X-Plane 12: NAV1 Morse code audio only audible when the OVERHEAD panel is open

Hi Francesco,

No, that’s not “normal” behavior in the sense of “working as intended” for NAV ident audio. What you’re describing usually points to the audio being tied to a 2D panel/sound context (or a cockpit audio control) that’s only “active” when that overhead popup is in focus/visible.

Here’s how I’d troubleshoot it, step by step.

1) Verify it’s actually NAV audio, not a UI/interaction sound

1. Tune NAV1 to a known, strong VOR/ILS and make sure you’re in range.
2. Toggle the NAV1 ident (the “ID”/“MKR”/“NAV” audio switch—whatever your aircraft labels it as).
3. If you only hear it when the overhead window is open, that’s a big clue it’s aircraft-specific (not a global X-Plane setting).

2) Check the aircraft’s audio panel routing (very common culprit)
In a lot of aircraft, the NAV1 ident audio is gated by the audio control panel (volume knobs, monitor switches, etc.), and some developers put those controls on the overhead.

1. On the overhead (or wherever the audio panel is), look for:
   • NAV1 / VOR1 audio select button
   • NAV1 volume knob (make sure it’s not at 0)
   • A “speaker/phones” selector (try both if present)
   • Any “mute” or “PA/ICS” style logic that can steal the audio channel
2. With the overhead open and ident audible, change the NAV1 volume up/down and confirm you’re affecting the sound you’re hearing.
3. Then close the overhead and see if the sound drops immediately (or only after a second). Immediate drop tends to indicate a popup-dependent sound source.

3) Rule out X-Plane’s sound mix / view-dependent audio
Go into X-Plane’s sound settings and do a quick sanity check:

• Make sure you don’t have a weird balance where cockpit sounds are near zero but UI sounds are up (or vice versa).
• If there’s any “radio”/“avionics” volume slider (depends on what you’re using), test moving it while the ident is audible.

(Reason: some aircraft route ident through “radio” volume, others through a more general cockpit channel.)

4) Test with a different aircraft
This is the fastest way to separate “X-Plane issue” from “this aircraft’s implementation.”

1. Load a default Laminar aircraft.
2. Tune NAV1, enable ident, and see if the behavior repeats.

If it doesn’t happen on a default aircraft, it’s almost certainly an aircraft bug or custom sound logic tied to that overhead popup.

5) Quick plugin check (only if needed)
If it happens across multiple aircraft, then it’s worth temporarily removing/disabled third-party plugins that alter audio/cockpit interaction and re-test. (No need to nuke your install—just a temporary plugin isolation test.)

A couple quick questions so I can point you to the right fix:

• Which aircraft are you flying when this happens (exact model)?
• Is the overhead you mention a 2D popup window, or are you just looking up in the 3D cockpit?
• Does it happen on a default Laminar aircraft too, or only this one?
• Are you using any audio-related plugins/add-ons (anything that touches sound, ATC, or intercom)?

Answer those and we can narrow it down to either a simple audio panel routing issue or a known aircraft-side sound bug/workaround.