Micronas' SAC completes audio IC platform for digital music processing (0204)
Freiburg, Germany - January 8, 2002 - Micronas today announced an extension of its audio chip family with the new SAC 3590A. Together with the universal processors of the Zenon™ product family and the audio processors of the MASF product family, the new SAC components form a consistent platform for the processing of digital music.
In combination with a Zenon controller, the SAC enables the system manufacturer to realize cost-effective audio players which are compliant to the latest security requirements. In this scenario, the Zenon controls the audio decoding (AAC, MP3, WMA) and provides the interfaces for the keyboard, the LCDs, the Flash memories and the universal serial bus (USB). ADC and DAC, headset amplifier and DC/DC converter for the power management are integrated on the SAC.
The cost for the SAC is approximately $4 in high volumes, below $10 for the Zenon, allowing the system manufacturer to realize very cost-effective audio players able to playback digital music.
System manufacturers wishing to build an audio recorder able to convert and record music from various different sources into digital formats replace the SAC with the pin compatible MAS 3587.
This method does not require a hardware redesign, which brings the development costs for new appliances down and allows manufacturers to work on one single platform. The MAS 3587 with integrated ADC and DAC, headset amplifier, DC/DC converter and all audio decoding and encoding functions allow the realization of a fully-functional recorder below $18.
Importantly, the Zenon controller fulfills the latest security requirements for the electronic distribution of digital music, and the requirements of the SD card in particular. Other memories Zenon supports include the MultiMediaCard (MMC).
The Zenon chips, the MASF chips and the SAC allow system manufacturers the realization of a wide range of options, all on the basis of one hardware platform without any changes in the printed circuit board, including simple audio players for digital music playback, audio players compliant to SD card standards and audio recorders meeting the latest security requirements.