Analog Devices Introduces Industry's Highest-Performance Audio Processors & A Software Development Environment for Audio Systems

Business Wire, Nov 16, 2004

NORWOOD, Mass. -- -- ADSP-21367 & ADSP-21368 processors extend the SHARC(R) Processor family's leadership position in consumer and professional audio; VisualAudio(TM) design and development environment for SHARC Processors cuts time to market for audio products

Continuing the rich audio tradition of its SHARC(R) Processor family, Analog Devices, Inc. (NYSE: ADI), a global leader in high-performance semiconductors for signal processing applications, today announced two new audio processors that deliver the audio industry's highest performance and integration. With performance to 400 MHz, the SHARC Processors ADSP-21367 and ADSP-21368 easily implement an increasing array of features required for consumer and premium audio products. These high-end third-generation SHARC Processors are designed to simplify product development, speed time to market and reduce product costs for a variety of audio applications including audio/video receivers (AVRs), professional mixing consoles and digital synthesizers.

ADI also expanded its support for developers of audio systems with the availability of its VisualAudio(TM) design and development environment, which can significantly shorten the time, cost and risk required to bring new, fully optimized audio products to market.

"Manufacturers of premium audio systems are continually challenged to develop higher-performance, feature-rich products as rapidly as possible," said Brian McAloon, group vice president and general manager, Digital Signal Processing Systems division, Analog Devices, Inc. "The SHARC Processor architecture, with its 32- and 40-bit floating-point capability, already offers the highest-quality audio possible. The two new SHARC Processors extend ADI's industry-leading audio capabilities to a new pinnacle of performance, memory and peripheral integration, and ease of use, so that manufacturers of mid- and high-end AVRs and professional audio products can rapidly introduce differentiated products that satisfy the cravings of their high-end customers."

New SHARC Processors Speed Development, Lower System Costs of High-End Audio Products

Designed for audio applications requiring the highest possible performance, the ADSP-21367 and ADSP-21368 integrate a 400 MHz core with large on-chip memory arrays (2Mb RAM, 6Mb ROM) and sophisticated audio-centric peripherals. These capabilities enable the new SHARC Processors to support today's consumer and premium audio products' requirement for features such as multi-channel decoders including lossless formats, multi-zone support, 192 KHz processing and sophisticated auto-setup routines.

The processors' 400 MHz performance leads the industry and is a four-fold increase over the second-generation SHARC Processors ADSP-2116x. With this performance, the new processors easily implement all currently available industry-standard audio decoder and post-processing algorithms, with sufficient processing headroom remaining for customer-specific post-processing and future features.

According to BDTI, "When they arrive, these new parts will make the SHARC family significantly faster than its main competitor, the Texas Instruments TMS320C67x. The '21367 and '21368 are expected to achieve a BDTIsimMark2000(TM) score of 2050 at 400 MHz, compared to a BDTImark2000(TM) score of 1470 for the 300 MHz 'C6713."(1)

The ADSP-21367 and ADSP-21368 also are the most highly integrated members of the third-generation SHARC family. Their 6Mb of on-chip ROM is factory-programmed with industry-standard audio decoder and post-processor algorithms (ADSP-21367) or with customer-specified algorithms (ADSP-21368), which will enable manufacturers to implement many audio systems using a single chip.

The ADSP-21367 is aimed at the mid- to high-end AVR market. The ADSP-21368 adds shared memory capabilities that make it ideal for professional audio applications. With both processors, manufacturers can frequently replace multiple DSPs in a design with a single SHARC Processor.

VisualAudio Environment Accelerates Audio System Design and Development

For use initially with ADI's SHARC Processor family, the VisualAudio design and development environment provides an intuitive graphical framework along with most of the foundational software required for audio products, enabling developers to focus their time and energies on the features that will differentiate their products competitively.

VisualAudio plugs into the VisualDSP (R) integrated development and debugging environment (IDDE) (sold separately) and is beneficial for designing, tuning and testing audio products and generating production-ready (i.e., MIPS- and memory-optimized) code. It includes a customizable software framework, a large library of optimized audio modules, host communication and tuning interface, and support for a range of audio decoders, along with much of the other software that is common to most audio products. In this way, it alleviates the need for developers to replicate this foundational software for each new product.