Analog Devices’ latest generation of programmable SHARC audio DSPs will go into volume production in the first quarter, enabling home audio suppliers late in the year to offer the same audio features and performance at up to half the price, the company said.
The third-generation processors will make it possible for suppliers to offer home receivers at $300 and up with audio features that they previously offered in receivers at $600 and up, said product line manager Colin Duggan. The single-chip DSPs also include car-specific versions supporting multichannel car audio at more affordable prices.
The devices support Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital EX, Dolby Pro Logic IIx, multichannel Microsoft WMA 9 Pro, 96kHz PCM, DTS, DTS-ES Discrete and Matrix, 5.1 DTS 96/24, DTS Neo:6, MPEG-2, AAC, digital bass management and such post-processing technologies as THX EX.
Some of the devices are the industry’s first audio DSPs to integrate SP/DIF transmitter and receiver, and others are the first to incorporate asynchronous sampling-rate converter. Two of the DSPs incorporate both functions.
