>
>
>Also, I know that SPDIF stands for the initials of several different
>electronics manufactures. But isn't the so called SPDIF output simply PCM,
>just like the digital output on an MD deck?
Sony/Phillips Digital Interface Format, now incorporated as part of IEC958.
It is very similar to AES3, its professional cousin which is also part of
IEC958, differing only in the definitions of various control bits, and in
the specification of the physical cable and connectors used.
The format does indeed carry straightforward PCM samples, but these are
framed and encoded such that (a) a sample clock can be extracted from the
data stream, allowing a single-wire synchronous interface, and (b) channel
status data can be carried along with the audio (such as track start
markers, copy protection).
"The Art of Digital Audio" by John Watkinson (Focal Press) has a good
introduction to how the interface works. For a less detailed, but
practical introduction, you can look at the data sheets for the CS8402 and
CS8412 chips from Cirrus Logic (www.cirrus.com) which implement the
transmit and receive sides of the interface respectively.
Christopher Hicks
==
Dr Christopher Hicks, Senior Engineer, CEDAR Audio Limited
20 Home End, Fulbourn, Cambridge, CB1 5BS, United Kingdom
T: +44 1223 881771 F: +44 1223 881778 www.cedaraudio.com
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