ARC's Sound-to-Silicon Audio Solutions

Portable Media Device Audio Solution

ARC’s Integrated Solution Decreases BoM Costs and Extends Playback Time While Providing a Home Entertainment System Listening Experience

The ARC® Portable Media Device (PMD) solution provides an integrated audio offering to OEM and semiconductor companies. Implemented on a portable media device, the ARC solution enables consumers to have a home entertainment center listening experience with music, movies, and games while enjoying extended playback time.

ARC’s PMD solution is vertically integrated and comprises the industry leading Sonic Focus™ audio enrichment software, optimized ARC Sound Subsystem silicon IP, software development and EDA tools, a complete library of codecs, and mastering tools and services.

With ARC’s integrated solution, OEMs can cut manufacturing and development costs, reduce power consumption and time to market, and deliver a portable media device with better quality audio. Acoustical modelling and time-domain analysis, along with proven product mastering tools and services, help create a natural and realistic listening experience. Lastly, OEMs can choose from multiple silicon suppliers offering ARC-Based™ chips.

For semiconductor companies, the “Sonic Focus ready” ARC Sound Subsystem offers one of the lowest power and smallest form factors in the industry. Codecs, drivers, and operating systems complement the configurable ARC processor in the subsystem, reducing development and test time. By leveraging the configurable nature of the ARC Sound Subsystem in combination with the scalable Sonic Focus audio IP, semiconductor customers can design a platform to target multiple audio applications.

Benefits to OEMs

• A complete audio development and IP solution
• Achieves highest quality sound with the greatest cost savings
• Enables OEMs to develop scalable product platforms to offer consumers a good, better, or best device
• Lowers bill of materials and production costs
• Multiple semiconductor companies offering ARC-Based™ chips

Benefits to Chip Suppliers

• Integrated “Sonic Focus ready” solution includes low power 32-bit ARC® Sound Subsystem
• Reduces silicon area and chip development cost by as much as a million dollars
• Ability to easily tailor ARC’s configurable solution for multiple markets

Highlights

ARC® Sonic Focus™ Product Family

• Adaptive Dynamics Refinement System™ (ADRS) overcomes the negative effects of data compression
• X-Matrix™ creates virtual surround sound and improves clarity and definition of vocals
• Extrapolator™ uses acoustical modelling to create 5.1/7.1 channel information from stereo content within ordinary movies, music, and games while increases dynamic impact
• Virtual Bass™ optimizes the bass rendering capabilities of speakers and headphones, creating audio that reflectss the original performance without artificial signals or muffling voice and dialog clarity

• A mutli-standard, turnkey IP solution designed for easy integration into SoCs
• Based upon a configurable 32-bit ARC 600 processor core
• “Sonic Focus ready”
• Includes DSP XY memory, configurable caches, audio optimized media extensions, software, and development tools
• Capable of multi-stream decoding
• Proven technology used by leading semiconductor companies

• AAC-LC
• MP3
• WMA
• aacPlus v2
• Dolby Digital
• Dolby Digital Plus

• Tightly coded, high performance, proven real-time OS
• Modular design to minimize ROM and RAM footprint
• C/ASM source code provided for customization and optimization
• Proven in advanced embedded systems designs for years