Previous articleThe sound of notifications prevents listening to voice WhatsApp on Xiaomi? 5 ways to turn it off forever

You open WhatsApp, you launch a voice message from a friend, and suddenly over your voice, there's an annoying sound of a notification of a new message, and this happens even if you're already in a chat! This problem is familiar to many owners of Xiaomi smartphones (including Redmi, POCO and Mi), and the reason for the peculiarities of the MIUI firmware and its interaction with the application. In this article, we will discuss all possible reasons and ways to turn off the notification sound when listening to voice messages, including hidden settings that are not obvious to most users.

The problem is relevant for devices on MIUI 12/13/14 and Android 11-14, but the solutions are suitable for older versions. It is important to understand that sound can be played for two reasons: either this is a MIUI system notification or the sound of WhatsApp itself. We will consider both options, and we will also give recommendations for setting the Do Not Disturb mode and priority of notifications so that voice messages play without interference.

Why do the sound of notifications sound over voice messages?

Before we get to the solution, we need to understand the mechanism of the problem. At Xiaomi, the sound of notifications can be superimposed on the playback of voice for three main reasons:

• 🔊 Conflict of Sound Priorities: MIUI By default, it gives notifications the highest priority, even if the media file is currently being played (including voice messages).
• 📱 WhatsApp Settings: The messenger itself has a separate setting for notification sounds that can duplicate system signals.
• 🔕 Do Not Disturb Mode is Incorrect: If WhatsApp is not specified in the exceptions, the system may block sounds inconsistently.

In addition, some Xiaomi models (such as the Redmi Note 10 Pro or POCO X3 Pro) have a bug where the notification sound is played even if the settings are turned off, which is due to the optimization of power consumption for WhatsApp, which makes the application work in the background incorrectly.

Method 1: Turn off notification sounds in WhatsApp settings

To start with, the simplest of things is the settings of the messenger itself, and what users often miss is that WhatsApp has its own sound settings, independent of the system.

1. Open WhatsApp and tap on it. ⋮ (three-point) → Settings → Notifications.
2. Select the Notification Sound.
3. In the Messages section, set the value No Sound or Default (quiet).
4. Scroll down and turn off the Vibration option if it is active.

After that, WhatsApp's notifications should be gone, but voice messages will play out without interference, but if the problem persists, then MIUI is to blame, then we move on to the next way.

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If you want to save notification sounds for other chats but remove them for voice-only messages, use the "Exclusions" feature in WhatsApp notification settings. Add contacts whose voice messages must not be interrupted to the exclusions.

Method 2: Set notification priority in MIUI

MIUI allows you to manage notification priorities flexibly, but this section is hidden from the user, so that the notification sound does not overlap with voice messages, you need to manually lower the priority for WhatsApp:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Find WhatsApp in the list and tap it.
3. Select Notifications → Categories of notifications.
4. Open the Messages category (or Voice Messages, if it is available separately).
5. Set the slider Priority in the Low or Medium position.
6. Turn off the Sound and Vibration option.

These settings will make MIUI perceive WhatsApp notifications as secondary, and they won’t interrupt media playback, but note that once WhatsApp updates or resets, settings may get lost — you’ll have to reconfigure them.

Method 3: Use of Do Not Disturb Mode with Exceptions

One of the most reliable ways is to set Do Not Disturb (DND) mode so that it automatically activates when you play voice messages, and this will block all foreign sounds except the voice itself.

Instructions:

1. Open Settings → Sound and vibration → Do not disturb.
2. Activate the slider Enable automatically.
3. Select Add a rule → Media.
4. Set the condition: Playback of sound → WhatsApp.
5. In the Exclusions section, add WhatsApp to the list of allowed apps.

Now, listening to voice messages will silence all other notifications, but the voice itself will play without interference, a technique that is especially useful if you have a lot of notifications from other apps (such as Telegram, VK or Instagram).

Make sure the rule is activated for Media"|Add WhatsApp to exceptions|Turn off the vibration in mode. DND|Make sure the rule works for everyone. SIM-cards (if there are several)-->

Method 4: Disabling notification sounds at system level

If previous methods didn’t work, you can radically turn off notification sounds for all apps except media, which will make your Xiaomi quieter overall, but eliminate the problem with WhatsApp.

How to do this:

1. Go to Settings → Sound and vibration → System sounds.
2. Turn off the sliders: 🔕 Notification sounds 🔕 The sound of lockdown 🔕 Sound of charge

Types of notification

Priority

WhatsApp

⚠️ Note: This method will turn off notification sounds for all applications, including calls and SMS. If you need to receive notifications from other messengers, use Method 2 or Method 3.

Method 5: Reset notification settings for WhatsApp

Sometimes WhatsApp or MIUI settings may conflict due to cache or sync errors, in which case resetting notification settings for the app will help:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management → WhatsApp.
2. Slip on the Notifications. → Reset the settings (or Restore by default).
3. Confirm the action.
4. Reboot your smartphone.

Once you reboot, reset the WhatsApp notifications to Method 1 or Method 2. This often resolves the problem if it was caused by a software failure.

Additional recommendations for specific Xiaomi models

On some Xiaomi devices, the problem is different due to the hardware or firmware features.

• 📱 Redmi Note 11/12, POCO X4/X5: These models have a bug with Media Output that allows notifications to play through the speaker even when the headphones are connected, so the solution is to turn off Double Sound in the Sound and Vibration settings.
• 🔊 Mi 11/12 Series: Here the problem may be related to Dolby Atmos.Try to disable it in Settings → Sound and vibration → Sound quality.
• 🔋 Devices with MIUI 14: Recent firmware versions have added a separate button to Notify Media Sounds in WhatsApp settings.

If your model isn’t mentioned in the list, but the problem persists, try updating WhatsApp to the latest version or reset your network settings (Settings). → SIM-maps and mobile networks → Resetting network settings).

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On devices with a Snapdragon processor (e.g. POCO F3, Redmi K40), the problem is more often related to battery optimization. Add WhatsApp to the autostart and background activity exceptions!

What do you do if nothing helps?

If you’ve tried all the ways, but the sound of notifications still interferes with listening to voice messages, radical measures remain:

1. Install an alternative client for WhatsApp (like WhatsApp Plus or GBWhatsApp) that has advanced audio settings, but consider the risks of blocking your account.
2. Reverse to the older version of MIUI if the problem occurs after the upgrade. Use MIUI bootloader and manual firmware via Fastboot.
3. Contact Xiaomi with error logs. To get them, turn on Developer Mode (Settings → About Phone → MIUI version – tap 7 times) and activate Error Log.

⚠️ Note: Using modified versions of WhatsApp (e.g. GBWhatsApp) violates the service’s rules and may result in account locking without recovery.

If you don't want to take risks, try a temporary solution: play voice messages through headphones, in which case the notification sound is most often played through the main speaker without interfering with listening.

FAQ: Frequent questions about the sound of WhatsApp notifications on Xiaomi