Why Xiaomi wireless headphones have become quietly playing – a full analysis of the causes and solutions

You turned on your favorite playlist, but Xiaomi AirDots, Redmi Buds or Mi True Wireless suddenly sound like cotton wool? The problem of quiet sound in wireless headphones is one of the most common complaints of users, and it can have a dozen reasons, from banal contamination of the speaker grid to hidden smartphone settings or even hardware malfunctions.

In this article, we’ll not just list the possible causes, but analyze them by their criticality, from those you can fix in 2 minutes to those that require the intervention of the service center. We’ll focus on the unique features of Xiaomi firmware that often become a source of sound problems, for example, why after the MIUI update, headphones can automatically limit the volume or why the left earphone suddenly became quieter than the right one.

We warn you right away: if you use headphones older than 3 years (for example, Mi AirDots Basic 2019), the problem may lie in battery degradation or wear of the speaker membrane.

1.Contamination of speakers and mesh is the most obvious cause

The first thing to check is the physical condition of the headphones: Dust, earwax, fibers of fabric or even small particles of cosmetics (if you wear headphones while wearing makeup) can clog the speaker's grid, muting the sound, especially for models with an open design, such as the Xiaomi Air 2 SE or Redmi Buds 3 Lite.

How to diagnose:

• 🔍 Visual inspection: point a flashlight at the speaker grid — if you see gray plaque or black dots, it's 100% pollution.
• 🎧 Test on another device: connect the headphones to another smartphone/PC. If the sound is quiet, the problem is with the headphones.
• 🔊 Comparison to another audio: turn on a track with deep bass (e.g. 40 Hz test on YouTube). If contaminated, the bass will "wheeze" or disappear.

How to clean:

• 🧼 Soft brush: use a soft bristling toothbrush or makeup brush. Move around, without pressing.
• 💧 Alcohol wipes: to disinfect and remove greasy marks. Don't use wet wipes -- they leave fibers!
• 🚫 What you can't do is blow it out of your mouth (saliva gets inside), use toothpicks (risk of damaging the membrane).

⚠️ Warning: If you cleaned it down or it crunched, you could move the speaker membrane, and you need to disassemble the headphone in the service.

2. Volume settings and limitations in MIUI

MIUI firmware is known for its “hidden” features that can automatically limit volume, for example, after upgrading to MIUI 14, many users experienced a decrease in the maximum volume of headphones by 20-30%, due to the introduction of European safety regulations (directive EN 50332), which limit the sound level to 85 dB.

How to check the settings:

1. Open Settings → Sound and vibration → Headphone settings.
2. Check the Safe Volume slider – if it’s active, move it to the right to the point.
3. Some versions of MIUI have a separate item called “Limit Bluetooth Volume” – it needs to be turned off.

Additional checks:

• 📱 Do Not Disturb Mode: Even if it is turned off, some apps (such as Mi Fit) can mute the sound while exercising.
• 🔕 Adaptive sound: Xiaomi Air 2 Pro and later headphones have an automatic volume adjustment function to ambient noise. Disables in the Mi Earphones app.
• 🎵 Equator: If the preset "Speech" or "Podcasts" is activated in the sound settings, it cuts the high and low frequencies, making the sound quieter.

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If your headphone model has a “Spatial Sound” feature (for example, in the Xiaomi Buds 4 Pro), try turning it off – it can artificially turn the volume down to create a volume effect.

3. Problems with Bluetooth connection

Unstable Bluetooth connectivity is the second most common cause of silent sound, because when the signal is weak, the headphones automatically lower the bitrate (the quality of the sound) to avoid breaks, which leads to high frequency losses and a general "muffling" of the sound.

How to diagnose:

• 📶 Signal level: Bluetooth settings show a link strength indicator next to the headphone name, and if it's less than 70%, the sound will be quieter.
• 🔄 Bluetooth Codecs: in Settings → Bluetooth → Headphone settings → Audio quality check which codec is active. The best option is AAC or aptX. If it's SBC, the sound will be worse.
• 📱 Device conflict: If the headphones are connected to both the smartphone and the laptop at the same time, the sound can be “cut.”

Decisions:

1. Reconnect the headphones: remove them from the list of devices and pair again.
2. Enable “Sound Quality Priority” in Bluetooth settings (available on MIUI 13+).
3. If you use Xiaomi/EU firmware, check if the patch is installed “Disable Bluetooth A2DP Hardware Offload” – it can break the sound.

⚠️ Warning: The Redmi Buds 4 Active headphones have a bug with the LE Audio protocol that causes the volume to drop when you connect to Android 13+ devices. The solution is to roll back to MIUI 12.5 or wait for a patch.

4. Battery discharge and energy saving

Few people know, but the charge level of the headphones directly affects the volume. When the battery is discharged below 20%, the controller automatically reduces the power of the amplifier to extend the running time. In some models (for example, Xiaomi Air 2S), this decrease can reach 40%!

How to check:

• 🔋 Case Charge: Even if the headphones show 100%, a low-charge case (<30%) may restrict power.
• ⚡ Power Saving Mode: MIUI has a hidden Bluetooth Optimization feature that mutes sound when the smartphone is low. Shuts down via Settings → Battery → Power Modes.
• 🔄 Charging cycles: If the headphones are older than 2 years, their battery may have degraded. Check the actual capacity through the AccuBattery app (for Android).

Decisions:

• 🔌 Full charge cycle: discharge the headphones to 0%, then charge to 100% without interruption. Repeat 2-3 times to calibrate the controller.
• ⚡ Power Saving Disconnect: In Bluetooth settings, find the Audio Duplex and deactivate it.
• 🔧 Battery replacement: If the headphones hold a charge of less than 1.5 hours, a battery replacement is likely required (cost ~1500₽ in service).

5. Hardware malfunctions: from contacts to speakers

If all the software methods have been tried and the sound is still quiet, it's probably hardware.

A. Case contact oxidation

Over time, the contact areas in the charging case become oxidized, causing the headphones to become power-strapped, leading to two symptoms:

• The sound becomes quieter after 10-15 minutes of use.
• One earpiece plays quieter than the other (usually the right one).

Solution: wipe the contacts in the case and on headphones with a cotton swab dipped in isopropyl alcohol (not in vodka!).

B. Damage to the dynamic membrane

If your headphones were falling or exposed to high humidity (like exercising and sweating heavily), the membrane could be deformed.

• The sound is wheezing at high frequencies.
• Basses are gone completely.
• The volume is uneven - then normal, then sharply falls.

Solution: only replacement speaker in the service (cost ~2000-3000₽).

B. Sound amplifier malfunction

Xiaomi AirDots 3 Pro headphones and older use a separate chip amplifier, when it fails, the sound becomes quiet, but without distortion, is diagnosed only in the service.

⚠️ Warning: If after the headphones fall into the water, they keep working, but the sound is quiet, don't dry them with a hair dryer or on a battery! This will speed up the corrosion of the contacts. Better put them in a silica gel bag (out of a shoe box) for 24 hours.

6.Miss with headphone firmware

Xiaomi regularly releases updates for its headphones, but sometimes they bring more problems than good. For example, after upgrading to version 1.7.0.3, many Redmi Buds 4 users experienced a 50 percent quieter sound, the reason being a bug in the noise-producing algorithm that started suppressing all frequencies.

How to check the firmware version:

1. Connect the headphones to your smartphone.
2. Open the Mi Earphones app (download to Google Play or App Store).
3. Go to Settings. → About the programme.

If the firmware version is newer than 1.4.0.0, but the sound is quieter, try:

• 🔄 Roll back the firmware: in Mi Earphones, click 5 times on the firmware version and the hidden rollback menu will open.
• 📥 Manual firmware: download the old version from the 4PDA forum and run through FastBoot (instruction below).
• 🔧 Settings Reset: In Mi Earphones, select “Restore Default Settings.”

Instructions for manual firmware (only for experienced users!):


1. Download the firmware (.ftf file) for your model.




2. Connect the headphones to the PC via Bluetooth.




3. Run the command in the terminal:




adb push firmware.ftf /sdcard/




adb shell am start -n com.xiaomi.miheadset/.update.UpdateActivity




4. Follow the instructions on the screen.

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If the headphones are quieter after the firmware update and the rollback does not help, contact the service. In some cases, you need to flash through the programmer (cost ~1000₽).

External factors: from weather to accessories

Sometimes the reason for the quiet sound is not in the headphones.

A. Ambient temperature

At temperatures below +10°C, lithium polymer batteries lose capacity, and speakers can bluff, resulting in a muffled sound, so the solution is to warm up the headphones in the hands for 5-10 minutes.

B. Accessories and covers

Metal cases for smartphones or magnetic holders can interfere with the Bluetooth signal. If you notice that the sound becomes quieter when the phone is lying on the table in a case, try removing it.

B. Application-specific settings

Some apps (like YouTube Music or Spotify) have their own volume settings.

• In Spotify: Settings → Playback → Volume normalization (turn off).
• On YouTube: Click on three dots in the player and check the volume slider.
• In games: Some titles (such as PUBG Mobile) mute the music when the microphone is on.

G. Ear physiology

If you've recently had otitis or you have ear congestion, the sound will subjectively appear quieter. Check your hearing with a WHO test.

FAQ: Frequent questions about quiet sound in Xiaomi headphones