Speaker Test
About This Tool
Speaker Test is a guided set of listening checks for any pair of speakers or headphones. It plays carefully generated test signals — single tones, broadband pink noise, and frequency sweeps — so you can hear exactly how your system reproduces sound across the audible range. The tool runs in your browser with no microphone and no setup, and judges nothing automatically: your own ears are the instrument, just as they are when an installer sets up a room.
How to Use
- Pick a test — channels, balance, a frequency sweep, or polarity.
- Press play and listen through your speakers or headphones.
- Compare what you hear with the guidance, and adjust cables, balance, or wiring as needed.
Methodology
Each test targets a specific property of a stereo system. The left/right and balance checks confirm that channels are routed correctly and play at matching levels. The sweeps move smoothly through frequency so any rattle, resonance, or silent gap stands out. The full-range sweep covers the nominal 20 Hz to 20 kHz hearing range, while the subwoofer sweep concentrates on the 20 Hz to 200 Hz bass band, where most low-frequency content and room problems live. The polarity test relies on wave interference: two identical sounds reinforce each other when in phase and partly cancel when one is inverted, which is most audible in the bass. Sweeps use a logarithmic progression so each octave gets equal time, matching human pitch perception.
Understanding Your Results
In the left/right test, the sound should always come from the side you selected; a swapped result means your cables or output settings have the channels reversed. In the balance test, a centered setting should sound equally loud from both sides — if it leans one way, a speaker, cable, or balance setting needs attention. During the sweeps, listen for buzzes, rattles, or sudden silence: a healthy speaker plays smoothly, while rattles often come from loose objects or the room rather than the driver. In the polarity test, the in-phase setting should sound fuller and more centered. If inverting one channel makes the bass stronger instead, one speaker is wired backwards and should be corrected.
Practical Examples
Setting up new bookshelf speakers: run the left/right test and discover the sound comes from the opposite side, so you swap the speaker cables and confirm each channel is now correct. Checking a subwoofer: the subwoofer sweep plays cleanly from 200 Hz down to about 35 Hz, then fades — telling you the sub reaches into the low bass but rolls off below 35 Hz, which is normal for a compact model.
Tips for an accurate speaker test
• Set your system volume low before you start, then raise it gradually — sweeps and bass tones can be surprisingly loud. • Test in the spot where you normally listen, and sit roughly centered between the speakers for the balance and polarity checks. • Turn off any "enhancements," surround processing, or equalizers first so you hear the speakers themselves. • For the polarity test, use loudspeakers rather than headphones — the cancellation effect needs both sounds to mix in the air. • If the top of the full-range sweep is silent, try another device before blaming the speakers; high-frequency hearing fades with age.
Sources
All calculations are performed locally in your browser. No data is sent to any server.