I have been very impressed with the Movie Studio 16 Platinum version that I have. My PC is a Dell with 2 cores, 16gb Ram, Intel 4000 integrated graphics. Most of my video files are on a regular external drives (no SSD).
To capture video I use a Nikon camera (mov-files) and a Panasonic(mts files). Movie Studio 16 can take these files and play them back without any problem at best quality -best preview option. After 'treatment' of the files with color grading, contrast etc etc I may have to get down to draft mode - full quality, and it plays them back without any choppiness.
I have found that when playing back it is about 10 % GPU load with a gpu temperature of 70-75 degrees C. Memory system load is about 8gb RAM and processor utilization is 100%. Very good in my opinion.
I have also created an export setup so that I can export to Avid DNxHD format of the same files and play them back in Avid Media Composer first, latest edition. Avid plays them back flawlessly with a gpu load of about 30 %.
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Now, here is my question: What has Vegas done in Version 17 to make it so slow. With my configuration I cant even open the advanced rendering options and use my Avid settings and it crashes all the time. What is the point of making a new product/upgrade when it performs worse than its previous version? I upgraded immediately when version 17 became available and with every new update it has become worse. At the moment it is not on my machine.
As a hobbyist I do not understand why this program now requires resources that is equivalent to a professional setup. If I have to change a serious alternative now would be to change to Apple. I have seen videos of the new Apple Mini with 8 gb ram running full fusion without any problem (with the new MI processesor). On a pc this would require 32 gb ram and a serious processor/gpu card.
If Vegas is heading down this road requiring PCs at usd 2-3000 just to run the program, Apple is now a serious competitor at one third the price.
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At the moment I am happy with version 16, but it is irritating to pay for for something that you cant use. Time will tell what I will do in the future.