BSPlayer (written BS.Player by its developer) is a video and audio player for Windows. It opens common video and audio files, plays subtitles in many formats, handles internet streams and organizes local media through a built-in library. The free edition is for non-commercial use; a paid PRO edition adds capture, DVD, YouTube and subtitle-editing functions.
Video and audio formats
On the video side, BSPlayer reads AVI, MKV (Matroska), MP4, MOV, WMV, ASF, WebM, OGM, VOB, MPEG-1 and MPEG-2, Xvid and 3ivx files, among others. Audio playback covers MP3, WAV, OGG, AAC, WMA, AIF and RAM files.
A few playback options deal with files that ordinary players handle poorly:
- Archived video: a movie split into a multi-volume RAR archive plays without extraction. Users start the player on the first volume, and it reads the rest from there.
- Several audio tracks: when an AVI file carries more than two audio streams, the listener picks the language track to hear.
- Separate audio: users can load an external audio file to play alongside the video, for example a different soundtrack.
- Embedded content: the player reads subtitles and chapters stored inside MKV, OGG and AVI files directly.
BSPlayer can also send audio digitally over S/PDIF without conversion, so an external receiver does the decoding. The developer presents BSPlayer as light on processor use, which makes it a candidate for older or less powerful PCs.
Subtitle display and timing
Subtitles are one of BSPlayer’s main areas. It reads SubRip (.srt), SubStation Alpha (.ssa and .ass), MicroDVD, SubViewer, VPlayer and VobSub files. When a film has no matching subtitle file, the player can search for one online and download it.
The look of the text is adjustable: font type and size, outline, shadow and screen position. Two external subtitle files can run at the same time, each in its own position. This lets a viewer show two languages together, such as a native language and one being learned.
Viewers can shift out-of-sync subtitles with keyboard shortcuts while the film plays. This lets them fix small timing errors without leaving the player.
Screen size and picture shape
Users can set the BSPlayer window to any size or switch to full screen with one click. For TVs, projectors and large displays, the player can change the output resolution. Users can fix the aspect ratio at 4:3, 16:9 or a custom value. Pan-scan crops the black bars from widescreen video shown on a 4:3 screen. A desktop mode plays the video directly on the Windows desktop.
Users can save the current frame as a JPG or BMP image with a user-defined naming pattern for the saved files.
Media Library and playlists
The BS.MediaLibrary module gathers the audio and video files on the hard drive into one list. Users can search files, sort them by chosen criteria and filter them by genre. This helps when they forget a title but remember its type.
Users build playlists either in the library or in the main player window. BSPlayer imports its own BST lists and M3U lists from Winamp, and entries can come from any folder or from a URL. Users can also drop files onto the player from anywhere on the computer. Repeat-all and random repeat modes control the order of playback.
Skins and saved settings
The interface uses skins. A large collection of ready-made skins is available in categories such as anime, games, sci-fi and movies. Users can also design their own with the developer’s skin tools.
BSPlayer can keep per-movie preferences in an INI file and apply them automatically when that movie plays again. For automation, BSPlayer accepts command-line options that control how it starts and what it plays.
What BSPlayer PRO adds
The PRO edition is a paid license that keeps the same player and adds hardware, disc and online functions:
| Area | PRO function |
|---|---|
| Capture and TV | Works with capture and TV tuner cards and shows Teletext. Records from a capture device to disk in any format supported by the installed codecs, such as WebM or Xvid. |
| Discs and camcorders | DVD playback through a DVD front end (a separate MPEG-2 decoder is needed) and AVCHD video from Canon, JVC, Panasonic and Sony camcorders. |
| YouTube | Plays YouTube videos, including HD streams, and saves them to the local disk. |
| Subtitle editor | Converts subtitle frame rates (for example from 23 to 25 fps), corrects timing and saves the result as an .srt file. |
| Network buffering | Caches part of a file and plays from that cache, which smooths playback from network shares, wireless connections and CDs. |
| Audio and keys | Adds an adjustable audio equalizer and global multimedia-key support. |
The PRO edition also removes the non-commercial-use notice shown by the free player. It includes email technical support and updates for the license period. A separate BSPlayer app exists for Android.
