No Subtitles on DivX/XVid Encoding

[bog]

As I am new to DivX encoding I have been trying a few tools to see which I like the best. I have encoded a few test clips using avi.Net and Vidomi with no problems. However, it was when I was trying to encode The Last Samurai that I encountered a problem that I don't seem to be able to overcome and I was hoping that someone could point me in the right direction.

TLS is one of those films that has "forced subtitles" i.e. there are certain parts of the English language film where they speak Japanese and the English subtitles come up at the appropriate time (rather than all through the film). My initial problem was that I have been unable to show these subtitles using any of the following tools: avi.Net, Vidomi, AutoGK, FairUse Wizard. I have also used a variety of AVI viewing applications to view the final clip such as WMP, DivX Viewer and the Vidomi player but to no avail.

I am pretty confident that I am following the instructions properly and am able to see the subtitle channels and select the one that I want. In my desperation I even tried just selecting one of the main subtitle tracks such as French for the whole film but have still been unsuccessful.

Basically, to conclude I have not been able to display ANY subtitles. Has anybody else encountered a similar problem? I have done a variety of searches here but haven't managed to find a related problem.

[Baldrick]

If you selected a subtitle track(and correct subtitles track) in AutoGK it should encode permanent subtitles in the picture. What guide did you follow? try http://www.doom9.org/index.html?/autogk.htm or http://www.divx-digest.com/articles/autogk.html

[bog]

I followed the tutorial on the AutoGK website. I ripped a short clip from The Last Samurai using DVDShrink and left all of the audio and subtitle tracks in place. I burnt this to a DVD and it plays with no problem and allows me to select a subtitle track.

I have tried AutoGK with the "Display only forced subtitles" option on and off and a variety of subtitle languages but to no avail. I have tried previewing the clip in AutoGK as it advises in the AutoGK tutorial but this just crashes the WMP with a variety of errors under a "DirectShowSource: Could not open as video or audio" heading.

[bog]

Quick update on my problem:

I have also tried DVD Fab Platinum with no joy also.

I used DVD Shrink to create an .ISO file and this played okay with VLC Media Player allowing me to see all the subtitle streams.

When I used VLC Media Player to look at any of the .AVI files I have created it doesn't think that there are any subtitle streams there and so can't display.

It seems to me that any of the encoding that I am doing does not result in the subtitle streams being included in the .AVI file. I have not tried using external subtitle files as I understand that these won't work with the DivX DVD player that I am targeting this for (Philips DVP5960)

[politiken]

Bog, if using DVDShrink then try to keep/select ALL subtitles - AUTOGK cannot find the correct subtitle if one of them is left out. Also check if "Logical remapping" is on/off. Also use a clip from the start of the DVD and not chapter 2 or higher. - regards Pol

[ricardouk]

I ripped a short clip from The Last Samurai using DVDShrink and left all of the audio and subtitle tracks in place.

i have had the same problem before and came to the conclusion that when using the subs when you "reauthor/rip" a small clip of the movie for some reason when using dvdshrink to do this the subs get played on vlc and others but are not picked up by autogk and others, try to use a full clip from the extras section where the subtitle situation is the same, if not rip the whole movie and try it that way

[bog]

politiken

I have kept all subtitles selected in DVDShrink (no difference)
What is "logical remapping" - is it part of AutoGK because I can't find it if it is.
I will try a clip from the start of the movie but there are no "forced subtitles" there. I will try another subtitle track and see if that comes out.

[bog]

I just tried encoding the trailer for Groundhog Day using AutoGK, selecting the Italian subtitle track and it came out okay. I'm going to give The Last Samurai a go tonight with AutoGK and see if the forced subtitles come out.

[politiken]

bog, "Logical remapping" is found in DVDShrink/Edit/Preferences/Output files. It should be "On"
if leaving out subs before the one selected and "Off" otherwise. Taking a clip NOT from the start, will most likely bring time-issues in effect and therefore subs out of sync. - regards Pol

[bog]

Thanks for that politiken. This might explain why I have been unable to get subtitles out of the 1 minute clip that I ripped from the middle of Chapter 10 of The Last Samurai for any encoding app but the Groundhog Day trailer was okay.

As I said above I will try the whole of The Last Samurai again overnight and see if I have any success.

[bog]

Success! I used AutoGK on the whole of The Last Samurai. I ripped all subtitle streams to disk using DVDShrink as suggested and then selected only track 12 - English, which I knew from previous experience to be the forced subtitle track.

Thanks for all the help and suggestions.