MetaFuze 2.0 and 2.1 Speed Tests

Updated January 31, 2010

This is an independent speed test of Avid MetaFuze 2.0 when used for debayering RED camera R3D files to Avid MXF media. There are small to medium speed improvements with MetaFuze 2.1 over MetaFuze 2.0. Please see the bottom of the article for the version 2.1 benchmark.

This process is one of several available options for preparing RED dailies for use in Avid Media Composer.

Since this process can be time intensive you can use the values from the tables to estimate and plan your processing schedule.

Use these values for rough estimates only because there are many external factors that can decrease or increase computer performance. One of the most commonly overlooked factors is  media storage bandwidth.

To scale the values to your hardware you can replicate any of the speed tests on your machine and calculate a ratio between your test and the benchmarked test.  Note that only the most commonly used permutations of MetaFuze parameters are listed.

If you multiply the running time of your dailies with the “factor” value you will arrive at the amount of time necessary to process the footage:

1 hour of dailies x 2.89 = 2.89 hours of processing

Redcine 20.0.0 times are provided so you can compare your MetaFuze 2.0 performance to a known reference. MetaFuze is faster than Redcine when using settings appropriate for offline editing and it is slower than Redcine when using the highest image quality settings.

For a speed shootout between MetaFuze and Redcine on both HP XW8600 and Nehalem based HP Z800 workstations see  the two tables at the bottom.

The combinations of parameters were chosen to enable maximum Redcine performance. One setting which does not favor Redcine is in different color. Redcine filtering was set to “linear” for speed. 10 bit DPX file type in Redcine and uncompressed 10 bit MXF file type in MetaFuze are close in size and were chosen to minimize disc writing differential.

The “ratio” column is a ratio between MetaFuze and Redcine speeds. For example a value of 1.98 means that MetaFuze is 1.98 times faster than RedCine using the particular parameters.

The comparison between MetaFuze and Redcine is not conclusive due to their asymetrical output capabilities. MetaFuze has an inherent advantage because it generates MXF files, the Media Composer native media. Redcine can only generate file types that have to be imported to Media Composer such as QuickTime.

If you’re looking for MetaFuze basic primer watch the MetaFuze Video Tutorial. MetaFuze can also be used in networked render farms.

System Specifications XW8600:

XP Professional x64, SP2
HP XW8600 Workstation
Dual Intel X5450 3.00 GHz
12 GB RAM
Internal SATA drive

System Specifications Z800:

Vista 64
Dual Intel W5580 @ 3.2 GHz
24GB RAM
Internal SATA drives

MetaFuze 2.1 Update

There are several overall workflow and performance updates available with version 2.1. Starting with 2.1 Avid introduced support for Red Rocket hardware although the test numbers in this article reflect software only processing in MetaFuze.

In order to compare 2.1 versus 2.0 performance we repeated the tests from lines 1, 2, and 4 from the v2.0 table using an identical hardware configuration.

V2.0 Factor V2.1 Factor
7.70 3.54
3.37 3.33
3.07 2.45

MetaFuze 2.0 Speed Test

XW8600
Application Mode Frame Count Source Size Source Destination File Codec Dest. Size Burn-In OLPF Debayer Resolution Audio Time (s) FPS Factor
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 576 4K 16:9 FW800 SATA MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p On Medium Half Good 185 3.11 7.70
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 576 4K 16:9 FW800 SATA MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p Medium Half Good 81 7.11 3.37
MetaFuze 2.0 Console 576 4K 16:9 FW800 SATA MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p Medium Half Good 73 7.89 3.04
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 774 4K 2:1 FW800 SATA MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p Low Half Good 99 7.82 3.07
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SATA MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p Low Half Good 119 8.22 2.92
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p Low Eight Good On 60 16.30 1.47
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p Low Eight Good 55 17.78 1.35
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p Low Half Good 118 8.29 2.89
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p Low Half Good On 124 7.89 3.04
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p On Low Half Good 144 6.79 3.53
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p On Low Half Good On 147 6.65 3.60
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p Low Quarter Good 70 13.97 1.72
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p Medium Half Premium 205 4.77 5.03
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 175 10-bit 1080 23.98p High Full Premium 564 1.73 13.83
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 175 10-bit 1080 23.98p High Half Premium On 208 4.70 5.10
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 175 10-bit 1080 23.98p High Half Premium 203 4.82 4.98
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 175 10-bit 1080 23.98p Low Half Good 118 8.29 2.89
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 175 10-bit 1080 23.98p Medium Full Premium 563 1.74 13.80
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 175 10-bit 1080 23.98p Medium Full Premium On 566 1.73 13.88
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 175 10-bit 1080 23.98p Medium Half Premium 205 4.77 5.03
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Low Half Good 127 7.70 3.11
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Medium Half Good 130 7.52 3.19
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 90 720 23.98p Low Eight Good 48 20.38 1.18
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 90 720 23.98p Low Eight Good On 54 18.11 1.32
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 90 720 23.98p Low Half Good 103 9.50 2.53
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 90 720 23.98p Low Half Good On 102 9.59 2.50
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 90 720 23.98p On Low Half Good On 114 8.58 2.80
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 90 720 23.98p On Low Half Good 109 8.97 2.67
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 90 720 23.98p Low Quarter Good 49 19.96 1.20
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 90 720 23.98p Medium Half Good On 101 9.68 2.48
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF DNxHD 90 720 23.98p Medium Half Good 103 9.50 2.53
Application Mode Frame Count Source Size Source Destination File Codec Dest. Size Burn-In OLPF Debayer Resolution Audio Time (s) FPS Factor
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 576 4K 16:9 FW800 SATA QT DNxHD 36 Min 1080 23.98p On Standard Half Medium 265 2.17 11.03
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 576 4K 16:9 FW800 SATA QT DNxHD 36 Low 1080 23.98p Standard Half Medium 267 2.16 11.12
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Standard Half Medium 323 3.03 7.92
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Draft Quarter Medium 335 2.92 8.21
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Full Full Medium 588 1.66 14.42
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Full Full High 598 1.64 14.66
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* QT DNxHD Max 1080 23.98p Standard Half Medium 434 2.25 10.64
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* QT DNxHD Min 1080 23.98p Standard Half Medium 439 2.23 10.76




































Z800
















Application Mode Frame Count Source Size Source Destination File Codec Dest. Size Burn-In OLPF Debayer Resolution Audio Time (s) FPS Factor
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p High Full Premium 292 2.36 10.15
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p On High Full Premium 291 2.37 10.11
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p Low Half Good 41 16.83 1.42
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Low Quarter Good 66 10.45 2.29
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Low Half Good 73 9.45 2.54
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p Low Eight Good 23 30.00 0.80
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Low Half Good 73 9.45 2.54
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p On Low Half Good 49 14.08 1.70
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF DNxHD 36 1080 23.98p Medium Half Premium 93 7.42 3.23
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Medium Half Premium 94 7.34 3.27
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Medium Half Good 72 9.58 2.50
Application Mode Frame Count Source Size Source Destination File Codec Dest. Size Burn-In OLPF Debayer Resolution Audio Time (s) FPS Factor
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA QT DNxHD Min 1080 23.98p Draft Half Medium 230 3.00 7.99
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA QT DNxHD Min 1080 23.98p Draft Quarter Medium 190 3.63 6.60
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Draft Quarter Medium 131 5.27 4.55
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Draft Half Medium 155 4.45 5.39
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Full Full High 229 3.01 7.96
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA QT DNxHD Min 1080 23.98p Full Full High 250 2.76 8.69
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA DPX DNxHD Min 1080 23.98p Standard Half High 84 8.21 2.92
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA QT DNxHD Min 1080 23.98p Standard Half High 58 11.90 2.02
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Standard Half High 80 8.63 2.78
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA QT DNxHD Min 1080 23.98p shrp100% Standard Half High 58 11.90 2.02
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA QT DNxHD Min 1080 23.98p Standard Half Medium 252 2.74 8.76
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 FW400 SATA QT DNxHD Min 1080 23.98p Standard Half High 66 10.45 2.29
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Standard Half Medium 190 3.63 6.60




















MetaFuze vs. Redcine Comparison:






























XW8600
















Application Mode Frame Count Source Size Source Destination File Codec Dest. Size Burn-In OLPF Debayer Resolution Audio Time (s) FPS Factor Ratio
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Low Quarter Good 88 11.11 2.16 1.34
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Draft Quarter Medium 118 8.29 2.89


















MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Medium Half Good 130 7.52 3.19 2.48
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Standard Half Medium 323 3.03 7.92


















MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Low Half Good 139 7.04 3.41 1.58
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Draft Half Medium 220 4.45 5.39


















MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Medium Half Premium 207 4.72 5.08 0.32
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Standard Half High 67 14.60 1.64


















MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p High Full Premium 555 1.76 13.61 0.77
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 978 4K 2:1 SAS* SAS* DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Full Full High 430 2.27 10.54




































Z800
















Application Mode Frame Count Source Size Source Destination File Codec Dest. Size Burn-In OLPF Debayer Resolution Audio Time (s) FPS Factor Ratio
MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Low Quarter Good 66 10.45 2.29 1.98
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Draft Quarter Medium 131 5.27 4.55


















MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Medium Half Good 72 9.58 2.50 2.64
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Standard Half Medium 190 3.63 6.60


















MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Low Half Good 73 9.45 2.54 2.12
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Draft Half Medium 155 4.45 5.39


















MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Medium Half Premium 94 7.34 3.27 0.85
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Standard Half High 84 8.21 2.92


















MetaFuze 2.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA MXF Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p High Full Premium 292 2.36 10.15 0.78
Redcine 20.0.0 GUI 690 4K 2:1 SATA SATA DPX Uncmp. 10-bit 1080 23.98p Full Full High 229 3.01 7.96

* Avid VideoRaid SR