VOB Subtitles out of sync using VLC

[raisor]

Why are some subtitles out of sync, but not all?

I have movies ripped from DVDs as one .vob file with separate .sub and idx files. All the files have the same name, except for their file extensions, and all of them are in the same folder. Some movies when I go to play the file using VLC the subtitles play fine and some other movies the subtitles are out of sync with the movie. This happened with the movie, "The Tourist," for instance.

Folder:
The Tourist (2010)

Inside folder:
The Tourist.vob
The Tourist.idx
The Tourist.sub

Why were the subtitles out of sync when I played the files using VLC?

I'm most interested in this for movies with non-English speaking parts, so I know what is being said.

[DB83]

I'm most interested in this for movies with non-English speaking parts, so I know what is being said.

Well I would guess that is the reason why most read subtitles

But I would equally guess there is no hard 'n fast explanation to your problem. It could be a memory issue. One large vob could use a lot of system resources and then when it needs to read another resource there will be a delay.

I only read subs from the original dvd so they are still in the vob. If you have a vob then why have the subs in a separate file ?

[raisor]

I only read subs from the original dvd so they are still in the vob. If you have a vob then why have the subs in a separate file ?

I'm talking about original .sub and .idx file from the original DVD.

The sub and idx are in separate files by default on most of the DVD ripping programs I have used. I noticed that there is an option to remux the sub into the vob on DVDFab, but I was under the impression that it was a best practice to keep the files separate.

And sometimes when the subtitles are off they are way off.

Bottom line:
If I have the files the way I describe in my original post, is there a way to watch the video with the subtitles and make sure that the subtitles are synchronized? Am I doing something fundamentally wrong when ripping DVDs?

[DB83]

I never said that the subs were not from the original dvd. So do not get excited about that.

The comment I made was that the ORIGINAL subs would have been stored in the ORIGINAL vobs. Surely, if you rip the ORIGINAL vobs to one vob then those subs are still there so they should still play from the original or, in your case, the ripped/combined vob.

Does the ripping remove the subs from the vob ? I think not but pls correct me if I am wrong unless you use an utility specific to that task. A straight forward rip does nothing to the vobs.


It may also help if you were to advise what program/method you use to rip the dvd in the first place.

[raisor]

I use DVDFab to rip the vobs.

I know I am not an expert when it comes to DVD file structure and subtitles on DVDs and I do not claim to be. The reason I am making these posts in these online forums is I'm trying to figure some things when it comes to my HTPC.

I thought that the subtitles were kept in a separate file (.sub) from the video (.vob) and the idx file was for synchronizing the video with the subtitles. So when you say the original subs from original vob I'm not sure what you are talking about. I think every program I have used (DVD Decryptor, DVDShrink, DVDFab) has always ripped the .sub and .idx separate from .vob.

As I said in my previous post...

I noticed that there is an option to remux the sub into the vob on DVDFab, but I was under the impression that it was a best practice to keep the files separate.

So what is the best practice when it comes to getting correctly synchronized subtitles off a DVD?

[manono]

I thought that the subtitles were kept in a separate file (.sub) from the video (.vob) and the idx file was for synchronizing the video with the subtitles.

You thought wrong. They're stored in the VOBs with other information about them in the IFOs. Have you ever seen a SUB file in a DVD?

What I don't understand, since you're playing from an HTPC, is why you don't just play the original DVD decrypted to your hard drive, perhaps with the garbage removed (warnings, extraneous audio and/or subs, etc.). What's with all this converting to a single VOB (never a good idea anyway, if the aim is to play it) and extracting the subs? You won't have any trouble playing the ailen language subs, the subs will be in synch, and all your problems will disappear.

[DB83]

I do not use dvdfab so I can not comment.

But dvd-shrink AFAIK just 'shrinks' a dvd and allows you to remove items from the shrink. But remove in this conext means completely disgard. They are not retained anywhere on your HDD.

I have NEVER seen a setting in dvd-dectrypter to rip subs as seperate files. It can rip the vobs in various ways and that is it.

But most people use special tools to rip the subs and as they are then encoding the vobs in to different formats eg xVID they require those subs in seperate files so that their players can read them.

[raisor]

What I don't understand, since you're playing from an HTPC, is why you don't just play the original DVD decrypted to your hard drive, perhaps with the garbage removed (warnings, extraneous audio and/or subs, etc.). What's with all this converting to a single VOB (never a good idea anyway, if the aim is to play it) and extracting the subs? You won't have any trouble playing the ailen language subs, the subs will be in synch, and all your problems will disappear.

I'm obviously not understanding something.

#1 Why is it never a good idea to rip a DVD to a single VOB?

#2 I thought I was playing the original DVD decrypted to my hard drive. I put the DVD in the computer. I use DVDFab to decrypt the DVD to a single .vob, .sub and .idx (which apparently is a bad idea, but I don't yet fully understand why). All of the files are kept in the same folder. All of the files have the same name except for their file extension. There aren't any other converting steps in this scenario. I'm not taking one set of files off the DVD and then converting them into a single .vob. DVDFab might be doing that when I rip them from them DVD, but I'm not getting them off the DVD and then converting them again. Then sometimes when I try to watch this .vob the subtitles are way out of sync.

What should I be doing instead?

[manono]

#1 Why is it never a good idea to rip a DVD to a single VOB?

What's the point? Just decrypt the entire DVD, remove the junk you don't want, and play the DVD. You get menus, extras, whatever else there might be. Play the DVD and not the VOB. If you don't want menus and extras, then get rid of them too. There are tools for this.

I'm not taking one set of files off the DVD and then converting them into a single .vob.

I have movies ripped from DVDs as one .vob file with separate .sub and idx files.

Make up your mind.

What should I be doing instead?

Decrypting the DVD, and that's all. No single VOB, no external VobSubs. Play the original DVD and not a VOB file.