Oki Electric Develops High-quality PCM Sound Generator LSI's for Mobile Phones
- Offering Maximum 32-note Polyphony and Playback in 8 Octaves -
December 20, 2001, Tokyo, Japan -- Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd., today announced that it has developed two models of PCM (pulse code modulation) Sound Generator LSI's: the ML2860 and the ML2861, used for mobile phones and PHS (personal handyphone systems) mainly. The LSI's are compliant with the industry standard, GM (General MIDI) System Level 1, and provide maximum 32-note polyphony with 16 timbres simultaneous playback, representing the industry's highest sound quality. The company markets the products worldwide, and starts sample shipments in December 2001 for the ML2860, and in February 2002 for the ML2861.
"These PCM-based Sound Generator LSI's have large-capacity built-in ROM, which enables them to provide super-high quality, natural sounds. The products are also compliant with the GM and SMF (Standard MIDI File) industry standards. So, with these LSI's, it is possible to make various sound applications with high sound quality much more easily, including mobile-phone sound applications, ring tones, game sounds, Karaoke, and advertisement content," said Hiro Matsubara, General Manager of the Speech LSI Business Unit at Oki Electric.
These LSI's, developed through Oki's alliance with Casio Computer Co., Ltd., feature pre-stored digitized musical instruments sound data in the device's memory, which are converted back to musical tones when replayed. Compared with the company's current product, the ML2857, the new LSI's feature improved sound data quality, and enable to simultaneous 24-note polyphony with the ML2860, and simultaneous 32-note polyphony with 16 timbres over 8 octaves with the ML2861. Supporting the GM and SMF format industry standards, the products generate 128 timbres and 47 percussion instrument sounds. With the availability of these abundant sounds, the LSI's enable the performance of music that is both natural and expressive.
The products use three built-in FIFO memories for music-score data, MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) data, and ADPCM audio data, enabling the flexible generation of melodies for mobile-phone called melody systems. Further, by achieving the smallest package size of W-CSP (Wafer level Chip Size Package) -- approximately 6 mm square -- these Sound Generators enable mobile terminals such as mobile phones and PHS's to become even smaller.
"By providing these high-quality products, Oki enhances its line-up of Sound Generator LSI's. As a key player in this field, we intend to continue aggressive development and release of products in this promising market worldwide," said Matsubara.
Comparison between current and new products
| ML2857 (current) | ML2860 (new) | ML2861 (new) |
| Timbres | 100 timbres | 128 timbres + 47 percussion sounds |
| Number of simultaneous notes | 12-note polyphony with 5 timbres | 24-note polyphony with 16 timbres | 32-note polyphony with 16 timbres |
| Sound range | 5 octaves | 8 octaves |
| SMF | - | Supported |
GM System
Level 1 | - | Supported |
| ADPCM synthesizer | - | Built-in |
Product Features
- PCM method that replays real piano and drum sounds
- Compliant with GM System Level 1
- GM 128 timbres + 47 percussion sounds held in built-in ROM
- 2bit/4bit Oki ADPCM synthesizer for playing realistic sounds
- Supports SMF, the music source format developed by Faith, Inc., as well as Oki's original music source format
- On-chip LED driver with brightness control
- Built-in stereo headphones amplifier
- Supports 1.8V low-voltage CPU interface
Notes
- MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface):
- A communications protocol specification standardized by Association of Musical Electronics Industry (AMEI), to communicate music data between MIDI devices. There are three components in the MIDI: the protocol, the connector (hardware interface) and the SMF distribution format.
- GM (General MIDI):
- A widely accepted industry standard, which enables to playback music similarly when replaying the identical music composition data with different MIDI-compliant devices.
- SMF (Standard MIDI File):
- A standard file format to store the MIDI music data on disks. Many music composition software and music players correspond to SMF format, which is suitable for exchanging data between different editors, and for disclosing data to unspecified number of people.
- W-CSP (Wafer level Chip Size Package):
- Unlike the conventional CSP, the W-CSP completes the LSI packaging on a wafer by redistribution of pads, forming terminals, and resin sealing, before dicing. The technology allows shrinking the footprint of LSI packages to the size of the chip itself.
About Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd.
Founded more than a century ago in 1881, Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd. is Japan's first telecommunications manufacturer, headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. With more than 25,000 employees worldwide, Oki Electric provides customers with top-quality products and technologies for telecommunication systems, information systems and electronic devices.
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