Audio Delay Calculator

Achieve perfect speaker time alignment with our free audio delay calculator. By calculating the precise delay needed for speakers at different distances, you can ensure your sound arrives coherently, improving clarity and bass response. Essential for home theater, live sound, and studio setups. Explore more music and audio tools on CalculatorBolt.

Calculate Audio Delay

m
Measure from listening position
°C
Air temperature in your room
Automatically calculated based on temperature

Sample Rate Conversion

Preset Scenarios

Export

How to Calculate Audio Delay

Sound travels at a finite speed, which changes slightly with air temperature. When speakers are at different distances from your listening position, their sound waves arrive at different times. This calculator determines the delay to apply to your closer speakers so their sound aligns with the furthest one, creating a single, cohesive sound source.

Inputs Explained

  • Distance to Speaker: Measure the distance from your primary listening position to the speaker you want to delay.
  • Temperature: The air temperature affects the speed of sound. Use the approximate temperature of your room for the most accurate results.

Example

Your main speakers are 3 meters away, but your subwoofer is only 1 meter away. To align them, you need to delay the main speakers.

  • Distance to align: 3m - 1m = 2 meters.
  • At 20°C (68°F), the speed of sound is ~343.42 m/s.
  • Required Delay: (2m / 343.42 m/s) × 1000 = 5.82 ms.

You would set a 5.82 ms delay on your main speakers.

Tips & Important Notes

  • Always measure from your primary listening position.
  • For subwoofer alignment, it's often best to delay the main speakers, not the subwoofer (LFE channel).
  • Small delays can have a large impact on sound quality, especially in the low-frequency range.
  • Use the "Sample Rate Conversion" in advanced options to convert the delay to samples for your digital audio workstation (DAW) or digital signal processor (DSP).

FAQs

It ensures that sound waves from all speakers arrive at the listening position at the same time. This improves clarity, imaging, and the impact of bass, preventing phase cancellation.

The speed of sound increases by approximately 0.6 m/s (or about 1.1 ft/s) for every 1°C (1.8°F) increase in temperature.

Delay is a time shift. Phase is a time shift expressed as a fraction of a waveform's cycle. This calculator deals with delay, which is the practical parameter to set on audio equipment.

No. All calculations are performed in your browser. You can use the Share Link feature to save your settings.

Disclaimer

This calculator provides an estimate for audio delay based on physical formulas. For professional acoustic calibration, especially in complex environments, using specialized measurement equipment like a calibrated microphone and software (e.g., SMAART, Room EQ Wizard) is highly recommended.

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Author: CalculatorBolt Editorial Team
Reviewed by: Audio Engineer/Specialist
Published: • Updated: