Problem with subtitles

[adrock0211]

Ok guys, maybe you can help me here. I just decided to stick with DVD's vs. Blu Rays and just use MakeMKV and keep the 4 - 5GB file size. I am still having problems with subtitles though. Not subtitles for the whole movie because these movies are in English but when you have a movie where characters are speaking a native language like District 9, Avatar, or even the Chinese scenes in Kill Bill...I can't get the MKV file to have the subtitle needed for JUST that part.

What I mean is that for instance I just ripped District 9 and I grabbed all of the subtitles in the submenu of the main track (SEE SCREENSHOT BELOW) but I didn't grab any of the other tracks. I have been told you only need to grab the main track which in this case, and usually, is the top track that is 4.6GB

So when I rip this I end up with three subtitle options with it when I am playing the movie in VLC player. All three English but they are all different versions where it constantly keeps the words on the screen. Neither three of them are free of words during regular English scenes but then show the subtitles when the aliens speak. It's either have subtitles on the screen the whole time or none, even when the aliens are speaking.

Can anyone help me here...see below for the screen shot of this particular rip. Thanks.

[Smithcraft]

Welcome to the wonderful world of subtitles! Every disc can be mastered in a different way, so there will never be a simple rule that indicates what you need to do to get the forced subs.

You could use a subtitle converter application like BDsup2sub, or Subtitle Edit, to scan through the subtitles and find the stream that you want.

SC

[adrock0211]

Welcome to the wonderful world of subtitles! Every disc can be mastered in a different way, so there will never be a simple rule that indicates what you need to do to get the forced subs.

You could use a subtitle converter application like BDsup2sub, or Subtitle Edit, to scan through the subtitles and find the stream that you want.

SC

See my thought process was "just grab all of them" and then you can deal with which track is correct later in the menus of the player...so as you can tell from my screenshot below I just grabbed all thee of the English ones. However none of the three gave me just the "native speakers" subtitles and no other subtitles??? If I grabbed all three and none of them were the correct one it's almost like there ISN'T a correct subtitle track......unless it's one of the ones under one of the tracks below the main track at the top but I don't think so.

Do you ever rip any of the tracks besides the main track at the top?

[Smithcraft]

Yes, I do. However there are numerous ways of mastering subtitles.

There could be one track that has all the subs, with some subs flagged as forced. There could be a separate track for forced subs. They can do it anyway they feel like doing it that day. The next day they might do it differently.

SC

[Woodstock]

Most of what I deal with is anime, and yes, I rip all the subtitle tracks. After they're in an MKV file, I play them with VLC to determine which audio AND subtitle tracks are "right", before processing the file with Handbrake for the media players.

Sometimes, the tracks aren't tagged correctly. Just two days ago, I ripped a series where the "all subtitles" track was tagged as Japanese, and the "forced only" was the only one marked as English. I guess they thought the player would match the Japanese audio and Japanese subtitles... which isn't the way any of my players work.

[Romansh]

Keeping in mind, that for DVD, MakeMKV cannot rip anything other than the full subtitle tracks (unlike Blu-ray).

If the "forced" subtitles are the subset of a full track (with the individual packets flagged as forced), you'll have to use something else to extract that subset.

[Chetwood]

Like BDSUP2SUB. It opens VobSubs (idx/sub) you can extract from your DVD with VSRip and export only those items flagged as forced.