Why is the playback in Final Cut Express 4 delayed by 30 seconds?

I am finding editing with Final Cut Express 4 has gotten slow and frustrating.  This is a new problem.  I have used this software for two years with no problems until now. I'll start out editing a project normally for about an hour.  Then the playback function starts to lag.  After I render a clip and try to play back what I've done by hitting the space bar, I have to look at the spinning color wheel for 30 seconds before my video will play.  I have no other programs open, I have 10 GB of RAM.  I upgraded my OS from Leopard to Snow Leopard a few months ago.  All my Apple Software is updated.  FCX has also been crashing and locking up.  Is there a preferred way to save my project for more efficient editing?  I also tried starting a new project with only a five minute audio mp3 clip and a 10 sec slug for video.  I get the same playback delay with this project.  In this case I only saved the project not "save all".

Hi Robert,
I've never unistalled and reinstalled an OS so it's a little scary for me.
I suggested uninstalling/reinstalling Final Cut Express, not the OS!
When I click on the FCE icon on my task bar to open it, which version is being opened?
Probably the one on your 1TB drive, but to be sure, you can always just open your /Applications folder on the 1TB drive and double-click the FCE application to start FCE.
Could there be a problem with a duplication of applications such as FCE on these two drives?
Highly unlikely.  The system looks for applications in the /Applications folder on your startup drive, which is now your 1TB drive.
My video is 4:3 so I chose 640x480 to prevent stretching of the image.
No, you need to choose 720x480 (DV-NTSC) frame size. This is the standard 4:3 DV frame size.  640x480 is a computer monitor resolution.  720x480 is the actual, standard def, DV (television) frame size.  It is 4:3.   The 720 line height includes something called "overscan" which you never actually see.  The image you see will be 4:3.   FCE is not designed for 640x480 frame size ... do you have to render these clips after you put them in your DV-NTSC sequence?
Then after about an hour of editing, the playback delays started up again.
Well, that's bizarre, I must admit.  Kinda has me stumped, except for the possibility that FCE may need to be uninstalled/reinstalled. 

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