Video editors – Please read this article before upgrading to the newest macOS. Premiere Pro and Avid Media Composer are not fully compatible with Big Sur. Read below Avid and Adobe statements.
macOS Big Sur
Big Sur is the latest version of the Macintosh desktop operating system, and probably one of the biggest shifts when compared to other previous macOS versions. Big Sur has been engineered, down to its core, to take full advantage of all the power of the M1 chip that has been implemented in the new 13-inch MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac mini. Apple states that the combination of Big Sur and M1 takes the Mac to a whole new level with capabilities, efficiency, and more apps than ever before.
Adaptivity
Rosetta 2 is the new technology in Big Sur that enables existing Intel apps not yet upgraded to Universal to run seamlessly on Macs with Apple silicon. According to Apple, with the power of Metal and M1, developers will see some of their most graphically demanding apps perform even better under Rosetta 2 than they did running natively on previous Macs with integrated graphics. Indeed, many apps now fully support this new operating system. However, we advise not taking any risks regarding the more professional – complex apps, like NLE for instance. A solid case study is the latest version of Logic Pro (10.6). Although Logic is Apple’s product, many users implement 3rd party plugins. In a significant number of cases, those plugins are not working in the Big Sur environment, because their developers have not been releasing a compatible version yet.
Premiere Pro and Big Sur
Adobe has been emphasizing that its NLE is not ready yet for Big Sur. As stated by Adobe: “We are still testing and optimizing our other apps to make them fully compatible with Big Sur. We recommend that you run your Adobe apps only in operating systems and hardware platforms as noted in the system requirements for your apps”. Also, Adobe adds: “If you’re in the middle of a project or other business-critical work, we recommend that you wait until the project is complete. Before you upgrade, make sure you have a reliable backup and can restore to your current version in case you run into issues. If possible, upgrade in a test environment to ensure your third-party plug-ins, workflows, and configuration continue to work as expected”.
We are still testing and optimizing our other apps to make them fully compatible with Big Sur.
Adobe
Avid and Big Sur
As for Avid, the following statement has been released: “For Avid products that run on the Mac, Avid has been working to support macOS Big Sur and the new M1-powered Macs over the past several months in anticipation of these releases…In the meantime, we recommend that you continue to use previously qualified operating systems until further notice”.
Avid has been working to support macOS Big Sur and the new M1-powered Macs over the past several months in anticipation of these releases…In the meantime, we recommend that you continue to use previously qualified operating systems until further notice.
Avid
Anyway, it’s important to note that according to Avid, the Media Composer I in “Not Yet Supported” status. Have a look at the table below that sheds some more light on the progress of supping Big Sur.
Final thoughts
We’d advise you to wait a couple of months till you make the jump to Big Sur. It needs to be noted that Big Sur is a huge update for the macOS which includes many new parameters. It’s even more correct if you use complex software (NLE for instance) that accompanied by many other 3rd party plugins. Do your homework and be sure that all of those plugins are compatible with Big Sur. It’s no trivial since their developers have to do some R&D work to offer full compatibility to the new macOS. The rule of thumb is to wait 3-4 months before upgrading. So editors, don’t upgrade yet!
