Final Cut Pro 7.0.3 XDCAM Issues

Question

Having problems with Final Cut Pro 7.0.3 on a feature with XDCAM EX 1080p 24p
Using Sony cinemon plug-in to work natively with .mp4 files and Matrox mini MX02 on 2.2ghz quad i7 17inch macbook pro with 8gb ram and 2nd external monitor via mini-display port.
Media is located on external drive connected by firewire 800.
Timeline is playing at high quality with various repositions, 3-way color correction and 2.35 .png matte on top layer.
Crash analyser presents multiple reasons for crashes. 5 today ranged from:
QuickTime
This crash was caused by QuickTime.
Possible causes include corrupt media, corrupt render files, an unsupported or unstable codec, an image resolution that is too large (this is particularly a problem with Motion as image sizes are limited by the maximum texture size of your graphics card), or a version of QuickTime that is incompatible with your version of Final Cut Studio.
Corrupt / Unsupported Media
This crash was caused by corrupt media or media that is unsupported by Final Cut Pro. A common cause of this crash is using media on your timeline that is unsuitable for editing such as AVI, WMV or MPEG-derived codecs (XDCAM, HDV, MPEG-2, H.264).
MPEG Media
This crash appears to have been caused by MPEG media (or MPEG-derived media such as XDCAM, HDV or H.264) in the timeline. MPEG-based media is not recommended for editing in Final Cut Pro.
Effects Rendering
This crash appears to have occurred while trying to render effects on a clip. Possible causes for this include corrupt or unsupported media, a bad filter, a graphics card issue or too many filters applied to a single clip.
All of these crashes also listed -
This crash log suggests that Final Cut Pro was overloaded at the time of the crash. This can occur if your project is overly complex, has multiple Motion project layers or is using MPEG-based media (HDV, H.264, MPEG-2, XDCAM, AVCHD), particularly if you are using filters with such media. Note that overloading is more likely to be the cause of the crash than the reason below.
I feel like this is coming from the XDCAM media and want to know if there is anyone who has dealt with a similar problem and found a cause or workaround.
If any additional information is needed, please let me know and I'll provide any information I can.
-Fraunpetri

Answer 1

Shane,
Thanks for your response. When I was setting up this project, I asked around to multiple forums and professionals and many seemed to think that using native XDCAM EX footage was possible and that the newer systems would not have many issues working with it.
Is there anyway I can tweak my setup to help alleviate pressure on the laptop? If I didn't use the Matrox bob or was able to remove the 2.35 .png matte from the timeline, or possibly changed to medium quality for video in the timeline.
Transcoding to pro res does seem like it would help the situation but at this stage unfortunately that's not an option.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
-Fraunpetri