Resolume 7 and CPU/GPU preference issues?

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Zoltán
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Re: Resolume 7 and CPU/GPU preference issues?

Post by Zoltán »

mwebb9413 wrote: Tue Jul 21, 2020 17:32 I must admit I don't know the most about how computers are set up, but as this is an iMac Pro, all of that hardware is internal.
In your original post you said you're using win 10 and an i5 processor, so which one do you have issues with?
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mwebb9413
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Re: Resolume 7 and CPU/GPU preference issues?

Post by mwebb9413 »

i am so sorry. We are doing two simultaneous projects with Resolume running to LED Processors. And we are having this same issue with both of them so I got mixed up. I have two scenarios in which Decklink FPS is dropping to unusable rates:

Windows 10
8 GB of RAM
3.2 GHz 4-core Intel i5-6500
AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT
8 GB of VRAM
Blackmagic Decklink Duo 2
Four 1080i59.94 outputs

iMac Pro
Mac OS 10.15.6
32 GB of RAM
3.2 GHz 8-core Intel Xeon W 19MB Cache
AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X 16 GB
Sonnet Echo SE III w/ Blackmagic Decklink 8K Pro
Two 2160p59.94 outputs

Zoltán
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Re: Resolume 7 and CPU/GPU preference issues?

Post by Zoltán »

So with the i5, I'd say the limit is the CPU pcie-lanes.
Also with the thunderbolt3 which is up to 4 lanes, the 8k pro is a 8 lanes card.

But again, more experienced hardware builders might be able to help you better.
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mwebb9413
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Re: Resolume 7 and CPU/GPU preference issues?

Post by mwebb9413 »

@Zoltan

I have run a shootout between Resolume and Millumin with Two 2160p59.94 signals out of thunderbolt 3 connected PCIe Chassis with a Decklink 8k Pro connected. I love Resolume, especially because its UI and flexibility is superior in my opinion. So this is not a bash, but an encouragement that this is not another companies issue. It is Resolume.

Resolume setup:
  • Canvas Size: 7680 x 2160
  • Layer 1: 4k video looping position to far left of canvas
  • Layer 2: Video Router reading Layer 1 positioned to far right of canvas
  • Adv Output: Screen 1 slicing left half of canvas at 3840x2160, Screen 2 slicing right half o canvas at 3840x2160
  • Outputs: Left screen outputting BMD 8K Pro (1) at 2160p59.94, Right screen outputting BMD 8K Pro (4) 2160p59.94
Resolume Result: 24-30 fps, stuttering video in UI and on LED wall outputs

Millumin3 setup:
  • Canvas Size: 7680 x 2160
  • Layer 1: 4k video looping position to far left of canvas
  • Layer 2: Copy Layer reading layer one position to far left
  • Horizontal Output: Two screens, both 3840x2160, with no soft edge blending between
  • Outputs: Left screen outputting BMD 8K Pro (1) at 2160p59.94, Right screen outputting BMD 8K Pro (4) 2160p59.94
Millumin3 Result: steady 60 fps, no stutter in video and smooth playback

Again, I love resolume and I don't plan on switching. But I don't want to have to work around this issue when it is clearly listed that Blackmagic Decklink is supported. Can you please explain to me what machine you ran your BMD tests on? What were the specs? Or put it in an article on your support page or something. I want to run Resolume. I will build machines with Resolume specs in mind. But I am in the dark about what those specs are here.

dirtyjohn_lv
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Re: Resolume 7 and CPU/GPU preference issues?

Post by dirtyjohn_lv »

With your shootout test? Are both tests on the same Mac machine or are you testing your Windows against a Mac with similar specs? You would be comparing apples and oranges if so, the underlying architecture and how the operating systems handle things are much different.

When building a machine you need to take into account which add on cards you are putting into it. Most of the time, add on cards usually go something like:
GPU = 16 lanes
Video capture devices = 4 or 8 lanes
Storage (m2) = 4 lanes


It’s safe to say most custom machines in today’s world with output and capture would need at least a 28 lane CPU.
Specs for every intel CPU can be found at
https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en ... Processors

When building I usually start choosing add on cards first
motherboard is next, usually one in the workstation range, something that supports 2 separate raids, one for boot one for storage (the type of raid depends on amount of storage)
CPU and memory are last , pick to match motherboard with number of pci lanes needed. RAM, need to make sure the CRC timing match the motherboard, not just a compatible stick. Usually use 3x as much ram as processing power (cpu is 3.2ghz, video card has 24gb of ram, I would have 48-52gb of system ram)

mwebb9413
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Re: Resolume 7 and CPU/GPU preference issues?

Post by mwebb9413 »

dirtyjohn_lv wrote: Fri Jul 31, 2020 16:20 With your shootout test? Are both tests on the same Mac machine or are you testing your Windows against a Mac with similar specs? You would be comparing apples and oranges if so, the underlying architecture and how the operating systems handle things are much different.
Thanks for taking the time to respond and give me helpful hardware pointers. Those are good! As far as my shootout, it was in fact on the same mac. Tested with as identical of output setups as I could get (in millumin you can output 2 feeds without needing to create an advanced out, and it auto sizes your canvas to match so in Resolume I had to configure an advanced output with a preset larger canvas).

I still would love to use Resolume. The UI is extremely flexible and user friendly and the advanced output feature is cleaner. As far as use is concerned, I like it better. But the way it interacts with the Blackmagic card, something is off. I don't know enough to know why Millumin works and Resolume doesn't, but if it was PCIe related wouldn't I experience it on both softwares?

dirtyjohn_lv
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Re: Resolume 7 and CPU/GPU preference issues?

Post by dirtyjohn_lv »

I’m not on Mac so a lot of this just guessing based on lots of hardware experience.

Have you tried a BMD device that’s built for thunderbolt (ultra studio mini 4k or similar) and not using a 3rd party device to adapt something meant for PCIE to thunderbolt? The extra step in conversion could be causing hiccups if resolume is looking for the card directly on the motherboard. You can see if there’s any errors with the deck link in resolume in your log file, available in preferences. Usually just scroll all way to bottom and read up because all the latest stuff is at end of file

Also could be the fact Millumin is Mac only and doesn’t have to use video libraries that work on windows also (ffmpeg)

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Re: Resolume 7 and CPU/GPU preference issues?

Post by Menno »

I think it's unfair to point towards potential hardware imperfections if a different piece of software manages to work better doing the same thing on the same hardware...
I dont have these capture cards at hand to see what the bottleneck would be in the scenario of 2 x 4k 60p capture outputs, but this does seem like a lot of data that needs to be transmitted each frame. Could you test if increasing the output delay on your capture outputs affects your frame-rate at all? This slider is essentially a limit to how much time we allow for asynchronous transmissions to happen before we stall the renderthread.

mwebb9413
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Re: Resolume 7 and CPU/GPU preference issues?

Post by mwebb9413 »

Menno wrote: Tue Aug 04, 2020 12:42 I think it's unfair to point towards potential hardware imperfections if a different piece of software manages to work better doing the same thing on the same hardware...
I dont have these capture cards at hand to see what the bottleneck would be in the scenario of 2 x 4k 60p capture outputs, but this does seem like a lot of data that needs to be transmitted each frame. Could you test if increasing the output delay on your capture outputs affects your frame-rate at all? This slider is essentially a limit to how much time we allow for asynchronous transmissions to happen before we stall the renderthread.
It is not my intention to be unfair. I did make that shootout as fair as possible. Within my ability as the the two softwares are not completely identical in how they work. And so I hope I do not come off as unfair ever. I love Resolume, and I really do love the capabilities and capacities it provides. Other products are great, but Resolume provides so much more potential than most if not all products.

I tried to delay outputs, but it did not help. And to be clear, as I know this thread is getting long and information is getting lost in it, I am also testing these outputs at 1080p. I have another machine that another client is using with a Duo 2. But here is another test on that same iMac Pro for clarities sake.

Here is a newer breakdown of what is happening (the bolded line is the one I need for this specific job):

Resolume: Canvas 3840x2160: 1 Layer: DXV3 4k Video
  • 1 - 1080p59.94 Decklink output enabled: 60 fps
  • 2 - 1080p59.94 Decklink outputs enabled: 55 fps
  • 3 - 1080p59.94 Decklink outputs enabled: 40 fps
  • 4 - 1080p59.94 Decklink outputs enabled: 30 fps
  • 1 - 2160p59.94 Decklink output enabled: 60 fps
  • 1 - 2160p59.94 and 1 - 1080p59.94 Decklink output enabled: 38 fps
  • 2 - 2160p59.94 Decklink outputs enabled: 30 fps
Don't want to go more than 2 4k outputs ever, not wise in general unless I am building a beastly machine.

Here is my dilemma. I am an integrator who doesn't sell Resolume, but has steered two clients toward the product as a media server solution now, and planned to implement it at every location moving forward. I want to build my entire graphics infrastructure around it. But now I am spending all my days in the office trying to solve this issue. I downloaded the software before hand to test from the software side, but I assumed, and I believe understandably so, that the cards had been tested to their limit. If any "qualifications" needed to be made, I assumed they would be made available on the specs page of the website. I made sure my client's computers meet recommended specs, and that Resolume is blackmagic compatible, and I went for it. Obviously outputting multiple 4k feeds is newer territory for computers, and so I did extra work when designing those systems, but this is a problem even outputting 2 1080p signals, which I regularly need as our LED walls are spanning across many different processors. Many times I need upwards of 4 outputs. Possibly more.

To be fair, I have not had the opportunity to take a computer build and swap out the CPU with a higher PCIe count one, or one with less cores and higher speeds. But the information that would lead me to even think about doing that is not readily available either. It took super deep dives into the forums to find that these could be issues, and how Resolume as a software functions with the CPU. I wish I did, but I don't have the money to swap out computer components until I find the winning configuration in the office.

Obviously some people have success here, but I am having the worst time getting an explanation, or what their gear setup is that works with multi output Blackmagic setups. Again, I love Resolume. And if I could go straight into my processors out of the graphics card I would. But I can't do that. I need to incorporate this software into an SDI infrastructure. No hard feelings or rudeness meant here. But fixing this issue is now my 9 to 5 until I can find a solution for these people who feel that I put them into a bind. And convinced them to waste their money. I respect you and your company highly.

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Re: Resolume 7 and CPU/GPU preference issues?

Post by dirtyjohn_lv »

In your original post you mention an i5-6500, which has an integrated intel 520 gpu. What motherboard are you using? There is a possibility things are defaulting to run on intel 520 if you’re running a motherboard that supports on board video
If you were running an nvidia gpu you would have to tell resolume to run on the nvidia card in the nvidia preferences , not sure how you would do this on an amd card

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