The NXP NXH3670 Enables Ideal Wireless Headset Experiences

October 10 2019, 17:10
Inspired by a wish to enhance gaming audio, NXP Semiconductors designed a single-chip, high performance wireless audio streaming solution. The NxH3670 constitutes a highly integrated, single-chip ultra-low-power wireless transceiver with embedded MCU, targeted at wireless audio streaming for gaming headsets at very low latency. The NxH3670 runs a proprietary audio streaming protocol which has been optimized for gaming headset applications, providing high-quality forward audio streaming at low latency (<20ms) combined with a simultaneous voice microphone backchannel. Additionally, a wireless data channel is available.
 

Whether it’s for gamers trying to chat with friends during an online match or fitness gurus in need of an upbeat playlist during their morning workouts, the benefits of completely wireless headphones are obvious.

By eliminating the mangled wires and connecting the audio of consumer devices directly to the ear, you not only enhance the comfort and convenience of the headphone experience but equip the user with a much-desired level of freedom.

Yet in developing wireless audio, there are a multitude of concerns. Battery life, latency, and effectively maintaining audio connection are all factors that may make or break the user experience. Audio drop off, be it in a remote conference call or in the middle of a videogame death match, could be disastrous. Therefore, the question of wireless audio is not a question of why, but of how. How exactly can it be pulled off?

NXP’s NXH3670 has stepped up to answer those questions. Inspired by a wish to enhance gaming audio, this single-chip, wireless audio streaming solution delivers high performance, completely wireless audio communication. The NXH3670 Gaming and Communications solution provides robust, high-quality, and ultra-low latency audio and voice streaming with its optimized architecture, embedded DSP, and hardware support.

Some key features and advantages of the NXH3670

Support for high quality wireless audio streaming: 
- Stereo forward 48 kHz audio channel with <20 ms latency
- Mono return 16 kHz microphone audio channel
- Bi-directional data channel

Single-chip solution for wireless audio streaming
- Integrated ARM Cortex-M0 processor
- Integrated CoolFlux DSP and HW accelerators for audio processing

Ultra-low-power operation
- Stereo audio streaming with mono reverse microphone channel at 8.5 mW
- Total headset power consumption ~25 mW

Small form factor with long battery life while reducing overall weight and size of the headset for improved comfort.
 

Flawless Audio
In order to avoid audio synchronization issues, a gaming headset requires extremely low latency. In the midst of a high-stakes virtual deathmatch, a split-second delay may give the upper hand to your rival. With an ultra-low latency of less than 20ms, the NXH3670 ensures that your audio is streaming to you in real time without any disruptions. The NXH3670 is also equipped with a robust interference avoidance scheme, which ensures a seamless connection even in the presence of Bluetooth and Wi-Fi interference.

Industry-Leading Battery Lifetime
While other wireless headsets may falter with high power consumption — constantly needing a recharge — the NXH3670 enables an ultra-long battery life. This is made possible by NXP’s efficient streaming protocol, which reduces the power consumption to 8.5 mW, the lowest active energy consumption in the market. This allows you to enjoy our seamless, continuous audio for hours on end.

Comfortable, Lightweight Design
The ultra-low power consumption of NxH3670 allows for comfortable and stylish headset designs which not only equip the user with the utmost audio quality, but with a sleek, lightweight, and incredibly comfortable look and feel — making it all the better to wear.
 
NXH3670 wireless headset use case and demo board.

The NXH3670 keeps the joy of wireless audio alive, and does so with unparalleled comfort, audio latency, and battery life. While primarily designed for headsets, the NXH3670 also can enable wireless audio streaming for household and office devices like soundbars and wireless speakers. If you are interested in learning more about the NXP’s NXH3670, and
how it can empower your designs, please visit www.nxp.com/NXH3670
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