Creative announces Sound Core3D processor

[KodY]

CREATIVE INTRODUCES SOUND CORE3D™ - THE HIGH-PERFORMANCE MULTI-CORE SOUND AND VOICE PROCESSOR DESIGNED FOR EMBEDDED PC APPLICATIONS

The First Sound and Voice Processor to Integrate High-Performance DSPs and a High-Quality Analog Codec on One Chip

Soundcore

SINGAPORE – 31 May 2011 – Creative Technology Ltd., the world’s leading manufacturer of high-performance audio processors and the company that has sold more than 400 million Sound Blasters, today announced the groundbreaking new Sound Core3D™ multi-core sound and voice processor. The Sound Core3D is a high-performance hardware audio processor, with high-quality analog playback and recording and low power consumption, all highly integrated in a low-cost solution. This unique solution is dynamic and versatile, enabling it to superbly support sound and voice algorithms. The Sound Core3D is available in two configurations: An HD audio configuration for PC products and an embedded configuration for consumer electronic products.

“We designed a sound and voice processor that will enable our OEM partners to deliver the highest quality Sound Blaster audio ever available for a motherboard while also bringing a new level of quality to sound and voice processing to consumer electronics products. With Sound Core3D we deliver a versatile chip that can deliver the highest performance voice processing and audio playback from a single chip,” said Steve Erickson, VP and GM of audio and video products at Creative Labs, Inc. “This expands our opportunities with OEM partners, who can implement Sound Core3D in their own products to achieve the clearest possible communications and phenomenal-sounding audio playback.”

“We’re excited to continue our long-standing relationship with Creative to give our customers the best-sounding HD audio and voice processing available,” said Jackson Hsu, Director of Product Planning Division, Innovation & Creative Value Center, Motherboard Business Unit, GIGABYTE.

Designed by Creative’s in-house team of audio scientists and engineers, Sound Core3D is Creative’s first sound and voice processor to integrate an array of high-performance digital signal processor (DSP) cores and a high-quality HD audio codec on one chip, giving it tremendous versatility. Sound Core3D is engineered for low power consumption and high performance audio. It incorporates Creative’s innovative Quartet DSP with four independent processor cores, 6-channel 24-bit 102dB digital-to-analog converters, 4-channel 24-bits 101dB analog-to-digital converters, integrated headphone amplifier-out, digital microphone interface, S/PDIF inputs and outputs and general purpose inputs and outputs (GPIO) all in a compact 56-pin QFP package. Sound Core3D has been certified for Dolby Digital decode, which is available on a product-by-product basis depending upon specific customer implementation of the chip.

The Sound Core3D processors power DSP algorithms to drive CrystalVoice™ processing, THX TruStudio Pro™ playback enhancement and an additional advanced audio toolbox of algorithms.

CrystalVoice features innovative technologies that are specially designed to deliver crystal clear vocal fidelity in video conferencing, multiplayer games and online chats. CrystalVoice is comprised of:

Acoustic Echo Cancellation - Eliminates echoes and enables whoever is speaking to listen to the other party clearly. Echoes are a common problem present in voice communication systems that disrupts conversations by making it difficult to hear the other party
Focus - Beam-forming creates a zone and suppresses noise outside it to enable whoever is speaking to be heard with amazing clarity. Multiple microphones are used to focus, enhance voice, and eliminate sounds outside the zone
Noise Reduction - Enables who is speaking to be heard clearly over background noise by constantly monitoring the environment and eliminate the unwanted noise that interferes with the conversation
Smart Volume - Automatically adjusts the loudness of a voice to maintain a consistent volume level. This makes it convenient for the speaker to converse normally, regardless of whether the speaker is close to or far away from the microphone
FX™ - Enables alteration of voice with a variety of effects, which can be used to enhance the tone of a voice, create interesting accents, or enable someone to sound like a completely different person
EQ - Enables adjustment of the frequency response to compensate for poor microphone performance and improve the voice quality

THX TruStudio Pro is a suite of audio enhancements developed by the collaborative expertise of Creative and THX audio engineers to dramatically enhance games, music and movies.

The THX TruStudio Pro Crystalizer™ enhances in-game sound, music and movies by restoring low and high end frequency curves lost to compression
THX TruStudio Pro Surround™ delivers a 360 degree surround sound gaming experience so gamers can hear sounds clearly from the front, back, above and below
THX TruStudio Pro Smart Volume™ addresses the problem of abrupt volume level changes in games, music and movies by intelligently applying gain and attenuation to deliver consistent volume levels
THX TruStudio Pro Dialog Plus™ enhances voices in games and movies for clearer dialog, allowing listener to hear the dialog over the rest of sound track and over ambient noise in the listening environment
THX TruStudio Pro Bass™ fills in the missing low frequency tones and give the extra impact for a better entertainment experience

Additional audio toolbox algorithms include a 10-band graphic EQ, bass management, speaker calibration, limiter, reverb and a pitch shifter.

An onboard solution I take it? Sound like a great RealTek alternative, although licensing costs probably make this a feature only for higher end boards.

[screenager]

as with all creative products , long the software is crap i dont want it.

[Matas]

I was looking for the X-Fi successor which will take high-end Xonars into real battle, not the onboard solutions...

[nOv1c3]

I love my X-FI sound card , But i would never buy another creative product again

They Must have the worse driver and software support in the world ,

They can go years between driver updates and patches lol

[ROBSCIX]

This seems to be just a new "onboard" OEM solution and judging by the specs would be surpassed by even the entry level cards of today.

[GenClaymore]

I say about time, now people will have better onboard audio instead of the crappy realtek. Atleast realtek now know they cant be cheap and lazy any more. Tho i see realtek prolly running out of the audio sector. When creative runs them out.

Prolly the first motherboards that use it with a headphone amp ingraded to the mobo. They also say PC products so they prolly also mean sound cards too and not just motherboards.

[G-note]

OMG!! Creative is really creative they are going to get more sales out of what they already have out on the market Now??

Wait Did i miss something?? Maybe i should go back and read the whole thread in its entirety..LOL

[G-note]

Ohhh sounds promissing

The Sound Core3D processors power DSP algorithms to drive CrystalVoice™ processing, THX TruStudio Pro™ playback enhancement and an additional advanced audio toolbox of algorithms.

SOOO Creative!!!

an additional advanced audio toolbox of algorithms

Oh n what might that be an extra reverb effect or bring back some features your audigy cards had but are missing on the new ones??

algorithms

Okayyyyyyy i'm the first sucker in line i mean first customer in line to buy one when it comes out.

THX TruStudio Pro

In my tail pipe trick your trying on me hah!!

LOL

What the hell just take one of the effects from what your software has in it now move it over shorten the decay on the effect or keep it just the same but call it

We got em again "THX TruStudio Pro"

Hey i'll take some more of them!!

in my Tail pipe

[RTS100x5]

Creative = fail

"new creative technology" = epic fail

[maleficarus™]

I would take pretty much anything over realtek onboard junk. Anyone that is using this crappy codec has blinders on there ears.. The sound is crap period. Games sound flat and dull! The volume level for onboard is pathetic even with decent headphones. It always makes me laugh when I look at forum members system specs and I see top of the line video cards, CPU's and motherboards only to see they are still using dismal onboard sound LOL...

[GenClaymore]

Yea then say something silly about owning a sound card like going they cant tell the differnets and its placebo when all it really is. is them using crappy headphones and speakers or even tone deaf.

But atleast this make realtek either stop screwing around and pull a soundmax and run out the sector.