Audio · headphone listening check
Headphone Test
Map the earcups, compare stereo isolation and interchannel polarity, then check whether a centered image stays steady across four short tone spots.
Hearing safety
Set the system volume low first
Test tones can feel louder than music. Never turn up a faint low or high tone, and stop immediately if anything feels sharp, loud, or uncomfortable. Tool gain is not a dB SPL reading.
How to use
- Acknowledge safety with the hardware volume low.
- Map Left, Center, and Right before other checks.
- Compare isolation, polarity, and the four tone spots.
- Record only what you heard; retest on another source.
Listening desk
Silent — no audio graph is running.
The browser can request a stereo route; only you can confirm the physical result.
01 · Channel map
Identify the earcups
Each 440 Hz sine lasts one second. Confirm the label matches the ear, and that Both forms a centered image.
02 · Separation cue
Alternate the active ear
Four short pulses alternate Left → Right → Left → Right. Listen for a distinct switch and whether the nominally silent side seems to carry anything.
This is subjective listening guidance, not a crosstalk measurement. Fit, bone conduction, mono/spatial settings, adapters, and the source path can change the impression.
03 · Polarity A/B
Compare center and diffuse cues
A sends the same 220 Hz sine to both ears. B inverts only the right channel. A often feels centered; B often feels wider or diffuse.
A different impression does not prove correct wiring; system processing and the listener also affect this comparison.
04 · Center-image spots
Follow four short frequencies
Both channels receive the same signal at reduced high-frequency levels. Note whether the apparent center moves; do not raise the volume to chase a spot.
Apparent movement can come from fit, seal, your ears, balance settings, codec, or headphones. It is not a frequency-response or hearing test.
Your listening notes
Selections stay only in this page and clear on Reset. They are observations, not an automatic verdict.
No observations recorded.
What this can help you notice
Subjective channel placement, a perceived side leak, an A/B polarity contrast, or a center-image shift worth repeating after checking fit, cable seating, OS balance, mono audio, and spatial processing.
What it cannot establish
- No calibrated SPL, true crosstalk, frequency-response, distortion, latency, or electrical polarity measurement.
- No hearing-health assessment or hardware diagnosis; your ears and the full output chain affect every result.
- Silence alone does not prove failure. Retest the same headphones on another known-good source.