Studio Monitor Calibrator
Play pink noise to one monitor at a time, capture it with your mic, and overlay the left vs right frequency response, read the relative L/R balance, and get rough EQ hints — plus the standard 85 dB SPL reference-level procedure.
ℹ This is an uncalibrated measurement: you see your monitor + room + microphone combined at one position, on a relative dB scale — it cannot read absolute SPL, so it can’t set 85 dB for you (use an SPL meter; the steps are below). The L/R balance is relative and only valid with the mic centred between the monitors. Built-in mics colour the highs and roll off the deep bass, so judge the shape and the L-vs-R match, not exact numbers. The test tone plays through your speakers; the mic is analyzed live and never recorded.
Left · Right · combined (L+R) · grey = live. Relative response (normalised to each channel’s own average = 0 dB).
How It Works & the 85 dB Setup
The tool plays pink noise to a single monitor (hard-panned left or right), captures the result with your microphone at the listening position, removes pink’s natural −3 dB/octave tilt, smooths to about a sixth of an octave and normalises each channel to its own average. Save the Left measurement, switch to Right, save again, and the two curves overlay so you can see how well the monitors match and where the room/speaker response rises or dips. The L/R balance compares the broadband level the mic captured from each side; with the mic centred, equal levels mean the channels are gain-matched. The EQ hints flag the biggest peaks and dips, but they’re a guide only — fix reflections and modes with treatment first, since EQ can’t repair a cancellation null.
The 85 dB SPL reference (you need an SPL meter for this part). Studio monitoring uses a fixed playback level so mixes translate: the film/post standard is 85 dB SPL (C-weighted, slow) per channel from pink noise at −20 dBFS, while music mixers often work quieter at around 79–83 dB in smaller rooms. To set it: send −20 dBFS pink noise to one monitor, put an SPL meter (C-weighted, slow) at the listening position pointing up, and adjust that monitor’s gain until it reads your target; repeat for the other monitor at the same number. This calculator can’t do that step because a normal microphone isn’t calibrated to a known SPL — but it can confirm the two channels are matched and show their response shape. A dedicated SPL meter or a calibrated measurement mic is the right tool for the absolute level.