How to Remove Noise Canceling on Xiaomi: A Complete Guide to All Models

Noise cancellation on Xiaomi smartphones is a useful feature that should improve the sound quality during calls and voice messages. However, in practice, many users face the opposite effect: The voice of the interlocutor becomes intermittent, frequencies disappear, and artifacts appear in the records. POCO, where sound processing algorithms often work too aggressively.

In this article, we’ll look at all the ways to turn off noise reduction, from standard MIUI settings to hidden engineering menu options, how to bring back natural voice sounds in calls, remove distortions in voice messages, and even deactivate sound processing in third-party applications, and explain why some Xiaomi models automatically turn on noise cancellation and how to prevent it.

Why noise cancellation is ruining the sound on Xiaomi

Xiaomi’s noise-cancellation algorithms work by subtracting background noise from the main sound signal, which in theory should clear the voice of extraneous sounds, but in practice often results in:

• 🔇 Frequency trimming – high or low tones of voice disappear, because of which the interlocutor sounds like “from the barrel".
• 📞 Call delays – processing the sound takes time, which creates an “echo” or desynchronization effect.
• 🎤 Artifacts in recording – in voice messages appear clicks, crackling or metallic tint.
• 🔊 Automatically activated – on some firmware MIUI The noise reduction is activated even if you turn it off.

The problem is compounded in single-mic models (such as the Redmi 9A or POCO C31), where the algorithm has to guess which sound is noise and which is voice, and speech intelligibility, especially in noisy rooms, suffers as a result.

Interestingly, flagship models (such as Xiaomi 13 Pro or MIX Fold 3) are less likely to have problems with more advanced sound processing chips, but in the budget segment, the manufacturer often saves on hardware, offsetting this with software "crutches".

Method 1: Disabling noise reduction in standard MIUI settings

The easiest way is to use the built-in options, but there is a caveat: depending on the version of MIUI and the model of the smartphone, the path to settings may differ. We have collected the current instructions for the latest firmware versions (MIUI 14-16).

For most devices, the algorithm is as follows:

1. Open the phone application (green handset).
2. Click on the three dots in the upper right corner → Settings.
3. Select Sound and vibration during the call (or Call Settings on older versions).
4. Find the Noise Reduction option (may be called Voice Improvement or Noise Filter) and turn off the slider.

If you don’t have one on your phone, try an alternative route:

1. Go to Settings. → Sound and vibration.
2. Choose Sound Quality or Sound Effects.
3. Turn off the voice enhancement and adaptive noise cancellation options.

Call another phone and see the sound quality.|

Record the voice message and listen to it |

Ask your partner to rate whether your voice is more natural.|

Restart your phone – sometimes settings are reset after a reboot-->

Important! On some models (e.g. Redmi Note 12), noise cancellation can be linked to High Call Quality (VoLTE) mode, and if you turn off this option, noise cancellation is also deactivated, but communication quality can deteriorate.

Method 2: Engineering menu - hidden microphone settings

If standard methods don't work, you'll have to go to the engineering menu, which is a hidden settings section where you can manually adjust the microphone and audio processing, and be careful, because the wrong changes can cause the phone to malfunction.

Instructions for entering the engineering menu:

1. Open the Phone app.
2. Enter the code ##36446337##
3. You will be taken to the Engineering Mode menu (may be called the MTK Engineering Mode or Qualcomm Service Menu depending on the processor).

The next steps depend on the type of processor of your smartphone:

After the changes, be sure to restart the phone. If the sound quality is worse, return the settings to their original state.

⚠️ On some Xiaomi models, for example, POCO X5 Pro) changes to the engineering menu are reset after the firmware update. If you notice that the noise cancellation has turned on again, repeat the procedure.

Method 3: Disabling noise reduction for specific applications

Sometimes noise cancellation works only on certain programs, such as WhatsApp, Telegram or Zoom, in which case you can turn off the audio processing selectively.

For messengers:

• 📱 WhatsApp: Settings → Warehouse and data → Quality of voice messages → Select Normal (disables compression and noise reduction).
• 💬 Telegram: Settings → Data and memory → Voice quality → Set Low (paradoxically, but it disables processing).
• 🎥 Zoom: Settings → Audio → Suppress Background Noise → Choose No Suppression.

For games and streaming applications (such as Discord or Twitch):

1. Open the microphone settings in the app.
2. Find options like Noise Reduction, Echo Cancellation, or Automatic Gain Control.
3. Turn off all sliders associated with sound processing.

On Xiaomi models with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor (such as the Xiaomi 13T), noise cancellation in games can be enabled at the driver level, in which case only a complete disconnection through the engineering menu will help.

Method 4: Resetting the sound settings to the factory

If you've tried all the methods, but noise cancellation still works, maybe the problem is that you're having a system failure, and then you can reset the sound without losing data.

Instructions:

1. Go to Settings. → The phone.
2. Click on the MIUI version 7-10 times until you become a developer!
3. Return to the main settings menu and open Additional → for developers.
4. Find the option Reset audio effects and confirm the action.

After discharge:

• 🔄 Reboot the phone.
• 📞 Check the sound quality of the call.
• 🎤 Record a voice message for the test.

⚠️ Attention, some firmware. MIUI Resetting the sound settings also resets the user's uniform settings (EQ) In the player, save screenshots of your presets in advance if they're important.

Method 5: Update the firmware or roll back to the old version

In some cases, noise cancellation starts to work incorrectly after the MIUI update. For example, Redmi Note 11 users have complained massively about audio distortions after switching to MIUI 14.

Option 1: Update to the latest version

Sometimes, the sound bugs are fixed in the following patches to check for updates:

1. Go to Settings → About the phone → System update.
2. Click Check for updates.
3. If a new version is available, install it and check the sound.

Option 2: Reverse to the old firmware

If the problem has occurred after the update, you can go back to the previous version of MIUI.

1. Download the necessary firmware from the official Xiaomi website (Download → Archive section).
2. Rename the file to update.zip and place it in the root folder of the phone.
3. Go to Settings → About the phone → System update.
4. Click on three dots → Select a firmware file and specify the downloaded update.zip.

Before rolling back, be sure to back up the data, as the process can erase user files.

💡

If you’re not sure about the firmware version where the sound worked fine, check out reviews on forums (like 4PDA or XDA Developers). Often users share information about “clean” builds without sound bugs.

What to do if nothing helps: hardware causes

If the software methods did not give a result, the problem may lie in the hardware:

• 🎙️ Faulty microphone – if one of the microphones (usually the bottom one) is damaged, the system may not process sound correctly. Check the microphones using the Phone Tester app (available on Google Play).
• 🔌 3.5mm contaminated socket – if you’re using a wired headset, try cleaning the connector or plugging in another one.
• 📡 Poor communication quality – in areas with a weak signal, the operator can forcibly turn on voice compression, which simulates noise cancellation.
• 🔋 Failure in the audio chip is rare, but happens on budget models after falls or overheating.

To diagnose a hardware malfunction:

1. Connect headphones with a microphone – if the sound in them is clean, the problem is in the main microphone of the phone.
2. Try calling through another app (like Skype or Viber) and if there is any misrepresentation, it's the hardware.
3. Record the sound through a recorder and listen to it on another device, and the artifacts will confirm the microphone problem.

If the diagnosis is confirmed, there are two options:

• 🛠️ Contact the Xiaomi service center (warranty case if the phone is new).
• 💰 Replace the microphone yourself (the cost of the part is from 300 to 1000 rubles depending on the model).

FAQ: Frequent questions about noise cancellation on Xiaomi