Out in Front

Audio and 3-D announcements signal the Comdex season

To some people, the turning of the leaves verifies that fall has arrived. But electronic designers depend on the flurry of activity in multimedia technologies to know that fall—that is, the trade-show and Comdex season—is just around the corner. In the past two weeks, graphics-IC leader Cirrus Logic made its long-awaited entry into the 3-D market, and Aureal and Spatializer both announced 3-D-audio-based products for playing five-channel audio through two speakers.

Aureal's product, the VSP901 virtual sound processor, includes both a Dolby Pro Logic decoder and an Aureal 3-D Surround processor. The IC targets applications from consumer audiovisual electronics to computer multimedia. Devices with the VSP901 can play five-channel Dolby Pro Logic soundtracks through two speakers, yet listeners perceive that the sound comes through five speakers plus a subwoofer. Aureal based the VSP901 on 3-D-audio technology that the company received in its acquisition of Crystal River Engineering. The IC costs less than $20.

Spatializer, meanwhile, has announced 3-D-audio technology to play five-channel, Dolby AC-3 digital audio through two speakers. The company plans to sell the technology as the DVS-5.1 algorithm to DSP IC vendors. For example, the company has ported the algorithm to Motorola's 56009 DSP, for which Motorola already supplies an AC-3 algorithm and reference design. Spatializer claims that its algorithm requires about 10 DSP MIPS. The company ultimately won't control the price of a DSP equipped with the algorithm but estimates that designers will pay $1 to $4 in incremental cost for a DSP with the algorithm.

On the graphics side, Cirrus Logic announced a pair of 3-D accelerators, the success of which is crucial for the company to keep its leading position in the graphics-accelerator market. Dubbed the Laguna3D family, the accelerators will come in a standard PCI model, CL-GD5464 (available now), and in a version that will be compatible with Intel's new Accelerated Graphics Port, Model Laguna3D-AGP (available by year's end). Both accelerators leverage 667-MHz Rambus DRAM technology and include TextureJet, a proprietary texture-mapping scheme. The ICs can render more than 50 million perspective-corrected pixels/sec. In addition to Microsoft's Direct3D application-programming interface, the Laguna3D family also supports Creative Labs' CGL interface and Open GL for workstation-class 3-D applications. The CL-GD5464 comes in a 208-pin PQFP and costs $29.50 (10,000).—by Maury Wright

  Aureal Semiconductor Inc, Fremont, CA. (510) 252-4245.
  Cirrus Logic Inc, Fremont, CA. (510) 249-4200.
  Spatializer Audio Laboratories Inc, Woodland Hills, CA. (818) 223-3370.