why the HECK my adobe premiere is STILL going as slow as a snail on a salt bed? I swear.. I am using the ALT+click and drag feature for timing and previewing, and yet it doesn't flow AT ALL. IT LAGS BIG TIME. (PS... I just reformatted about a week and a half ago. it is just as slow as before I reformatted.)
PlZ help me

Scintilla · Post by **Scintilla** » Sun Aug 29, 2004 6:18 pm

Which version of Premiere are you using, and are you editing with scripts or clips?

Some suggestions:
1. Defrag
2. Check your paging file size, increase it if it's too low
3. Move your files to one of the internal hard drives and work from there instead
4. If you're editing with scripts, try plopping the line <b>SetMemoryMax(32)</b> into them at the top (shouldn't cause memory problems for you since you have a gig... if it does, reduce the number)
5. If you haven't done so already, change the settings of the tracks in the Timeline so that each clip only shows its name, not thumbnail frames

Corran · Post by **Corran** » Sun Aug 29, 2004 11:18 pm

I tried using footage on an external drive before but it is noticably faster when using an internal drive. Also are there any effects on the portion you try to render?

BlindNoir · Post by **BlindNoir** » Sun Aug 29, 2004 11:57 pm

hmmm the size of the clips can also be a factor. I tried to import some over 400mb clips and it lagged until it froze. If the clips you use are big in size get some free ware to chop them up and try again

Zarxrax · Post by **Zarxrax** » Sun Aug 29, 2004 11:58 pm

#1 question, are you using divx footage, or your own dvds?
If its divx, then thats the problem. If its dvd or huffyuv or something, then moving it to an internal drive might help.

BlindNoir · Post by **BlindNoir** » Mon Aug 30, 2004 12:01 am

that also because the files i tried to use were divx then i changed them to wmv...no help there so ignore that then i got them to Mpeg and well it didnt lag as much for a 400mb clip but f@ck it still lagged, i recommend...get Vegas

varxtis · Post by **varxtis** » Mon Aug 30, 2004 2:19 am

wow, thank you very much for the help everyone.
OK, first off... what are scripts vs. clips?

•I am using premiere 6.5
•General prefference of codec is dvix (as far as the codec is concerned, I'm not all that worried that it's a problem... I have use hufyuv and even picvideo for an unrelated video problem, and it never sped it up. And come to find out... even in that instance it was a settings error and not the codec. lol, ironic)
•Each file (video episode) that I import into premiere and dice to hell is average of 140MB (side note: I use my dvds... smartripper... then flask mpeg to get the vob file into a dvix avi)
•the clips that I do apply effects or mattes to, do go a little slower... but even the clean clips go slow.
•Defragging... are you reffering to defragging the drive with all the video material in it? that could be a pretty good idea.
•what is paging file size?
•as far as the internal/external transfer rate problem, I got this kind of problem when it was on my internal HD. Thats why I was thinking maybe it's a settings problem.

Just to clearify, I can import files with ease, and for the most part, rendering isn big of a problem. Its all with the timeline... with previewing. whether it be previewing through the actual timeline, or holding down ALT and the left mouse button and draging the slider. THATS when I get major lag problems.
I REALLY hope the info I gave you guys can help.

Zarxrax · Post by **Zarxrax** » Mon Aug 30, 2004 6:23 am

Yes, editing divx files will cause lots of lag. This is because divx is not a codec designed for editing. Divx only has a keyframe every couple hundred frames apart usually. In order to decode any specific frame, divx will have to decode the previous keyframe, and EVERY OTHER FRAME up until the frame you want to see.
Try huffyuv once more, and see if it does not seek much faster.

Scintilla · Post by **Scintilla** » Mon Aug 30, 2004 11:17 am

mitsukai212 wrote:OK, first off... what are scripts vs. clips?

Here's what I was using the terms to mean:
Scripts = AVISynth script files that serve up .VOBs directly (after they've been indexed by DVD2AVI/DGIndex, that is)
Clips = actual AVI files

mitsukai212 wrote:?General prefference of codec is dvix (as far as the codec is concerned, I'm not all that worried that it's a problem... I have use hufyuv and even picvideo for an unrelated video problem, and it never sped it up. And come to find out... even in that instance it was a settings error and not the codec. lol, ironic)

As others have pointed out, using MPEG-4 codecs for source clips still isn't a good idea.

mitsukai212 wrote:?Defragging... are you reffering to defragging the drive with all the video material in it? that could be a pretty good idea.

Yes.

mitsukai212 wrote:?what is paging file size?

It refers to how much hard drive space you have allocated as virtual memory. In Windows XP, you can find your page file settings by right-clicking My Computer and selecting Properties, then under the Advanced tab, click the Settings button in the Performance section, then go to the Advanced tab, then click the Change button in the Virtual Memory section.

Corran · Post by **Corran** » Mon Aug 30, 2004 8:42 pm

It would be a very good idea to read this if you haven't already done for.