How to increase the volume in headphones on Xiaomi through the engineering menu: safe ways

Have you ever encountered a situation where even at maximum volume in Xiaomi headphones, music sounds too quiet? This is a common problem, especially with budget models like Redmi AirDots or Mi True Wireless Earphones. The manufacturer limits the volume by default to protect users' hearing and prevent damage to speakers. But what if you are confident in the quality of your headphones and want to unleash their full potential?

The solution lies in the hidden engineering menu of Xiaomi smartphones, where you can manually adjust the sound parameters, bypassing factory restrictions. However, it is important to understand that improper actions can lead to distortion of the sound, overheating of the headphones or even failure. In this article, we will discuss in detail how to safely increase the volume through the engineering menu, which models support this feature, and what to do if something goes wrong.

Why Xiaomi limits the volume in headphones?

The manufacturer sets the software volume limits for a reason.

• 🔊 Hearing protection: Long-term listening to music at high volume (above 85 dB) can lead to irreversible hearing loss; the European Union has even introduced regulations to limit the maximum sound level in headphones.
• 🎧 Keeping speakers safe: Cheap headphones (especially wireless ones) are not designed to last long at maximum power, which can cause the coils to overheat and distort the sound.
• 📱 Certification of devices: To obtain certificates (e.g, CE or FCC) Smartphones must meet safety standards, including sound restrictions.

However, many users want to get around these limitations, such as noisy places (metro, construction) may not have enough standard volume, or you use high-quality headphones with margins of power, which are able to play sound louder without risk of damage.

⚠️ Warning: Volume increase above factory settings may cancel the warranty on the headphones. If the speakers fail due to excess power, the service center has the right to refuse repairs.

Which Xiaomi models support volume change through the engineering menu?

Not all Xiaomi smartphones allow you to edit audio settings through the engineering menu, and here is a list of devices that have this feature checked by users:

If your model isn't on the list, it doesn't mean it won't work. Try following the instructions -- at worst, the engineering menu won't open the settings you want to set. Also, remember that after the MIUI update, the path to the menu or the options available may change.

Step-by-step: how to open the engineering menu on Xiaomi

Before proceeding, make sure that:

Charge your smartphone at least 50 times%|Connect headphones (wired or Bluetooth)|Close all applications that produce sound|Make a backup copy of important data-->

Now, to open the engineering menu, there are two main ways:

Method 1: Through the code of the set

1. Open the phone (calling) application.
2. Enter the combination: ##36446337## (this corresponds to ##engineermode###).
3. If the code doesn't work, try the alternative: ##4636## (test menu).
4. In the menu, select Hardware Testing → Audio.

Method 2: Through the Engineering Menu (for new MIUI versions)

Starting with MIUI 12, direct access through the code can be blocked.

1. Download the MTK Engineering Mode app (for MediaTek processors) or Qualcomm EngineerMode (for Snapdragon) from Google Play.
2. Open the application and grant it ADB rights (if requested).
3. Go to the Hardware Testing → Audio section.

If none of these methods worked, your firmware may have blocked access to the engineering menu, which would require unlocking the bootloader or obtaining root rights, which is beyond the scope of this article.

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If the engineering menu doesn't open, try temporarily disabling system updates in the settings, sometimes the latest versions of MIUI block access to hidden features.

Volume setting in the engineering menu: Step-by-step analysis

When you're in the Audio engineering menu, you're going to have to work with a few key parameters, and it's important to understand that you only need to change the values that are directly related to the headphones.

The main sections that interest us are:

• 🎵 Headset Mode – settings for wired headphones (3.5 mm or Type-C).
• 📶 Headset (Bluetooth) – settings for wireless headphones.
• 🔊 Speaker Mode – Smartphone speaker settings (don’t touch this section!).
• 🎧 Sph Mode - settings for a headset with a microphone.

Consider the configuration process on the example of wired headphones (Headset Mode):

1. Select Headset Mode.
2. In the Type field, specify Media (for music) or Call (for calls).
3. Find Max Vol (maximum volume) and Level X (where X is the level number, usually 0 to 15).
4. The default maximum is 160 (for Media) or 128 (for Call), smoothly increase it by 5-10 units, testing the sound after each change.
5. Do not exceed 200 for Media and 150 for Call, which can cause distortion.
6. After the change, press Set and restart the smartphone.

For wireless headphones (Headset (Bluetooth)) the process is similar, but there is a nuance: some Xiaomi models (for example, AirDots Pro) have their own limitations on the headphone side, which can not be bypassed through the smartphone menu.

Risks and Possible Problems with Volume Increase

Even if you did everything according to the instructions, you're likely to experience unpleasant consequences, and here are the most common ones and ways to eliminate them:

The biggest problem is that the speakers are damaged, and if the headphones start to make extraneous sounds (squeaking, grinding) even at the lowest volume, it's a sign of mechanical damage to the membrane, and you can only restore them in the service center.

⚠️ Note: On some Xiaomi models (e.g. Redmi Note 10 Pro), changing the settings in the engineering menu can cause network settings to reset. After experimenting with the sound, check if the mobile or Wi-Fi connection has crashed.

Alternative ways to increase volume without an engineering menu

If the engineering menu is not available or you don’t want to take risks, there are a few safe alternatives:

• 🔊 Amplifiers: Volume Booster, Equalizer FX or ViPER4Android (They work at the software level of sound processing without affecting the hardware settings.
• 🎛️ Equalizer setting: In the standard Mi Music or Spotify app, turn on the equalizer and lift the sliders at 100–500 Hz (this will add "volume" to the sound).
• 🔌 External amplifier: For wired headphones, you can use FiiO or Topping – they amplify the signal without distortion.
• 🔄 Headphone firmware update: Some Xiaomi models (like Mi True Wireless Earphones 2) get volume-enhancing updates.

Important: Amplifiers like Volume Booster can turn up the volume by distorting the sound, so if your headphones start wheezing after you use them, turn down the volume immediately and remove the program.

If you use Bluetooth headphones, try changing the codecs in the developer settings:

1. Activate Developer Mode (7 times click on the MIUI version in your phone settings).
2. Go to Additional Settings → Developer Settings → Bluetooth Audio Codec.
3. Choose SBC (standard) or AAC (best quality). Avoid aptX - it can turn down the volume.

How to return factory sound settings if something went wrong

If you've had problems with sound after you've experimented with it (distortion, no sound, errors), you need to reset your settings. Here's how to do it:

Method 1: Reset through the engineering menu

1. Open the engineering menu (code ##36446337##)
2. Go to Audio → Reset Audio.
3. Confirm the reset and restart the smartphone.

Method 2: Reset all settings (if the sound is gone completely)

1. Go to Settings → About the phone → Reset settings.
2. Select Network and Sound Reset (does not delete files).
3. After the reboot, the sound will return to factory parameters.

Method 3: Flashing (extreme case)

If the reset didn't work, you may have changed the critical parameters of the system.

1. Download the official firmware for your model from the Xiaomi website.
2. Use the Mi Flash Tool to flash it (the instructions are available on the 4PDA or XDA-Developers forums).

⚠️ Warning: Flashing removes all data from your phone. If you're not sure what you're doing, contact the service center, and indicate that the sound problem occurred "on its own" - otherwise you may not be able to warranty repairs.

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Before any manipulation of the engineering menu, write down the initial values of the parameters, which will help you quickly return everything to the back if the result does not suit you.

FAQ: Frequent questions about increasing the volume in Xiaomi headphones