Two hundred music tracks on one CD (9904)

MICRONAS INTERMETALL presents chipset for MP3-compatible audio CD players

At CeBIT '99, MICRONAS INTERMETALL presents a new chipset for an audio CD player that can play back MP3-coded CDs, too. This "MP3 chipset", consisting of the signal processor MAS 3507D and the D-A converter IC DAC 3550A, also features inside the now familiar portable MP3 flash players. This makes the MP3 CD player the second audio terminal device in a new generation that is based on the MP3 solution from MICRONAS INTERMETALL.

The pocket-sized music library

It is especially for applications "on the move", for example in-car entertainment, that the MP3 CD player offers an interest-ing alternative to conventional playback equipment. Now, it is no problem at all to have all one's personal favourite tracks constantly to hand - without the expense and inconvenience of a CD changer.

And how do you get MP3 music onto the CD? Well, there are a number of possibilities:

• Numerous websites on the Internet offer MP3-coded music tracks for downloading. These can then be transferred onto CD-R or CD-RW on the home PC.
• It is likely that there will soon be providers on the Internet offering to put together personal music collections as a service.
• In some (Asiatic) countries, recorded MP3 CDs have been available for some time in the retail trade.'
• One can already obtain MP3 CDs with program clips from certain radio stations (e.g. Deutschlandfunk in Germany).
• Distribution via the digital telephone line (ISDN) is also possible due to the low data rate (128 kbit/s for CD quality).

This list alone demonstrates that the MP3 standard opens up many new ways of distributing music.

The MP3 concept from MICRONAS INTERMETALL

The chipset developed by MICRONAS INTERMETALL represents a universal solution which supports different product concepts. It comprises two highly integrated circuits:

• The MAS 3507D contains the decoder for the compressed audio data that is delivered from a flash memory, CD or other storage medium.
• The DAC 3550A is a D-A converter for analog audio output which has been specially optimized for this application. Outputs for amplifier and headphones are integrated.

The signal processing of the chipset is controlled via a I2C bus. With their low power consumption, the ICs are specially designed for use in battery-operated equipment.he MP3 standard opens up many new ways of distributing music.

The MP3 package for systems development

The MAS 3507D and the DAC 3550A are available in the 44-pin QFP package. The "MP3 package" from MICRONAS INTERMETALL is rounded off by a functional and fully documented application board, comprising the decoder, D-A converter and controller with software as well as headphones output and amplifier.