Sub or Dub? The Ongoing Debate...

For me, it usually depends on which I saw first. I get really focused on characters, and start to associate the voices with the characters. So if I've seen a sub version and then see a dub, I'm likely not to like it much because it just doesn't sound right to me. Most of the time, I wind up seeing subs first, because I usually discover anime via fansubs before the series come out in the US, at least on TV where I could see it without buying first. So most of the time, I prefer the subs because the voices are the ones I associate with the characters. The other issue here for me is that some dubs take some pretty major liberties with changing names and words, to the point where it drives me nuts. I like the subs because even if they don't subtitle certain things, I can hear the original Japanese and catch nuances of it. The use of names is a big part of this... there's so much you can understand about the relationships of characters to each other by what names they use and the suffixes they use... things that are often completely ignored in dubs. If I've only seen the dubbed version of something and have nothing to compare it to, though, it doesn't bother me. And sometimes if I'm trying to watch anime I already know really well and do something else at the same time, I might turn on the dub track just to make it easy on myself to multitask.

i watch anime RAW. subs are ok but sometimes i dont want something floating below and distracting me. lol. i also watched dubs animes in our local dialect. i like how they matched the voice and the character. i doooont like it dubbed in English because they alter the meaning and sometimes what's being said. i also dont like the pronunciation. well, can't blame the american slang but it makes me laugh. for example, inuyasha shouting kikiyo's name. kikiyo (read: kik-yo), inuyasha shouted it as ki-key-yow. u dont want wondering and frowning when im watching. hehe

I prefer watching subtitled anime. The dub doesn't always capture the tone the original voices have. Also, the dub translation may be a bad one. If I'm watching a subtitled anime and I know some of the original language, I can correct a possibly wrong translated sub. And there's always the relation between the character's lips movement and the sound. If the anime is dubed, there is no such relation.

Well, if its going to be dubbed, I like it when, somehow, they could dub it into our own native language since dubbers here could really handle the expressions that the characters deliver in their dialogues the voice actors really make it a point that the dubbers they assign for the characters are fairly compatible. English dubs are not bad too, I could remember Basilisk and I wasn't disappointed. Then again, I could recall Flame or Recca in english and the dude who used that sword made of Ice sounded like a surfer dude that didn't go well with his character of being an orphaned, serious person. Then I have no complaints for subtitles. Subbers do make it a point to synchronize the dialogue with the text appearing. They even put on additonal info for certain expression that the characters say which is very helpfull.

For the love of God, sub please. Dubs are usually horrible. I'm almost convinced they just drag people off the streets, or they find the people with the most annoying voices around. Maybe its less of an issue for me though as the language has grown on me. Plenty of times I don't even need the subs.

subs are much more better...SOME english dubs dont really have that emotion in them and some words are replaced in english dubs eg. in Naruto jap subs " Im gonna kill you~!!!!!" eng dub "im going to defeat you~!!!!!" and yeah it all depends on the anime xD

i prefer the japanese dub with english subtitle, i can say that indeed it matters the character's seiyu, the story plot especially the illustrations almost everything. and its more fun to watch it as it is and just read the sub than watching it already in english dubbed because in dub most of the times the languages has been alternated and if you understand japanese language, you can compare that there are times that certain words have been changed and missed the importance of what has been exactly said by the character. and in my opinion it lessen the originality of a certain anime that youre watching.

I Like anime RAW. I'm half [jp] & jp as my first language...so I find subs kinda annoying, but dubs are even Worse in most cases. :P

well for some reason i like sub more than dub because by using sub the anime still using it;s original language and i like that because if the anime using original language, its fun animation and voice still original that;s makes the anime is good and if using original language you can learn the language too right ? well as long as the subbing is right in meaning

I prefer dub over sub most of the time. But sometime, the dub is so bad that I use the sub version instead...

For me it really depends on the anime too. I personally loved both versions of Wolf's Rain, but the English dub for that anime was really good. Sometimes I prefer dub over the sub because the characters sound too girly or high pitched, and vice versa. Naruto is infamous for its dub. . .not very many people I've met liked the dub lol. And I'm one of them. I don't mind subtitles. Full Metal Alchemist is one of the cases where I prefer the dub over the sub. Ed simply sounds way too girly, its not even funny. Vic Mignogna does a great job with Ed's voice, and I cannot believe how young he sounds LOL, despite his age. I guess because there are so few male voice actors that can actually play younger male anime characters without making them sound too old, they'd have to rely on female voice actors. . .but still. I think Kagome's voice actress from Inuyasha was a bit too high-pitched, but I loved how they voiced Kikyo's, sounds very similar to the Japanese but in English lol. .Oh and I loved Fruits Baskets in English as well. .Momiji sounds cute in either language hehe. x3 And Yuki sounds more manly : D. I could go on and on, but there are simply too much to name. YOU LIKE THE GRAVI DUB?! LOL. I like most of the voices for that show in the English. . .but there is one reason why I prefer the subbed to the dub. HIRO SOUNDS LIKE AN OLD MAN. X____X; He's Shuichi's best friend for crying out loud and he sounds like a pedophile. LOL not to mention Hiro is like. . .one of my favorite characters on the show. How could they make him sound so old. .DX. They gave him the same voice actor who voiced that one girl's dad from Case Closed. . .-shudder- One word: Creepy.

I do prefer subbed anime, even though sometimes if the scene is very action packed or what not it can be a tad hard to read and watch at the same time. I prefer sub because I like the original voices, sometimes the dubbed ones just don't sound right.

i prefer watching subs. i cant stand the Dubbed version of any anime. The Dubbed versions just don't show the emotion that is supposed to be portrayed.

i prefer sub... anime is from japan therefore it should be japanese, well i'm a filipino but its like a product from japan, it's originally from them and why not let them do the dubbing and just read the subtitle, the voice also change and it will turn out unconvincing because the voice will differ, the accent, and the sound as well and some dubbers also cannot synchronized themselves with the expression of the character..

I prefer watching the original, subbed version of the anime. Since it helps with learning Japanese... Also, as previously mentioned English dubs tend to tone down the violence and such, turning an anime that may have originally been aimed towards teenagers and adults, into a show that is now aimed towards children. Final reason, anime music! Opening and ending themes of animes (especially more popular ones) tend to have great music, music that can be listened to many times over. However, in the English dubs that I have seen, they have removed the Japanese songs and replaced them, which is quite a shame... maybe they don't do that with every anime though, I don't know since they don't really play that much anime here.

I like dub. I dont watch much anime in subs unless its really good. I like some anime thats subbed tho if tha dubbed version is cleaned up. I found some anime in english are much cleaner then tha orginials. So i guess it depends on tha anime fo me to. i rather see some subs wit more blood n action than tha dubbed wit less in it.

Agreeing with the guy up here, I prefer subtitled, but I just have one exception: YuYu Hakusho!

Id rather have sub that dub, i listened to One Piece dubbeded and instantly didnt like it. Beside that not just often it sounds out of place, i like to listen to the native tounge, instead of wanting to hear a language i understand, thats why id rather have subs.

I prefer subs, definitely. Most of the dubs I've seen are just... bad. I like watching them in their original language, too. The character voices always seem to fit better. Also, I'm learning Japanese, so listening to words and phrases I understand is good practice - and fun! :D

Honestly? For me, it just depends on the easiest way for me to get my hands on it. I don't mind if it's subbed, dubbed, or even raw as long as it's good enough quality for me to watch (although I admit, I've gotten more and more picky as of late with the series I am interested in). And, if I have the option, thanks to DVDs nowadays, I tend to go for dubbed so that I can do other things while I watch. I do have to admit, a lot of my dub/sub bias really gets factored into what version I watched first and I think that's the way it is with a lot of people.