Surround Sound Test — 5.1 & 7.1
Test 5.1 and 7.1 surround with binaural spatialization, speaker mapping and channel ID for receivers. Headphones work too. Free in your browser, no download.
Protect your hearing. Start at a low volume. Never raise the volume to make a tone audible. Levels are shown in dBFS, relative to full scale — not SPL.
How it works
Interactive 5.1 and 7.1 surround speaker mapping. Generates pink noise bursts and reference tones spatialized via binaural interaural time difference (ITD) and pinna frequency filtration for stereo headphones, with discrete multichannel guidance for AV receivers.
Surround sound expands stereo audio into an immersive, three-dimensional acoustic soundstage. Whether calibrating an AV home theater or verifying spatial audio on headphones, proper channel assignment and balance are essential.
Standard Surround Layouts
5.1 Surround (ITU-R BS.775)
- Front Left (L) & Front Right (R): ±30° from center listener axis. Delivers stereo music, stereo imaging, and wide ambient panning.
- Center (C): 0° directly in front. Anchors dialogue and on-screen vocal intelligibility.
- Subwoofer (LFE - Low Frequency Effects): Omnidirectional sub-bass (typically crossed over at 80 Hz) for explosions and deep impact.
- Surround Left (SL) & Surround Right (SR): ±100° to ±120° (to the side and slightly behind the listener). Delivers room reflections and side effects.
7.1 Surround
- Adds two dedicated Back Surrounds (BL & BR) at ±135° to ±150° directly behind the listener, splitting side ambient reflections from rear localization cues.
Frequently asked questions
Can web browsers output true 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound?
By default, desktop and mobile browsers mix down audio to 2-channel stereo for standard headphones and computer speakers. To deliver a surround experience to anyone, this tool uses psychoacoustic binaural spatialization (ITD timing delays and pinna frequency shadowing). However, if your computer is connected to a multi-channel USB DAC or HDMI AV receiver and your OS is configured for 5.1/7.1 multichannel output, discrete PCM channels can be addressed.
Why can't browsers bitstream Dolby Digital, DTS, or Dolby Atmos?
Dolby Digital (AC-3), DTS-HD, and Dolby Atmos are proprietary, licensed, compressed bitstreams. Browsers do not include licensed decoders for bitstream passthrough in the Web Audio API; they only output uncompressed LPCM (Linear Pulse Code Modulation).
How do I test each individual speaker in my surround setup?
Click on any individual speaker node in the interactive room diagram (Front Left, Center, Front Right, LFE, Surround Left, Surround Right) or click 'Test All Speakers in Sequence' to automatically pan a pink noise burst around the room.
Why is pink noise preferred over a pure tone for speaker testing?
Pink noise contains equal acoustic energy per octave across all audible frequencies (20 Hz to 20,000 Hz). This excites all speaker drivers (tweeters, midranges, woofers) simultaneously, making tonal mismatches, phase issues, and rattle far more obvious than a single-frequency sine wave.
How do I run a 7.1 surround sound test?
Click each speaker node in turn, or run the full sequence, and confirm pink-noise bursts arrive from the matching direction with the center channel anchored to the screen. Browsers mix to stereo by default, so headphone listeners hear binaural virtualization while HDMI or multichannel DAC setups can address discrete channels.