We subjected the Xiaomi 13 Pro to our rigorous SBMARK audio test suite to measure its performance both when recording sound using its built-in microphones, and when playing audio through its speakers.
In this review, we’ll analyze how it performed in a variety of tests and several common use cases.
Overview
Key audio specs include:
- Two speakers (front top, side bottom)
- No audio output Jack
Reproduction
Pros
- Overall good timbre yield
- Good and realistic dynamic performance
- Almost free of unwanted audio artifacts
Against
- The sound stage could be wider
- Lack of low end extension
Registration
Pros
- Good timbre and general intelligibility
- Good spatial performance overall
- Good and realistic dynamic performance
Against
- Quite prone to wind noise, audio quality suffers significantly in moderate to strong winds
- Pumping and distortion when capturing loud sounds
In our SBMARK Audio tests, the Xiaomi 13 Pro performed well, with reliable performance in all playback and recording use cases. It offered a pleasant listening experience through the built-in speakers, making it an excellent option for consuming music and playing games as well as watching movies. That said, the limited width of the projected soundstage meant the stereo experience wasn’t quite as immersive as with some of its rivals.
Good to very good performance in almost all test attributes make the Xiaomi a great choice for sound recording, but potential users should note that, due to compression and distortion, it is not very suitable for recording at high sound pressure levels, for example, concerts and other loud events. Wind noise could also be an issue, but other than that, the Xiaomi 13 Pro’s audio recordings offered very good quality.
Trial summary
Learn about SBMARK audio tests: For scoring and analysis in our smartphone audio reviews, SBMARK engineers perform a series of objective tests and undertake more than 20 hours of perceptual evaluation under controlled laboratory conditions.
(For more details on our playback protocol, click here; for more details on our recording protocol, click here.)
The following section compiles the key elements of our extensive testing and analysis performed in the SBMARK laboratories. Detailed performance evaluations in the form of reports are available upon request. Do not hesitate to contact us.
How the audio playback score is composed
SBMARK engineers test playback through smartphone speakers, the performance of which is evaluated in our labs and under real-life conditions, using apps and preset settings.
The Xiaomi 13 Pro performed well overall as an audio playback device. Tonal balance was good, despite a slightly limited top-end extension and resulting lack of brightness. The overall highs were good though. The midrange was clean and natural, and the bass sounded nice overall, despite a somewhat lackluster low end. Dynamic performance was good overall, with sharp attack, good bass accuracy, and powerful punch. In terms of spatial performance, the Xiaomi 13 Pro performed well for localizability, balance and depth rendering, but given the strong results in these categories, our testers would have expected the device to render a wider soundscape.
A well-tuned minimum volume setting meant that even high dynamic range content could be easily consumed, and maximum volume was loud enough for all use cases. Furthermore, the device was mostly free of unwanted audio artifacts, with only a slight amount of distortion and compression at maximum volume.
Hear about the playback performance of the smartphone tested in this comparison with some of its competitors:
Recordings of smartphones playing some of our songs at 60 LAeq in an anechoic environment via 2 microphones in AB configuration, at 30 cm
Here’s how the Xiaomi 13 Pro fares in playback use cases compared to its competitors:
Playback of use case scores
The Timbre score represents how well a phone reproduces sound across the audible tonal range and takes into account bass, mids, treble, tonal balance, and volume dependence. It is the most important attribute for reproduction.
Frequency response of music reproduction
A 1/12-octave frequency response graph, which measures the loudness of each frequency emitted by your smartphone as it reproduces a pure sine wave in an anechoic environment.
The Dynamics Score measures the accuracy of changes in the energy level of sound sources, such as how accurately a bass note or impact sound of drums is played.
Secondary attributes for spatial testing include pinpointing the location of a specific sound, its positional balance, distance, and amplitude.
The volume score represents the overall volume of a smartphone and how smoothly the volume increases and decreases based on user input.
Here are some sound pressure levels (SPL) measured while playing our sample recordings of hip-hop and classical music at maximum volume:
| hip-hop | Classic | |
| Xiaomi 13Pro | 72.5 dBA | 68.9 dBA |
| Apple iPhone 14 Pro | 74 dBA | 71.1 dBA |
| Xiaomi 12T Pro | 74.1 dBA | 69.8 dBA |
The following graph shows the gradual changes in volume from minimum to maximum. We expect these changes to be consistent across the range, so that all volume steps match user expectations:
Music volume consistency
This line graph shows the relative loudness of the playback versus the user selected volume step, measured at several volume steps with correlated pink noise in an anechoic box recorded 0.20 meter on axis.
The artifact score measures the extent to which the sound is affected by various types of distortion. The higher the score, the less noticeable sound disturbances are. Distortion can occur due to the sound processing in the device and the quality of the speakers.
Playback Total Harmonic Distortion (maximum volume)
This graph shows total harmonic distortion and noise over the audible frequency range.
It represents the distortion and noise of the device playing our test signal (0 dB Fs, Sweep Sine in an anechoic box at 40cm) at the device’s maximum volume.
How the score of the audio recording is composed
SBMARK engineers test recording by evaluating recorded files on reference audio equipment. These recordings are made in our laboratories and under real-life conditions, using apps and default settings.
The 13 Pro is also a great option for audio recording. It delivered a good tonal performance, with nice highs when recording with the main camera, natural midrange, and nice bass. It also worked very well for dynamics, thanks to the good signal-to-noise ratio and envelope rendering in all use cases.
The localizability of individual sound sources in the scene was exceptional and the recordings offered a realistic rendering of distance. While not impressive, the breadth of the captured soundstage was still good. This Xiaomi model also offered good recording volume, especially with the memo app. Volume was also good when recording with the main camera app, regardless of device orientation. Unwanted recording artifacts were overall well under control, but at high SPLs, our testers noted heavy compression that could lead to pumping and distortion. Our testers also noted a slight lack of top-end extension in the tonal balance of the wallpaper, but on the bright side, the wallpaper remained largely free of artifacts.
Here’s how the Xiaomi 13 Pro fares in recording use cases compared to its competitors:
Use case scoring
The Timbre Score represents how well a phone captures sounds across the audible tonal range and takes into account bass, mids, treble, and tonal balance. It is the most important attribute for registration.
Video frequency response of life
A 1/12-octave frequency response graph, which measures the loudness of each frequency captured by your smartphone while recording a pure sine wave in an anechoic environment.
The Dynamics Score measures the accuracy of changes in the energy level of sound sources, such as how accurately plosives in a voice (p, t, k, for example) are reproduced. The score also considers the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), such as how loud the lead voice is compared to the background noise.
Secondary attributes for spatial testing include locating a specific sound’s location, positional balance, distance, and amplitude on recorded audio files.
Directness of registration
Smartphone directivity graph while recording test signals using the camera app, with the main camera. It represents the acoustic energy (in dB) on the angle of incidence of the sound source. (Normalized to 0° angle, in front of the device.)
The loudness score represents how loud audio is normalized on recorded files and how well the device handles noisy environments, such as electronic concerts, while recording.
Here are the sound levels recorded in the audio and video files, measured in LUFS (Loudness Unit Full Scale); for reference, we expect volume levels to be above -24 LUFS for recorded content:
| Encounter | Videos life | Selfie videos | Memorandum | |
| Xiaomi 13Pro | -23.6 LUFS | -25 LUFS | -23.9 LUFS | -18.8 LUFS |
| Apple iPhone 14 Pro | -26 LUFS | -22.9 LUFS | -19.2 LUFS | -19.6 LUFS |
| Xiaomi 12T Pro | -30.3 LUFS | -21.8 LUFS | -20.2 LUFS | -25.3 LUFS |
The Artifacts score measures the extent to which recorded sounds are affected by various types of distortions. The higher the score, the less noticeable sound disturbances are. Distortions can occur due to in-device sound processing and microphone quality, as well as user handling, such as how the phone is held.
In this audio comparison, you can hear how this smartphone handles wind noise compared to its competitors:
matrix(3) {
[“Xiaomi 13 Pro”]=> string(62) “resources/Xiaomi/13ProV2.1/Xiaomi13Pro_MicrophoneArtifacts.m4a”
[“Apple iPhone 14 Pro”]=> string(67) “resources/Xiaomi/13ProV2.1/AppleiPhone14Pro_MicrophoneArtifacts.m4a”
[“Xiaomi 12T Pro”]=> string(63) “resources/Xiaomi/13ProV2.1/Xiaomi12TPro_MicrophoneArtifacts.m4a” }
Recordings of a voice sample with slight background noise, facing a 5 m/s turbulent wind
Background evaluates how smoothly various sounds around a voice blend into the video recording file. For example, when recording a speech at an event, the background shouldn’t interfere with the main vocal, but should provide context of your surroundings.
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