Cadence announced that an implementation of the Low Complexity Communications (LC3) codec, compliant with LE Audio, the next generation of Bluetooth audio, is available for Cadence Tensilica HiFi DSPs, audio/voice/AI voice processors that support Cadence's Intelligent System Design strategy and enable excellence in SoC design. The codec implementation has already been delivered, say Cadence, "to an important customer".
The advantages of LC3 for Bluetooth audio
LC3 delivers higher audio quality at lower bandwidth and gives developers greater flexibility in balancing audio quality, power consumption and other features for a more optimised user experience. Cadence has licensed the reference code from Fraunhofer IIS to ensure LC3 is available at the same time as the initial launch of audio LE, allowing customers to immediately benefit from the latest enhancements, including longer battery life, superior connectivity and multi-user sharing.
As Marc Gayer, head of the audio and multimedia department at Fraunhofer IIS, explains: 'The demand for Bluetooh audio-based products - from headphones to earbuds to portable speakers - continues to expand. We worked early on in the development of the codec to ensure that low-speed communications (LC3) would run efficiently on Cadence's Tensilica HiFi Audio DSP architecture and enable longer device battery life."