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Vol. I, No. 2 BDTI's DSP Insider June 2001
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This month:
*** ADI's ADSP-2191: More Bang for the Buck
*** News from ICASSP: New NEC Architecture for 3G
*** "Impulse Response," a news analysis and opinion column written
by Jeff Bier, BDTI's General Manager, and featured in EE Times
*** New report on ADI/Intel processor
*** Downloadable Pocket Guide available
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*** ADI's ADSP-2191: More Bang for the Buck
Analog Devices recently announced the ADSP-2191, the first single-core
member of its ADSP-219x family. According to ADI, the '2191 will
operate at 160 MHz at 2.5 volts. The 16-bit '2191 targets
telecommunications applications with a DMA controller, an 8- or 16-
bit host port interface, three synchronous serial ports, two serial
peripheral interfaces, and one UART. Along with the chip itself ADI
will offer a suite of communications algorithms that are optimized for
the '2191. Chips are scheduled to begin sampling in June 2001, with
full production scheduled for early 2002; the 10 Ku price for this
device is $15.
ADI originally stated that it would pursue three roadmaps for the
'219x family: "highest performance," served by multi-core chips like
the ADSP-2192, announced earlier; "power efficient" (e.g., 1.8 volt)
single-core chips; and "high performance" single-core chips. The
'2191 is clearly in this last group—this single-core chip is not
targeting either "highest performance" or "power efficient"
applications. In fact, the '2191 seems mainly designed to be an
upgrade option for those already using '218x famly members with
similar peripherals.
ADI touts the 160 MIPS '2191 as providing double the performance of
the 80 MIPS '218x chips—a claim based on MIPS ratings. However, in
order to achieve this clock speed boost ADI introduced a deeper
pipeline in the '219x family—six stages, as compared with three on
the '218x. While this allowed ADI to increase the clock speed of
'219x chips, the deeper pipeline also means that the '219x requires
more cycles than the '218x to do the same amount of work. In our
benchmark analysis BDTI found that the speed-up is more likely to be
about 75%, not the 100% suggested by the doubled MIPS rating.
However, the marginal cost of this increased performance is quite
small—'2191 chips cost only one dollar more than comparable '218x
chips.
*** News from ICASSP: New NEC Architecture for 3G
During last month's ICASSP conference in Salt Lake City, NEC unveiled
the SPXK5, the company's latest DSP architecture. This low-power DSP
targets 3G terminal applications with a dual-MAC VLIW architecture.
The SPXK5's key competitors include TI's 'C55xx line, the ST100 from
STMicroelectronics, StarCore's SC110, and the Micro Signal
Architecture from Analog Devices and Intel. According to NEC, samples
will be available by the end of this year, with commercial production
scheduled for mid-2002.
In addition to its two MAC units, the SPXK5 has five other functional
units: two ALUs, two address units, and a control unit; up to four of
these seven units can operate in parallel during the same clock cycle.
According to NEC, SPXK5 devices will operate at speeds of up to 250
MHz; at 200 MHz the SPXK5 is projected to have impressively low power
consumption—50 mW at 0.9 volts. This compares favorably with the
'C55xx products, which at 200 MHz will consume 90-100 mW at 1.5-1.6
volts. NEC plans to fabricate the SPXK5 using a 0.13-micron process
that yields a core size of two square millimeters.
NEC is not a well-known player in the DSP market, but their high sales
volumes suggest that they should be—NEC has traditionally had the
second-highest sales volumes for programmable DSPs in Japan (second
only to TI, according to market research firm Forward Concepts).
NEC's success with this new product will greatly depend on how it gets
to market. To be competitive, NEC must deliver the SPXK5 on time, and
provide solid application development infrastructure.
For more information, send email to k5-info@dsp.CL.nec.co.jp.
*** Impulse Response, by Jeff Bier
This month: "And Then There Were None"
Tasking, one of the last independent providers of DSP software
development tools, announced last month that it has been
acquired. Over the past few years many of Tasking's competitors have
also been acquired—several by major DSP processor vendors; Texas
Instruments, Motorola, and Analog Devices have each acquired
development tool specialists. Such acquisitions highlight how
important tools have become to DSP system developers.
In the early days of embedded DSP software, programs were necessarily
small and simple—available processors were simply too limited for
anything else. Developers at that time could and did make do with
relatively poor software tools.
DSP application software today is much larger and more complex—
programs often contain tens of thousands of lines of source code. But
while modern processors are far more powerful, typical DSP
applications still require careful optimization to reach cost and
energy consumption goals. The time-to-market pressures associated with
DSP-oriented consumer products have further intensified the challenges
faced by DSP software engineers.
These trends have caused tools and other application-development
infrastructure to take center stage in the DSP world. The selection of
a processor for a DSP application is now just as likely to hinge on
the quality and availability of development aids as on the quality of
the processor.
Savvy processor vendors now understand the vital importance of
high-quality, full-featured software tools. But tools development is a
massive undertaking that requires years of work and eight-figure
budgets. Some processor vendors are attempting to streamline the
process by acquiring established tools providers.
These acquisitions present a double-edged sword. The good news is that
many DSP processor suppliers have recognized the importance of
software tools, and are making the necessary investments. The bad news
is that independent DSP software tool companies—who often lead the
industry with innovative technology and provide software developers
with a welcome alternative to lackluster tools from processor
vendors—may soon become extinct.
It is possible, however, that the few remaining independent DSP
software tool developers will see opportunity in the thinned
competitive field, and will remain independent. For the sake of
current and future DSP software developers, let's hope that this is
the case.
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*** New report on ADI/Intel processor
COMING SOON! "Inside the ADI/Intel Micro Signal Architecture"
BDTI is preparing publication of the latest in its "Inside" series of
in-depth analyses of individual processors. This report evaluates
the long-awaited DSP architecture from the Analog Devices and Intel
joint development effort.
For more details see http://www.BDTI.com/products/reports_msa.htm.
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*** Downloadable Pocket Guide available
A downloadable version of BDTI's popular "Pocket Guide to DSP
Processors and Cores" is now available on BDTI's Web site. The
Pocket Guide has recently been update to include data on cores from
3DSP and Lexra.
Download from http://www.BDTI.com/pocket/pocket.pdf.
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*** About BDTI
BDTI is an independent source for DSP technology analysis and
optimized DSP software. From rigorous technical analyses of
processors for DSP, such as the "Buyer's Guide to DSP Processors," to
highly regarded technology training classes, BDTI is the
industry-independent source for reliable information on DSP
technology. For more information, visit our Web site at www.BDTI.com.
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The next issue of BDTI's DSP Insider is coming in July.
BDTI's DSP Insider is a free monthly electronic newsletter published
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BDTI's DSP Insider (c) 2001 Berkeley Design Technology, Inc.
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