Security Camera With Audio Recording: Why Your Clips Are Silent

11 min read · Oct 20, 2026

If your recordings play with a picture but no sound, the cause is almost always one of four things: the camera has no microphone, audio recording is switched off in the app, the sound is muted on the phone or player you are using, or something is physically covering the microphone hole. A security camera with audio recording needs all four to line up — a mic in the hardware, audio enabled in the settings, an unblocked opening, and a player that is not muted. Work through the checks below in order, starting with the quickest ones.

This article is about sound in recorded clips and live view. If you can hear the camera but it cannot hear you when you press the talk button, that is a different problem, covered in the two-way audio checklist.

Step 1: Confirm your camera actually has a microphone

Not every camera can record sound. A microphone is a separate component, and some models in any range are built without one — usually to keep costs down, or because the camera is meant for places where recording audio is unwelcome.

How to tell what you have:

Look at the camera body. A microphone normally sits behind one or more tiny pinholes, often on the front near the lens, or underneath. A speaker, if there is one, tends to be a larger grille of several holes. If you can find no pinhole anywhere, the model may not have a mic.
Read the label and the manual. The spec list for your exact model will say whether it has audio, a microphone, two-way audio or none of these. "Two-way audio" means it has both a microphone and a speaker.
Ask the seller. If you bought from a shop or installer, they can confirm the model you received.

One thing that confuses people: the app may still show a speaker icon or audio option on a camera that has no microphone. The same app serves many different models, so a button appearing on screen does not prove the hardware is there. If the manual says no microphone, no setting will add sound.

Step 2: Turn audio on in the camera's settings

On models that do have a microphone, audio recording can usually be switched on or off. Exact menu names differ slightly by app version and model, but on most cameras the steps look like this:

Open the Yoosee app and tap the gear icon next to the camera (or open the camera, then its settings).
Look under Media settings, Video settings or Record settings. Some versions call it Audio or Sound.
Find a switch labelled something like Record audio, Audio recording or Microphone, and turn it on.
Save or go back so the setting is sent to the camera. A brief pause or a "setting saved" message is normal.

If you are not sure where a menu lives in your version, the full app settings guide walks through every section of the gear menu.

Two important points:

The setting only affects new recordings. Footage captured while audio was off stays silent forever. Turning audio on today will not add sound to yesterday's clips.
Test it straight away. Talk or clap near the camera for ten or twenty seconds, then open playback and check that stretch of the timeline. If the new clip has sound, you are done.

Step 3: Check the live view audio first

Before you blame the recordings, open the camera's live view and listen. This tells you which side is at fault.

On the live view screen, look for a speaker icon. A line through it means the stream is muted on your phone. Tap it to unmute. This icon only controls what you hear — it does not change what the camera records.
Live view has sound, recordings do not: the microphone works, so the problem is the recording setting from Step 2, or the way you are playing the files (Step 5).
Neither has sound: the problem is the microphone, its setting, or your phone's audio. Carry on with Step 4.
Live view has crackle or hiss but no voices: the microphone is working but may be too far from the sound, blocked, or picking up wind or a fan.

Step 4: Rule out your phone

Before going further, make sure the phone is not the culprit. Check each of these with the app open and a stream or clip playing:

Media volume, not ringer volume. On many Android phones, the volume buttons control the ringtone unless media is already playing. Start the video first, then press volume up, and check the slider that appears is the media one.
Silent or focus mode. On iPhone, the side switch or Action button can put the phone in silent mode, and some apps go quiet along with it. Turn silent mode off and try again.
Bluetooth. Earbuds, a speaker or a car kit still connected will take the sound and play it somewhere you cannot hear. Turn Bluetooth off for a moment as a test.
Another app holding audio. A call in progress, a voice recorder or a music app can grab the audio channel. Close them and reopen the camera app.
Restart the app. Fully close it from the recent-apps screen, reopen it and test again.

If another phone in the household hears sound from the same camera and yours does not, the camera is fine and the issue is on your handset.

Step 5: Check how you are playing the recordings

Where you watch the footage matters, because each route handles audio differently.

In the app's playback

Open the camera, go to playback and pick a clip recorded after you turned audio on. The playback screen usually has its own speaker icon, separate from the live view one, so check that too. For how the timeline works and how to save a clip to your phone, see the playback and clip-saving guide.

Clips saved to your phone

A clip exported from the app normally keeps its sound. If it plays silently in your gallery, check the gallery's own mute button, then try playing the file in a different video app before deciding the sound is missing.

Files copied from the memory card to a computer

This is a frequent place for sound to seem to disappear. Depending on the model, the camera may save files in a format a computer's default player does not fully support, so the player may show the picture but drop the audio track, or refuse to play the file at all. A free player that supports many codecs, such as VLC, usually plays both picture and sound. The full process, including how to copy the card safely, is in the guide to viewing the camera's SD card on a computer.

If a file has sound in the app but not on the computer, the recording is fine — it is the player.

Step 6: Look for a blocked or damaged microphone

If the settings are right and live view is still silent, inspect the hardware. Switch off power to the camera first, and if it is mounted high up, use a stable ladder and have someone with you; for cameras wired into mains power, ask a qualified electrician.

Covered pinhole. Protective film from the factory, a sticker, a mounting bracket, paint, a weather shield or a thick spider web can all cover the mic. Peel off any film and wipe the area gently.
Dirt or moisture. Outdoor cameras collect dust and water in the mic opening. Clear it with a soft dry brush. Do not push a pin or needle into the hole — the microphone sits right behind it and is easy to damage.
Distance and noise. A camera mounted high on a wall, behind glass, or next to an air conditioner, fan or road will pick up speech poorly or not at all. Glass blocks a lot of sound, so a camera pointing out through a window will record little from outside.

Step 7: Restart, update, and reset as a last resort

If nothing above fixes it:

Restart the camera by unplugging its power for about half a minute, then plugging it back in. Wait for it to come back online in the app.
Check for a firmware update in the device settings, if your model offers one there. Updates sometimes fix audio bugs; do not unplug the camera while it is updating.
Update the app from Google Play or the App Store.
Reset the camera to factory settings only as a final step. On most models this wipes the Wi-Fi setup and you will need to add the camera to the app again, so make sure you know your Wi-Fi password first.

Turning audio off for privacy

Sometimes the goal is the opposite: you want a camera that records video only. People do this in rooms where staff or guests talk, in shared homes, or simply because the household prefers it.

Use the same switch from Step 2 and turn audio recording off. Test with playback afterwards to confirm new clips are silent.
Remember that muting live view on your phone does not stop the camera recording sound — only the camera-side setting does.
Rules about recording conversations differ from place to place, and can be stricter for workplaces, rented property or areas shared with neighbours. If you are unsure, check local rules before recording audio, and consider putting up a visible sign that a camera is in use.

When to get help

Contact the seller or installer if:

The manual says your model has a microphone, but the app shows no audio setting at all, even after updating the app and firmware.
Live view is silent on every phone you try, the mic opening is clear, and a reset made no difference — this points to a faulty microphone.
Sound used to work and stopped after the camera got wet, was dropped or was moved.

When you ask, have the model name from the label, the app version, and a short description of what you have already tried. It saves a lot of back and forth.

Frequently asked questions

Can I add sound to old recordings that were silent?

No. If the microphone was off, missing or blocked when the clip was recorded, there is no audio data in the file to recover. Fix the setting now and every recording from that point on will include sound.

Why do my recordings have sound in the app but not on my computer?

The camera saved the audio, but your computer's player cannot decode it. Try a media player that supports a wide range of formats, such as VLC. If the file plays with sound there, nothing is wrong with the camera or the card.

Does recording audio fill the memory card faster?

Slightly, but the effect is usually small because sound takes far less space than video. Resolution and recording mode (continuous versus motion only) make a much bigger difference to how many days fit on the card. The easiest way to judge your setup is to check how far back playback goes after a few days.

What should I look for when buying a security camera with audio recording?

Look for a spec sheet that lists a built-in microphone, or two-way audio if you also want to talk through the camera. An audio icon in the app or on the box artwork is not proof on its own, so confirm the exact model with the seller before you buy.

Why is the sound in my recordings out of sync with the picture?

Small timing drift can happen when the network is slow or the camera is under heavy load, and some computer players handle camera files less smoothly than the app does. Try the same clip in the app's playback; if it is in sync there, the issue is the player rather than the recording.

How far away can the camera pick up voices?

It depends on the model, where it is mounted and how noisy the space is, so there is no single figure that applies to every camera. As a rough test, have someone speak at normal volume while walking away from the camera, then check the recording to see where their voice becomes hard to follow.