BATS - SubtitleMerge

Also available in:

Deutsch

Embed an SRT file from disk into your video – as a switchable subtitle track in an MKV

SubtitleMerge combines a video clip with an SRT subtitle file from your disk into a single MKV file – using MKVMerge. The subtitles are embedded as a switchable track (not burned in), and video and audio are copied without re-encoding: fast, lossless, and the finished file plays in any MKV-capable player with selectable subtitles.

Adding the menu entry

“SubtitleMerge” is added through the “Add function...” assistant (right-click in the BIN → Add function... → pick SubtitleMerge - Create MKV by SRT). The assistant’s questions:

  1. Placement in the context menu of the BIN or of the timeline.
  2. Name of the menu entry (suggestion: “Add external SRT”), then [Preview '.bat0' file] / [Add menu entry].

That is all the setup takes – you choose the concrete SRT file only at run time.

How to use it

  1. Right-click the video clip → your entry (e.g. “Add external SRT”).
  2. A file dialog opens: pick the desired SRT file from disk.
  3. MKVMerge combines video + SRT into an MKV file (stored next to the source file) – the subtitles are included as a track and can be toggled in the player with a click.

Good to know

  • Embedded, not burned in: the SRT is embedded as a switchable subtitle track. For burned-in (always visible) subtitles this is not the right tool.
  • No re-encode: the video and audio streams are copied 1:1 – the job is fast and no quality is lost. H.264-in-MKV is read without issues by most players/platforms.
  • The timing must match: the SRT is embedded “as found” – it has to match the (possibly IN/OUT-trimmed) timeline of the clip. With IN/OUT points on the clip, the SRT must be shifted/trimmed accordingly.
  • No automatic BIN registration: the finished MKV is stored as a file next to the source and not registered in the BIN automatically – import it into EDIUS via the normal import to add it.

Managing the preset

Entries created via the assistant are user presets: the .bat0 file lives under C:\ProgramData\EdiusPowerTools\BAT-server\bat_files\BIN\ or …\bat_files\timeline\ depending on your choice, and can be freely edited, renamed or deleted (deleting removes the context-menu entry). As with all BATS presets, the .bat0 is a template from which BAT Server generates the concrete job file on every run – changes take effect from the next run.