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Boumr2280

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PPro CS6 Only uses the Mercury Engine Plus new PC specs

Aug 15, 2012 5:39 AM

Tags: #mercury #new #computer #engine #specs

I've looked into preferences> General to see if I can improve my system/application performance.

It is set to the: Mercury engine, software only.

It's kinda greyed out and won't let me choose to us either GPU (CPU?).

Question 2:

Could you please describe a configuration for a new PC that will meet the needs of CS6 Suite without breaking my bank?

I neet it to be a notebook for mobility.

3162 Views 24 Replies Latest reply: Boumr2280, Aug 17, 2012 10:45 AM

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738 posts
Jan 27, 2006

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1. Jon-M-Spear,

Aug 15, 2012 5:44 AM in reply to Boumr2280

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Have a look on the Adobe site - particularly at the graphics card specification - it's the GPU that determines whether CS6 can take advantage of MPE hardware acceleration.

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2. Harm Millaard,

Aug 15, 2012 6:14 AM in reply to Boumr2280

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All you need in a notebook is:

i7 quad core CPU, the faster the better and preferably with HT (hyper-threading).
8+ GB RAM, the more the better.
nVidia CUDA card with at least 1 GB DDR5 VRAM.
TWO internal 7200 RPM SATA disks as minimum.
eSATA and/or USB3 ports.
1920 x 1080 monitor, or at least 900+ vertical resolution.
Wall outlet.

The lucky thing is you don't need a battery, just a wall outlet. (that's why you want a notebook, right?)

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3. Alan Craven,

Aug 15, 2012 7:00 AM in reply to Harm Millaard

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If the laptop has an eSATA port, you can edit with only one internal 7200 rpm drive - provided that you have a FAST drive connected to the eSATA port. ALL media goes on this external drive. I can edit AVCHD from a Canon HF S30 with just the internal drive and a single 500 GB WD drive in an external eSATA box. I must admit, life is better with a 2 drive RAID0 connected via eSATA.

In other respects the laptop conforms to Harm's criteria set out above.

I am not interested in the speed of rendering or export, only that I can do some basic editing, since I use this system only while on holiday. All my real editing is done on a Sandy Bridge-e desktop.

The problem is that laptops with eSATA ports (and FireWire ports) are becoming objects for the Antiques Roadshow!

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4. Boumr2280,

Aug 15, 2012 7:12 AM in reply to Jon-M-Spear

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My current card is definitly NOT up to par. I'm going to have to go with a new machine for sure.
Thanks for the great specs.

I'm just hoping I can get a CUDA card in a laptop (did I say notebook before? is that the same as a laptop?)
If there's no CUDA availability, do you recommend anything else by way of Laptop Graphics?

I'm going to be going with as much external as possible with regard for the eSATA (maybe usb3) option so I can expand/ swap-out storage as needed. Sound ok?

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5. Alan Craven,

Aug 15, 2012 7:45 AM in reply to Boumr2280

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As Harm says, to take full advantage of the MPE Hardware Acceleration your laptop MUST have a Nvidia card with at least 1 GB of memory - this must be graphics card memory, NOT borrowed from the main computer memory.

Almost certainly, your graphics card will not be on the Adobe approved list, so you will have to use the "hack" to get MPE hardware acceleration.

USB3 may be fine for external drive connection. I cannot comment as I have never used it. I know that USB2 is not acceptable.

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6. John T Smith,

Aug 15, 2012 8:08 AM in reply to Boumr2280

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This http://forums.adobe.com/message/4578948 message has brands that are specifically designed for video editing

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7. Boumr2280,

Aug 15, 2012 8:25 AM in reply to John T Smith

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Can you point me to the CUDA hack for when I need to do that?
I'm going to look at off the shelf HP computers today.

How can I tell if it'll be CUDA ready or hackable?

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8. John T Smith,

Aug 15, 2012 9:04 AM in reply to Boumr2280

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>How can I tell

Go back to Harm's list in message #2 (item 3)

>off the shelf HP

Try to NOT get a laptop with dual video

Dual laptop video
-http://helpx.adobe.com/premiere-pro/kb/error---preludevideo-play-modul es.html
-http://forums.adobe.com/thread/1001579
-Use BIOS http://forums.adobe.com/thread/1019004?tstart=0
-HP Fingerprint/Password conflict http://forums.adobe.com/thread/911575

For "some" others, with at least 1Gig of video ram, use the nVidia Hack http://forums.adobe.com/thread/629557 - which is a simple entry in a "supported cards" file

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9. Boumr2280,

Aug 15, 2012 10:48 AM in reply to John T Smith

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Wow! You've given me a ton of useful information!

My old machine has an ATI Radeon card and interface.
When I was having difficulties with .MOV playback in quicktime, I updated the ATI and video card drivers. Maybe it defaulted to a wrong card.
I think may have dual cards since there are standard video ports and an HDMI out.

This machine worked fine three weeks ago. Maybe I just have to reset that thing. Might be worth trying.

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10. Boumr2280,

Aug 15, 2012 1:53 PM in reply to Boumr2280

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This is my preference screen in CS5 and CS6:
Notice Video rendering and playback are greyed out.

Here's my Display info:
It apparently does not have dual cards. Until about a month ago, I did not see the Mercury Playback. I'm pretty sure it just used the video card, however underpowered it is. Do you know if I can make Premiere use the card?

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11. Boumr2280,

Aug 15, 2012 1:54 PM in reply to Boumr2280

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Hey! Where'd my screen shots go??
Let me try that again...

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12. Boumr2280,

Aug 15, 2012 2:00 PM in reply to Boumr2280

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Here are the screen shots from my post above...

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13. Greg Baber,

Aug 15, 2012 3:09 PM in reply to Boumr2280

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The Mercury Playback Engine will not work with an ATI card on a PC. On a PC, we use CUDA acceleration exclusively, and that is a nVidia technology.

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14. Boumr2280,

Aug 15, 2012 4:39 PM in reply to Greg Baber

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It looks like the Mercury Playback Engine is the only thing selected and I can't choose the ATI card.

Sooooo, time for a new computer for me??

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15. Boumr2280,

Aug 17, 2012 4:33 AM in reply to Greg Baber

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Update Update Update!!! But please note my new issue below.

I broke the bank (actiually CompuIUSA has an 18-month same as cash deal)!!
I bought a super gamer laptop!

Here's my new specs:
ASUS G75VW-TS72 Gaming Notebook -
3rd generation Intel Core i7-3610QM 2.3GHz (Quad Core w/ Hyperthreading),
16GB DDR3,
750GB HDD 7200RPM,
(Empty HDD bay for a solid state drive....someday)
Blu-ray Player/DVDRW,
3GB NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670M (CUDA, OpenCL, and DirectCompute 2.1 support)
17.3" Full HD, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit

New issue: The programs including those with 3d are running extremely smoothly. My multicam playback, Warp Stabilization, etc. are running flawlessly!
BUT- the video card is newer than the list of compatible listed in the Adobe file of cards in my "CUDA Supported Cards.txt" file.
I tried to edit it by adding the card as a previous post showed to do right in the .txt file.
It wouldn't let me save the file. "You don't have permission..."
So I logged in as Administrator to try again, same "you do not have permission..."

Inside Premiere it still does not give me the option to use the video card.
"Mercury engine-software only" is selected and is locked/greyed out so I can't send it to those 3-GIGS of video FRAM.

Should I just wait for Adobe to update the .txt file for me through automatic updates or is there something I'm missing?
Thank you guys for all your great help!!

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16. Harm Millaard,

Aug 17, 2012 5:36 AM in reply to Boumr2280

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Just elevate your access rights under properties/security when logged in as administrator.

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17. Boumr2280,

Aug 17, 2012 7:38 AM in reply to Harm Millaard

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I'm not finding much help on elevating my access through Google search. Do you have a link that will explain how I do this?

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18. Boumr2280,

Aug 17, 2012 8:10 AM in reply to Boumr2280

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I found the security tab and it has check marks in all the areas (modify,....) Looking like I have full access and permissions.
Yet when I try to edit that file or even save a copy it tells me "access denied"
Even logged in as admin.

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19. Boumr2280,

Aug 17, 2012 8:33 AM in reply to Boumr2280

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Since the GeForce 670M is new, and CUDA capable, do you think Adobe will eventually include it in their compatibility list and thus be accessible to Premiere Pro?

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20. John T Smith,

Aug 17, 2012 8:52 AM in reply to Boumr2280

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Go to http://search.microsoft.com/search.aspx?mkt=en-US&setlang=en-US and search for information on Win7 file permissions

I built my computer and installed Win7, so I am the only user and I boot up in the only Administrator account... and I STILL have to "allow" myself access to any file on the root of my C drive

You might also see if you can copy the text file to another location... edit... and copy the revised file back to the needed location... that will, of course, mean you have to say "yes" to the replace message, but that MAY let you do what you need

But, again... link above for all things Microsoft

Also, since you have already run into a Win7 permission problem, do this... http://forums.adobe.com/thread/969395

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21. Jim Simon,

Aug 17, 2012 8:56 AM in reply to Boumr2280

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It wouldn't let me save the file. "You don't have permission..."

Copy the file out to another folder, such as My Documents. Open it from there, make the additions, and save it. Then copy that back over into the original location. You want to do an Overwrite. You'll be asked to provide Admin permission, but it'll work.

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22. Harm Millaard,

Aug 17, 2012 8:58 AM in reply to Boumr2280

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Since there is parenting going on in Windows, you may have to start at a higher level in your directory tree. I remember, although it was some time ago, that it took me quite some time to get full administrative rights to all directories, including system and hidden ones. Can't remember whether inheriting was an option.

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23. Alan Craven,

Aug 17, 2012 9:30 AM in reply to Boumr2280

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I think that if you drag the .txt file on to your desktop you can edit it there. Right click on the file on your desktop, open it in Notepad, save it, then drag it back to its original home.

Make sure you know where it belongs before you start - in C:\Program files\Adobe\Adobe Premiere Pro CS6!

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24. Boumr2280,

Aug 17, 2012 10:45 AM in reply to Alan Craven

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HOLY COW!!! You guys are freaking geniuses!!! That last bit totally worked! Now I'm getting Mercury engine WITH GPU accel.

Rendering is SMOKING with the three G's of Video RAM!!!!!

160,000 frames rendered in a few of MINUTES versus HOURS (on my old machine, anyway)!!!!

I am astounded and very grateful to all who helped me! I will pay this forward if I ever get a chance!

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