Audio technology: de-integration and MEMS microphones become a trend

The reporter found through interviews on weekdays that the current chip manufacturers have begun to exert their strength in the audio field, and have launched related audio technologies in an effort to open up a path of differentiation.

Not long ago, Wolfson Microelectronics introduced the quad-core high-definition audio processor system-on-a-chip WM5110, featuring high integration, low power consumption, and environmental noise cancellation (ANC) with handset and stereo headphones. And Acoustic Echo Cancellation (AEC) for clear voice calls even in the most noisy environments; HD audio playback delivers longer, higher quality music for portable devices and multimedia like IMAX Experience. The chip is mainly used in smartphones, tablets and portable multimedia devices to bring HD audio performance.

Eddie Sinnott, director of portfolio of Wolfson Electronics, told reporters: "Three years ago, Wolfson had expected consumers to have higher requirements for the audio quality of mobile devices. To achieve this, the audio was separated from the application processor. It is a must. Wolfson has created a new line of audio hubs that handle all audio input, audio mixing, audio conversion and the ability to import audio signals to the correct output (speakers or headphones). The audio hub improves the audio performance of the device and reduces material costs while reducing design time by integrating multiple discrete components that support audio signals."

Once the audio signal is transferred from the analog domain to the digital domain, the sound is enhanced by software algorithms running on the audio signal processor (DSP). Eddie Sinnott mentioned that these can reduce or eliminate unwanted noise and echo, amplify the low-frequency part of the sound, maximize the volume without overloading the speaker, and even provide a stereoscopic extended sound field, so the playback audio is presented. Surround sound.

For the future development trend of audio technology, Baoshan Quan, Marketing Director of Qualcomm, said: "Whether audio uses multiple microphones is very helpful for achieving differentiation.

Eddie Sinnott believes that "the development of audio technology will present two major trends: First, more and more application processor manufacturers will integrate audio. I believe that the market formed by this trend will develop rapidly, compound annual average The growth rate will exceed 60%. The second is the transition from electret microphones (ECM) to microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) microphones, and in order to eliminate unwanted noise and improve audio quality, more microphones will be applied."

Considering the limitations of volume factors in portable products, it is wise to use a small MEMS microphone with improved audio performance and high sensitivity when applying a multi-microphone solution. Wolfson's MEMS microphones are suitable for smartphones, tablets and game consoles.

In addition, on the audio IP, the reporter also saw IP provider Synopsys launch the first audio IP subsystem for integrated hardware and software for system-on-chip (SoC) design, pre-selected verified hardware and The software subsystem is fully configurable, and a complete, integrated software environment ensures that the “out of the box” audio capabilities support the latest audio standards. Suitable for use in tablets, portable audio devices, digital TVs, etc.

Henk Hamoen, senior product promotion manager at Synopsys, told reporters that the increasing multi-channel audio content and higher sampling rates in audio applications have increased the complexity of many consumer-oriented SoCs today. In addition, the new audio standard requires more signal processing and bandwidth to provide high quality sound reproduction over a larger range of audio formats. The use of a dedicated audio subsystem allows audio processing tasks to be offloaded from the host processor, thereby reducing design complexity and improving SoC performance and efficiency.

At present, we have not seen other IP vendors launch similar products. Whether the audio IP subsystem will integrate hardware and software in the future will be tested in the market.

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