GUIDE How to Enable H.264 and HEVC/H.265 encoding on macOS

[EliteMacx86]

How to Enable H.264 and HEVC/H.265 encoding on macOS

This guide describes How to Enable H.264 and HEVC/H.265 Encoding on macOS using Clover and OpenCore booatloader. By following this guide, you'll be able to enable H.264 and HEVC/H.265 encoding on macOS using Clover or OpenCore bootloader.

Overview

What is Intel QuickSync Video?

---

Intel Quick Sync Video is Intel's brand for its dedicated video encoding and decoding hardware core. The Quick Sync is a dedicated hardware core on the processor die which allows much more power-efficient video processing. Video content is typically compresseed and encoded into a specific format when it is stored on hard drives, DVDs, camcorders, smartphones, or broadcast media. When you want to play that content, upload it online, or copy it to your phone, it must first be decoded and then re-encoded in a new format, which is a resource and time intensive process. The Intel Quick Sync Video uses the dedicated media processing capabilities of Intel's Graphics Technology to decode and encode fast, enabling the processor to complete other tasks and improving system responsiveness. Quick Sync Technology was first introduced with the Intel's Sandy Bridge CPU lineup.

The name "Quick Sync" refers to the use case of quickly transcoding (converting) a video from a particular format to another appropriate format. For example, a DVD or Blu-ray Disc to a format appropriate for Smartphones. This becomes crucial in the professional video industry, in which the source material may have been shot in any number of video formats, all of which must be brought into a common format (usually H.264) for inter-cutting.

Should I use IGPU or dGPU for encoding?

---

With the recent new generation of the Intel CPU's with IGPU and QuickSync Technology in the market, the H.264/HEVC encoders are reputed to be better as compared to the dGPUs and it's not always best to assume that the dGPU is better. If your CPU has IGPU and supports QuickSync Technology, it's better to let the IGPU handle the encoding instead of the dGPU where possible.

Can I use Unsupported IGPU for Encoding?

---

Well, the straight answer is no. You cannot use an IGPU which is unsupported on macOS/OSX. The example includes Intel's Rocket Lake and newer CPU lineup. This is because the kexts does not contain the Device ID of these newer IGPUs due to which the kext will never attach to these IGPUs. Hence, lacking all the features including encoding, even if the display does not work. See IGPU Compatibility for more information.


Requirements

---

Following are the requirements to enable H.264 and/or HEVC/H.265 encoding on macOS.

CPU	macOS/OS X Compatible CPU. Refer to CPU Compatibility for more information. H.264 Intel Sandy Bridge and newer HEVC/H.265 Intel Skylake and newer
GPU	macOS/OS X Compatible CPU. Refer to GPU Compatibility for more information. H.264 Required for Laptops HEVC/H.265 NVIDIA GTX 950 or newer AMD R9 Fury/Fury X/nano or newer
macOS version	H.264 OS X 10.3.9 and newer HEVC/H.265 macOS High Sierra and newer
SMBIOS	iMac (Late 2009 or later) MacBook (Late 2009 or later) MacBook Air (Late 2010 or later) MacBook Pro (Mid 2010 or later) Mac Mini (Mid 2010 or later) Mac Pro (Mid 2010 or later) iMacPro (2017)

H.264 and HEVC/H.265 CPU Compatibility

CPU Code Name	H.264	HEVC/H.265
Cantiga	No	No
Clarkdale	Decode Only	No
Arrandale	Decode Only	No
Sandy Bridge	Yes	No
Ivy Bridge	Yes	No
Broadwell	Yes	No
Braswell	Yes	Decode Only
Cherry Trail	Yes	Yes
Skylake	Yes	Yes
Apollo Lake	Yes	Yes
Kaby Lake	Yes	Yes
Coffee Lake	Yes	Yes
Comet Lake	Yes	Yes
Whiskey Lake	Yes	Yes
Gemini Lake	Yes	Yes
Ice Lake/Jasper Lake/Lakefield	Yes	Yes
Tiger Lake	Yes	Yes
Rocket Lake	Yes	Yes
Alder Lake	Yes	Yes
Raptor Lake	Yes	Yes

Option #1: With IGPU Enabled
If you're having IGPU enabled, you need to configure Device Properties. To configure the IGPU Device Properties, follow the guide linked below.

GUIDE - How to Enable Intel HD and UHD Graphics on macOS - Intel Framebuffer Patching Guide

How to Enable Intel HD and UHD Graphics on macOS - Intel Framebuffer Patching Guide An EliteMacx86 Exclusive Guide - This guide covers fixing Intel HD and UHD Graphics on macOS. By following this guide, you'll be able to enable Intel Graphics with acceleration on macOS with full QE/CI on your...

elitemacx86.com

Option #2: With IGPU Disabled
With IGPU disabled, you can use NVIDIA or AMD GPU. If you're using NVIDIA or AMD, you need to use one of the following SMBIOS.

STEP 1: BIOS Settings

---

The BIOS settings have been provided in a separate thread. For more information on BIOS settings, refer to the thread linked below.

STEP 2: Fix Graphics
Whether in terms of IGPU or NVIDIA/AMD, the Graphics must be enabled and should work with full QE/CI. If your GPU isn't working with full QE/CI, depending on your GPU, refer to the guide linked below.

GUIDE - How to Enable NVIDIA Graphics on macOS [Clover/OpenCore]

How to Enable NVIDIA Graphics on macOS [Clover/OpenCore] An EliteMacx86 Exclusive Guide - This guide covers the implementation of NVIDIA Graphics on macOS for Clover and OpenCore. By following this guide, you'll be able to enable NVIDIA Graphics on macOS using Clover or OpenCore Bootloader...

elitemacx86.com

GUIDE - How to Enable AMD Graphics in macOS [Clover/OpenCore]

How to Enable AMD Graphics in macOS An EliteMacx86 Exclusive Guide - This guide covers the implementation of supported AMD GPU on macOS. By following this guide, you'll be able to enable AMD Graphics on macOS using Clover or OpenCore Bootloader. Overview Apple has been using a wide range of...

elitemacx86.com

QUICK NOTE: If you're using NVIDIA/AMD GPU for H.265, disable IGPU in BIOS. No IGPU property should exist in the Device Properties section of your config.plist when using NVIDIA/AMD GPU for H.265.

STEP 3: Configure SMBIOS
The next step is to configure an appropriate SMBIOS. Select the appropriate SMBIOS from the list which supports H.264 and/or HEVC/H.265, as required. For more more information, refer to the guide linked below.

GUIDE - How to Setup Correct SMBIOS [Clover/OpenCore]

How to Setup Correct SMBIOS [Clover/OpenCore] This guide covers setting up a Correct SMBIOS for Intel and AMD CPUs on macOS using Clover and OpenCore. By following this guide, you'll be able to set up the correct SMBIOS on your system using Clover or OpenCore Bootloader. I. What is SMBIOS...

elitemacx86.com

STEP 4: Restart your System
After performing all the above steps, restart your system for the applied changes to take effect and you should be able to get H.264 and/or HEVC/H.265.

Verifying H.264 and HEVC/H.265 Encoding

---

The next step is to verify whether you have a working H.264 and HEVC/H.265 Encoding or not. Follow the steps below to verify H.264 and HEVC/H.265 Encoding.

1. Download VideoProc Converter
2. Move the App to the Applications folder
3. Open VideoProc Converter
4. Click on Settings
5. Click on Options as shown below


6. Click on the refresh button to check the encoding. Once finished, VideoProc Converter will display the results for both. If it is enabled, you'll see the Enable checkbox checked.

Intel Comet Lake 10100F+AMD RX 580

 

[oldman20]

my specs is it proprely?

 

[EliteMacx86]

my specs is it proprely?
View attachment 4862

Yes, as Broadwell only supports H.264.

 

[rmkk]

Thanks, I followed your guide, VideoProc confirms that both H.264 and HEVC are enabled. The problem is that BlackMagic Davinci video editor does NOT use my dGPU (RX6600XT) for export using HEVC (H.265) codec. The performance is very poor and in fact more slower than when I was using iGPU (UHD630). On the other hand export using H.264 code works fine and quickly. Still, I would like to export to H.265 but the question is where the problem is. Thanks for any help.

 

[EliteMacx86]

Thanks, I followed your guide, VideoProc confirms that both H.264 and HEVC are enabled. The problem is that BlackMagic Davinci video editor does NOT use my dGPU (RX6600XT) for export using HEVC (H.265) codec. The performance is very poor and in fact more slower than when I was using iGPU (UHD630). On the other hand export using H.264 code works fine and quickly. Still, I would like to export to H.265 but the question is where the problem is. Thanks for any help.

Have you configured DaVinci to export H.265 with appropriate settings?

 

[rmkk]

Have you configured DaVinci to export H.265 with appropriate settings?

No, no, I didn't set anything special in DaVinci. I just tried the difference between manual and automatic selection of Graphic card, but the result seems to be the same = no success = very poor encoding performance to H.265 ... see image below


Unfortunately there is no possibility to encode via UHD630 (even that iGPU is listed), because it is not selectable and is grayed-out as you can see. This would be a sufficient workaround for me, because encoding via iGPU was quite fast.

BTW it is a free version of Davinci.

Thanks for any help.

 

[EliteMacx86]

No, no, I didn't set anything special in DaVinci. I just tried the difference between manual and automatic selection of Graphic card, but the result seems to be the same = no success = very poor encoding performance to H.265 ... see image below
View attachment 5034

Unfortunately there is no possibility to encode via UHD630 (even that iGPU is listed), because it is not selectable and is grayed-out as you can see. This would be a sufficient workaround for me, because encoding via iGPU was quite fast.

BTW it is a free version of Davinci.

Tanks for any help.

From Render Panel>Export Video

Select H.265 and the appropriate encoding Profile.

 

[rmkk]

All setting are preselected automatically and are the same as in case of iGPU encoding, see picture

 

[EliteMacx86]

All setting are preselected automatically and are the same as in case of iGPU encoding, see picture
View attachment 5035

So, when you start exporting, what's the issue?

 

[rmkk]

So, when you start exporting, what's the issue?

Encoding starts successfully, but it is very very very slow. I can estimate that encoding via iGPU(UHD630) was 50 times faster than using dGPU(RX6600XT). My expectation when I bought the card was that dGPU will be faster then iGPU ...