Online bass test
Step down from 100 Hz to 20 Hz and hear where your speaker, headphones or subwoofer stop answering.
Turn the volume down to about 20–30% before you press Play. Pure tones sound quieter than they are.
The app runs the whole bass test for you as a 30 second sweep from 200 Hz down to 20 Hz, and checks speaker wiring too. Every feature is free.
How to use it
- Start with the volume low and press Play at 100 Hz
- Tap 80, 60, 40, 30 and 20 in turn, or drag the slider slowly to the left
- Note where the tone fades to nothing. That is the bottom of your speaker or headphones
- Listen for buzzing on the way down. A clean speaker sounds like one smooth tone
Use headphones or proper speakers. A phone or laptop speaker cannot play the bottom of this range, so the low tones will sound silent on it even when nothing is wrong.
Hearing safety
A pure continuous tone puts all its energy on one frequency, and it feels quieter than it is. Start with the volume low and raise it slowly. Never play a test tone loud through headphones, and take extra care around 2 to 5 kHz, where the ear is most sensitive.
Questions & answers
How low should my speakers go?expand_more
A phone speaker gives up somewhere above 200 Hz, so a low tone may be almost silent on it. Laptop speakers reach about 100 Hz, earbuds 40 to 50 Hz. Good over-ear headphones and a subwoofer play down to 20 Hz.
What does a rattle or buzz mean?expand_more
Something is loose and resonating at that frequency. It can be the speaker grille, a cabinet panel, a car door trim or a picture frame on the shelf. Move slowly around the frequency where it buzzes to find it.
Why does the bass get quieter before it disappears?expand_more
Every speaker rolls off gradually below its lowest comfortable frequency. The point where the tone fades to nothing or turns into a flutter is its practical limit. Do not turn the volume up to chase it, because that is how drivers get damaged.
How do I check that two speakers are wired the same way?expand_more
Play 80 Hz through both, then flip the polarity of one channel. If the bass gets thinner, they were wired the same way. If it gets fuller, one is wired backwards. The web page cannot flip a channel, the app can.