Any sound system, be it the best, cannot function unhindered, if proper care in maintaining it is not considered. You should regularly check your sound system, especially the speakers.
In an audio system, the speakers are the most important. You have to be sure that the audio speakers are functioning properly by checking the following:
1. Make sure that they are positioned fittingly and are suitably in sync.
2. Ensure that the treble and bass of the audio speakers are in harmony with each other.
3. You need to adjust the volume of each speaker the way it is best audible to you and others in the room. The volume adjustment also depends on the type of the music you are listening – soft or hard.
4. Check the audio speakers separately to make sure all of them are running. It is simple to test the audio speakers, with the help of a few hardware and software programs.
The different ways of testing the audio speakers of your system are as follows:
Tests for multimedia speakers:
There are different test tones that can be used, that include the 30Hz, 50Hz, 100Hz, 250Hz, 500Hz, 1000Hz, 10000Hz, and 15000Hz. These are tones of extremely low or high frequencies. You can also use Pink Noise that contains all the frequencies. If your speakers play most, if not all, of these frequencies accurately, then they are properly functioning. However, if your speakers are not playing on any of these frequencies, this does not mean that they are not functioning. A lot of other factors can be responsible.
Audio CD tests:
You may download an audio test CD to test your audio speakers. You may also use a CD you are familiar with. In case of the latter, you can know how the track should sound and you can figure out the anomalies easily.
Some of the frequencies may sound louder than the ones played before them or the ones following them. This might indicate an anomaly in the speakers. It may also mean that you have struck a resonance frequency in the room. It is, however, normal if there is a little variation in the frequency response. Some might even sound louder but the sensitivity of our ears vary with the varying frequencies.
Software to test audio speakers:
Software made specially to test speakers include:
- Speaker Test software
- THX Audio Optimizer
- PassMark Soundcheck
- Maven Wizard (free audio testing software)
Steps to test speakers: To test the audio speakers, you need to do the following:
1. Check the wires of the audio speakers. The âleftâ and ârightâ output jacks for the speakers are marked specifically on the receiver. Link the speaker on the left to the âleftâ output jack, the right to the ‘right’ jack and repeat this step for all the other speakers.
2. Switch on the audio system.
3. Set the volume of your system to low. Turn on the CD mode and insert an audio CD. If you are using anything else, such as a tape or a movie, select the apt mode. Press âPlayâ to play the music or sound.
4. Turn up the volume high so that you can hear the sound out of the audio speakers.
5. Listen to each audio speaker individually to make sure all of them are working. Use Balance Control, if necessary.
Troubleshooting:
If no sound is heard from the speakers, follow the steps below:
1. Double check the wiring of the audio speakers. Make sure that the speakers are attached to the correct output jacks, and that they are not loose.
2. Double check the volume and make sure it is turned up. It might be that the volume is not loud enough for the sound of the speakers to be heard.
3. Try linking the speakers into various output jacks present on the receiver.
4.Try various speaker cables and make sure your cables are not defective.
5. Check all the speakers by attaching them to another audio system. It might be that your audio system is faulty.
6. If the above steps fail, you may have defective audio speakers which may need to be replaced.
