Speaker test online. Left, then right.
Check that sound plays, and that it plays on both sides, before a call or a lecture. A short tone plays on the left and then the right.
One check
- Speakers
Runs like the stress test: one check after another, with the progress along the top. Nothing you show the camera or say into the microphone leaves this page.
What it measures
Measured here, not assumed.
Left channel
A 440 Hz tone for under a second, sent to the left only.
Right channel
A 660 Hz tone, sent to the right only. A different pitch makes the two easy to tell apart.
Your answer
The page cannot hear your speakers, so it asks whether you heard both. That answer is the result.
If it fails
The usual failures, and what fixes each.
- Nothing was heard
- Turn the volume up and check the system is not muted. In the system's sound settings, choose the right output device: many laptops list a monitor or a headset as well as their speakers.
- Only one side
- A headphone plug not pushed in fully is the usual cause. On a desktop, check the balance slider in the sound settings, and the cable between speakers.
- Sound comes from the wrong device
- Unplug headphones if you want the speakers, or select the headset as the output. Bluetooth headsets sometimes connect for calls only, with a separate profile for music.
Where a browser stops
What it cannot tell you.
- Whether the sound is actually coming out. No browser can listen to a speaker; only you can.
- Which device the system is sending sound to. The page plays to whatever the system has chosen; a monitor, a headset or a TV can be the surprise answer.
- Sound quality, distortion or volume. A tone tells you the channel works, nothing more.
Privacy
Nothing leaves this page.
The camera and microphone are read on this page and stopped as soon as they have been measured. The clip you can play back lives in the browser's memory and is discarded when you leave. The location check discards the position. The internet test sends random bytes to this site and nothing else. The result is stored nowhere unless you ask for it by email, and then only the fact that an email was sent is kept.
Questions
Speaker test, answered
- How do I test my speakers online?
- Run the test above and turn your volume up. A tone plays on the left, then the right. Say whether you heard both. If not, the fixes above cover mute, the wrong output device and a half-plugged headphone cable.
- Why do I hear the tone on one side only?
- A headphone plug not pushed in fully, a balance slider moved to one side, or a damaged cable or earpiece. Try another pair of headphones to tell the computer from the headset.
- Why is there no sound at all?
- Usually the system is sending sound to another device, such as a monitor with no speakers or a headset that is not on. Choose the output device in the sound settings and check the volume and mute there too.
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