Why the sound does not go into the headphones on the Xiaomi Redmi phone: full diagnosis and repair

The problem with the sound in the headphones on Xiaomi Redmi smartphones is one of the most common complaints of users: you connect wired or wireless headphones, and instead of music you hear silence, crackling or sound through the phone speaker. 70% of the time, MIUI software malfunctions are to blame, but sometimes hardware damage. This article will help to accurately diagnose the cause and fix it without going to the service center — if possible.

We’ll break down the specific crashes of the Redmi Note 10/11/12, POCO X3/X4 and other popular models, where the problem is often related to the features of the Type-C connector, Qualcomm drivers or Bluetooth 5.2 settings.

Before you start repairing, answer the question:

If the sound is gone after a MIUI update, a phone drop, or a connection to another device, these are key clues. We'll go through each scenario separately.

1. Checking basic settings: why headphones are not defined

Start with the obvious: maybe the problem isn't with the headphones, but with the phone's settings. On Xiaomi Redmi, the sound can be automatically redirected to the speaker due to a glitch in the sound profile or an app conflict.

Open the Settings → Sound and vibration and check:

• 🔊 Sound mode: Headphones should be selected (if connected) and sometimes the system resets it to Dynamic».
• 🎧 Type of connected devices: if it shows “No devices”, then the phone does not recognize the headphones.
• 🔄 Auto-switch: Turn off the option to “Automatically switch to speaker when removing headphones” – it often works falsely.

If your Bluetooth headphones are connected but there is no sound, check:

• 📱 Device Priority: In the notification bar, click on the Bluetooth icon → Choose your headphones. → «Use it for sound».
• 🔋 Headphone Charge: Some models (e.g. Redmi Buds 3 Pro) silently turn off when under 5%.
• 🔄 Connection Profile: In Bluetooth Settings, Find Your Headphones → «Additionally» → Choose “High Quality Audio» (AAC or).

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On Xiaomi Redmi with MIUI 13/14 there is a bug: after connecting the headphones, the sound can go simultaneously to the speaker and headphones. To fix, restart the phone or turn off / turn on Bluetooth manually.

Diagnostics of 3.5 mm or Type-C connector: hardware breakdowns

If the headphones are not detected at all (even after rebooting), the problem may be physical damage to the connector. On the Redmi Note 10 Pro and later, the contact group in the Type-C often breaks, and on older models (for example, the Redmi 8) the 3.5 mm connector is often broken.

How to check:

1. Put your headphones on and move the plug a little bit, and if the sound comes or goes, it's bad contact.
2. Light a flashlight into the connector: if you see dirt, oxidation or bent contacts inside, cleaning or replacement is required.
3. Connect the headphones to another device. If they work, the problem is the phone.

On Xiaomi Redmi with Type-C (without 3.5 mm), the Cirrus Logic sound controller often fails. Symptoms: the phone does not see the headphones, but the charging is working. In this case, you need to repair the motherboard.

3.Bluetooth crashes: why wireless headphones connect but don't play

On Xiaomi Redmi with MIUI 12+, there is a chronic problem: Bluetooth connects, but the sound goes through the speaker, due to a bug in the profile of A2DP (responsible for audio transfer).

How to fix it:

• 🔄 Reconnect: Remove the headphones from the list of devices (Settings) → Bluetooth, then reconnect.
• 📱 Network reset: go to Settings → SIM-maps and mobile networks → Resetting Wi-Fi, Mobile Network and Bluetooth.
• 🔧 Manual codec selection: in Bluetooth settings, find your headphones → «Additionally» → choose SBC instead AAC (sometimes helps with coding).
• 🛠️ Firmware update: on Redmi Note 11 and later, Bluetooth bugs are often patched MIUI.

If Xiaomi/Airdots headphones don’t work with your Redmi, but work with other devices, try:

1. Turn off dual audio (Bluetooth Settings → Additional).
2. Enable Developer Mode and disable Absolute Bluetooth Volume (Settings → About Phone → MIUI Version → 7 times Press → Return to Additional → For Developers).

4.Reset audio settings and MIUI: when nothing helps

If the sound in the headphones disappeared after updating MIUI or installing the application, the conflicting settings are to blame. Xiaomi has a hidden audio reset feature that solves 90% of software problems.

How to reset the sound settings:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Click on the three dots in the upper right corner → Reset application settings.
3. Select Only the sound settings and confirm.

If this doesn’t help, do a soft reset (does not delete data):

1. Turn off the phone.
2. Press the Power button + Volume up for 10 seconds (before the MI logo appears).
3. Select Reboot system now (use volume buttons for navigation).

⚠️ Warning: If after reset, the sound in the headphones appeared, but after a few days disappeared again - a problem in the background application).

5.Firmware problems: MIUI bugs and Android kernels

On Xiaomi Redmi, the sound in the headphones often disappears after the MIUI update due to errors in Qualcomm or Mediatek drivers. For example, in MIUI 14 for the Redmi Note 12, there was a bug that caused Type-C to stop recognizing headphones as audio devices.

How to check the firmware version and fix:

• 📱 Go to Settings. → The phone. → Version. MIUI. If the version is older than 6 months, update it.
• 🔧 If there are no updates, install the patch manually through Settings. → Updating the system → Three points. → Select a Service Package.
• 🛠️ For advanced: Sweat through custom Recovery (such as OrangeFox) and install Disable_ABS_Volume (Corrects problems with Bluetooth).

List of models with known sound bugs:

• Redmi Note 10 Pro (MIUI 12.5) – cracking in headphones at high volume.
• POCO X3 NFC (MIUI 13) – Sound is used in the speaker instead of Bluetooth.
• Redmi 9A (MIUI 12) - 3.5 mm connector stops working after falling.

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If the sound is gone after the MIUI update, rolling back to the previous version often helps. Use the Fastboot firmware from Xiaomi's official website ("Download" section).

6. Hardware breakdowns: when you need help from the service

If all the software methods have been tried and the sound in the headphones has never appeared, it's the hardware.

• 🔌 Connector. Type-C/3.5 mm: contact break or oxidation (repair — 1 500–3 000 ₽).
• 🎛️ Audio codec (Cirrus Logic or Realtek chip): Requires soldering (5,000–8,000) ₽).
• 📶 antenna Bluetooth/Wi-Fi: if the headphones and wireless networks do not work (repair — 2 000–4 000 ₽).
• 🔋 Power Controller: on some models (Redmi Note 8 Pro) it is associated with audio track (replacement – 3,500–6,000) ₽).

How to understand that you need a diagnosis in the service:

• The phone does not see any headphones (wired and Bluetooth).
• The sound disappears after heating the phone (a symptom of chip despatch).
• The Type-C connector does not have contact for audio transmission (checked by a multimeter).

⚠️ Warning: If you're unsure of your soldering skills, don't try to repair the audio codec yourself. On Xiaomi, these chips are often soldered under the screen, and careless intervention can knock out the motherboard.

7. Alternative solutions: how to listen to music without repair

If repairs are delayed, and headphones are needed urgently, use the workarounds:

• 🎵 Bluetooth transmitter: connect it to Type-C and sync with wireless headphones (bypass a faulty connector).
• 🔊 External DAC (e.g., Xiaomi) USB-C to 3.5mm): Connects via Type-C and emulates audio output.
• 📱 Sound routing applications (e.g. SoundAbout): allow you to manually redirect the audio stream.

For Redmi with MIUI 14, there is another life hack:

1. Connect the headphones via Bluetooth.
2. Enable Developer Mode (as in Section 3).
3. Activate the option to debug audio via USB.
4. Reboot the phone.

This sometimes forces the system to correctly recognize audio devices.

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions