Speaker and headphone test: check left, right, and both channels
Play isolated tones on each channel and run a frequency sweep to confirm your speakers or headphones are working correctly before your next call, movie, or listening session.
Test tones
Plays a 440 Hz sine wave routed to one or both channels. Use headphones or check each speaker separately for the clearest test.
30%
Output device
This browser does not expose output device switching. Change your speaker or headphone selection from your operating system's sound settings instead.
Currently playing: nothing
Quick guide: how to use the Speaker Test
Takes under a minute- 1Turn your volume to a comfortable level first.
- 2Click Start Test to play the tone sequence.
- 3Confirm you hear the left channel, then the right, then both.
- 4One silent side points to a balance setting, a cable, or a dead driver.
Overview
Audio output problems tend to hide until the worst possible moment, like the start of a video call or the opening scene of a movie, so it's worth confirming your speakers or headphones actually work before you need them. This test plays generated tones directly through the browser's Web Audio API, letting you check the left channel, right channel, and both channels together, plus run a frequency sweep to hear how your output device handles the full audible range.
Because the tones are generated in the browser rather than pulled from a music file, you get a clean, predictable signal with no mixing or mastering choices muddying the result. That makes it much easier to isolate a genuine hardware or configuration problem from something that's simply a quirk of a particular song or video.
How to read your results
Left, right, and both channel tests
Each button isolates a single channel so you can confirm both speakers or both headphone drivers are producing sound independently. You should hear the tone clearly and only from the side you selected. If a channel test produces no sound, or sound leaks faintly from the other side, that's a specific, actionable clue rather than a vague "audio isn't working" symptom.
The frequency sweep
The sweep moves smoothly from low bass frequencies up through the high treble range, letting you hear where your speakers or headphones start to roll off or sound thin. A gradual fade at the extreme ends is normal; an abrupt cutout, buzz, or rattle at a specific frequency in the middle of the range can indicate a damaged speaker cone or a loose driver connection.
Choosing an output device
If your browser supports it, you can pick a specific output device from the dropdown above, which is especially useful when you have multiple options connected at once, like laptop speakers, a USB headset, and a Bluetooth speaker, and need to confirm sound is routing to the one you actually intend to use.
Troubleshooting no-sound and one-sided audio
Complete silence from all outputs
- Check that the volume isn't muted at the system level, not just within a single app.
- Confirm the correct output device is selected as default in your operating system's sound settings.
- For wired speakers or headphones, reseat the cable fully, since a partially inserted plug can cut audio entirely.
- Restart the browser tab, since a stuck audio context occasionally needs a fresh page load to recover.
Sound from only one channel
First confirm this happens across multiple sources, not just one video or song, since some poorly mastered content is genuinely mixed unevenly between channels. If the left or right test tone above is silent on one side, check for a bent or damaged plug on wired headphones, or a balance setting in your system's sound preferences that may have been shifted away from center.
Headphones detected but no sound plays
Many operating systems keep speakers as the active output even after headphones are physically plugged in or paired over Bluetooth, especially with older USB or Bluetooth adapters that don't trigger automatic switching. Manually selecting the headphones in your system's sound output menu resolves this in most cases.
Crackling, popping, or distorted playback
Lower the system volume and test again, since some external speakers distort at very high volume even when the source signal is clean. For Bluetooth audio, move closer to the connected device and remove physical obstructions, as interference and range issues are common causes of intermittent crackling that wired connections don't experience.
Bluetooth and wireless audio quirks
Bluetooth speakers and headphones introduce a few failure points that wired audio doesn't have to deal with. A successful pairing only means the devices found each other over Bluetooth; it doesn't guarantee your computer has switched its actual audio output to that device. After pairing, always check your system's sound settings to confirm the Bluetooth device is selected as the active output before assuming something is broken.
Range and interference also matter more than most people expect. Thick walls, other Bluetooth devices nearby, and even a crowded 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi environment can cause dropouts or crackling that has nothing to do with the speaker or headphones themselves. If problems only happen at a distance or in a busy room, try moving closer to rule out interference before troubleshooting further.
Before an important call or presentation
Run both the channel test and the frequency sweep a few minutes before any call or presentation where audio really matters. It only takes a few seconds and catches the two most common last-minute failures: the wrong output device being selected, and one channel being silent, both of which are easy to fix once you know about them but embarrassing to discover live in front of other people.
Frequently asked questions
How do I test my speakers online for free?
Click the buttons above to play a tone on the left channel, right channel, and both together. If you hear clean, balanced sound from each channel independently, your speakers and audio output are working correctly at the browser level.
How do I test left and right speakers separately?
Use the dedicated left and right buttons in the tool above rather than a stereo music track, since music often has overlapping content in both channels that makes it hard to tell them apart. This test plays an isolated tone through only one channel at a time so you can confirm each speaker or headphone driver individually.
There's no sound from my headphones but speakers work fine.
This almost always means your operating system's default audio output is still set to your speakers rather than your headphones. Check your system's sound output selector, or use the output device dropdown in this tool if your browser supports it, and select your headphones explicitly before testing again.
I hear sound in only one ear or one speaker.
Run the left and right channel tests separately to confirm which side is silent. If it's consistently the same side across different apps and different pairs of headphones, the problem is upstream at your computer's audio output or a balance setting. If it only happens with one specific pair of headphones, the fault is more likely a damaged cable or driver in that headset.
Why does the frequency sweep sound like it disappears at the very high or low end?
This is expected and normal. Most consumer speakers and even good headphones can't accurately reproduce the extreme low end below roughly 50 Hz or the extreme high end above about 16 kHz, and human hearing itself typically rolls off well before 20 kHz, especially as people get older. A sweep fading out at the edges reflects real physical and biological limits, not a defect.
My computer shows no audio output devices at all.
Check that your speakers or headphones are properly connected and powered on if they require external power. On Windows, check Device Manager for a disabled or missing audio device, and on macOS check System Settings' Sound panel to confirm at least one output device is listed and selected as active.
Sound works in this test but not in a specific app like Zoom or Spotify.
Most apps have their own audio output selector separate from your system default, and it can silently stay pointed at an old or disconnected device. Open that app's audio or sound settings and manually confirm the correct output device is selected there, then retest.
Why does audio crackle or stutter only sometimes?
Intermittent crackling is often caused by a Bluetooth connection under interference, a loose cable connection, or your computer's CPU briefly struggling to keep up with audio processing while other demanding tasks run. Try a wired connection instead of Bluetooth to rule out wireless interference as the cause.
How can I tell if the problem is my speakers or my computer's sound card?
Test the same speakers or headphones on a different computer or device if you have one available. If they work fine elsewhere, the issue is with your original computer's audio output, driver, or settings. If they're silent everywhere you try them, the speakers or headphones themselves are the more likely fault.
Should I test at low or high volume first?
Start at a low volume, especially with headphones, since a working audio path can sometimes deliver an unexpectedly loud tone the first time it plays. Once you've confirmed sound is present, raise the volume gradually to a comfortable level and repeat the channel tests to make sure both sides stay balanced as volume increases.
My Bluetooth headphones connect but there's still no sound.
A successful Bluetooth pairing only confirms the wireless connection, not that your computer has actually selected them as the active audio output. Open your system's sound settings after connecting and explicitly choose the Bluetooth device as the output before testing, since many operating systems don't switch automatically.