1997-11-17 , E/IC-850/650

Philips Semiconductors is the leader in USB audio technology having been the first to demonstrate its feasibility at WinHEC '96, which was closely followed by the launch of the world's first  USB audio Digital to Analog Converter (DAC), the UDA1321. The company continues to innovate with the launch of the world's first integrated USB audio codec^*, the UDA1325. This provides advanced USB audio handling for superb sound at a build cost that is much less than the current non-integrated solutions and also quicker and easier to implement for a quicker time to market.

It integrates together the functionality of the company's USB transceiver, Digital to Analog Conversion, and USB engine on an  80C51 microcontroller core along with digital and analog filtering, tone and volume control, and buffering.

'As the appointed author of the USB Audio Device Class specifications, Philips Semiconductors is able to create USB audio products that make the most of the great potential of creating high performance, high quality audio over USB,' explained Johan van Ginderdeuren, Philips' USB strategic co-ordinator. 'Before USB this could not be easily achieved because of the electronically harsh and noise environment within a computer. USB enables the signals to be taken outside the PC in a digital format right up to the speakers and so removing the possibility for interference. It also removes the need for sound cards in the PC as all their functionality is now handled in software on the host processor and by the USB audio peripheral, which enables impressive, multi-channel surround sound to be easily achieved as well. All of which, combined with Hot Plug&Play, is in line with the future evolution of the PC with concepts such as the Simply Interactive PC (SIPC) and the OnNow initiative.'

A ROM-less version of the UDA1321 and UDA1325 are available as engineering samples in QFP64 packages and cost in the region of $7.50 for the UDA1321 and $9.00 for the UDA1325 in 10,000 quantities. Samples are available now and volume production is in early 1998.

^* Codec = COder-DECoder: a chip which combines A-to-D and D-to-A conversion