How to increase the volume of the microphone on the Xiaomi smartphone: from basic settings to hidden features

Why is the microphone on Xiaomi too quiet?

Did you notice that the person you are talking to is not hearing you well while you are making calls and voice messages are barely being recorded?The problem of low microphone volume on Xiaomi smartphones (including Redmi, POCO and Black Shark models) is often not due to hardware malfunctions, but to software limitations. The manufacturer deliberately understates the sensitivity of the microphone in MIUI firmware to reduce background noise - but this does not always work correctly.

In 80 percent of cases, you can solve the problem without going to the service center, and the main thing is to understand what exactly affects the volume: the main microphone (for calls), an additional microphone (for noise reduction), or software restrictions in applications, for example, WhatsApp and Telegram have their own recording settings, which can conflict with system parameters.

In this article, we will discuss all the ways from simple (adjust in settings) to advanced (change settings through Engineer Mode).Importantly, some methods require root rights or can lead to a reset of warranty on devices with a locked bootloader (for example, Xiaomi 13 Pro or Redmi Note 12).

1. Check the basic microphone settings in MIUI

Before you dig deeper, make sure that the problem is not the trivial settings. In MIUI 14/15, the path to the microphone parameters is not obvious, it has been moved from the Sound section to the Special Opportunities section.

1. Open Settings → Special features → Improve the sound.
2. Activate the "Mic Reinforce" slider (if it is in your firmware).
3. Check if Noise Reduction is on – sometimes it is too aggressive to suppress the voice.

Some models (such as the POCO F5 or Xiaomi 12T) may not have these items.

Settings → System → Additional → Developer Mode → Audio → Strengthening the microphone

⚠️ Attention: On devices with global firmware MIUI (For example, the Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G) The "Mic Amplification" option is often missing, and it's not a mistake, it was removed in recent updates because of echo complaints.

If the basic settings don't work, move on to the next method, but first make sure that the problem isn't with a contaminated microphone - gently clean the holes next to the USB-Type C connector with a soft brush (don't use toothpicks!).

2. adjust the sensitivity of the microphone through Engineer Mode

Engineering Mode is a hidden MIUI section where you can manually adjust microphone settings, which works on most Xiaomi devices, but requires caution: incorrect values can lead to distortion of sound or echoes.

To open Engineer Mode:

1. Type in ##36446337## (or #4636### on older models).
2. Go to the Hardware Testing section → Audio → Mic.
3. Select Type (usually Mic 0 is the main microphone, Mic 1 is the secondary microphone).
4. In the Level field, increase the value from 0 to 5 or 6 (maximum 7, but this can cause severe interference).

After changing the parameters, it is necessary to:

• 🔄 Reboot the phone.
• 📞 Check the sound quality on a test call (e.g. via Viber or Discord).
• 🎧 If you have an echo, reduce the level by 1-2 paragraph.

⚠️ Note: On Xiaomi with Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor (such as Xiaomi 13 Ultra), the engineering menu can block changing microphone settings. ADB-teams (section 4).

3.Using third-party applications to amplify the microphone

If the system settings don't work, try specialized utilities that run on top of MIUI and can amplify sound with processing algorithms.

How to set up Microphone Amplifier:

1. Install the app from Google Play.
2. Give permission to access the microphone and change system settings.
3. Turn on the Reinforcement slider by 120-150 percent (more risk of distortion).
4. Activate the Noise Reduction option (but not with MIUI!).

Important: Third-party apps don’t affect the microphone volume in a standard phone app (Google Phone or MIUI Dialer) and they only work in messaging apps (WhatsApp, Telegram) or when recording videos.

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If the microphone starts to wheez after installing the application, try turning off the AEC (Acoustic Echo Cancellation) option in it - it often conflicts with the built-in MIUI noise cancellation.

4. ADB-Teams for Advanced Users

If previous methods didn't work, you can change the microphone settings through Android Debug Bridge (ADB), which requires connecting the phone to a computer, but gives you more control than Engineer Mode, suitable for devices without root rights.

Instructions:

1. Download ADB Tools and install drivers for Xiaomi.
2. Activate. USB-debugging → The phone. → Version. MIUI (Press 7 times, then return to Settings → Additionally. → For developers).
3. Connect your phone to your PC and type in the command line: adb shell settings put global mic_gain 5 (significance 5 can be increased 7, But it can cause interference).
4. To apply the changes, do: adb shell am broadcast -a android.intent.action.MEDIA_SCANNER_SCAN_FILE -d file:///sdcard/

To return the standard settings, use:

adb shell settings delete global mic_gain

⚠️ Note: Xiaomi with HyperOS (e.g. Xiaomi 14 or Redmi) K70) ADB-The microphone commands may not work because of the changed sound stack architecture, and in this case, only the Magisk module method remains (Section 6).

5. Microphone setting for specific applications

Sometimes the problem isn't with the microphone itself, but with the settings of individual programs, like WhatsApp or Zoom, which have their own audio processing algorithms that can strangle voices.

• 📱 WhatsApp/Telegram: Open the Settings. → Warehouse → Clear the cache. Then, in the app microphone settings, turn off "Automatic volume control".
• 🎥 TikTok/Instagram: Before recording the video, click on the microphone icon and select "External microphone" (even if only the built-in microphone is connected).
• 💼 Zoom/Google Meet: In the sound settings, turn off "Background Noise Repression" and set the microphone's manual volume on 80–90%.

A special case is the Google Assistant, where if it actively uses the microphone in the background (for example, for the "OK, Google" command), it can reduce sensitivity for other tasks.

1. Go to Settings → Google → Devices and Sharing → Voice settings.
2. Turn off "Match on Lock Screen" and "Hey Google."

After these changes, restart the app that has experienced microphone problems. If there are no improvements, check if antivirus (such as Avast or 360 Security) is blocking access to the microphone - they sometimes intercept the audio stream.

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Customizing the microphone in each application individually often produces better results than global changes in the system, for example, in Discord you can separately adjust the suppressed volume and noise reduction level.

6. Root methods: changing configuration files

If you have root rights (or are willing to get them), you can change the system files that control the microphone, which gives you maximum control, but the wrong actions can lead to a device “brick” (loss of performance), especially on models with a locked bootloader (Xiaomi 13T Pro, Redmi K60).

Instructions for experienced users:

1. Install Root Explorer or Mixplorer with superuser rights.
2. Cross the path. /system/vendor/etc/ and find the file. audio_effects.conf or audio_policy.conf.
3. Open the file in the text editor and find the lines with the parameters: rx_volume_step_default="X" mic_volume_step_default="Y" Increase the value of Y by 20–30% (for example, 5 before 7).
4. Save the changes, set the rights to 644 (rw-r--r---) and restart the phone.

The following is the Magisk module of the Audio Modification Library:

• 🔧 Download the module from the Magisk repository.
• 📥 Installation with Magisk Manager.
• 🔄 Reset the device.
• 🎛 In the module settings, select the profile "High Mic Gain".

⚠️ Note: On devices with Dynamic RAM Expansion (e.g, POCO X5 Pro) changing audio configs can cause the processor to overheat on long calls. CPU Monitor.

7. Hardware causes of a quiet microphone and their elimination

If the software methods didn't work, the problem could be a physical malfunction, and here are the most common hardware causes and ways to diagnose them:

To check which microphone is faulty:

1. Use the Phone Tester app (Microphone Test section).
2. Turn to cover the microphone holes with your finger (usually two of them: next to the main camera and next to the main camera). USB-port).
3. If the sound disappears when one of the holes is closed, this microphone is serviceable, the problem is in the other.

If you suspect a hardware malfunction but are not sure, make a test call to another phone and record it on a voice recorder. Compare the volume of your voice to the voice of the person you are talking to. If the difference is significant (you can hear 2-3 times quieter), this confirms the problem.

FAQ: Frequent questions about the microphone on Xiaomi