Sub vs Dub

Started by Altairis January 20th, 2014 12:16 PM
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Do watch DUB/SUB animes of your favorite

Altairis

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Seen December 29th, 2022
Posted October 5th, 2018
5,170 posts
11 Years
Ah yes, the classic anime argument :) Do you prefer watching anime in original Japanese with language of choice subtitles, or with voiceovers from your language of choice (no Japanese)? Keep in mind I'm really only asking when there is an OPTION for both, for example, not when something is airing in Japan and you prefer sub so you don't have to wait. I'm talking about stuff like Fairy Tail, would you rather watch it in English or Japanese?

I've seen this topic go downhill on several other forums so please try to remain civilized (who would have guessed this would be a provoking topic!) ;~;

Ok, I might as well state my opinion. I actually prefer sub, only because a lot of English dubs sound really stated and odd to me. I know that the Japanese probably does too to someone who speaks native Japanese, but I obviously can't tell as much so the Japanese sounds more "natural" and less odd to me. For example, the English voices for the characters of Fairy Tail and Madoka Magica just sound so odd to me. There's this one scene in Madoka Magica where a character confronts two people on a bus and asks them "Hey, is this world even worth protecting? What have I been fighting for all this time?" The kid in Japanese got really upset and started talking really fast but for some reason in the English version she's talking in a really monotone voice and really slowly? It just seemed to convey the wrong emotion for me, haha, even though it might sound odd to a Japanese person. I'm not entirely opposed to watching anime in English though; like I watched an Evangelion movie or two in English and Summer Wars and they were both fine dubs :) Probably a couple others but I don't really remember haha.

ORAS/XYBW

Satoshi Ookami

Memento Mori

Age 30
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Abyss of Time, Great Seal
Seen August 5th, 2018
Posted July 3rd, 2018
14,253 posts
14.8 Years
Dub? What is that?

I might use this comparison...
I can recognize maybe Laura Bailey from English voice cast.
On the other hand... I can pretty much identify about 25 female and 10 male seiyuus.
Why would I want to watch something with voices I don't recognize?


The kid in Japanese
Kid? Yuuki Aoi was 18-19 at the time she was voicing Madoka =)
Not really someone you would call kid =)

got really upset and started talking really fast but for some reason in the English version she's talking in a really monotone voice and really slowly?
English monotone voice is pretty much reason for all the dub hate.
For English voice cast, it's just another job.
For seiyuus, it's fun.
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derozio

door-kun best boii

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Akihabara
Seen June 27th, 2020
Posted August 16th, 2019
5,514 posts
14 Years
I'm actually okay with both. I avoided dubs for quite a while because I thought they were bad most of the time and not worth it. But I've seen few series as of late where I enjoyed dubs as much as subs. Yu yu hakusho's and haruhi's english dubs are excellent, for example. On the other hand, series like dbz I wouldn't prefer sub. Ever. Because english goku > japanese voice. So much better. Otherwise yeah, subs mostly because you're right in saying those guys actually manage to convey the character's feelings more efficiently.

Sheep

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Seen 12 Hours Ago
Posted 15 Hours Ago
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16.6 Years
Sub is my personal preference as well; it's what I'm used to, that and I prefer the original adaptations. I've started watching subs in 2002 or '03 with the original FMA so it was hard to switch away by then, haha.

There are some dubs I absolutely adore, though, like Durarara!! and Soul Eater.

donavannj

Age 32
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Seen 4 Days Ago
Posted 1 Week Ago
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18.2 Years
English dubs, because it's my native language and it's easier to catch the animation subtleties without the subs in the foreground. Some dialog subtleties can be lost in translation, though, and some voice actors feel quite unenthusiastic about their roles, as though they've been recording for days and want to get home and sleep. I've noticed that a lot with main characters, but it's really gotten better over the few years.
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Austin

Age 26
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Seen 5 Hours Ago
Posted 1 Week Ago
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14.1 Years
I used to watch dubs a lot, but I switched to subs a few years ago. The main reason I like subs more is because they force you to pay attention. You can't really look away for more than a few seconds unless you're moderately proficient in Japanese. I get more absorbed in anime when I'm forced to pay attention.
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Nick

Seen 4 Weeks Ago
Posted July 28th, 2021
17,572 posts
18.6 Years
I don't watch a lot of anime, so I don't really get the whole dub is better than sub argument.

When I'm watching something, I don't want to have to pause because I can't read fast enough. I don't want to put forth any effort other than watching and listening and being entertained.

Arc

Male
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Seen March 17th, 2018
Posted January 31st, 2017
2,023 posts
15 Years
I'm fine with either or.

The quality of anime dubbing has risen over the past years, so I'm perfectly fine with watching with dubs. However, I do prefer watching with subs due to the fact that the voices better match the characters of the anime, most of the time.
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Seen June 2nd, 2015
Posted November 25th, 2014
666 posts
9.6 Years
I prefer watching it in English. I don't mind watching it with subs, though.
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Satoshi Ookami

Memento Mori

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There are some dubs I absolutely adore, though, like Durarara!
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Age 33
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Seen July 24th, 2014
Posted July 21st, 2014
480 posts
10.4 Years
It's really a situational thing.

Alot of anime's that have multinational characters, I tend to like the dubbed over the subbed because they tend to feel more immersible that way (Baccano). I sometimes watch series both ways eventually, just because it's interesting to see the comparison. As a standard though, unless the dub is particularly good, I watch sub.
Seen 3 Weeks Ago
Posted January 2nd, 2021
1,549 posts
9.9 Years
I used to watch sub because it kept me engaged and they sounded more natural. When it comes to dub, the va's don't win me over and I will go as far too say the people who make abridge series do it better because they are having fun. I eventually want to get into voice acting but in dubs of anime not that Ben 10 stuff. Now I watch sub because I have to, I have seen all the anime I want and the ones I'm watching aren't localised yet, censored to hell or aren't popular enough to be localised. I did Japanese for one year, I can't speak it but I understand heaps of words so I don't have to be engaged anymore and can go to the fridge for snacks. I have to say sub, but dub could win me over, maybe if they didn't put 12 year olds in the role of 17 year olds, Alibaba!

Satoshi Ookami

Memento Mori

Age 30
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Abyss of Time, Great Seal
Seen August 5th, 2018
Posted July 3rd, 2018
14,253 posts
14.8 Years
I like subs a lot. But when I don't feel like reading them
If you don't feel like reading them, watch RAW =D
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Stockholm
Seen June 24th, 2014
Posted March 31st, 2014
70 posts
9.3 Years
I think it's a question of what you're exposed to first - at least I tend to "cement" the first voices I hear with the characters and everything else will feel "wrong" afterwards. That being said, I prefer the subbed version. In all earnestness, I haven't watched a dub in ages so I can't really comment on their quality - I generally do believe however that the Japanese voice actors do a great job. I know some people say that they can't stand subtitles because they distract them from focusing on the actual animation, but from someone who grew up in a non English speaking country, I'm used having to read subtitles and hardly ever give it a thought.

Raine

Age 29
Female
Ontario, Canada
Seen December 16th, 2017
Posted October 5th, 2017
3,722 posts
9.3 Years
Definitely prefer sub over dub any day :P Although there have been a couple good series that dubbed was tolerable. Inuyasha is a good example, in my opinion, back when I first watched it. Now that I look back, it's okay...Personally I feel Japanese voice actors have more expression in their voices than English ones. The character feels more alive.

Satoshi Ookami

Memento Mori

Age 30
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Posted July 3rd, 2018
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14.8 Years
Personally I feel Japanese voice actors have more expression in their voices than English ones. The character feels more alive.
Exactly this ;) Unfortunately many people feel (because of this fact) that their voices are too high pitched and annoying. I always laugh when they put Kugimiya Rie as an example just because they heard her tsundere roles (in which she's absolutely perfect =D)... these people should seriously hear her voicing Rise from Persona 4.
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Sylphiel

Between your fantasy and my reality
Seen March 28th, 2023
Posted January 9th, 2023
13,114 posts
18.5 Years
I would say subbed, just because that's how I've been getting most of my anime lately, but...

If there was the choice? If it's an older series (say like pre-2000 or so), definitely subs if possible because I don't trust dubs from before a certain time. A few exceptions do exist in that regard, though. Newer series, I might actually give the dub a chance because I feel they've gotten so much better at it within recent years - although I haven't seen a lot of dubbed series lately, so my sample size is admittedly small - and if it's not god-awful, I might just keep watching the dub.

Really, though, I don't mind either. For me it just boils down to what I have available.

Ozymandias

i'm going on a journey

under your bed
Seen March 10th, 2021
Posted February 24th, 2021
1,069 posts
10 Years
It makes me really frustrated when people say they only watch subs and that all dubs are **** cause there are some dubs that are just as good if not better than their japanese counterparts.

Baccano, Bebop, Durarara, FLCL, Gurren Lagann, Champloo, and Full Metal Panic are a few
Seen October 14th, 2014
Posted September 26th, 2014
31 posts
9.3 Years
I don't really prefer one over the other in terms of anime as a whole. But there are dubs I prefer over the original Japanese such as Dragon Ball and there are subs I prefer over the dubs. I'm usually biased towards a sub if I saw something in Japanese first though. As an aspiring voice actor (in Japanese and English) I find both very well done, most of the voice actors are very talented, I hope to be as talented as them some day.

I like both, most of the time both are very well done. FUNimation does an amazing job with their shows, One Piece for example, is on par with its Japanese counterpart in my honest opinion, the voices fit both the characters and the tone of the series. There are a few particular voices I prefer a bit more in Japanese, but nonetheless they still fit very well.

Another reason I like dubs is because I don't have to give it my undivided attention, I can be browsing this forum while watching Zatch Bell without missing anything in the show (I just so happen to be doing this right now haha.) But with subs, since my Japanese isn't so good, I have to be looking at the screen almost all the time. This won't really be a problem once I'm done learning Japanese haha.

Usually I'll watch a dub if it is available dubbed, unless it is by Sentai or I already saw the sub and don't feel like rewatching it. I watch a lot more subs than dubs though since Crunchyroll is sub only.
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Seen 1 Day Ago
Posted February 5th, 2017
6,779 posts
15.5 Years
I'd say subs, not only because I'm a closet weeaboo but also because some English anime tend to rearrange or outright cut things out. Even if content is changed for the better, I'd rather see the creator's original vision first and foremost.

Also I have a much harder time recognizing Japanese voice actors, mostly because I don't care about remembering their names. I love Troy Baker and all, but I already get way too much exposure from him in my video games. The world does not need any more Troy.

Yukiyo Kayume

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Draconia
Seen March 4th, 2015
Posted February 18th, 2015
204 posts
10.2 Years
when I first started watching anime, I started out on the dubs and for a long time that is what I preferred because I thought subs were distracting.

now, I exclusively watch subs because i think that it's awesome to hear the original creation! i mean, in the language it was intended to be in... plus, I think the Japanese voice actors (seiyuus?) do a far better job most of the time in portraying the characters

for instance, I recently heard there was a Magi dub in the making and the voices were just.... well, not good, that I was kinda laughing the whole time and I couldn't take it seriously lol since I watched all of Magi with subs.

some dubs are very good though. such as Bleach and Death Note.

but yeah, I love subs!

(lold at your post Luck. Troy Baker IS everywhere...)

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