Adding subtitle (.srt) to MKV, AVI and MP4 files

[taebog]

I am fairly new to encoding programs and video files. What program is the fastest and easy way to encode these video files with .srt subtitles added? The final video format will be MKV which I believe is the best. I'm looking for a lite program and will be able to encode these videos with about the same amount of size without sacrificing the audio/video quality.

[netmask56]

A bit more information would assist...
What equipment are you playing back the final MKV file?
PC, Media Player (brand and model), Smart TV etc etc

If you are playing it back on a PC all that is necessary is to name the SRT file the same as the video and VLC for example will display the subs. If you want to include ie mux the subs into the MKV then MkvMergeGui will do it in a few minutes.
Lots of variable so we need lots more info..

[Baldrick]

If you want to hardcode/burn in subtitles can you use freemake video converter, video to video converter, handbrake, etc. It requires reconversion so you will lose quality but it works on ALL devices then.

[taebog]

Just on a PC using VLC/KMPlayer and Showtime on my PS3. It sometimes annoys me to see the .srt files and it clutters the whole folder. I'll try MKVMergeGui and see what I can find. I'm looking for something like ASFbin program that joins wmv files without re encoding and its fast and easy.

I don't want it to be hard subbed since MKV is naturally soft subs so it makes the encoding easier. I just wanted the default resolution and all other variables to be the same when muxing the srt files in.