diff --git a/Services/Audio/AudioLevelMeter.cs b/Services/Audio/AudioLevelMeter.cs
index ca98286..f3d5e99 100644
--- a/Services/Audio/AudioLevelMeter.cs
+++ b/Services/Audio/AudioLevelMeter.cs
@@ -11,9 +11,39 @@ public sealed class AudioLevelMeter
     private const float Smoothing = 0.2f;
     private const float DecaySmoothing = 0.5f;
     private float _level;
+    private float _left;
+    private float _right;
 
     public float Level => _level;
 
+    /// <summary>Per-channel levels, smoothed with the same attack/decay as <see cref="Level"/>.
+    /// A mono sample reports the same value on both sides (a mono source is centred), so the two
+    /// never disagree about whether audio exists.
+    ///
+    /// <para>Why they exist: the dock shows ONE ladder per source, but a creator who is deaf on
+    /// one side needs to know when content is panned away from it. The imbalance flag is computed
+    /// from these, not from a second ladder.</para></summary>
+    public float Left => _left;
+    public float Right => _right;
+
+    /// <summary>How far apart the channels are, in dB. 0 only when BOTH are silent.
+    ///
+    /// <para>A side that carries nothing is compared at the −60 dBFS floor, so a fully one-sided
+    /// signal reads as a large imbalance (≈54 dB) rather than "nothing to compare" — one-sided is
+    /// the maximum imbalance, not the absence of one. That distinction is the whole point for a
+    /// creator who cannot hear the missing side.</para></summary>
+    public float ImbalanceDb
+    {
+        get
+        {
+            const float floor = 0.001f;              // −60 dBFS
+            if (_left < floor && _right < floor) return 0f;
+            var l = MathF.Max(_left, floor);
+            var r = MathF.Max(_right, floor);
+            return MathF.Abs(20f * MathF.Log10(l / r));
+        }
+    }
+
     /// <summary>
     /// Maps a linear level (0..1) onto the meter's display scale: -60 dBFS..0 dBFS
     /// spread linearly across 0..1 — an HONEST dBFS scale. Linear RMS of real speech is
@@ -49,8 +79,51 @@ public sealed class AudioLevelMeter
         var rms = (float)Math.Sqrt(sumSquares / count);
         var alpha = rms > _level ? Smoothing : DecaySmoothing;
         _level = _level * (1 - alpha) + rms * alpha;
+
+        MeasureChannels(sample);
         return _level;
     }
 
-    public void Reset() => _level = 0;
+    private void MeasureChannels(AudioSample sample)
+    {
+        double leftSquares = 0, rightSquares = 0;
+        int frames;
+
+        if (sample.Channels <= 1)
+        {
+            // Mono is centred: one number, both sides.
+            for (var i = 0; i < sample.Samples.Length; i++) leftSquares += sample.Samples[i] * sample.Samples[i];
+            frames = Math.Max(1, sample.Samples.Length);
+            rightSquares = leftSquares;
+        }
+        else
+        {
+            frames = Math.Max(1, sample.Samples.Length / sample.Channels);
+            for (var frame = 0; frame < frames; frame++)
+            {
+                var l = sample.Samples[frame * sample.Channels];
+                var r = sample.Samples[frame * sample.Channels + 1];
+                leftSquares += l * l;
+                rightSquares += r * r;
+            }
+        }
+
+        var left = (float)Math.Sqrt(leftSquares / frames);
+        var right = (float)Math.Sqrt(rightSquares / frames);
+        _left = Smooth(_left, left);
+        _right = Smooth(_right, right);
+
+        static float Smooth(float current, float incoming)
+        {
+            var a = incoming > current ? Smoothing : DecaySmoothing;
+            return current * (1 - a) + incoming * a;
+        }
+    }
+
+    public void Reset()
+    {
+        _level = 0;
+        _left = 0;
+        _right = 0;
+    }
 }
diff --git a/ytLive.Tests/StereoMeterTests.cs b/ytLive.Tests/StereoMeterTests.cs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d859e77
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ytLive.Tests/StereoMeterTests.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,56 @@
+using Xunit;
+using ytLive.Services.Audio;
+
+namespace ytLive.Tests;
+
+/// <summary>The dock shows ONE ladder per source, but the creator is profoundly deaf on the right,
+/// so the meter has to know which side a signal is on: hard-panned content is inaudible, not merely
+/// quieter. These levels drive the imbalance flag, and they must be measured — never decorative.
+/// </summary>
+public class StereoMeterTests
+{
+    private const int Rate = 48000;
+
+    private static AudioLevelMeter Pushed(int channels, float left, float right, int frames = 64, int pushes = 12)
+    {
+        var meter = new AudioLevelMeter();
+        var buffer = new float[frames * channels];
+        for (var f = 0; f < frames; f++)
+        {
+            buffer[f * channels] = left;
+            if (channels > 1) buffer[f * channels + 1] = right;
+        }
+        for (var i = 0; i < pushes; i++) meter.Push(new AudioSample(buffer, Rate, channels));
+        return meter;
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public void The_meter_knows_which_side_the_signal_is_on()
+    {
+        // Hard left: the left side carries it, the right is silent, and the gap is reported.
+        var hardLeft = Pushed(channels: 2, left: 0.5f, right: 0f);
+        Assert.True(hardLeft.Left > 0.1f, $"left should carry the tone, got {hardLeft.Left}");
+        Assert.True(hardLeft.Right < 0.01f, $"right should be silent, got {hardLeft.Right}");
+        Assert.True(hardLeft.ImbalanceDb > 20f, "a one-sided signal must report a large imbalance");
+
+        // Hard right is the mirror case — the one this creator cannot hear.
+        var hardRight = Pushed(channels: 2, left: 0f, right: 0.5f);
+        Assert.True(hardRight.Right > 0.1f);
+        Assert.True(hardRight.Left < 0.01f);
+
+        // Balanced stereo reports no imbalance.
+        var centred = Pushed(channels: 2, left: 0.5f, right: 0.5f);
+        Assert.True(centred.Left > 0.1f && centred.Right > 0.1f);
+        Assert.True(centred.ImbalanceDb < 1f, $"balanced audio must not flag, got {centred.ImbalanceDb}");
+
+        // Mono is centred by definition: both sides equal, no flag — never "one-sided".
+        var mono = Pushed(channels: 1, left: 0.5f, right: 0f);
+        Assert.True(mono.Left > 0.1f);
+        Assert.Equal(mono.Left, mono.Right, 5);
+        Assert.Equal(0f, mono.ImbalanceDb);
+
+        // Silence on both sides is not an imbalance (nothing to compare).
+        var silent = Pushed(channels: 2, left: 0f, right: 0f);
+        Assert.Equal(0f, silent.ImbalanceDb);
+    }
+}