Speaker Test

Speaker Test plays sounds made in your browser to check speakers, headphones and earphones. Press Left, Both or Right to play a short tone from only that side: if you hear the left tone from the right, the headphones are on the wrong way round or the cable is wired wrongly; if one side is silent, that speaker, earbud or cable connection has failed. Choose the tone — a 60 Hz bass note that small laptop speakers can barely play, the 440 Hz tuning note, the 1,000 Hz test tone, or an 8,000 Hz treble — and set the volume. The frequency sweep plays one tone rising smoothly from 20 Hz, below the lowest bass, to 20,000 Hz, the top of human hearing, over fifteen seconds while the page shows the current frequency, so you can hear where your speakers start and stop and catch any buzz or rattle on the way.

1. Turn the volume down first, especially with headphones, then press Both and raise it until the tone is comfortable.
2. Press Left and then Right. Each tone should come only from that side.
3. Choose another tone from the list to test bass or treble, and press a side again.
4. Press Play the sweep and listen from start to finish: note when the tone appears, when it fades out, and any rattle along the way.

• The tones play through whatever output the system is set to. To test a different speaker or headset, choose it in the system’s sound settings (or the browser’s, where it has one) and come back.
• Few speakers play the whole sweep. Laptop and phone speakers usually start around 150–300 Hz; earbuds and good headphones reach much lower. And most adults hear little above 15–17 kHz, so silence at the top is normal and says more about ears than speakers.
• A Bluetooth headset that is also using its microphone can drop to a mono, lower-quality mode in which left and right are the same. Close call apps and try again.
• System “spatial audio”, “virtual surround” or “mono audio” (an accessibility setting) can mix the sides together. Switch those off to test left and right.
• Very loud tones can damage hearing and speakers. Keep the volume moderate, and do not leave a tone playing with headphones on.
• The sounds are generated by your browser as you press the buttons; nothing is downloaded, recorded or sent, and the page works offline. The page does not use your microphone.

Put them on, press Left and listen: the tone should be only in your left ear. Then press Right. If they are swapped, the headphones are on backwards or the channels are swapped in the system’s sound settings.

Yes — play Left and Right in turn at the same volume. A clearly quieter side is often earwax or dust in the mesh, a damaged driver or a loose plug. Also check the balance slider in the system’s sound settings.

Young people often hear from about 20 Hz to nearly 20 kHz. The top end falls with age: many adults stop hearing around 14–16 kHz, which is normal. This is not a hearing test; for that, see an audiologist.

Check the volume slider here and the system volume, that the right output is chosen in the system’s sound settings, that the tab is not muted (right-click the tab), and that a phone is not on silent.