Bottom line: Intel Core i7 users might need to disable hyperthreading.

I built a HD video editing machine recently using a Core i7 920 running Windows. I fired it up, installed Windows and Movie Studio Platinum 9 (9.0b), and everything was great. My AVCHD video from my Sony HDSR12 looked great and VMS9 worked like a charm.

Then one day things turned sour. The Sony AVC encoder stopped rendering anything. All rendering would stop after a few seconds and/or crash. It was the only program that crashed. I tried EVERYTHING to fix it. I tried all versions of Windows (XP 32 and 64 bit, Vista 32 and 64 bit, 7 32 and 64 bit). When I tried rendering in a virtual machine with VMware, IT WORKED! No matter the Windows version, in a VM it would render just fine.

I was trying to think what would cause this when I remembered that between the working time and crappy time, I had enabled hyperthreading on the CPU. The fact that VMs worked and bare metal installs did not seemed to fit this since VMs do not know about hyperthreading--they get allocated to real (to them) CPUs, and the hypervisor figures out the rest.

I turned off hyperthreading and rendering worked in all versions of Windows. Hyperthreading on my motherboard was disabled by default in the BIOS, so maybe others do not hit this for that reason, but this causes me DAYS AND DAYS of grief. I hope this saves someone else as well.

Yup; Hyper Threading is good but not that good I would prefer to go for extra 'real' cores, anyhow...

Software has to be written to utilize this feature; its always good to check your software out.
If you are planing on using these types of processors, make sure you have compatibility with your hardware.

Sony Creative Software - Vegas Movie Studio 9 Platinum Pro Pack - Vegas Family Comparison

Sony Creative Software - Vegas Movie Studio 9 Platinum Pro Pack - Features

Sony Creative Software - Vegas Movie Studio 9 Platinum Pro Pack - System Requirements



Found this...
http://www.sonytrade.co.nz/productdo...numpropack.pdf


Multi-threaded audio engine The multi-threaded audio engine is an optimized system that
takes advantage of new multi-core and hyper-threading computer systems to fully utilize
available hardware resources. By leveraging the full capabilities of the hardware and
reducing direct CPU load, users will benefit from a greater number of tracks and audio/video
effects for real-time preview, improved performance at lower latencies, and faster audio
render times.


So it looks like Vegas Movie Studio 9 Platinum Pro Pack, does support Hyper Threading in video/audio.

You did the right thing in disabling this feature since it was causing you problems.

I would also put a support ticket in and see what they say, as they know about this feature to cater for it. But disabling it is a bit strong and you shouldn't really need to do this, as it should use the feature if its there. There might be a few issue that surrounds this.

Be interesting to see what they say...... Personally I don't use Vegas, I feel an urge for a test lol

Also don't just right off this technology, just because it didn't work for you...

Whats your spec?

I am very computer literate and understand CPUs and multi-threaded programming very well. Hyperthreading is an excellent technology which has been around since the early Pentium 4 processors. It gives a significant boost in performance by duplicating some of the processing pipeline such that the most costly operations can be performed in parallel without needing a separate physical CPU. Depending on the workload you can see up to a 30% improvement and only needing slightly more space on the chip.

Usually, the application does not know about hyperthreading and should not know about it. Hyperthreading is enabled and managed at the OS level. Windows handles all the scheduling and decides what gets real CPUs and what gets virtual ones. An application may not be multi-threaded, and may not benefit from the hyperthreading at all, but there is no excuse for it causing failures (Vegas is multi-threaded in the application and the renderer by the way). Every other program on my machine from the simple crap shareware to the fanciest applications can handle it!

But what REALLLLLLY has me pissed at Sony is the fact that when their renderer crashes it gives 0 indication as to the real problem. As a software developer you ALWAYS leave debugging breadcrumbs. Always.

I have tried to register on the website so that I can post in the forums and get email support, but their site will not register my copy. It keeps telling me that my number isn't correct when it is. I waited on the phone for HOURS to try to get this resolved and never got anyone. Sony is not going to get my business next time around. I am losing out on performance just to make video editing work. What a load of crap!

Theres been talk on the forum about vegas 9 been buggy, Tim is probably the best person to speak to, he might even post. Been another techie, I however am just learning and don't use this software.

Whats your spec...

and if you don't mind me having the file pack that you are playing with...I am happy to see if it replicates on my machine. As I have a same spec as you, for the info you have given.

Be interesting as I have been meaning to download the trail.......

Happy to have a play....

You give me too much credit, Zandebar. Grazie is probably the closest we have to a guru here, but his forté is much more as an advanced user than a techie. I'm sure his response, like mine, would be to pursue the contacting Sony route. Also, whilst it's not in our interest to promote other forums, the "Official" Sony Creative Software one is better placed for genuine technical problems (as this one appears to be).

I have to say, on the two occasions I've had to contact Sony, they've been more than helpful and prompt. However my contact was more than a couple of years ago and things change....

As for leaving some sort of trail, my assumption would be that the crash is of a nature that this is impossible - if, for example, Windows blows Vegas off the machine without so much as a by your leave, then nothing within Vegas can respond.

__________________
Tim

LOL Tim.... Hey come on you are good though......No No...No......AArrhhhh now your head won't fit through the door...Hheheheh

I'm using a Core i7 920 with 6 gigs of RAM, 750gig main drive, 160x2 RAID 0, Windows 7 x64, ATI Radeon 4670. I've forgotten my motherboard model...I'd have to go look at the box I edit video from a Sony HDSR12 using Vegas Movie Studio 9 Platinum.

I've updated the motherboard BIOS, Windows, and Vegas. I have ZERO problems with anything else I run on the machine.

My spec is here:

http://www.videoforums.co.uk/perfect...l-pc-spec.html


I'll test it on my system as I have install vegas; as I don't use vegas do you have some files that course the problem that you could FTP to me ? I'll give you the setting and I'll have a play.. Tell me what you do to make this happen..