diff --git a/drivers/dma/imx-sdma.c b/drivers/dma/imx-sdma.c
index 5b38f2bbd42a..d0df198f62e9 100644
--- a/drivers/dma/imx-sdma.c
+++ b/drivers/dma/imx-sdma.c
@@ -1288,7 +1288,8 @@ static void sdma_load_firmware(const struct firmware *fw, void *context)
 	unsigned short *ram_code;
 
 	if (!fw) {
-		dev_err(sdma->dev, "firmware not found\n");
+		dev_info(sdma->dev, "external firmware not found, using ROM firmware\n");
+		/* In this case we just use the ROM firmware. */
 		return;
 	}