Phantom center refers to the psycho-acoustic phenomenon of a sound source appearing to emanate from a point between two speakers in a stereo configuration. When the same sound arrives at both ears at the same time with the same intensity, it appears to originate from a point in the center of the two speakers.

In a multichannel audio playback system a phantom image can sometimes be created between any two (or more) of the loudspeakers, creating the illusion of an additional speaker or (more importantly) adding to the overall realism of the soundstage.