Requesting Workflow Suggestions: Blu-ray rip to 1080p w/ soft subtitles

redboxcar · Mar 9, 2012

Would anyone be willing to help me with a basic workflow for ripping a Blu-ray to a 1080p .m4v with soft subtitles (so I can toggle them on/off)... right now my workflow is:

Use MakeMKV to create an MKV... I leave the default English subtitles that are checked on.
Run the .mkv through HandBrake using the ATV2 preset.
Use iFlicks to tag and import into iTunes.

It works perfect to just get good 720p versions of my Blu-rays, but I want a little more functionality from my rips. I don't know what leaving the subtitle boxes checked does, but it certainly does not give me subtitles in my final m4v. I know the new rips will be bigger file sizes - I'm not concerned about this.

I also purchased iSubtitle, but am not 100% sure of where the best place in my workflow is to fit it in. Also: even though I have the program, I would be happier if I could extract the original subtitles from the Blu-ray and use THOSE as the soft subtitles, since some of the ones from iSubtitle have random characters/words and things.

I've read a lot of different stuff from the internet, but nothing too comprehensive nor extremely helpful.

Thanks in advance for anyone willing to help!

Linda

(BTW, I'm not asking for 1080p settings like all the other threads... I know that info will come... I'm looking for an actual process suggestion... thanks!

)

omni · Mar 9, 2012

Easiest suggestion IMO:

look up the subtitle file on the internet

I find all my on subscene.com then I add the .srt file using Subler

So here is my workflow in a nutshell:

Rip the Blu Ray using MakeMKV

Encode this MKV with Handbrake

Put the .m4v into subler then find the .srt on subscene and download
Search all the metadata/artwork within subler so that it's all filled out, then drag the .srt file and make sure it's english (or whatever language you are looking for) then save & optimize, add to iTunes.

Things are a bit tricky with Forced subtitles - such as Star Wars but 90-95% of all the blu ray movies i rip either don't have a forced subtitle track or it's already burnt into the movie (such as Lost when they speak korean)

redboxcar · Mar 9, 2012

omni said:
Easiest suggestion IMO:

look up the subtitle file on the internet

I find all my on subscene.com then I add the .srt file using Subler

So here is my workflow in a nutshell:

Rip the Blu Ray using MakeMKV

Encode this MKV with Handbrake

Put the .m4v into subler then find the .srt on subscene and download
Search all the metadata/artwork within subler so that it's all filled out, then drag the .srt file and make sure it's english (or whatever language you are looking for) then save & optimize, add to iTunes.

Things are a bit tricky with Forced subtitles - such as Star Wars but 90-95% of all the blu ray movies i rip either don't have a forced subtitle track or it's already burnt into the movie (such as Lost when they speak korean)

Thanks! Do you find that the .srt files you find are accurate and neat? I tried two... one of them had random html code during parts of the subtitles and the other one was a little bit off sync with the audio. I'm worried about inconsistencies, which is why I would prefer to be able to extract the original subtitles from the Blu-ray...

omni · Mar 10, 2012

redboxcar said:
Thanks! Do you find that the .srt files you find are accurate and neat?

Every now and then they won't be accurate - after saving the file in Subler I'll usually load it up in Quicktime and jump around the movie quickly making sure the subtitles line up.

Never really had one with any urls in them before. You can always just edit the .srt file yourself.

There should be a sticky at the top of this forum that has an automatic workflow for generating soft subs from BR but I found it to be more work than it's worth - at least for me.

redboxcar · Mar 10, 2012

omni said:
Every now and then they won't be accurate - after saving the file in Subler I'll usually load it up in Quicktime and jump around the movie quickly making sure the subtitles line up.

Never really had one with any urls in them before. You can always just edit the .srt file yourself.

There should be a sticky at the top of this forum that has an automatic workflow for generating soft subs from BR but I found it to be more work than it's worth - at least for me.

Ooh, thanks... I found the link. It does seem to be a lot of work, especially since it appears to rely heavily on having Windows...

Maybe I'll give the suggested methods another shot.

Thanks, everyone!

Bill.the.Cat · Mar 10, 2012

I use the following workflow:

(1) Rip BD with MakeMKV
(2) Extract PGS subtitles with MKVTools (this will create a .sup file)
(3) Remux .mkv file to .m4v with MP4Tools (AC3 5.1 + AAC 2 channel audio)
(4) Open .sup file in SupRip (Windows only) and OCR, then save as .srt
(5) Use Subler to join .srt and tag.

You will only need to use Handbrake if your BD source is VC-1 or mpeg2, or if you aren't using it on an ATV2 with the most recent software. If you do want to use Handbrake (e.g., for smaller file size and/or x264 compatibility) replace step (3) with a Handbrake re-encoding to the high profile preset---you may also want to play with the anamorphic settings a bit.

Two catches:
-Step (4) does require Windows--I just use an old Windows XP license in VirtualBox. It may appear tedious but I can now do a two-hour movie in 15 minutes or less--the first 20 or so subtitle events take the bulk of your time, but once the OCR software has learned which letters are which, things get automated quickly. For me this beats dealing with sync problems associated with .srt's you find on subtitle sites.
-This doesn't handle forced subtitles. If this is important you may want to just use Handbrake to burn those in, then just lay the softsubs over that.

Re-reading what the OP is asking for, if you don't need the m4v container (i.e. you are happy keeping it in .mkv) you can skip step (3) and in step (5) use MKVTools to join the .srt with the .mkv file.

redboxcar · Mar 10, 2012

Bill.the.Cat said:
I use the following workflow:

(1) Rip BD with MakeMKV
(2) Extract PGS subtitles with MKVTools (this will create a .sup file)
(3) Remux .mkv file to .m4v with MP4Tools (AC3 5.1 + AAC 2 channel audio)
(4) Open .sup file in SupRip (Windows only) and OCR, then save as .srt
(5) Use Subler to join .srt and tag.

You will only need to use Handbrake if your BD source is VC-1 or mpeg2, or if you aren't using it on an ATV2 with the most recent software. If you do want to use Handbrake (e.g., for smaller file size and/or x264 compatibility) replace step (3) with a Handbrake re-encoding to the high profile preset---you may also want to play with the anamorphic settings a bit.

Two catches:
-Step (4) does require Windows--I just use an old Windows XP license in VirtualBox. It may appear tedious but I can now do a two-hour movie in 15 minutes or less--the first 20 or so subtitle events take the bulk of your time, but once the OCR software has learned which letters are which, things get automated quickly. For me this beats dealing with sync problems associated with .srt's you find on subtitle sites.
-This doesn't handle forced subtitles. If this is important you may want to just use Handbrake to burn those in, then just lay the softsubs over that.

Re-reading what the OP is asking for, if you don't need the m4v container (i.e. you are happy keeping it in .mkv) you can skip step (3) and in step (5) use MKVTools to join the .srt with the .mkv file.

This is great! I will test it out, it sounds like it could be just what I was looking for!

redboxcar · Sep 7, 2012

Sorry to revive this thread from the dead, but hopefully it's still relevant.

I never got around to trying the above workflows for my blu-ray ripping, but am getting ready to start ripping again. In more recent threads, I have read that Subler might offer me the abilities that I'm looking for on my Mac (no Windows). What is the most current, stable release of Subler I should use?

As a refresher, I'd like to be able to extract the subtitles directly from my Blu-ray disc, and then (if necessary) convert them to a file that I can use in conjunction with converting my .mkv file into a .m4v file.

My final result should be me being able to play any movie that I've ripped on my aTV3/iPad/iPhone/whatever with the ability to turn the subtitles on/off.

As mentioned above, I would prefer to have the subtitles directly from the disc, if possible (even if it's a few more steps), because I have tried downloading from the internet and since I'm a little OCD, it bothers me when the subtitles are inaccurate or misspelled.

Thanks again,
Linda

Menneisyys2 · Sep 8, 2012

redboxcar said:
I never got around to trying the above workflows for my blu-ray ripping, but am getting ready to start ripping again. In more recent threads, I have read that Subler might offer me the abilities that I'm looking for on my Mac (no Windows). What is the most current, stable release of Subler I should use?

The current version (0.17) works just great. If you have Mountain Lion it requires some additional hacking for AC3 -> AAC conversion support on top of installing Perian for DTS -> AAC conversion support.

mic j · Sep 8, 2012

redboxcar said:
Sorry to revive this thread from the dead, but hopefully it's still relevant.

I never got around to trying the above workflows for my blu-ray ripping, but am getting ready to start ripping again. In more recent threads, I have read that Subler might offer me the abilities that I'm looking for on my Mac (no Windows). What is the most current, stable release of Subler I should use?

As a refresher, I'd like to be able to extract the subtitles directly from my Blu-ray disc, and then (if necessary) convert them to a file that I can use in conjunction with converting my .mkv file into a .m4v file.

My final result should be me being able to play any movie that I've ripped on my aTV3/iPad/iPhone/whatever with the ability to turn the subtitles on/off.

As mentioned above, I would prefer to have the subtitles directly from the disc, if possible (even if it's a few more steps), because I have tried downloading from the internet and since I'm a little OCD, it bothers me when the subtitles are inaccurate or misspelled.

Thanks again,
Linda

I have posts in this forum on how to OCR vobsub (dvd) and pgs (bluray) subtitles to generate srt files (using only Mac apps) that can be added to the mp4 so that you have soft subtitles. Subler can OCR vobsubs but not pgs. Several apps are needed to OCR the pgs subs. Query my posts for details.

redboxcar · Sep 8, 2012

Menneisyys2 said:
The current version (0.17) works just great. If you have Mountain Lion it requires some additional hacking for AC3 -> AAC conversion support on top of installing Perian for DTS -> AAC conversion support.

Okay, thank you!

mic j said:
I have posts in this forum on how to OCR vobsub (dvd) and pgs (bluray) subtitles to generate srt files (using only Mac apps) that can be added to the mp4 so that you have soft subtitles. Subler can OCR vobsubs but not pgs. Several apps are needed to OCR the pgs subs. Query my posts for details.

Thanks, will do!

redboxcar · Sep 9, 2012

I am re-posting the info from mic j, in case anyone comes to this thread looking for the same info...

mic j said:
For those of you with waaaayyy too much time or are extremely anal, here is an abbreviated tutorial on converting PGS subtitles to srt using all Mac apps:

Need: MKVtools (beta)
BDsup2sub
MKVToolnix
Subler
1. Using MKVtools, extract the PGS subtitle track from the mkv (creates a .sup file).
2. Using BDsup2sub, convert the .sup to a VOBSUB (creates a .idx and .sub file):
-Load the .sup file
-Click OK
-Click SAVE
3. Using MKVtools, remove the PGS subtitle track from the mkv.
4. Using MKVtoolnix, add the .idx track to the mkv that has had the PGS subtitle track removed. You now have a bluray mkv with a VOBSUB subtitle track instead of a PGS Subtitle track.
5. Using Subler:
-Click NEW
-Click IMPORT and select the modified mkv
-Uncheck all of the tracks except the VOBSIB track and make sure that the Action column says 3GPP Text.
-Click ADD
-SAVE (or SAVE AS). Subler will then OCR the VOBSUB track and generate an .srt file
6. Using Jubler, correct any OCR mistakes, then SAVE.

Have fun!!!!!

Count me under the "extremely anal" group...

Thanks again, mic j... working on a rip right now, will let you all know how it turns out!

Menneisyys2 · Sep 10, 2012

redboxcar said:
I am re-posting the info from mic j, in case anyone comes to this thread looking for the same info...

Count me under the "extremely anal" group...

Thanks again, mic j... working on a rip right now, will let you all know how it turns out!

BTW, you don't need to manually remove the S_HDMV/PGS tracks from the MKV - just don't let Subler to passthru them.

Also, make sure you supply national (non-English) dictionaries to Subler before making it OCR the (non-English) subtracks.

redboxcar · Sep 11, 2012

Menneisyys2 said:
BTW, you don't need to manually remove the S_HDMV/PGS tracks from the MKV - just don't let Subler to passthru them.

Also, make sure you supply national (non-English) dictionaries to Subler before making it OCR the (non-English) subtracks.

Thanks, I'll check out this article.

I ran into problems with Subler at the step where it was supposed to create the .srt file - it created a .m4v file and I'm not sure how to change that. Anyone have any insight on that?

Menneisyys2 · Sep 11, 2012

redboxcar said:
Thanks, I'll check out this article.

I ran into problems with Subler at the step where it was supposed to create the .srt file - it created a .m4v file and I'm not sure how to change that. Anyone have any insight on that?

Subler doesn't create a separate SRT file - it includes the OCR'ed (SRT) file in the remuxed video it creates.

Should you still need it, use for example MP4Tools to extract it. (Extraction is done in exactly the same way as done with MKVTools - see the update starting with "UPDATE (some hours later):" in the article on exactly this subject.)

mic j · Sep 12, 2012

Menneisyys2 said:
Subler doesn't create a separate SRT file - it includes the OCR'ed (SRT) file in the remuxed video it creates.

Should you still need it, use for example MP4Tools to extract it. (Extraction is done in exactly the same way as done with MKVTools - see the update starting with "UPDATE (some hours later):" in the article on exactly this subject.)

You can also just select "Export" the track (in Subler) to create a separate .srt file.

Menneisyys2 · Sep 12, 2012

mic j said:
You can also just select "Export" the track (in Subler) to create a separate .srt file.

Wowz! Thanks! I haven't noticed this.

(too bad it can't export stuff from MKV files; that is, it can't be used to export, say, S_HDMV/PGS BD subtracks for VobSub conversion.)

mic j · Sep 12, 2012

Menneisyys2 said:
Wowz! Thanks! I haven't noticed this.

(too bad it can't export stuff from MKV files; that is, it can't be used to export, say, S_HDMV/PGS BD subtracks for VobSub conversion.)

That's why i love this little program. It can do so many of the things need done. It's just not well documented and because it doesn't use a lot of radio buttons and other fancy GUI options, people tend to either think it has limited capability or that it's too hard to figure out.

By the way, Mike (MakeMKV) has a poll of for new features on the MakeMKV website. One of the proposed new features is having MakeMKV convert PGS to vobsub during the ripping process. Think about how much easier that capability would make the lives that do a lot of subtitles. People might want to go over there and vote for that one!

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Requesting Workflow Suggestions: Blu-ray rip to 1080p w/ soft subtitles

redboxcar

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