Media offline and decode error MacBook M3 Pro

This topic is created to draw attention of the Developers to the issue of bad performance of Davinci Resolve Studio when working with h.264 422 10 bit files.

I've read numerous topics on BlackMagic forum, it seems that many users of M3 Pro experience the same issues:

Random media offline error in Media storage, Media Browser, Timeline
Files are okay - I tested them when placing on different hard drives including internal. Problem stays the same. After playing the files their thumbnail appears but randomly the media error may be seen in different places

Decode errors during the render
When exporting the projects render may fail in random places with the error "Render Job failed as the current clip could not be processed. The clip %name% could not be decoded correctly. Please check if the clip is still available on the drive."

Specs:
MacBook M3 Pro, 18 Gb, Sonoma 14.5
DaVinci Resolve Studio 19.0B Build 33
Files used: Lumix S1H 4k 4:2:2 10 bit H.264

The issue is present in the official version of the DR Studio 18.6 as well
______________________________________________________________________

I provide the following links to the topics of users who experience similar problems:
1.what is happening to my "offline" media here?
2.Decode using hardware acceleration M3 Pro media offline
3.Who is using a MBP M3 Pro
4.Issue with Beta 19 - Media Not Found
5.Erroneous Media Offline Deliver
6.Please help missing link bug Mac 2023

The user @joema4 (Joe Marler) did a great contribution and looked through my log files from the terminal command on mac "log show". You can view the selected messages and his comments in this post reply
______________________________________________________________________

I also contacted the Black Magic Support via Support request on the official web-site. I provided log files from DR Studio when encountering a problem, System specs by providing System report on Mac, video recording of the screen with problems presented, performed a clean installation of DR Resolve Studio.
The first request I sent was on May 3rd - from that time I get one reply from the Support team in 5 days and the solution has not been found yet.
______________________________________________________________________

I wanted to eliminate possible causes that may be not connected with the Davinci Resolve Studio itself:

Assumption that the problem is caused by external hard drives:
I bought 4Tb SSD hard drive (Samsung T7) which should be fast enough and able to store several of the projects for testing.
I formatted it into native file system (APFS) so I got a totally clean SSD which should perfectly work on my Macbook
Loaded projects for the test on this drive and the issue persists in Davinci Resolve Studio even when working on this drive.

Assumption that the problem is caused by macOS or M3 pro chip:
I decided to test exactly the same projects with identical files in Final Cut Pro X. If I experience the same problems in another video editor then I could say that the issue is way deeper than the stability of DR Studio
When I create a new event in FCPX and import all the files they work great and fast without any issues.
This observation can prove that macOS and M3 pro chip can handle my files without struggle. Moreover, the footage loads very fast in the Finder and I don't experience any difficulties with watching clips in different Players (QuickTime included)
______________________________________________________________________

Dear Black Magic Support Team, please, take a look at this problem. The features you add in newer versions of Davinci Resolve are amazing but when you can't use core features as previewing your clips without "media offline" error and rendering files at maximum speed using decode hardware acceleration without getting an error on some systems is crucial for the most of professional work

Regards,
Vitalii

For better understanding of the problem I created a project for the test:

1. I shot 50 clips h.264 4k 422 10 bit on Panasonic Lumix S1H
2. I created a new project and imported these files. Created a 4k timeline (media error on some clips is already present)
3. I randomly cut the clips on timeline and on Deliver page chose MP4, H,264, UltraHD resolution, 80000 Kb/s, Rec709, Rec709-A
4. After getting the decode error during the render I created a Diagnostics Log

I share all the files connected with this project by the following link:
M3ProBug project

There are the following files:
3 screenshots: from MediaInfo, the view of Media Offline error, the Decode error during render
the Folder "Project": exported Project from the DR Studio (19.0B Build 33)
the Folder "Footage": 50 files shot on Panasonic S1H h.264 422 10 bit 4k
the Folder "Diagnostics Log": zip archive created after the decode error during the render. The time I created the new project is 2024-06-03 23:00:41,095 (I haven't found the way to clear previous logs so I attach this timestamp for the sake of the fast search)

Maybe some other users would like to test these files on their own systems.

Hope my contribution will help to solve the problem on M3 Pro chips

Regards,
Vitalii

Tried your project on my MacBook (see my signature) and then exported it as mp4 h264 - no problems. Using Resolve Studio 19b3 and Sonoma 14.5.

Tried your project on my MacBook (see my signature) and then exported it as mp4 h264 - no problems. Using Resolve Studio 19b3 and Sonoma 14.5.

Steve, Hello, thank you very much for the time you spent on the test.

So M1 Max has no issues with such files (and to be honest your system is extremely good)
My colleagues who use M1 chips don't experience any problems neither

It makes me think that the problem is only present on M3 Pro chips
I've already regretted buying M3 Pro instead of M1. If only I knew DR Resolve has such issues

You're welcome - sorry that you are having this issue but from what I understand, you are not alone. Hopefully BMD will sort this out through the beta cycle of 19. Cheers.

Testing different formats in DR Studio on MacBook M3 Pro from different cameras

Hello to everyone interested in this problem

Today I wanted to make some additional tests - to see how DR Resolve Studio handles compressed files with different settings:

Files from Panasonic Lumix S1H

1. h.264 FullHD 4:2:2 10 bit 100Mbps LongGOP 25fps (High 4:2:2@L4.1)
No problems - every clip loads and play fast without any errors when rendering

It made me think that maybe the issue is connected with the Bit rate (I cannot shoot FHD 4:2:2 10 bit in LonGOP mode higher than 100Mbps, so I decided to check another settings)

2. h.264 4k 4:2:0 8 bit 150Mbps LongGOP 50fps (High@L5.2)
To my surprise they also worked great - without any errors with media offline, no render errors

3. h.265 4k 4:2:0 10 bit 200Mbps LongGOP 50fps (HEVC Main 10@L5.2@High)
No issues neither (wow)

4. h.265 5.9k 4:2:0 10 bit 200Mbps LongGOP 25fps (HEVC Main 10@L6@High)
No issues (wow x2)

4. h.264 4k 4:2:2 10 bit 400Mbps All-I 25fps (High 4:2:2 Intra@L5.1)
No issues

It makes me think that the DR Studio experiences issues only with decoding 4k 4:2:2 10 bit 150Mbps LongGOP on M3 Pro chips. The codec format profile is (High 4:2:2@L5.1)

Files from Sony a7s3

1. h.264 4k 4:2:2 10 bit 280Mbps 120fps (High 4:2:2@L6)
The problem is present. The same media offline and decode errors

2. h.264 4k 4:2:2 10 bit 140Mbps 25fps (High 4:2:2@L5.1)
The problem is present. The same media offline and decode errors

3. h.264 4k 4:2:2 10 bit 200Mbps 50fps (High 4:2:2@L5.2)
The problem is present. The same media offline and decode errors

Files from Canon C70

1. h.264 4k 4:2:2 10 bit 150Mbps 24fps (High 4:2:2@L5.1)
The problem is present. The same media offline and decode errors

Maybe this information will be helpful to the Developers.
Dear BlackMagic Support team, please, get in contact with me - the Support ticket is:
[Support #VOQ-249-97324]

Systems on which the problem is presented

All the tests provided above were carried out on my own system. Today I got in contact with another user of MacBook who agreed to test the files on his system which is slightly different.

The results were the same. The following file formats cause media offline and decoding errors:
Lumix h.264 4k 422 10bit 25fps 150Mbps (High 4:2:2@L5.1)
Sony h.264 4k 422 10bit 25fps 140Mbps (High 4:2:2@L5.1)
Sony h.264 4k 422 10bit 50fps 200Mbps (High 4:2:2@L5.2)
Sony h.264 4k 422 10bit 120fps 280Mbps (High 4:2:2@L6)

Systems on which the files were tested:
MacBook Apple M3 Pro 14" 11CPU (5 performance 6 efficiency), 14GPU, 18Gb, Sonoma 14.5, DR Studio 19b3
MacBook Apple M3 Pro 16" 12CPU (6 performance 6 efficiency), 18GPU, 18Gb, Sonoma 14.5, DR Studio 19b3

Dear BlackMagic Support team, please, get in contact with me - the Support ticket is:
[Support #VOQ-249-97324]

Exploring the Problem on the Davinci Resolve Studio 18.6 (18.6.6 Build 7)

I performed a clean installation of the official 18.6 Davinci Resolve Studio
(Deleted 19b3 verison - Uninstall from the Programs folder and deleted Folder "Davinci Resolve" from the following paths:
- /Users//Library/Preferences/Blackmagic Design/DaVinci Resolve/
- /Users//Library/Application Support/Blackmagic Design/DaVinci Resolve/
- /Library/Application Support/Blackmagic Design/DaVinci Resolve/)

The problem stays the same on a clean 18.6 Davinci Resolve Studio

I attach log files, the project (exported from 18.6) to this message.
Files that were used in this project may be downloaded from here: Link Google Drive

Some observations:
Media offline error was presented from the very beginning

When trying to reproduce the Decode error during render, the first 3 renders were without problems (4k)
When I added more cuts in timeline and shortened some clips and changed the export setting resolution to FullHD the decode error appeared

Dear BlackMagic Support team, please, get in contact with me - the Support ticket is:
[Support #VOQ-249-97324]

Exploring the Problem on the Davinci Resolve Studio 17 (17.4.6 Build 4)

Performed the same clean installation.

At first I was surprised - I didn't see any signs of "Media offline" error while browsing my files in Media Storage (in higher versions of DR Studio they got this error very fast)

For a moment I was happy that the issue is not present in this version but when I started editing timeline for the test I found the same errors (although there were less of them)

But when I wanted to make a render test - the same error appeared.
Clean log files are attached to this message as well. Footage used: Link Google Drive

Regards,
Vitalii

Exploring the Problem on the Davinci Resolve Studio 19b3 (19.0B Build 33)

Since performing clear installations of different versions of DR Studio, got the opportunity to reproduce the problem on the clean DR Studio 19b3

Files used for the test: Link Google Drive

Logs are attached to this message

Regards,
Vitalii

same issue here, but windows, Davinci 19 - entire project "media offline" with the media stored inside of the media pool.

Testing different formats in DR Studio on MacBook M3 Pro from Sony cameras
Was curious to test files from other cameras as well. Samples of Sony a7SIII camera

1. h.264 4k 4:2:2 10 bit 280Mbps 120fps (High 4:2:2@L6)
The problem is present. The same media offline and decode errors

2. h.264 4k 4:2:2 10 bit 140Mbps 25fps (High 4:2:2@L5.1)
The problem is present. The same media offline and decode errors

3. h.264 4k 4:2:2 10 bit 200Mbps 50fps (High 4:2:2@L5.2)
The problem is present. The same media offline and decode errors

This reply will be updated when I test more footage from Sony cameras

My media is h.264 10bit 60 FPS 1080p (I think, I don't know how to check)

You can use a program called 'MediaInfo' to determine the properties of your media.

same issue here, but windows, Davinci 19 - entire project "media offline" with the media stored inside of the media pool.

Kat, hello, I am sorry you experience this issue on Windows. But I think it is not connected with the one users of MacBook with Apple M3 Pro chip experience

In my case clips can play and media error appears randomly on some of them due to decoding issues (and it can disappear when playing them).
I've seen your replies in another threads - hope the Support team will look into your problem and find the solution as well

Regards,
Vitalii

Sorry, but I think there's a serious and more generalized bug in this area.
I also had that dreaded message come up once or twice, even with all footage in BRAW or ProRes. Nothing moved, renamed, or whatever, also no M3 machine. Over here, it were only single clips and they relinked when asked for. And it's random, hard to reproduce.
But we have reports that the same footage is working fine in FCP-X on M3 under Sonoma.

I’m facing the same problem, beginning of the year I worked with the M2 Air, since I bought the M3 Pro the problems began, already sent email 6 or 7 times asking for help to support, in 5 requests they answered me asking for error print, log file, I sent everything I was asked and just stopped responding, it’s hopeless, this error is delaying my work, I have formatted the mac in the hope of the error being fixed, I’m searching in all forums and videos on youtube but I can not find anything

I’m facing the same problem, beginning of the year I worked with the M2 Air, since I bought the M3 Pro the problems began, already sent email 6 or 7 times asking for help to support, in 5 requests they answered me asking for error print, log file, I sent everything I was asked and just stopped responding, it’s hopeless, this error is delaying my work, I have formatted the mac in the hope of the error being fixed, I’m searching in all forums and videos on youtube but I can not find anything

Valmir, hello, I'm very sorry you faced the same problem and I totally understand your feelings.
You did a great job by contacting the official support and providing all the necessary files.
I think the more users of Macbook with Apple M3 Pro chips report this problem the faster the Developers team will realize it is a serious bug which needs prior attention.

The only workaround I can suggest for now is using Proxies.
Black Magic Proxy Generator is pretty fast - it rendered 280 Gb of the 4k material less than in an hour and proxy files even in h.265 4:2:0 10 bit 1080 don't have the media offline issue
The way to deal with the Decode Error is to lower the Render Speed or turn the hardware decoding acceleration off.
Hopefully these options will help you to meet all the work deadlines

Let's not lose hope that the Developers team is already working on this problem and it will be fixed soon.

Regards,
Vitalii

Davinci Resolve Studio beta 4 (19.0B Build 43)

Hello to everyone interested in this topic - the issue with decoding h.264 4k 422 10 bit files on MacBook with Apple M3 Pro chip in the 19b4 version which was released today is still present



Hopefully the issue will be addressed in the future updates

Regards,
Vitalii

Disappointing.

New update same problems
just updated Davinci Resolve 19 to new version praying for the problem to be solved, but remains the same bug, sad

I am having the same issues with XAVC S 4K on my FX30. But only that one. The only workaround I could find that works is shooting everything in DCI 4K, which works flawlessly. Also S cinetone doesn't have those issues either.

Experiencing the same on 18.6.6 with Sony 10bit 422 XAVC. Will try and create proxies for the workaround but please let's get this sorted

I'm on 19.0B Build 43 (Public Beta 4) on OSX and it's still an issue for me. Please fix this.

The only workaround I can suggest for now is using Proxies.
Black Magic Proxy Generator is pretty fast - it rendered 280 Gb of the 4k material less than in an hour and proxy files even in h.265 4:2:0 10 bit 1080 don't have the media offline issue
The way to deal with the Decode Error is to lower the Render Speed or turn the hardware decoding acceleration off.
i

Thanks for the workaround, I was able to get the files to the client after six hours of problem solving

[Dwaine Maggart]

People having media offline issues on M3 Macs should turn off the hardware acceleration option in Resolve Preferences - System - Decode Options.

Specifically, uncheck the "Decode H.264/H.265 using hardware acceleration" option, then saving the preferences and then restarting Resolve.

This seems to fix the issues I've run across.

We are aware of the issue and continue to investigate it.

Thanks for the information.

Davinci Resolve Studio beta 5 (19.0B Build 50)

Hello to everyone interested in this topic - the issue with decoding h.264 4k 422 10 bit files on MacBook with Apple M3 Pro chip in the 19b5 version which was released today is still present



Hopefully the issue will be addressed in the future updates

Regards,
Vitalii

Yep. Same here.

Davinci Resolve Studio beta 5 (19.0B Build 50)

Hopefully the issue will be addressed in the future updates

Regards,
Vitalii

It's a pity. Only because of this error I have to work on either version 18.6.6 or 19beta2. On versions beta 3 and beta 4, the “media offline” error constantly pops up on a large number of clips on the timeline, most often at the beginning of the clip.
I mainly use Sony 4K H.265 4:2:0 100Mbps 50fps material.
If I create proxy files, this error is not visible, but if I switch to the originals, or after rendering, this error pops up. On beta 3 and beta 4, the only thing that helps is disabling GPU hardware rendering

MacBook Pro M1 Max, MacOS Ventura 13.6.7

Davinci Resolve Studio beta 6 (19.0B Build 59)

Hello to everyone interested in this topic - the issue with decoding h.264 4k 422 10 bit files on MacBook with Apple M3 Pro chip in the 19b6 version which was released today is still present

It has been almost two months since the issue was acknowledged by the Official Support and more than half a year since the problem was present.
I still hope that this bug can be fixed

Regards,
Vitalii

Davinci Resolve Studio beta 6 (19.0B Build 59)

Hello to everyone interested in this topic - the issue with decoding h.264 4k 422 10 bit files on MacBook with Apple M3 Pro chip in the 19b6 version which was released today is still present

It has been almost two months since the issue was acknowledged by the Official Support and more than half a year since the problem was present.
I still hope that this bug can be fixed

Regards,
Vitalii

Im so mad about this I cant even contribute anymore. I just pop in for the updates to be disappointed again. They wont fix this.

honestly, I think it's time we all come together and bombard blackmagic's instagram talking about this bug, they seem to be turning a blind eye to this error, it doesn't make sense for me to have the latest macbook pro if I can't use the GPU to work

honestly, I think it's time we all come together and bombard blackmagic's instagram talking about this bug, they seem to be turning a blind eye to this error, it doesn't make sense for me to have the latest macbook pro if I can't use the GPU to work

Yea.. and turning off the hardware acceleration is like downgrading to any random 2015 laptop. Thats an insult, not a fix.

People having media offline issues on M3 Macs should turn off the hardware acceleration option in Resolve Preferences - System - Decode Options.

Specifically, uncheck the "Decode H.264/H.265 using hardware acceleration" option, then saving the preferences and then restarting Resolve.

This seems to fix the issues I've run across.

We are aware of the issue and continue to investigate it.

Dwaine,

I'm running an M1 Ultra and have had this Media Offline for Render Cache problem with the last few versions of the Public Beta. It was 100% repeatable.

After reading your post, I changed my GPU Configuration to fully Auto. This problem immediately disappeared and caching worked again. Then, I set it back to where it was—no problems either. The caching system is now working again. I'm unsure what that means, but I thought I'd share it as a data point.

[Dwaine Maggart]

Thanks for the info.

Just curious: why was the GPU Config not in Auto for both areas? That's the default.

And which area was not in Auto? Processing mode, or selection? Or both?

Was that changed from the default Auto for a reason?

19.0 still bad

19.0 still bad

I have no words. 7 months of waiting and nothing.

Davinci Resolve Studio 19 (19.0 Build 69)

Hello to everyone interested in this topic - the issue with decoding h.264 4k 422 10 bit files on MacBook with Apple M3 Pro chip in the 19 version which was released yesterday is still present

I attach diagnostics log and screen record of the error

Some observations:
The issue with media offline has been presented since the creating of the new project
The decode error during render happened only on the 3rd try. My hypothesis is that due to screen record the speed of render was reduced (around 25 fps for 4k and 40-50 fps for FullHD)

Files that were used: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Mt4oSPmg9X9Cdb_SIQnpjpBHcRrx-vx8?usp=sharing

Screen record: https://drive.google.com/file/d/14fsuGUKgkgEhMj9CXMZmSycL28K07V4N/view?usp=sharing

Diagnostics Log:

DaVinci-Resolve-logs-20240823-130242.zip

DaVinci Resolve 19 (Build 69) Logs

(1020.14 KiB) Downloaded 51 times

Still looking forward to seeing this issue being fixed

Regards,
Vitalii

Thanks Vitalii. Still experiencing the exact same problem on my system running DR studio 19.0.
Andre.

I have exactly the same issue as all of you guys so I contacted BlackMagic and this is their respond. Now we have to pray for fix soon

Hello, I've the same problem on my macbook pro m3 pro.

I have an editor to help me out when i'm overloaded, we work through Blackmagic Cloud.

I was not able to render the jobs (alredy edited by the other person) in my mac. Always had to go into my main desktop machine to render the videos. I Was very unhapy because i bought the mac to have portability and render in the field.

Anyways, i found a quick way to overcome the issue, not the best but it works: set the cache to prores 422 (to not loose quality), cache the files on an external drive, and render from the "cached images" in the export tab, under "Advance Settings".

Hope Blackmagic fixes this issue for macs, i've had many headaches with delivering work to paying clients because of this issue.

I'm having exactly the same problem with my brand new M3 Pro Macbook and Davinci Resolve Studio 19.
No words can express the amount of disappointment I've experienced when I first discovered this issue. I saved money for a long time to bought an M3 Pro and Resolve lisence, and the main feature I wanted from this combo is crippled in such a bad way. I really hope this gets fixed in the nearest future.

Davinci Resolve Studio 19 (19.0.1 Build 6)

Hello to everyone interested in this topic - the issue with decoding h.264 4k 422 10 bit files on MacBook with Apple M3 Pro chip in the 19.01 version which was released today is still present

Logs are attached to this message

DaVinci-Resolve-logs-20240904-183049.zip

Diagnostic Logs

(916.64 KiB) Downloaded 41 times

Regards,
Vitalii

Damn it! Seems to be a hard one to kill.

[Peter Chamberlain]

We have covered a number of different conditions that can cause this and have contacted Apple about some remaining items.

For now, if you see this issue on M3, in Resolve preferences, system, decode options, deselect the hardware decoder to see if in your case that allows you a clean render.

If that doesn't help, please generate logs as per the FAQs and post.

is anyone on an M3 pro managing to work with the files?
The whole "everyone is switching to Davinci Resolve" that happened a few years ago doesn't seem to apply anymore, seems like all these tech companies get worse with time

Having tons of issues on my Macbook Pro M2 16gb and issued a return, was thinking of getting an M3 Pro but now I'm not sure. Although I doubt if you're fine with your laptop will you go on forums about issues unless you happened to stumble upon it

I think the main issue was actually upgrading to Sonoma 14.6.1 (still present on Sequoia). Sonoma 14.3 had no issues for me on Premiere Pro anyway, whereas now on Sonoma 14.6.1/Sequoia 15.0 I'm having playback glitches and color scope issues (with pretty much all other apps closed, plenty of SSD space left). That or my refurbished new laptop is in fact a lemon, hence the return (though I don't know if that'll solve the problem). May not switch over from Premiere Pro after all

Hi everyone, I just tried to render and export a project I made in resolve 18.6 with the new Sequoia 15.0 (also with the option decode H.264/H.265 using hardware acceleration activated and IT WORKS. Im using Sony A7IV video files 10 bits 4:2:2 XAVC S 4K. Please try to confirm It.

Hi everyone, I just tried to render and export a project I made in resolve 18.6 with the new Sequoia 15.0 (also with the option decode H.264/H.265 using hardware acceleration activated and IT WORKS. Im using Sony A7IV video files 10 bits 4:2:2 XAVC S 4K. Please try to confirm It.

Just updated to sequoia and you're right. We can get back to work now

macOS 15.0
Resolve 19.0.1

finally

So, it seems Apple was screwing up and not BM.

Davinci Resolve Studio 19 (19.0.1 Build 6) MacOS Sequoia 15.0

Hello to everyone interested in this topic - the issue with decoding h.264 4k 422 10 bit files on MacBook with Apple M3 Pro chip in the 19.01 version is not present anymore

I was scared of updating the MacOS but it helped.

I am very grateful to all the members of the DaVinci Resolve Studio team.
I hope that there will be no more bugs with the new version of the MacOS

Regards,
Vitalii