DSPs Expand High-Performance AudioDSPs Expand High-Performance Audio

The growing need for more features in consumer and professional audio has dictated a need for higher-performance digital signal processors (DSPs). Analog Devices' newest Sharc processors address these needs with the ADSP-21367 for consumer audio and the ADSP-21368 for professional audio. "It's also a platform that allows our customer to bring new features very quickly to the marketplace," says Colin Duggan, Analog Devices' product line manager for audio products.

ADI's Sharc family has developed a reputation for high-quality audio based on its ability to support 32- to 40-bit floating-point processing. The extended 40-bit data capability produces improved low-frequency signal processing. By taking the processing performance to 400 MHz, features that require higher frequency performance can be added, including higher sample rates (96 kHz and beyond), higher channel count (7.1 and more), and new audio decoders such as Microsoft's WMAPro.

The newly introduced DSPs allow the implementation of many complex algorithms, such as ADI's Auto Room Tuner (ART) for room equalization and setup. ART technology offers consumers a simplified setup for complicated multichannel home theater systems. Using ART, the AV receiver generates a number of tones from the speakers and microphones placed by the user in the desired listening position measure phase, delay, sound pressure level, type of speakers, and audio response of the room and the speakers. The AV receiver uses the levels at these locations to set a number of parameters for bass management and equalization.

For professional audio applications where even higher performance is required, support for multiprocessor communications allows engineers to use 4, 8, or 12 processors in a system. Hardware and software features in the ADSP-21368 address specialized algorithm/system requirements of reverb and delay lines making it easy to obtain values from the delay line for filtering or reverb.

Other key features of these DSPs include 2 Mbits of on-chip RAM and 6 Mbits of on-chip ROM. Both have hardware-based sample rate conversion for eight-channels, but the 21367 has 128 dB capability and the 21368 professional unit has 140 dB in addition to supporting multiprocessor applications.

The ADSP-21367 and ADSP-21368 SHARC processors will be sampling in Q1 2005 with quantity shipments in the summer of 2005 for $29.95 and $34.95 respectively.

Analog Devices: http://rbi.ims.ca/3859-576