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Can I re-translate after editing the source video?

Learn why a finished dub can't take a new source video, why a fresh start is needed for re-cuts, and how to fix small wording changes inside the dub.

Once a dub is finished, the source video and its dub are tied together. If you go back and re-cut, re-shoot, or substantially change the source, you can't replace the source on an existing dub — you'd need to start fresh.

Why you can't replace the source

A finished dub is built from many tightly connected pieces:

  • The transcription of the original audio

  • Translations into each target language

  • Voice clones tied to the source speakers

  • Per-segment timing aligned with the source video

  • Lip-Sync output keyed to specific frames If you replace the source video, all of those become stale. The transcription points at audio that's no longer there. The lip-sync targets faces in frames that are now different. Re-aligning everything to a new source is essentially the same work as creating a new dub.

Small wording change in one or two segments

If your edit was small — fixed a typo in your script, replaced a word, removed a brief mistake — and the audio length is roughly the same, you can fix it inside the existing dub:

  1. Find the affected segment(s) in your existing dub.

    Edit Translation"

  2. Edit the original text or the translated text to match the new content.

    Advanced Editor open with the segment view

  3. Save. The audio regenerates for that segment.

This avoids re-rendering the whole video. See Editing a segment: original text and translation for the specifics.

Segment editor comparing German source and English translation, edited word boxed, Save button

Segment editor with German source and English translation, corrected phrase boxed, Save button

Substantial re-cut, re-shot footage or new sections

If the source video itself is different (sections cut, new clips added, total length changed):

  1. Upload the new source as a brand-new dub.

    + Create Dub" (oben rechts)

  2. Pick the same source and target languages.

  3. Reuse your custom voices, Translation Styles, and glossary if they're configured at the project or account level — the new dub picks them up automatically.

  4. Re-link any external share links (the old dub's link won't show the new content).

Tips to avoid the problem

  • Lock the source before dubbing. Make all your video edits — color, cuts, audio mix — before uploading. Dubly.AI is best run as the last step in your post-production, not in parallel with editing.

  • For series and recurring videos, use Projects so you can reuse Translation Styles and custom voices across new dubs without reconfiguring.

  • Keep a checklist of what's tied to a specific dub (share links, embeds, downstream uploads) so you know what to update if you have to recreate it.

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