Microphone Level / Clipping Checker
Live volume meter, peak-hold indicator and clipping warning for your microphone. Everything runs in your browser — nothing is recorded or uploaded.
Microphone
Click Start to grant permission and begin measuring your input level in real time.
Last updated: September 2026
Ready to test.
Click Start Microphone. Your browser will ask for permission — once you allow it, speak into your mic and watch the meter respond.
How it works
When you click Start, the browser asks for permission to access your microphone. Once granted, the tool pipes your live audio into a Web Audio AnalyserNode and reads samples about 60 times a second — that's what powers the moving bar. It calculates RMS (root-mean-square) for the current volume, tracks the highest recent value as the "peak" indicator, and flags a clipping warning when samples hit the top or bottom of the full-scale range. Everything runs on this page; no audio ever leaves your browser.
How to use this tool
- Click Start Microphone. Your browser will prompt for permission — click Allow.
- Speak at your normal recording distance and volume. Watch the meter and the current-level number.
- Aim for a Good level (green zone, 30–70). If the verdict says "Too quiet", move closer, turn up your interface gain or check that the right input is selected. If it says "Clipping!" back off or lower the gain.
- Click Stop & release mic when you're done — this fully releases the device so no other tab or app is blocked.
Frequently asked questions
Is my audio being recorded or sent anywhere?
No. The stream from your microphone is analysed live in your browser and immediately discarded — nothing is saved, transmitted or logged. When you click Stop (or leave the page), the tool calls track.stop() on every track in the stream, which fully releases the mic and turns off the browser's recording indicator.
What's a "good" level?
Aim for the meter to peak around 60–75 out of 100 when you're speaking normally. If it lives around 20 or below, you're recording too quiet — you'll pick up noise when you boost it in post. If it constantly hits 90+ you'll clip on louder syllables. Clipping is unrecoverable: the waveform gets flat-topped and no plugin can restore it.
The permission was denied. How do I re-enable?
Click the lock/camera icon in your browser's address bar → find the microphone permission for this site → set it to "Allow". Then reload the page. On mobile Safari, you may need to go to Settings → Safari → Camera & Microphone.
Which mic does the tool use?
Whichever mic is set as your browser's default input. To change: go to your OS sound settings (System Settings → Sound → Input on Mac, or Settings → Sound on Windows) and switch the default input, then reload this page.
Why does the verdict flash between Good and Too loud?
Voice is dynamic — plosives and hard consonants ("p", "b", "k") briefly spike higher than the average level. If the verdict occasionally jumps to Too loud but sits at Good most of the time, that's fine. Persistent Too loud means the gain is too high overall.