How to record audio on a Xiaomi smartphone: all the ways from standard to professional

Recording audio on Xiaomi smartphones can be required in a variety of situations, from fixing important lectures to creating podcasts or saving voice notes. Despite the seeming simplicity of the task, many users are faced with questions: which application to use, how to improve the recording quality, where files are saved and how to edit them. In this article, we will examine all possible ways to record sound on Xiaomi devices, from built-in tools to professional solutions.

The peculiarity of Xiaomi smartphones is that they work on the basis of a proprietary shell. MIUI, However, not all users know that in addition to the standard voice recorder, there are additional features in the device, and some models (for example, Xiaomi 13 Ultra or Redmi Note 12 Pro)+) We're also going to look at how to get around the limitations of the system and record sound even from screen sources.

Standard dictaphone in MIUI: Where to find and how to use

Each Xiaomi smartphone has a Dictophone app (or Recorder in international firmware) that supports basic recording functions, but many users are unaware of its hidden capabilities.

• 📱 Find the Dictator icon on your desktop or in the app menu (usually it looks like a microphone on an orange background).
• 🔍 Enter in the search system (swipe down on the main screen) the request "Dictophon".
• 🎤 Use the Google Assistant or Xiao voice assistant AI, I said, "Open the recorder".

The interface is intuitive: a large red button in the center of the screen starts recording, and next to it, a timer and volume graph are displayed.

• 🔊 By default, the recording is in format.m4a (AAC) 96 kbps bitrate, which provides a balance between quality and file size.
• 📁 All records are automatically saved to the folder MIUI/sound_recorder inner-memory.
• 🚫 In some regions (e.g. the EU) due to legal restrictions, recording of telephone conversations may be blocked.

⚠️ Note: If you use a smartphone with international firmware (Global) ROM), The voice recorder may not have a feature for recording phone calls.

To change the recording quality settings, click on the three dots in the top right corner of the app and select "Settings."

• 🎚️ Select the recording format: M4A (AAC) or WAV (without compression, but takes up more space).
• 📊 Change the bitrate from 64 kbit / s to 192 kbit / s (not available on all models).
• 🔄 Enable automatic deletion of old records when memory is scarce.

Record audio using the app "Notes" (Notes)

Few people know, but Xiaomi's standard Notes app also has a voice recording feature built in, which is handy if you want to attach audio to a text note, for example, to capture ideas or comments, to record a voice in Notes:

1. Open the Notes app and create a new note (click on the icon "+" lower-right).
2. In the bottom toolbar, tap on the microphone icon (near the options for adding a photo or checklist).
3. Press the red recording button and start talking.Pass and stop are available on the same panel.

Advantages of this method:

• 📝 Audio is tied to a specific note, which is convenient for organizing information.
• 🔗 You can export the note along with the audio file to PDF Or send it to you via messengers.
• 📌 Records are automatically synced to the Mi Cloud if the feature is enabled.

However, there are limitations:

• ⏱️ Maximum recording time is 30 minutes (a new file is created after that).
• 🔊 The sound quality is lower than in a standard recorder (bitrate is fixed at 64 kbit / s).
• 🚫 No way to edit audio directly in the app.

💡

If you record lectures or meetings often, create a separate folder in Notes for audio notes, so they will be easier to find and sort.

Professional recording: use of the "High Quality" (Hi-Res Audio) mode

Some flagship Xiaomi models (e.g. Xiaomi 13 Pro, Xiaomi) 12S Ultra or Redmi K60 Pro) support Hi-Res Audio recording (high resolution) and allows recording of sound with a sampling rate of up to 96 kHz and a bitrate of up to 24 bits, which is comparable to professional equipment.

To enable Hi-Res Audio mode for recording:

1. Open the standard Dictaphone.
2. Go to Settings. → Recording quality.
3. Select the option “High quality (Hi-Res)” or “Studio quality” (the name may vary depending on the model).
4. Confirm the selection – the application may request a restart.

After activation of this mode:

• 🎧 Records will be retained in format WAV or FLAC (lossless).
• 📊 The file size will increase by 3-5 times compared to the standard M4A.
• 🔋 Battery consumption during recording will increase by ~15-20% due to increased workload on the processor.

⚠️ Note: Hi-Res Audio may not be available on budget models (e.g. Redmi) 10A POCO M5) Because of hardware limitations, some firmware also (e.g., some firmware, EU ROM) disable this function by default.

To check if your smartphone supports Hi-Res Audio, you can use the application AIDA64 (Audio section if the specification indicates support 24-bit/96kHz PCM, The function should work.

Screen recording (internal audio)

One of the most popular features is recording the internal audio of a smartphone, which is the sound that is played through speakers or headphones. This may be necessary to save music from apps, sound effects from games or streams. Unfortunately, Xiaomi does not provide this ability out of the box due to the limitations of Android, but there are workarounds.

Methods of recording internal audio:

• 📱 Using the "Screen Record" function (available on the MIUI 12.5+):
• 🔧 Through ADB-commands (requires PC and debugging by USB):
• 📲 Third-party applications (e.g, AZ Screen Recorder or Mobizen, but they require root rights or special settings.

⚠️ Note: Recording internal audio may violate the terms of use of certain services (e.g. Spotify or Netflix) and is prohibited by law in some countries.

If you have chosen the method of ADB, consider:

• 🔌 After completing the command, restart the smartphone.
• 🎧 In some applications (for example, YouTube Music) sound can be recorded with distortions.
• 🔄 To disable the function, use the command:

Third-party applications for recording audio: TOP-5 decision-making

If you don't like the standard Xiaomi tools, you can install one of the specialized applications, which offer advanced features: editing, cloud storage, speech recognition and even multichannel recording. We selected the 5 best options for Xiaomi smartphones:

1. Smart Recorder (🌟 4.7 on Google Play) 🎤 Automatic silence removal. 📊 Support WAV, MP3, OGG. 🔍 Search by records (speech recognition).
2. Hi-Q MP3 Recorder (🌟 4.5) 🎚️ Real-time volume control. 📤 Autoload records to Google Drive or Dropbox. 🔋 Optimized for battery saving.
3. Voice Recorder by Splend Apps (🌟 4.6) 🎨 Dark theme and customization of the interface. 📌 Time stamps during recording. 🔊 Increased sound (useful for lectures).
4. ASR Voice Recorder (🌟 4.4) 📝 Automatic transcription of speech into text (supported by Russian). 📁 Organization of folder and tag entries. 🔒 Password protection for confidential files.

RecForge II

• 🎛️ Advanced Equalizer Settings.
• 📡 Recording from an external microphone (e.g. Lavalier).
• 📊 Support 24-bit/96kHz compatible.

When choosing an application, pay attention to:

• 📥 Size APK (Some lightweight voice recorders weigh less than 5MB, but lack functions).
• 🛡️ Advertising and permissions (avoid apps that request access to the site) SMS or contact).
• 📊 Compatible with your Xiaomi model (check user reviews).

Install the app from the official store (Google Play or Mi App Store)

Check the permissions (access to microphone and storage)

Set up the format and quality of the recording in the application parameters

Test the recording in a quiet room-->

How to improve recording quality: tips and equipment

Even the most advanced software won’t save you if the original sound is recorded in a noisy room or through a low-quality microphone. Here are some practical tips for improving audio on Xiaomi:

Choice of microphone:

• 🎤 The smartphone’s built-in microphone is suitable for voice notes, but for interviews or music, it’s better to use an external one:

Optimization of the environment:

• 🏠 Write in a small room with upholstered furniture (carpets, curtains absorb echoes).
• 🚫 Avoid areas with background noise (air conditioners, fans, street hums).
• 📱 Place your smartphone at a distance of 20-30 cm from the sound source.

3. Smartphone settings:

• 🔇 Turn on Do Not Disturb mode to avoid interruptions with notifications.
• 📴 Turn off Wi-Fi and mobile data if they cause interference.
• 🔋 Battery charge must be at least 30%, otherwise the system may limit performance.

Post-processing:

• 🎛️ Use editing apps (like Lexis Audio Editor or Adobe Audition on PC).
• 📊 Normalize volume and remove noise with the Noise Reduction tool".
• 🎧 Listen to the recording in the headphones before saving the final version.

💡

The quality of the recording is 80 percent dependent on the microphone and the acoustics of the room, and even professional software can't fix the bad sound.

Where are the records stored and how to transfer them to the PC

By default, all audio files created by the standard Xiaomi voice recorder are stored in internal memory along the way:

/storage/emulated/0/MIUI/sound_recorder/

If you have used the Notes app, the audio files will be attached to the relevant notes and physically located in:

/storage/emulated/0/Android/data/com.miui.notes/files/

To transfer the recordings to the computer:

1. Connect your smartphone to your PC through USB-cable.
2. On your smartphone, select the file transfer mode ("File transfer" or MTP).
3. On PC, open the Explorer and go to the Internal Memory folder → MIUI → sound_recorder.
4. Copy the necessary files to the hard disk.

Alternative modes of transmission:

• ☁️ Through the Cloud: Upload files to Mi Cloud, Google Drive or Yandex Disk. Open the web version of the service on your PC and download the records.
• 📧 Email: Send files to your email as an attachment (limitation - usually 25MB).
• 📲 Through messengers: Send audio to yourself on Telegram (no size restrictions) or WhatsApp.

⚠️ Note: If you have recorded sensitive information (such as conversations with customers), make sure that the files are encrypted or password protected before transferring them to your PC. 7-Zip coded AES-256.

Frequent problems and their solutions

When you write audio to Xiaomi, users experience common mistakes, and consider the most common ones and how to fix them:

If none of the solutions worked, try:

• 🔄 Reboot your smartphone.
• 📥 Update the firmware to the latest version (Settings) → The phone. → Updating the system).
• 🛠️ Reset the voice recorder settings to factory (Settings) → Annexes → Dictaphone → Warehouse → Reset the settings).

FAQ: Answers to popular questions