Modern Xiaomi and Redmi smartphones provide users with a huge selection of options for personalizing the interface, including tactile and sound output when typing. Many device owners face the need to change the standard keyboard settings to make printing more comfortable or, conversely, silent. Especially relevant is the question of how to adjust the sound of the keyboard on Xiaomi, when standard system sounds interfere with silence or, on the contrary, their absence makes it impossible to understand that the press was registered.
In Android, which runs the MIUI shell and the new HyperOS, audio output control is divided into several levels. There is a system interface sound, keyboard tap sound and a separate media volume. Understanding this hierarchy is critical to the right setup. Often users try to change the volume of the media player, wondering why the keyboard continues to sound loud or remains silent.
In this article, we will discuss in detail all possible ways to manage audio notifications when typing. We will look at the settings of the standard Gboard keyboard, Xiaomi system parameters, and also touch on the features of third-party input applications. You will learn not only to turn on and off sound, but also fine-tune it to your needs, creating the perfect acoustic environment for working with text on your smartphone.
System-based sound settings in MIUI and HyperOS
The first step in deciding how to set up the keyboard sound on Xiaomi is to address the basic operating system settings. The shells from the Chinese manufacturer have their own audio profile distribution logic, which may differ from stock Android. There is a separate section in the settings menu responsible for all the audio and tactile effects of the interface.
To access these options, you need to go to the main menu and select Settings. Next, you need to find the Sound and Vibration section. This is where the main switches that affect the audio perception of the device are concentrated. Note that the names of the items may differ slightly from one firmware version to another, but the logic remains the same.
Inside the sound section, you'll need to find the Advanced Settings subsection, or you'll immediately see System Sounds, and you'll click on it and you'll be taken to a menu where you can control every aspect of audio output in detail, and the key is the slider or switch that says "Push Sound" or "Keyboard Sound," and when you activate or deactivate it, it affects all input applications that use the system standard.
⚠️ Note: In some versions MIUI the volume of the keyboard sound can be rigidly tied to the total volume of the system, and a separate slider for adjusting the decibel level is for the keyboard in the system settings may not be.
If you want to turn off the sound completely, you just need to put the switcher in an inactive position, but if you just want to keep it quiet, the system tools may not be enough, and you will have to resort to third-party methods or settings of the keyboard application itself.
Customization of sound effects in Gboard
Most Xiaomi smartphones have Google’s Gboard keyboard installed by default, and this app has its own system-independent audio settings that take precedence or supplement system settings. To change the keyboard sound on Xiaomi through this application, you need to open its settings.
The easiest way to get into the settings menu is by holding a comma key or a gummy icon on the bottom of the keyboard, and then selecting a gear. An alternative way is through the phone menu: Settings → Advanced Settings → Language and input. Here you will see a list of all the available keyboards and you can select Gboard for detailed configuration.
In the keyboard menu, select Settings, then go to Preferences, and that's where the basic controls of audio feedback are hidden. You'll find the keystroke sound switch, which activates the standard click that's common with Android devices.
What's special about Gboard is that it can fine-tune not only the presence of sound, but also the nature of sound, combined with vibration. In this section, you can find the vibration duration settings when you press it. Google engineers have implemented an algorithm where sound and vibration are synchronized to create a realistic print experience.
☑️ Checking Gboard settings
It’s worth noting that the latest updates to Gboard have the option of selecting a theme that can sometimes affect the visual perception of sound, although technically audio files remain standard. If you use custom themes, make sure they are compatible with your version of Xiaomi firmware.
Use of third-party keyboards: SwiftKey and others
Users who are not comfortable with standard solutions often install third-party keyboards, such as Microsoft SwiftKey or Yandex.Key, which have their own sound and vibration synthesis engines, completely ignoring Xiaomi’s system settings for the tone and volume of clicks, and customize the sound for each application.
Consider a SwiftKey example. Once you set up and activate the keyboard, you have to go to the settings through the app menu or by long pressing the settings key. In the Sound and Vibration (or similar) section, you'll find a keyboard slider. A unique feature of many third-party keyboards is the ability to adjust the volume of the sound regardless of the system volume, which gives you more control.
The logic is similar in Yandex.Keyboard: settings menu, Sound section, and vibration where you can turn on or off the tap sound. Some advanced keyboards even allow you to download your own audio packets, replacing the standard "digital" click with more pleasant mechanical sounds or even voices.
When using third-party solutions, it is important to monitor permissions. The keyboard requires access to a microphone for voice input and sometimes storage for themes, but requests to access other sound channels should be cautious. Only official applications from Google Play or GetApps have guaranteed security when working with the system's sound streams.
The influence of themes on keyboard sound
Sound problems after firmware update
Xiaomi smartphone owners are well aware that MIUI updates or the transition to HyperOS can make changes to the audio subsystem. After a major update, users often face a situation where the keyboard sound disappears spontaneously or, conversely, becomes too loud and sharp.
This is because developers can change paths to system audio files or reset user preferences to factory ones, and in these cases, the first thing to do is to reboot the device, and a banal reboot allows the system to reinitialize the audio drivers and apply the current configuration files.
If the reboot didn't work, check to see if Do Not Disturb or Silent Mode has activated with advanced settings. Xiaomi has a feature that allows you to turn off interface sounds even when the speaker is on in Do Not Disturb mode. Check the settings of this mode in the Sound and Vibration section.
The problem may also be in the keyboard app cache. Once the firmware update is updated, old cached data may conflict with new system libraries. Cleaning the keyboard cache through Settings → Apps → All Apps → Gboard (or another) → Memory → Clearing the cache often solves the problem.
| Symptoms. | Possible cause | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| The sound is gone completely. | Failure of the system audio service | Rebooting the smartphone |
| The sound is very quiet. | Low overall volume of system | Increase the volume with the buttons |
| The sound wheezes or is interrupted | Application conflict or cache | Cleaning the keyboard cache |
| The sound is only available in some applications. | Settings of a specific application | Checking settings inside the application |
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If the keyboard sound becomes metallic or distorted after updating the firmware, try changing the region in the phone's settings (for example, India or the United States) and restarting the device. This sometimes helps to update regional sound packages.
Do Not Disturb Regimes and Their Impact
Special attention should be paid to the interaction of keyboard settings with the mode “Do not disturb”. In Xiaomi smartphones, this mode has a flexible setting that allows the user to decide which sounds should be silenced and which ones should pass through the lock.
By default, when you activate Do Not Disturb, the system and keyboard sounds are turned off so as not to disturb the user. However, if you want to type with sound even in this mode, you need to create an exception. Go to Settings → Sound and vibration → Do not disturb.
Inside the mode menu, find the item that concerns system sounds or interface sounds, you can adjust the behavior of the device. It is important to distinguish between notification sounds (messages, calls) and system sounds (presses, lock the screen), you need to adjust the system sounds.
Often, users forget that they have turned on this mode and are surprised by the lack of response when printing. The Do Not Disturb mode indicator (usually a crescent icon) is displayed in the status bar or in the notification curtain. Checking this indicator is the first step in diagnosing a missing sound.
⚠️ Note: In some use cases (e.g., when connecting a Bluetooth headset), the keyboard sound may switch to the headset while remaining inaudible on the phone's speaker.
Diagnostics and solution of common problems
If none of the above methods helped set the keyboard sound to Xiaomi, it may be a deeper technical problem, and it’s worth checking if you have a memory cleaner or battery optimization app that can aggressively kill the audio processes.
It's also worth mentioning the possibility of hardware failure, although it's rare for keyboard sound. If the speaker wheezes at any sound, including music and video, the problem could be the dynamics. If only the keyboard wheezes, it's a codec software bug.
As a last resort, you can try resetting all apps through the developer menu or resetting the phone completely (with pre-backups), but before that, you should check for updates to the keyboard itself in the Google Play app store.
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In 90% of cases, the problem with the sound of the keyboard is solved by checking the switch in the Gboard settings or exiting the Do Not Disturb mode.
Users often underestimate the impact of third-party themes on system sounds. If you use third-party themes from Themes, try temporarily returning a standard theme. Some modified themes do not contain the necessary audio files or contain corrupted versions, which leads to silence when printing.