discarr/docs/transcoders/handbrake.md
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HandBrake

HandBrake is an optional transcoder. Use it instead of ffmpeg when you want to use HandBrake's preset system or its more aggressive subtitle/chapter handling.

Enable HandBrake

DISCARR_TRANSCODER=handbrake

Preset

Specify any preset available in your HandBrake installation:

HANDBRAKE_PRESET=H.265 MKV 1080p30

Common presets

Preset Resolution Notes
H.265 MKV 1080p30 1080p Default — good balance
H.265 MKV 720p30 720p Smaller files
H.265 MKV 576p25 576p PAL DVD native
H.265 MKV 480p30 480p NTSC DVD native
Production Max Source Near-lossless, large files

List all available presets on your system:

HandBrakeCLI --preset-list

Custom presets

Export a preset from HandBrake's GUI, save it to a JSON file, and reference it:

HANDBRAKE_PRESET_FILE=/home/mediauser/.config/handbrake/my-preset.json
HANDBRAKE_PRESET=My Custom Preset

Subtitle handling

HandBrake handles subtitle tracks more gracefully than ffmpeg for DVD sources — it can burn in forced subtitles automatically. If you have discs with forced subtitle tracks (common for foreign-language scenes), HandBrake is the better choice.

!!! note "ffprobe still required" HandBrake handles encoding, but Discarr still uses ffprobe for disc metadata scanning. Keep ffmpeg/ffprobe installed even when using HandBrake as the transcoder.