Make DaVinci Resolve 45% Faster on your Mac!

Summary

In this video, the creator shares an effective method for reducing rendering times in DaVinci Resolve on a Mac by enhancing fan control. By using SMC Fan Control and adjusting fan speeds, they managed to lower rendering time by approximately 45%. The video details how to increase maximum fan speeds to prevent overheating, which can cause the system to shut down during long renders. Through step-by-step instructions, viewers learn to manipulate fan settings to achieve better cooling and improved performance, ultimately resulting in faster render times while keeping GPU temperatures in check.

Takeaways

• 😀 The speaker achieved a 45% reduction in rendering time in DaVinci Resolve on their Mac by adjusting fan speeds.
• 🔥 The GPU temperature reached 105 degrees Celsius during rendering, indicating potential overheating issues.
• 🛠️ Max Fan Control is recommended for monitoring fan speeds and temperatures, but it has limitations compared to SMC Fan Control.
• 🔍 Apple's maximum fan speed settings prioritize user comfort over the hardware's true capabilities.
• 💻 SMC Fan Control allows users to manually override the maximum fan speed settings for better cooling performance.
• ⚙️ To modify fan speeds, users can access the command line tool within SMC Fan Control.
• 📈 Increasing the fan speed can significantly decrease rendering times by improving cooling and reducing GPU throttling.
• 📜 Users are encouraged to use a Python script to convert fan speed values to hexadecimal for setting maximum speeds.
• 🔒 Administrative privileges are required to execute certain commands for adjusting fan settings.
• 💡 After rendering, users can easily revert fan settings back to automatic mode to maintain normal operation.

Q & A

What issue did the speaker experience while rendering videos in DaVinci Resolve?

The speaker experienced high GPU temperatures, reaching up to 105 degrees Celsius, which led to overheating and occasional shutdowns during lengthy renders.

How much did the speaker claim to reduce their rendering time?

The speaker claimed to reduce their rendering time by approximately 45%, going from about 23 minutes and 51 seconds to 16 minutes and 25 seconds.

What tools did the speaker use to monitor and control the fan speed?

The speaker used Max Fan Control to monitor temperatures and adjust fan speeds, along with SMC Fan Control to directly control fan settings via command line.

What was the maximum fan speed set on the speaker's iMac before adjustments?

Before adjustments, the maximum fan speed was set at 2700 RPM, which was the standard for the iMac.

What steps did the speaker take to download and access the SMC Fan Control tool?

The speaker downloaded the SMC Fan Control tool from its GitHub repository, extracted the contents, and accessed the command line tool located in the application's package contents.

Why did the speaker choose to use a command line interface for fan control?

The command line interface allows for more precise control over fan settings compared to the graphical user interface, which doesn't provide options beyond what Max Fan Control offers.

How did the speaker convert the fan speed to a hexadecimal value?

The speaker used a simple Python script to convert the desired fan speed into hexadecimal format, which is necessary for the SMC commands.

What command did the speaker use to set the fan to manual mode?

The speaker used the command 'sudo ./smc -k "FS!" -w "1"' to switch the fan control to manual mode.

What was the highest fan speed the speaker successfully set, and what was the result?

The speaker successfully set the fan speed to 4650 RPM, which significantly improved the rendering speed while still allowing the GPU to reach high temperatures.

What should users do after completing their rendering tasks?

After rendering, users are advised to return the fan settings to automatic mode, either through Max Fan Control or by using the command line to avoid unnecessary noise and potential overheating.