Videolan with ASS subtitles.

yumyum · 2009-05-01 01:00:30

Can I get vlc to render proper ASS subtitles, because I Watch a lot of anime and the basic ugly font rendering that vlc uses just isn't good enough for me.

Is it possible to get them to render properly the way ass subtitles are suppose to? (If it's SSA or ASS I don't know kinda confusing lol)

If I have to build from source with special options, that is acceptable.

Last edited by yumyum (2009-05-01 01:06:14)

Xyne · 2009-05-01 01:15:32

yumyum wrote:

"Can I get vlc to render proper ASS subtitles?"

That is by far one of the best questions posted on this forum.

Sorry that I can't help, but I had to point that out.

yumyum · 2009-05-01 01:22:20

Haha thanks for the input, I guess I made it sound pretty ridiculous!

R00KIE · 2009-05-01 14:25:06

yumyum wrote:

Haha thanks for the input, I guess I made it sound pretty ridiculous!

No, not really. It doesn't sound ridiculous, to me at least.
Have you tried to change the default font the in the option of vlc? Mine points to /usr/share/fonts/TTF/DejaVuSerif-Bold.ttf
I guess you need to have the djvu fonts installed otherwise it will use some other fallback font and might look bad.
Right now I don't have anything here with ass subtitles to test (either "built-in" or as separate subtitles).
Maybe you can try other players ....

Themaister · 2009-05-01 20:45:48

yumyum wrote:

Can I get vlc to render proper ASS subtitles, because I Watch a lot of anime and the basic ugly font rendering that vlc uses just isn't good enough for me.
Is it possible to get them to render properly the way ass subtitles are suppose to? (If it's SSA or ASS I don't know kinda confusing lol)
If I have to build from source with special options, that is acceptable.

Haha. VLC already plays subtitles like ass ;D Well, I don't think VLC support SSA/ASS, I've never gotten it to work properly anyways (even though it's supposed to be supported: http://wiki.videolan.org/SubtitlesCodec.)
If you want perfect subtitles I suggest using MPlayer with "fontconfig=1" and "ass=1" in the mplayer config. Perfect for anime viewing

Last edited by Themaister (2009-05-01 20:46:36)

Dheart · 2009-05-02 06:06:06

+1 For mplayer - VLC is just not as good

moljac024 · 2009-05-02 06:36:10

Dheart wrote:

+1 For mplayer - VLC is just not as good

Yup, I mean it can't do ASS properly!

Aarin · 2009-06-22 11:55:11

I read recently that the 1.0.0 version of VLC would read the fonts embedded in the mkv file.

Tried the 1.0.0rc3 in Windows XP, and it read the ssa/ass font without problem. Went to Arch and compiled the 1.0.0rc4 from AUR and tried the same file.
VLC could read the correct color from the ssa/ass subtitle, but not the font style.

Could it be a Linux VLC problem? or a option not selected somewhere?

Edit: i've updated my windows VLC to 1.0.0rc4 and made this screenshots of the same file in windows and linux. Both versions of VLC are using the default configuration.

Windows:

Linux:

Last edited by Aarin (2009-06-22 13:13:47)

R00KIE · 2009-06-22 14:12:48

Could it be that you are missing some font? I see that on your linux box some fonts are not being rendered (the Japanese ones at least) and for the other maybe the problem is related.

Aarin · 2009-06-22 15:21:37

I don't think that is the problem.

This problem doesn't occur in mplayer, so I think it is VLC related.

Theoretically, the font is embedded in the video, in the .ass subtitle, so it should be loaded by VLC.
Regarding the Japanese characters, it can be related to the encoding used in the .ass file (but i tried several options like UTF-8 and none worked), or it can be related to the font VLC is using instead of the one inside the mkv file...

I'm building VLC-git from AUR in another computer (this one in x86_64) and I'll try to convince a friend of mine with a Mac to try to test VLC there.

EDIT: I couldn't compile VLC-git so I put VLC-dev (VLC 1.0.0rc4). Exactly the same thing with the ass subtitle. It works fine with Mplayer tho. So definitely a VLC thing.

Last edited by Aarin (2009-06-22 15:59:25)

quarkup · 2009-06-22 23:20:21

+1 for mplayer

Last edited by quarkup (2009-06-22 23:21:01)

Procyon · 2009-06-22 23:23:58

+1 for mplayer too, especially concerning subs, you can set things like

ass-force-style=Fontname=TrebuchetMS,FontSize=28
ass-force-style=Fontname=TrebuchetMS,FontSize=32,PlayResX=848,PlayResY=480

Last edited by Procyon (2009-08-14 20:50:36)

quarkup · 2009-06-23 12:42:50

and smplayer is specially a good frontend for mplayer

Themaister · 2009-06-23 13:18:13

So is Gnome-Mplayer (small and lean), but recently I haven't been able to use any frontends for MPlayer; they just won't play any video files :'s Anyone else have had the same issue?

Last edited by Themaister (2009-06-23 13:18:46)

Aarin · 2009-06-23 15:03:00

Themaister wrote:

So is Gnome-Mplayer (small and lean), but recently I haven't been able to use any frontends for MPlayer; they just won't play any video files :'s Anyone else have had the same issue?

This is a VLC topic.
Try to see if there is another topic regarding that problem with mplayer. If not create one.
This just isn't the place to discuss that problem.

About the VLC problem, I tested the mkv file I had problems with VLC in Linux, in a Mac of a friend of mine. I confess I don't know which version it was (probably the 0.9.9a) but it opened the ass subtitles without any problems whatsoever.

So it is a problem that occurs only on Linux...

Now there are two possibilities:

1 - The problem occurs only on Arch:
We must discover why is it so, and fix the package.

2 - The problem occurs in every Linux:
Report the error to the VLC bug list (if it haven't already been done). Wait for the VLC team to correct the error.

Now I must discover if the problem is Arch specific or not...

Last edited by Aarin (2009-06-23 15:04:01)

R00KIE · 2009-06-23 17:49:38

@Themaister
Try opening the files with another program and give it the full path to smplayer.
Does the trick here with gqview (image viewer) which has a similar problem.

Aarin · 2009-06-26 18:40:26

After a few posts in the VLC forum I discovered that the problem was in libass.
Aparently VLC uses the libass that is installed in the system, while Mplayer brings its own version of it.

I installed libass from AUR, and still no correct subtitles.

I searched in the internet, and found this: http://bugs.archlinux.org/task/14980

Aparently VLC in both extra/VLC and aur/VLC-dev packages don't bring the "--enable-libass" from origin (strange no?). After I added the "--enable-libass" in the PKGBUILD it compiled without any problems and VLC correctly showed every ass/ssa subtitles I tested until now

To see if you have the --enable-libass support added, do this: vlc -vvv --no-plugins-cache --list | grep ass

This is my output:

[pedro@Toshiba yaourt-tmp-pedro]$ vlc -vvv --no-plugins-cache --list | grep ass
VLC media player 1.0.0-rc4 Goldeneye
[0x10a8168] main libvlc debug: VLC media player - version 1.0.0-rc4 Goldeneye - (c) 1996-2009 the VideoLAN team
[0x10a8168] main libvlc debug: libvlc was configured with ./configure '--prefix=/usr' '--enable-dvdread' '--enable-libass' '--enable-dvdnav' '--disable-rpath' '--disable-zvbi' '--enable-qt4' '--enable-faad' '--enable-alsa' '--enable-skins2' '--enable-dvb' '--enable-v4l' '--enable-theora' '--enable-flac' '--enable-snapshot' '--enable-hal' '--enable-dbus' '--enable-ogg' '--enable-dbus-control' '--enable-shared' '--enable-nls' '--enable-lirc' '--enable-shout' '--enable-pvr' '--enable-release' '--program-suffix=' 'CFLAGS=-march=native -Os -pipe' 'CXXFLAGS=-march=native -Os -pipe' 'PKG_CONFIG_PATH=/usr/lib/pkgconfig'
[0x10a8168] main libvlc debug: translation test: code is "C"
[0x10a8168] main libvlc debug: checking plugin modules
[0x10a8168] main libvlc debug: recursively browsing `/usr/lib/vlc'
[0x10a8168] main libvlc debug: module bank initialized (376 modules)
libass Subtitle renderers using libass
[0x10a8168] main libvlc debug: opening config file (/home/pedro/.config/vlc/vlcrc)

Last edited by Aarin (2009-06-26 18:45:13)

R00KIE · 2009-06-26 20:01:25

In that case open a bug in arch bug tracker reporting what you have found and ask for that change in future versions of the vlc PKGBUILD so everyone can have better subs in vlc. That option may break something else though, only time and usage can tell.

ChemBro · 2009-06-26 20:27:32

Also "libass" is in AUR and needs to be in community for this.

Aarin · 2009-06-26 23:31:59

R00KIE wrote:

In that case open a bug in arch bug tracker reporting what you have found and ask for that change in future versions of the vlc PKGBUILD so everyone can have better subs in vlc. That option may break something else though, only time and usage can tell.

but a bug has already been submitted (its the link in my post above) and its been closed on the reason that libass was in AUR so they wouldn't add the support. To me that doesn't make any sense at all.

That I have understood, the '--enable-libass' would only add the support to libass in VLC. It is required that libass is installed in order that VLC can use it.
The same thing goes the way around. The libass by it self doesn't give VLC the support to render ass/ssa subtitles correctly.

In my opinion, in order to have the problem permenantly solved, it would be required, like Chembro said, that libass was in a official repo like Community or Extra, and that VLC had the '--enable-libass' from origin.

There's no need to put libass as a dependency of VLC, but at the end of the instalation should appear a message that if we wanted ass/ssa suport in VLC we had to install libass.

Last edited by Aarin (2009-06-26 23:34:44)

arkham · 2009-06-27 03:20:06

Why don't you submit a 'vlc-ass' package to the AUR that has '--enable-libass' and requires libass?

Aarin · 2009-06-27 12:21:36

arkham wrote:

Why don't you submit a 'vlc-ass' package to the AUR that has '--enable-libass' and requires libass?

Done

Here it is: http://aur.archlinux.org/packages.php?ID=27687

It is based on vlc-git. Here it works without any problems

arkham · 2009-06-27 12:40:41

Aarin wrote:

Done
Here it is: http://aur.archlinux.org/packages.php?ID=27687
It is based on vlc-git. Here it works without any problems

Ooh, you're ruined all the fun, it should have clearly been vlc-git-ass

Maki · 2009-06-27 19:23:29

i would say try smplayer

sHyLoCk · 2009-06-30 10:36:39

i just bumped into this thread facing the same problem and got it fixed by Aarin's method. Also I would like to say that smplayer doesn't work for me. I read that it's due to compiz? I even tried preventing compiz from decorating smplayer's window by using "-smplayer" in each field,but didn't work. All I get is a black screen. :\ Anywyz, now vlc is working atleast.

Arch Linux

#1 2009-05-01 01:00:30

Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#2 2009-05-01 01:15:32

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#3 2009-05-01 01:22:20

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#4 2009-05-01 14:25:06

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#5 2009-05-01 20:45:48

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#6 2009-05-02 06:06:06

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#7 2009-05-02 06:36:10

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#8 2009-06-22 11:55:11

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#9 2009-06-22 14:12:48

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#10 2009-06-22 15:21:37

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#11 2009-06-22 23:20:21

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#12 2009-06-22 23:23:58

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#13 2009-06-23 12:42:50

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#14 2009-06-23 13:18:13

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#15 2009-06-23 15:03:00

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#16 2009-06-23 17:49:38

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#17 2009-06-26 18:40:26

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#18 2009-06-26 20:01:25

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#19 2009-06-26 20:27:32

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#20 2009-06-26 23:31:59

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#21 2009-06-27 03:20:06

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#22 2009-06-27 12:21:36

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#23 2009-06-27 12:40:41

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#24 2009-06-27 19:23:29

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

#25 2009-06-30 10:36:39

Re: Videolan with ASS subtitles.

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