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MKV to text

MKV to text

Upload an MKV file and get the speech in it as text. MKV (Matroska) is the container OBS, downloaded films and many screen recorders produce. The file uploads as it is and only the audio is read.

Free preview: one file up to 15 minutes and 25 MB, 3 tries a day, no account needed.

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What MKV is

Matroska can hold almost anything: several video, audio and subtitle tracks in one file. That flexibility is why it is a long-time default recording format in OBS Studio, and why files that come from disc rips or downloads use it. Transcription uses the audio track; the picture and the other tracks are ignored.

OBS and multiple audio tracks

OBS can record your microphone and desktop sound as separate audio tracks inside one MKV. If the tracks are separate and the file presents them that way, a transcript may contain only one of them. If you need both voices, mix them into one track in OBS's advanced audio settings before recording, or extract the track you need with a video tool first. Check one short test file before you record a long interview.

Steps

  1. Choose the .mkv file above.
  2. Read the transcript and listen back to confirm the right voices are there.
  3. Export TXT, SRT or VTT.

Embedded subtitles

An MKV may already contain subtitle tracks. We do not read those: transcription here comes from the sound. If a film's subtitles are what you want as text, extract them with a tool such as MKVToolNix, then use the SRT to text cleaner in the browser.

How it works

  1. Add a recording

    Drop in a video or audio file, choose one from your device, or record from the microphone. Nothing to install.

  2. It transcribes

    Speech becomes timestamped text, with speaker labels when more than one person talks.

  3. Read, fix, export

    Click any line to correct it, then download TXT, subtitles, Markdown, JSON or CSV.

Questions

Can I transcribe an OBS recording?
Yes. Record to MKV or MP4 and upload the file; see the audio track note above for multi-track recordings.
Do you read the subtitles inside the MKV?
No, only the audio is transcribed.
MKV is large. Any way around the size limit?
Extract the audio with the video to audio tool and upload that.
Is it free?
Yes — one file up to 15 minutes and 25 MB with no account, up to 3 tries a day. A free account keeps your transcripts in a library and lifts the guest limits; the current limits and paid plans are on the pricing page.
What can I export?
Plain text, timestamped text, SRT, VTT, Markdown, JSON with word timings and CSV, all from the same edited transcript.

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