{"id":2296,"date":"2011-12-03T08:00:24","date_gmt":"2011-12-03T12:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=2296"},"modified":"2011-12-03T08:00:24","modified_gmt":"2011-12-03T12:00:24","slug":"silabs-brings-shortwave-to-car-radios","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2011\/12\/silabs-brings-shortwave-to-car-radios\/","title":{"rendered":"SiLabs brings shortwave to car radios"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Silicon Labs, a manufacture of DSP (Digital Signal Processing) chips that are in many of the shortwave radios we feature<\/a> here on SWLing.com, is now taking their technology to car radios. They have announced the\u00a0Si476x chip family which features\u00a0AM\/FM, longwave, shortwave (SW), NOAA weather band, FM RDS decoding and AM\/FM HD Radio reception.<\/p>\n

To my knowledge, this is the first time in years that shortwave has been strategically implemented in a car radio product.<\/p>\n

Read their full press release below:<\/p>\n

(Source: SiLabs Press release<\/a> via Kim Elliott<\/a>)<\/p>\n

AUSTIN, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Silicon Laboratories Inc. (NASDAQ: SLAB), a leader in high-performance, analog-intensive, mixed-signal ICs, today introduced the industry\u2019s most advanced automotive tuner IC family designed to deliver the highest RF performance coupled with advanced signal processing while reducing the cost and complexity of car radio systems. Offering superior price\/performance for the global car radio market, the new Si476x tuner family provides a best-in-class multiband receiver solution for automotive infotainment head-units and AM\/FM car radios from all classes of providers ranging from Tier 1 suppliers to aftermarket car radio makers.<\/em><\/p>\n

According to J.D. Power and Associates, the global automotive market is expected to exceed 76 million light-vehicle unit shipments this year. The car radio technology deployed in these vehicles is evolving rapidly as innovations in communication technology proliferate in the automotive infotainment market. The basic car radio has been transformed into a sophisticated infotainment system that includes multiple tuners to deliver FM phase diversity reception, receive radio data system (RDS) data for info-navigation systems, support AM\/FM HD Radio technology and provide detailed station quality metrics for living lists of broadcast content. These strenuous broadcast performance demands require advanced silicon innovations to enable a superior in-vehicle audio experience.<\/em><\/p>\n

Silicon Labs developed the Si476x receiver family to address these major automotive industry trends. The Si476x receivers leverage Silicon Labs\u2019 patented digital low-IF technology and combine most of the traditional external bill of materials into a highly integrated, single-chip CMOS solution. The receivers provide unprecedented flexibility, offering a modular architecture that supports scalable multi-tuner designs. The Si476x supports all worldwide broadcast radio bands including AM\/FM, college FM, longwave (LW), shortwave (SW), NOAA weather band, unparalleled FM RDS decoding and AM\/FM HD Radio reception. <\/strong>iBiquity Digital Corporation, the developer of HD Radio technology, has certified the Si476x family to provide AM\/FM HD Radio tuner outputs and reception with compatible HD Radio demodulator ICs.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThe introduction of the Si476x tuner family represents a major new product offering from a world leader in RF products and a global player in the HD Radio market,\u201d said Jeff Jury, chief operating officer of iBiquity. \u201cAutomakers are continuing to embrace HD Radio technology, with more than 20 automotive brands to date announcing the technology as a factory-installed infotainment feature. The Si476x family offers a compelling new solution for this market.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The Si476x family represents the automotive industry\u2019s first viable receiver alternative to enable developers to pair a best-in-class tuner IC with the optimal choice of audio digital signal processors (DSPs) to create highly cost-effective back-end audio processing designs. Silicon Labs has worked with leading silicon providers such as Cirrus Logic and Freescale Semiconductor to deliver comprehensive audio system solutions that break the expensive partitioning approach required by current car audio solutions.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThe combination of Cirrus Logic\u2019s broad portfolio of audio ICs and Silicon Labs\u2019 Si476x radio ICs provides automotive OEMs with a very powerful platform for building highly differentiated in-car entertainment products,\u201d said Carl Alberty, director of marketing for audio products at Cirrus Logic. \u201cBy working closely with Silicon Labs, we have developed an optimized car radio platform that delivers best-in-class audio and RF technology, enabling our customers to build outstanding products.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The superior linearity of the Si476x tuner\u2019s integrated RF front-end, combined with a high-performance on-chip radio DSP and microcontroller, delivers outstanding RF dynamic range and immunity to multi-path fading. With this innovative architecture, the Si476x family raises the bar for such key features as selectivity, sensitivity, IMD3 break-in, desensitization, noise blanking, weak signal processing, dynamic channel bandwidth control and advanced dual-tuner FM phase diversity reception.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThe Si476x family not only delivers superior radio reception performance at the best system cost, it also provides unprecedented flexibility in audio processing solutions for car radio designs,\u201d said Diwakar Vishakhadatta, general manager of Silicon Labs\u2019 broadcast audio products. \u201cWith the introduction of the Si476x family, automotive developers are no longer locked into using more expensive bundled audio\/radio solutions that may not address the audio processing requirements of their infotainment platforms.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Pricing and Availability<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Samples and production quantities of the Si476x car radio tuner ICs are available now in a compact 6 mm x 6 mm 40-pin QFN package. Pricing for automotive-grade Si476x tuner ICs begins at $11.62 (USD) in 10,000-unit quantities. The Si4763LNA-A-EVB and Si4767PD-A-EVB evaluation boards are available to automotive customers for $450 (USD).<\/em><\/p>\n

The Si476x family, the latest addition to Silicon Labs\u2019 portfolio of automotive-grade radio tuners, complements the company\u2019s popular Si474x and Si475x tuner families, which target cost-sensitive entry- and mid-level radio designs. The Si476x family addresses premium-grade, performance-intensive automotive radio and head-unit requirements. For additional Si476x product information, please visit\u00a0www.silabs.com\/pr\/automotive-tuner<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Silicon Laboratories Inc.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Silicon Laboratories is an industry leader in the innovation of high-performance, analog-intensive, mixed-signal ICs. Developed by a world-class engineering team with unsurpassed expertise in mixed-signal design, Silicon Labs\u2019 diverse portfolio of patented semiconductor solutions offers customers significant advantages in performance, size and power consumption. For more information about Silicon Labs, please visit\u00a0www.silabs.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Silicon Labs, a manufacture of DSP (Digital Signal Processing) chips that are in many of the shortwave radios we feature here on SWLing.com, is now taking their technology to car radios. They have announced the\u00a0Si476x chip family which features\u00a0AM\/FM, longwave, shortwave (SW), NOAA weather band, FM RDS decoding and AM\/FM HD Radio reception. To my […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[6,3,26],"tags":[700,701,698,434,699,435],"class_list":["post-2296","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-manufacturers","category-news","category-radios","tag-car-radio-shortwave","tag-shortwave-in-car-radio","tag-si476x","tag-silabs","tag-silabs-si476x","tag-silicon-labs"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-B2","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1420,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2011\/07\/silicon-labs-si4734-dsp-shortwave-radios\/","url_meta":{"origin":2296,"position":0},"title":"Silicon Labs Si4734 DSP-based shortwave radios","author":"Thomas","date":"July 23, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"I have gone through our Shortwave Radio Index (SWRI) and tagged every portable radio that is based on the Silicon Labs Si4734 DSP chipset. The Si4734 has been one of the biggest innovations to happen to portable receivers in recent years. When implemented well into a receiver design, the Si4734\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Radios"","block_context":{"text":"Radios","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/radios\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/07\/SI4735-circuits-300x194.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1227,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2011\/07\/silicon-labs-ships-one-billionth-dsp-radio-chip\/","url_meta":{"origin":2296,"position":1},"title":"Silicon Labs ships one billionth DSP radio chip","author":"Thomas","date":"July 3, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Silicon Labs, the chip manufacturer behind some of the best portable shortwave radios in the market (including Tecsun and Grundig) has sold its one billionth DSP radio chip. Silicon Labs has been one of the best things to happen to the portable shortwave market this century. Their DSP chips lower\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Manufacturers"","block_context":{"text":"Manufacturers","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/manufacturers\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/07\/silabslogo.gif?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6657,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2013\/06\/the-new-tecsun-r-2010d\/","url_meta":{"origin":2296,"position":2},"title":"The new Tecsun R-2010D","author":"Thomas","date":"June 11, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"[UPDATE: Click here to read my full review of the R-2010D.] I just ordered the Tecsun R-2010D--a SiLabs DSP-based shortwave radio with an analog dial and tuning mechanism--on eBay. The Tecsun R-2010D is very similar to the Degen DE321, DE32 and the Kchibo KK-9803.\u00a0I hold out hope though that the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "New Products"","block_context":{"text":"New Products","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/new-products\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"TecsunR2010D","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/TecsunR2010D-300x231.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8691,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2014\/02\/mechanically-tuned-portable-dsp-radios-a-shootout\/","url_meta":{"origin":2296,"position":3},"title":"Mechanically-tuned portable DSP radios: a shootout","author":"Thomas","date":"February 1, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Following is my premiere shortwave radio column for the January 2014 issue of\u00a0The Spectrum Monitor digital magazine. \u00a0It takes the form of a review\u2013or \"shoot-out,\" if you will\u2013of a few select mechanically-tuned DSP radios I've tested over the years. While I'm a big fan of print publications, digital publications like\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Three of the five contenders: The Degen DE32, Degen DE321 and Tecsun R-2010D (Click to enlarge)","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/DSP-Radios-Shortwave-271x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6715,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2013\/06\/new-product-the-shouyu-sy-x5-shortwave-radio\/","url_meta":{"origin":2296,"position":4},"title":"New product: the ShouYu SY-X5 shortwave radio","author":"Thomas","date":"June 17, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"[Update: Check out our review of the SY-X5 by clicking here.] Thanks to Paul, I just found out about the ShouYu SY-X5: a new analog DSP-based shortwave radio with built-in MP3 player. Like the\u00a0Degen DE321,\u00a0DE32,\u00a0Kchibo KK-9803\u00a0and the recently released Tecsun R-2010D, the SY-X5 has a mechanical tuning mechanism powered by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "New Products"","block_context":{"text":"New Products","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/new-products\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The ShouYu SY-X5","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/Shouyu-300x290.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6809,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2013\/07\/a-review-of-the-shouyu-sy-x5-dsp-shortwave-radio\/","url_meta":{"origin":2296,"position":5},"title":"A review of the ShouYu SY-X5 DSP shortwave radio","author":"Thomas","date":"July 2, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"The\u00a0ShouYu SY-X5 shortwave radio came to my attention only a few weeks ago. It is yet one more mechanically-tuned, DSP based, portable shortwave\/AM\/FM radio. I have reviewed several other models based on the same DSP chipset: the Silicon Labs SI4844--see my reviews of the Degen DE321, Degen DE32, and the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Manufacturers"","block_context":{"text":"Manufacturers","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/manufacturers\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Shouyu SY-X5 mechanically-tuned, DSP portable radio. 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