How to get .ass files into .srt

[Zore The Bore]

If many of you are finding .ass files won't work in Avidemux, or other movie encoder applications, then here's a trick to get those .ass files into .srt files so that Avidemux is happy.

-Install KSubtitle
-Install MPlayer (required by KSubtitle)

-Using KSubtitle, follow the instructions in the HELP->KSubtitle_Handbook for importing a subtitle file.

-Using FILE->IMPORT, load the subtitle file [filename].ass

-Note: you may get a dialog box (some subtitles from .ass files may have overlapping timecodes). You have the choice to ignore the overlapping subtitles, or include them with their timing altered. If the added subtitles are comments from subtitlers, you may consider removing them. I did not ... so far.

-Load the movie file associated with the .ass file (if [filename].ass subtitle is for [filename].mkv, then select the moviefile [filename].mkv. This will give Ksubtitle the data to link the srt subtitle conversion to (timecodes?).

-Note: when opening a movie file, KSubtitle lists only mpg in filter. It seems that when I set the filter to 'All files', and loaded an mkv, it played just fine.

-movie file will load.

-Preview the movie file with KSubtitle's built in movie player (it's MPlayer and that's why you have to install it), just to make sure you loaded the right movie.

Goto FILE->Save_As and input name for the srt file

KSubtitle will then transcode the [filename].ass file to [filename].srt

THEN Avidemux is happy...

[musonio]

Just a question: can't you open the ass file in subtitle-editor and save it as srt?

[Zore The Bore]

Well, I just tried it like you suggested. I opened the .ass file and did a Save_As with SubRip (.srt) format.

I took a look at the .srt file, and it was just the header for a .ass file. So, it would seem that it doesn't work that way.

Are there other steps?

[musonio]

Nope. Sorry. I didn't want to mean to be intrusive; I just thought it could be done with subtitleditor.

[Zore The Bore]

Oh no worries here. There may be other ways to do it, but essentially, what I have found using Ksubtitle is relatively easy once you get the hang of it. I just listed out the steps for anyone doing it for the first time. In short the procedure is just;


load [filename].ass
load [filename].[movie_file.]
save as [filename].srt
done


Now if Ksubtitle had a batch option like avidemux, you could do a whole block at one shot.