Remove subtitles from mkv?

[DoubleSpeed]

I've created mkv files from dvd and all good except when I play on my Samsung TV it defaults to playing with subtitles on. I can manually turn off subtitles in the samsung media player however it is really annoying to have to do this each time. Is there a way to either turn off as the default or remove the subtitles from the file completely without having to remake the mkv's from scratch?

[Woodstock]

Yes, there is a way. And No, it doesn't work most of the time.

Short of removing (or not ripping) the subtitle tracks, you're at the mercy of the player as to what happens with them. Most players I've tried default to playing the first subtitle track found, whether it is marked as "default" or not.

An example is if you process a file through handbrake to make it an MP4, remove all subtitles, BUT have handbrake insert chapter markers, "smart" TVs will display "Chapter 1" as a subtitle at the beginning of playback, and "Chapter NN" each time a chapter changes, because MP4 chapters are stored as a "special" subtitle track.

Post-rip processing the file will be required if you want to make sure subtitles are "properly" displayed, always. I don't have time to go into the variations on subtitle authoring here, though.

[DoubleSpeed]

Thanks for replying had hoped there might be a way of adding some kind of ini file to instruct the player not to show subtitles however sounds like that isn't possible.

[Woodstock]

Unfortunately, with JUST MakeMKV, it can't be done. If players actually used the "default" flag, it would be a different story.

I've even thought about putting together a text-based, EMPTY subtitle track I could merge into files as the "first" subtitle track, to get around it. But I haven't done that yet, since I can tell handbrake to lose the chapter track when making MP4s, and to create an empty "forced track" when creating MKVs.

[Bergercliff]

To remove subtitles from MKV videos, you may use Avdshare video Converter. It can remove subtitles from MKV without recoding the original stream. Extract subtitles from MKV, AVI, VOB, MP4, AVCHD, FLV, MOV, MPEG, WMV, ASF, RMVB, DV, 3GP, etc.

[Chetwood]

Or he could use MKVToolnix to remux and for a test its header editor to see if removing the default flag makes a difference.

[DavidHOO]

To remove subtitle from MKV, try a professional Subtitle Remover - Pavtube Video Converter. Search on Google, and they're many guide to teach you how to use this tool.

[Woodstock]

Has Pavtube finally gotten around to creating their own ripping tool, rather than repackaging MakeMKV?

[Chetwood]

Professional? Yeah, right.

[paulster]

Or he could use MKVToolnix to remux and for a test its header editor to see if removing the default flag makes a difference.

Try this, in bold. Often players take 'default' as meaning mandatory, which it doesn't.

[ibtrue]

Hi all, I’ve experimented with removing PGS subtitles from my MKV file with MKV toolnix and merging SRT subtitles as my LG projector doesn’t recognize PGS. I then encountered the SRT subtitles being defaulted as I played them. I was able to change the default flag from yes to no. This is all done in the multiplexer window.

Under the heading “Tracks, chapters, and tags” you can uncheck the subs if you don’t want them. To change the the default flag of your subs first highlight the sub in the tracks, chapters, and tags section on left side. Then on the right side under “Properties” change the “Default track” flag to NO. HIT “Start multiplexing” and let it do it’s thing to 100%. Test the new file and you should be golden.

[ilovelibertyfreedom]

I use iDealshare VideoGo to remove subtitles from MKV, add subtitles to MKV or extract subtitles from MKV.

It also applies to any video formats.