USB-to-I2S bridge chip brings plug-and-play simplicity to audio design

Silicon Laboratories Inc. has introduced the industry’s first crystal-less USB-to-I²S audio bridge designed to support a wide range of codecs and digital-to-analog converters (DACs) used in USB-based audio applications.

The CP2114 audio bridge chip simplifies the process of transferring audio data from USB to I2S without time-consuming code development, speeding time to market for USB audio accessories such as speakers, headphones, music boxes, point-of-sale terminals, navigation systems and VoIP systems.

USB system development often involves significant expertise, design effort and cost to overcome implementation issues ranging from compatibility to poor performance. USB-to-I²S audio data transfer also requires sophisticated clock synchronization, which poses complex development challenges. To address these needs, Silicon Labs’ CP2114 audio bridge provides a highly-integrated, plug-and-play solution for streaming audio between USB and I²S.

The CP2114 audio bridge integrates a USB 2.0 full-speed function controller, a USB transceiver, crystal-less oscillator, one-time programmable ROM, UART, IIC and I2S interface into a single-chip solution. The device’s innovative crystal-less architecture eliminates the need for external clock crystals and associated components, reducing audio system BOM cost and design complexity. The CP2114 audio bridge also requires no external memory when combined with a codec or DAC, further minimizing system BOM cost.

The CP2114 audio bridge supports multiple mainstream DACs and codecs from Wolfson Microelectronics, Cirrus Logic and Texas Instruments, giving customers the flexibility to implement their own preferred audio chipset solution. Silicon Labs offers evaluation kits pre-populated with these popular DAC and codec platforms to further speed design time.

The CP2114 audio bridge uses the standard USB audio device class that is natively supported by most operating systems. USB audio class compatibility eliminates the need to develop and install custom USB software drivers. Host programming capabilities also enable developers to configure practically any external codec or DAC and perform in-field upgrades.

Pricing and availability

Samples and production quantities of the CP2114 USB-to-I²S audio bridge are available now in small-footprint 5 mm x 5 mm QFN packages optimized for space-constrained portable audio applications. The CP2114 device is priced at $1.13 (USD) in 10,000-unit quantities.

For more information about the new CP2114 audio bridge device or to order samples and development tools, please visit www.silabs.com/usb.