[Digital Dolby(R)] Analog Devices Announces Industry's First 32-Bit, 6.1-Channel MPEG AAC Decoder
Melody(TM) Decoder Simultaneously Decodes MPEG AAC, DTS-ES Extended Surround(TM) Dolby(R) Digital and Dolby(R) Headphone, and Post-Processes THX(R) Surround EX(TM) and HDCD(R)
NORWOOD, Mass., Sept. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Analog Devices, Inc. (NYSE: ADI - news) today announced the industry's first 32-bit decoder for MPEG Advanced Audio Coding (AAC), the latest audio coding format standardized by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as part of the MPEG specification. The new Melody MPEG decoder also simultaneously post-processes THX® Surround EX(TM) and HDCD®, and additionally decodes MP3, DTS®-ES Extended Surround(TM), Dolby Digital®, Dolby® Pro Logic®, or Dolby® Headphone. It is the first AAC decoder to handle all of these audio formats, the first 32-bit MPEG AAC decoder, and the first to provide 6.1 channels.
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The Melody decoder/post-processor is based on a 32-bit floating-point programmable SHARC® DSP. As part of the Melody family, the new decoder will enable future A/V receivers, PC audio cards and set-top boxes to process-in the same product-all of the leading audio algorithms: THX and THX Surround EX, DTS and Dolby Digital, MPEG AAC, Dolby Headphone and Dolby Pro Logic, DTS- ES Extended Surround (which includes DTS-ES Discrete 6.1, DTS ES Matrix 6.1 and DTS Neo:6), HDCD, MPEG1 Audio Layers 1, 2 and 3 (MP3), MPEG2, 3D Audio, Surround Sound and Stereo.
``Analog Devices is a certified manufacturer of decoders for Dolby Digital, Dolby Pro Logic, and Dolby Headphone,'' said Ed Schummer, vice president of Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation. ``With the addition of MPEG AAC, Analog Devices' 32-bit decoders can now enhance the Internet audio listening experience.''
``The new Analog Devices' Melody decoder provides a choice of decoding either MP3 or AAC on the same DSP,'' said Mike Haidar, general manager, Software & Systems Technology Division, Analog Devices. ``Our OEM-programmable 32-bit design will enable digital music distributed over the Internet to benefit from our suite of post-processing enhancements.''
About AAC
AAC is a high-quality audio coding technology and the solution of choice for many broadcast and electronic music-distribution applications. Of the several competing technologies, only AAC is an international standard. AAC is licensed by Dolby Laboratories. AAC is compatible with all digital rights management, encryption and watermarking solutions available today. In independent tests, the coding efficiency of AAC proved to be superior to MP3, providing higher quality audio reproduction at lower bit rates and requiring approximately 30 percent less storage and/or bandwidth. According to an ISO- funded study, music encoded in the AAC format was found to be ``indistinguishable'' from the CD original at bitrates of 64 kb/s per channel. AAC provides up to 48 channels of audio, sample rates from below 8 kHz to above 96 kHz, and achieves ITU-R broadcast quality at 320 kb/s for a 5.1- channel audio program. Developed and standardized as an ISO/IEC specification by four industry leaders (AT&T, Dolby Laboratories, Fraunhofer IIS and Sony Corporation), AAC is supported by a growing number of hardware and software manufacturers. For more information, visit the AAC website: www.aac- audio.com.
About Dolby Laboratories
Dolby Laboratories is the developer of signal processing systems used worldwide in applications that include motion-picture sound, consumer entertainment products and media, broadcasting, and music recording. Based in San Francisco with European headquarters in England, the privately held company also has offices in New York, Los Angeles, Beijing, Shanghai, and Tokyo. For more information, visit the Dolby website: www.dolby.com.
About Analog Devices
With $1.8 billion in revenues for the first three quarters of fiscal year 2000, Analog Devices is a leading manufacturer of precision high-performance integrated circuits used in analog and digital signal processing applications. Headquartered in Norwood, Massachusetts, the company employs approximately 8,600 people worldwide and has manufacturing facilities in Massachusetts, California, North Carolina, Ireland, the Philippines and Taiwan. Analog Devices' stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and the company is included in the S&P 500 Index.
Note to Editors: SHARC is a registered trademark and Melody is a trademark of Analog Devices, Inc.
DTS is a registered trademark and DTS-ES Extended Surround is a trademark of Digital Theater Systems, Inc.
``Dolby,'' the double-D symbols and ``Pro Logic'' are registered trademarks and Surround EX is a trademark of Dolby Laboratories.
Surround EX is a jointly developed technology of THX and Dolby Laboratories, Inc. THX is a registered trademark of Lucasfilm Ltd.
HDCD is a registered trademark of Pacific Microsonics, Inc.
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