Audio Category - Page 4 of 40 - CNX Software

July 3, 2025July 8, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

NanoPi R3S LTS dual Gigabit Ethernet router board gains HDMI output and speaker connector

FriendlyELEC NanoPi R3S LTS is an update to the NanoPi R3S low-cost dual gigabit Ethernet router introduced last year, which gains HDMI output, a speaker connector, and a power button. The new model still features a Rockchip RK3566 SoC with up to 2GB RAM, an optional 32GB eMMC flash, a microSD card socket, a MIPI DSI display connector, a USB 3.2 Gen 1 port, and a USB-C port for power and programming, as well as a 3-pin UART header accessible after opening the metal enclosure. NanoPi R3S-LTS specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3566 CPU – Quad-core Cortex-A55 processor @ up to 1.8 GHz GPU – Arm Mali-G52 MP2 GPU NPU – 1 TOPS AI accelerator VPU 4Kp60 H.265/H.264/VP9 video decoder 1080p60 H.264/H.265 video encoder System Memory – 1GB or 2 GB LPDDR4/4XX Storage Optional 32GB eMMC flash MicroSD card socket with support for UHS-1 (SDR104) Video Output HDMI 2.0 port […]

June 27, 2025 by Debashis Das - 5 Comments

BentoIO AMH2 Pro audio/MIDI HAT for Raspberry Pi features 24-bit DAC, headphone amplifier

The BentoIO AMH2 Pro is an Audio/MIDI HAT compatible with both Raspberry Pi 4 and Pi 5. It features high-quality stereo audio output and MIDI input/output in a compact “wing” form factor. The board features stereo line-in and line-out through 3.5mm TRS jacks using PCM1863 ADC and PCM5242 24-bit DAC. Additionally, there is a headphone out and a set of MIDI I/Os via TRS-A jacks. It is fully compatible with Raspberry Pi OS and works with ALSA, JACK, and PulseAudio. The board is designed so that it keeps the heatsink exposed for better thermal management, especially with the Terioto CMX1 carrier board for ultra-low-profile setups. BentoIO AMH2 Pro Specifications: Compatibility – Raspberry Pi 4 Model B or Raspberry Pi 5 Audio Input – Stereo Line-In via 3.5mm TRS jack, based on PCM1863 ADC Audio Output – Stereo Line-Out via 3.5mm TRS jack, based on PCM5242 DAC Headphone Output – 3.5mm TRS […]

June 19, 2025 by Debashis Das - No Comments

HackLED Pro LED controller – An Adafruit Sparkle Motion alternative with WS2812 and RGBCW LED support

HACK Lab HackLED Pro is an Adafruit Sparkle Motion-like LED controller that runs a custom version of WLED and supports both WS2812 and RGBCW LEDs, making it ideal for DIY lighting projects, smart home setups, and audio-reactive light displays. Built around an ESP32 MCU, this board includes 2-way WS2812 LED outputs, 5 PWM channels (RGBCW), and an onboard silicon microphone for music reactive LED setup. Like the Sparkle Motion, the outputs of this board are level-shifted, and there’s also a power switch that toggles the output power between 5V and 12V. The board features a USB-C port with a PD controller, with which you can power and program the board. The controller is housed in a thermally protected 3D printed case and is also compatible with the generic version of the WLED firmware. HackLED Pro specifications: Wireless module – ESP32-WROOM-32E-N4 WiFi and Bluetooth module with 4MB Flash LED Control 2x […]

June 2, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Bestechnic BES2700YP Arm Cortex-M55 Bluetooth Audio SoC targets headphones, earbuds, portable speakers

Bestechnic BES2700YP is an Arm Cortex-M55 Bluetooth Audio SoC designed for Smart earbuds with adaptive ANC, Smart Bluetooth headphones/headsets, ANC hearing-aids, Bluetooth speakers, and other portable audio devices When I wrote about the Ambiq Apollo330 Plus SoC family last week, I realized it was the first time I covered Arm Cortex-M55 microcontrollers with built-in wireless, in that case Bluetooth LE 5.4 and 802.15.4 (Thread/Matter) radios, and that’s how I came across the BES2700YP SoC with a more narrow use cases since it’s made for Smart Bluetooth audio applications. BES Technic BES2700YP key features and specifications: CPU Subsystem – Arm Cortex-M55 core Sensor Hub Subsystem – Arm STAR-MC1 core (improved Arm Cortex-M33 core) with sensor engine, BECO NPU, and VAD (Voice Activity Detection) Memory – 4 MB SRAM shared across the CPU, Bluetooth, and Sensor Hub cores Storage – Flash in package, boot ROM Bluetooth Subsystem Arm STAR-MC1 core (Arm Cortex-M33 […]

May 30, 2025May 30, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Battery-powered SQUiXL devkit pairs 4-inch touchscreen display with ESP32-S3 WiFi and Bluetooth SoC

Unexpected Maker’s SQUiXL is a battery-powered ESP32-S3 WiFi and Bluetooth IoT controller and development platform with a 4-inch touchscreen display with 480×480 resolution. Designed for makers, hardware engineers, embedded developers, and home automation enthusiasts, the SQUiXL integrates with 8MB PSRAM and a 16MB SPI flash for plenty of resources for the firmware. Other features include a microSD card, an amplifier with speaker connector, a haptic driver and motor, an RTC, and a STEMMA/Qt connector for expansion. SQUiXL specifications: WiSoC – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3 CPU – Dual-core Tensilica LX7 @ up to 240 MHz with vector instructions for AI acceleration Memory – 512KB RAM Wireless – 2.4 GHz WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 LE + Mesh Memory – 8MB octal PSRAM Storage 16MB QSPI flash MicroSD card slot (multiplexed with audio amplified) Display – 4-inch 480×480 RGB display with capacitive touch (GT911) Audio MAX98357A I2S Audio Amplifier (multiplexed with microSD card […]

May 16, 2025August 30, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Satellite1 Dev Kit is a Home Assistant-compatible DIY voice assistant with ESP32-S3 module, XMOS XU316 audio processor

DIY Voice Assistant in 3D printed enclosure

FutureProofHomes’ Satellite1 Dev Kit is a DIY voice assistant comprised of an ESP32-S3 WiFi and Bluetooth board running ESPHome and an audio “HAT” based on XMOS XU316 audio processor designed for Home Assistant compatibility. It can be used as a smart speaker with a 25W amplifier, a headphone jack, and a built-in 4-microphone array, a music player, and an environmental monitoring system with temperature, humidity, luminosity, and presence sensors. The HAT can also be used with a Raspberry Pi with a 40-pin GPIO header, and two extra 40-pin connectors are reserved for future accessories. Satellite1 Dev Kit specifications: Wireless SoC – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3 CPU – Dual-core 32-bit LX7 processor running at 240 MHz Memory – 512 KB SRAM, 8 MB PSRAM. Storage – 16 MB Flash Wireless – WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.x Audio Processor – XMOS XU316 (XU316-1024-QF60V-I32) 16-core 32-bit RISC processor running at 800 MHz with […]

May 6, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Tiliqua – An hackable Lattice ECP5 FPGA-based audio multitool for Eurorack (Crowdfunding)

Tiliqua is a Lattice ECP5 FPGA multitool board designed for audio and visual synthesis and compatible with the Eurorack modular synthesizer format. The board features four audio input jacks and four audio output jacks, all of which can be used as touch-sensitive inputs when not connected. Other interfaces include a USB 2.0 Host/Device port, MIDI support, two PMOD expansion connectors, and a display interface to connect the Tiliqua screen for visual effects. All those features make it suitable for audio-rate modulation, low-latency effects, video synthesis, high-speed USB audio, or emulating retro hardware. Tiliqua specifications: FPGA – Lattice ECP5 (LFE5U-25F-6BG256) FPGA supported by the open-source FPGA flow System Memory – 32MB PSRAM (tested up to 200MHz DDR / 400MB/s) Storage 16MB SPI flash for the FPGA 16MB SPI flash for the Raspberry Pi RP2040 2Kbit I2C EEPROM: for storing calibration constants Video Output – Digital video GPDI (General Purpose Differential Interface) […]

April 23, 2025April 23, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

SPARK Microsystems SR1120 UWB ultra-low-power transceiver delivers up to 41 Mbps throughput

SPARK Microsystems SR1120 is the company’s second-generation ultra-wideband (UWB) wireless transceiver capable of up to 41 Mbps throughput at ultra-low power and up to 100 times lower power ranging than UWB competitors. The Canadian company also highlights the outperformance of their UWB solution over Bluetooth with the new SR1120 offering 40 times higher data rates than Bluetooth chips, while consuming 25 times less power than Bluetooth and offering 60 times lower latency. However, readers should note that Bluetooth LE is supposed to support up to 2 Mbps, so it should (only) be up to about 20 times faster, and Bluetooth HDT is coming soon with data rates of up to 7.5 Mbps to further narrow the gap. SPARK SR1120 key features and specifications: Compliant with the upcoming IEEE 802.15.4ab low-energy UWB PHY standard Dynamically reconfigurable UWB spectrum 6.2–9.5 GHz band Up to 3 dBm TX power RX sensitivity of -81 […]