When a Xiaomi smartphone suddenly loses sound during an incoming or outgoing call, it can disorient anyone. You see the person talking, you hear the horns of the connection, but the dialogue turns into a silent monologue or is accompanied by frightening silence. This can happen on both the new flagships of the Xiaomi 14 series and on the budget models of Redmi, and most often the reason lies in the software failure or incorrect configuration of the system.
Before you panic and bring the device to the service center, you need to conduct a thorough diagnosis. In most cases, the lack of sound is caused by trivial reasons: active mode "Do not disturb", a connected Bluetooth device that intercepted the audio stream, or accidental locking of speakers with a case, understanding the nature of the problem is half the success in eliminating it.
In this article, we will discuss in detail all possible reasons why Xiaomi lost audio, and provide step-by-step instructions for restoring the audio system. We will consider both software solutions and hardware nuances that can affect communication quality.
Basic check of volume settings and profiles
The first thing to do if you can't hear someone is to check the current media and call volume levels. In the MIUI shell and the new HyperOS, these parameters are often separated. Press the volume button on the side of the case and press the gear or three dots to deploy the full settings. Make sure the Call and Multimedia slider are not set to zero, as some models use a multimedia channel for hands-free communication.
⚠️ Warning: Check whether Quiet or Do Not Disturb mode is activated, and in this mode, the phone can vibrate but not make sounds, which often confuses users with incoming calls.
Also pay attention to the sound profile. Go to Settings → Sound and vibration and make sure you choose a standard profile, not any specific script that may have been created before. Sometimes third-party audio management applications can conflict with system settings by blocking audio channels.
If just adjusting the sliders didn't work, try forcefully restarting the device. This action will clear temporary memory buffers where the process responsible for the audio stream might have been stuck. Long pressing of the power button and selecting "Reboot" often solves the problem if it is a one-time occurrence.
- 🔊 Check all volume sliders in the extended menu.
- 🔇 Make sure the "Do Not Disturb" mode is turned off (moon in status bar).
- 🔄 Perform a full reboot of the smartphone.
The influence of Bluetooth and external devices
One of the most common reasons why Xiaomi doesn't have sound when calling is to automatically switch the audio output to a wireless device.The smartphone could connect to a forgotten headphone, smartwatch or speaker in the bag, and now all the sound goes there, not to the phone speaker. Check the top of the screen (status bar) for a Bluetooth icon.
To rule out this factor, completely disable the Bluetooth module through the Quick Access Panel or in the Settings → Connection and Sharing menu. After turning off, make a test call. If the sound appears, then the problem was precisely in redirecting the audio stream. In the future, you can set up automatic Bluetooth shutdown in the absence of active devices or prevent the transmission of sound to specific gadgets.
Sometimes the system forgets to switch the channel back to the smartphone speaker even after the Bluetooth is turned off, in which case resetting the network settings will help. Go to Settings → Connection and Sharing → Reset Wi-Fi, mobile networks and Bluetooth. This action will return all network settings to factory values without affecting your personal files and photos.
Why does the phone connect to old headphones?
- 🎧 Turn off Bluetooth completely for the test.
- 📱 Check the status bar for headset badges.
- 🔌 Remove the headphones if they are connected (even if they are wireless but come complete).
Software failures and application performance
Software conflicts are a common reason why Redmi or POCO has lost sound, especially when the problem only occurs in certain applications, such as Viber, WhatsApp or Telegram, when normal SIM calls work normally, and in such cases, you need to check the permissions for a particular application.
Go to Settings → Applications → All apps, find the problem messenger and select “Allowances.” Make sure that access to the microphone and phone is allowed. Also try to clear the app cache: Memory → Clear cache. Accumulated temporary files can cause errors in the work of audio drivers inside the application.
Another important aspect is the availability of system updates. Xiaomi regularly releases security patches and stability improvements to MIUI/HyperOS. If you have a beta version of the firmware, the probability of bugs with sound is much higher. Go to Settings → About the phone and check for updates. If the problem appeared after the last update, you may need to wait for the next patch or roll back the firmware.
☑️ Diagnostics of software failure
⚠️ Warning: Install firmware from unverified sources or use root rights can cause permanent damage to the audio module. If you've experimented with system files, the only solution may be a complete reset.
Hardware problems and pollution
If software methods didn't work, it's worth considering the physical reasons: The speaker of the hearing aid (top speaker) and the main speaker (usually at the bottom) have small holes that get clogged with dust, pocket pile and skin fat, which creates a deaf sound or no sound at all.
Use a soft dry toothbrush or a special sticky tape to clean, it is strictly forbidden to use sharp objects (needles, toothpicks), as you can damage the speaker membrane, and it is also not recommended to pour the holes with alcohol or water if the smartphone does not have official IP68 moisture protection, and even in this case it is better to be careful.
Check if you have a thick protective case installed. Some poor-quality accessories can cover the speakers or microphones. Remove the case and check the sound. Also check the headphone jack (if any) or USB-C port for oxidation or moisture, which can close contacts and switch the sound.
| Symptoms. | Possible cause | Method of decision |
|---|---|---|
| It's sounding, but it's very quiet. | Dynamic grid contamination | Careful brushing |
| The sound comes and goes. | Bad plume contact | Reconnecting the plume in the service |
| The sound wheezes and cracks | Membrane damage | Replacement of the speaker |
| There's no sound in the headphones. | Oxidation of the 3.5 mm connector | Cleaning the connector or using Bluetooth |
💡
Use the Sound Assistant app from GetApps or Mi Store, and it has a Speaker Cleanup feature that outputs a certain frequency sound wave that pushes dust out of the grids.
Specificity of work in messengers and VoIP
Special attention should be paid to the situation when regular calls work, but WhatsApp, Viber or Zoom sound is not, these applications use Internet Protocol (VoIP) and can conflict with the system settings of power saving Xiaomi. Aggressive battery optimization can "kill" the background process of sound transmission.
Go to the battery settings and find the problem app. Set the power saving mode to "No restrictions." This will allow the application to freely use the CPU and audio resources even in the background. Also check if the "Data Saving" mode is on, which can limit the quality of voice transmission.
In some cases, resetting the call app itself helps. Go to Settings → Apps → All Apps → Phone (green handset icon). Select Clear → All Data. This will return the call settings to factory settings, resetting possible routing errors within the system.
💡
Sound problems in messengers alone are solved 90% of the time by removing energy saving restrictions for a particular application.
Radical measures: reset and engineering menu
If nothing works, you can try typing a command into the hardware hardware-part engineering menu. In the Phone app, dial ##6484##. The CIT menu will open. Select the item associated with the sound check (usually Receiver or Speaker). If there is sound in the test, then the speaker is working, and the problem is exactly in the software. If there is no sound even in the test, it is a hardware breakdown.
The final software step is a complete reset to the factory settings (Hard Reset). Attention: this action will delete all your data. Before the procedure, make sure to back up. Go to Settings → Phone → Reset → Erase all data. Once reset, the phone will return to the "out of the box" state, and if the problem was software, it will disappear.
In the case when even after a complete reset, there is no sound, we are talking about a physical malfunction: a burned audio codec on the board, a departed plume or a malfunction of the speaker, only qualified repairs in the service center will help.