How FCPX becomes more stable with knowledge

I thought I would write this post to hopefully benefit some of the new fcpx users that experience stability and performance problems with fcpx, and in the hopes that they continue to learn the application until they realize what a really good NLE it actually is.

The assumption being made here is that everyone has sufficient hardware (i.e. drives, ram, gpu, computer, etc.) to properly run the application. Apple's website will provide the minimum specifications, but going well above and beyond those will be a big plus.

After using fcpx now for 4 1/2 half months, here is how I conclude the app became more and more stable......and it had everything to do with my understanding and working knowledge of using it, and very little to do with actual bugs in the program.

FIRST DAY - downloaded FCPX, downloaded Compressor, downloaded Motion. Couldn't wait for them to install. Had some projects lined up to do, and since I have been using FCP for almost 9 years I thought "Who needs to look at the manual, FCP is FCP". I never actually read the manuals until I need to, and this proved to be a bigger mistake than usual. I played around with some test projects, creating all kinds of events and importing like a madman without really knowing if I was doing things right. I managed to CRASH the program several times within the first few hours. Disappointed at best, I gave up for the evening.

SECOND DAY - Not to be bested by an NLE of the likes which I've used many times before (so I thought) I again tried to create some test projects...filled them with 1080p clips, 720, DV, H.264. jpeg...and yes I even imported PDF files...with no success... and I dragged all kinds of music and sound effects from the browser into the timeline. I did not create one single keyword, assign roles, or do any form of clip organization....an eliminated process I soon learned to regret. This second day, the number of crashes were still significant, enough to make me want to return the program.

DAYS THREE THRU SEVEN - Ultimately, I had given in to the app, and I was forced to pull the HELP screen up and take a look at the manual. WOW, I thought....this is really nothing like legacy FCP in a number of ways....the whole media management thing is entirely different and I had been approaching using the program with legacy FCP organization structure in mind.
Needless to say, I took the time to learn that and guess what....FEWER CRASHES...still had them often, but not as often.

WEEK TWO - Found this forum and began lurking amongst all of you, reading the specific ins and outs of FCPX (and Motion too). It helped me realize how many things I was doing were contradictory to the way FCPX worked. With each piece of new information I found parts of FCPX working much smoother. I continued to lurk and devour the wealth of information.

FIRST MONTH - I realized after a few weeks that I really needed to read the entire manual. I was tired of reading parts at a time and then testing. So many things in FCPX are affected by other things you do in a project, it is helpful to have a basic understanding of the entire app, even if the very specific details aren't known. (That's especially where this forum comes in handy).

SECOND MONTH - Still some crashes, but not too often. My knowledge of the media management, projects and events in use and rendering preferences really helped out here. I continued to read through this forum, ask questions, send PM's, and watch almost every tutorial I could find (and there are a lot of them). FCPX is getting more stable!

THIRD MONTH - Now I'm really rollin'. Kicking projects out left and right....and in half the time it took me just two months ago. There was a point where I considered not using fcpx anymore in the first month of use, but by now I have a good feeling it is going to work for me. I am realizing the more I know about FCPX, the better it runs and more stable it becomes....makes sense really.

FOURTH MONTH AND TO DATE - I can honestly say that I have NOT had FCPX crash on me for at least a month and a half. I purchased it at version 10.0.2 and migrated to 10.0.3. I use it every day and with tape importing, P2 HD 720 and 1080 clips, and even two projects with 4K images and what crashed on me in the early several weeks now runs smoothly. And, I chalk it all up to my increased knowledge of the app, what to avoid and how to structure my projects.

So, the bottom line is this:

Take the time initially to read the FCPX manual. Become an active member in this forum. Watch the vast array of tutorials on the internet and even subscribe or pay for the specific ones you want more clarification on. Learn how manage your media...REPEAT...LEARN HOW TO MANAGE YOUR MEDIA....minimize the number of open projects, minimize the number of clips in the event browser, use fast drives, learn what third party programs can make your life with FCPX easier, such as Digital Rebellion's Prefs Manager, Event Manager X, and others.

I believe you will find, as I did, that FCPX is an amazing NLE with a very productive workflow and is only getting better all the time. Boy am I glad I stuck with it and resisted the urge to toss it aside for another NLE. AND....did I mention NO MORE CRASHES

Nice read, but some details what was the reason on the crashes and what you did to prevent the crashes would have been also helpful.

an absolute must is to check out the fcpx video tutorial from ripple training. i did that on the day it was released. it helped a lot to understand fcpx better then going on your own.

One thing I have figured out is that you have to give FCP X a rest after about an hour - even if there are (officially) no background tasks running. When I feel it's getting slow, I take a smoke break. Afterwards, FCP X works like a breeze again.

Scrubelicious wrote: Nice read, but some details what was the reason on the crashes and what you did to prevent the crashes would have been also helpful.

The point of my post was simply that if new users are finding fcpx frustrating and not performing well, or if potential users are considering whether or not it's the NLE for them, that most issues are operator error rather than a malfunctioning app. At least that was the case for me early on.

But since you asked, here are some specific problems and cures that I have found:

1. I used to have 15 or more open projects running with all the associated events active in my events browser. By simply closing them and only working on a couple at any one time, fcpx runs much, much better. I now use Event Manager X to assist with this.

2. I used to always have background rendering turned on. Works OK for a quick effect or transition applied to yur timeline clip, but if you are editing in a frenzy and applying a lot of color grading, text, etc. it seems to cue up the render requirement and eventually starts to tax fcpx performance. I now have background rendering turned off all the time and only render when I need to or simply upon export. Seems like there are more resources left for the computer to use.

3. I avoid hundreds of large stills within a project. I have done a few projects with this quantity and have found by breaking them down into smaller groups or events, fcpx seems to be much happier.

4. I now use a lot of compound clips for opening sequences, long common sequences and various music and title sequences. Also seems to help fcpx performance as opposed to large quantites of individual clips in the timeline.

5. I now edit strictly from my SSD or Sata-2 drives. FW800 is for my completed archive projects. Early on I was editing directly from FW800, and while DV and some 720 HD projects worked OK at best, many 1080 projects with multiple streams couldn't keep up with the drive. This makes a hugh improvement in performance.

6. I always performed routine maintenance on my drives and system but realized how much more important this is for fcpx, so I do it even more often now.

These are just some of the things that made my editing world easier.

And... @cgbier ...you should not need to let fcpx rest each hour. I edit routinely at 5 and 6 hour spans and I never see fcpx come to a halt any more at the interval you're talking about. My suspician is that you may have a hardware specification shortfall.

dgwvideo, don't get me wrong it was not meant to be demanding or rude. I was just thinking any tips could help any user here.

But as you did, thanks!

For #4 when you say that you avoid hundreds of larger stills within a project are you referring to an editing project or a Final Cut Pro project (sequence)?

Reason I ask is that I can't see how grouping stills into multiple events would do anything to help a Final Cut Pro project's performance. (If I'm missing the point here, please let me know. I could stand for some educating.)

Scrubelicious wrote: dgwvideo, don't get me wrong it was not meant to be demanding or rude. I was just thinking any tips could help any user here.

But as you did, thanks!

Hey, no prob, Scrubelicious. I didn't take that the wrong way. More specifics are always helpful.

grailz wrote: For #4 when you say that you avoid hundreds of larger stills within a project are you referring to an editing project or a Final Cut Pro project (sequence)?

Reason I ask is that I can't see how grouping stills into multiple events would do anything to help a Final Cut Pro project's performance. (If I'm missing the point here, please let me know. I could stand for some educating.)

The specific issue I was referring to here was a job I did for a client which contained 550 images, and about half of them were 4K images. Initially I had all of them in one event, open as I edited. As my timeline grew from here to Los Angeles, things started to become erratic. I went back and grouped the pictures into 12 different events and started over in my timeline by editing in one group at a time. When that sequence was done in the timeline, I converted that to a single compound clip. Then I started on the next group, and so on and so on. This seemed to work and fcpx ran pretty smooth as opposed to my original method.