should Nintendo N5 / GCNext have a seperate audio processor?

[Megadrive1988]

I think it should. since the audio logic in Flipper and RCP took away space for graphics. with N64, the audio processing took away from CPU and graphics, iirc. Gamecube doesn't have this problem of audio sapping the CPU/Graphics since the audio subsystem within the Flipper LSI has its own path to memory. but still, it DOES take up space & logic on Flipper, regardless of how little.

Nintendo hasn't had a seperate audio processor in a console since the Sony chip in the Super Famicom / SNES.

I expect N5 / GCNext to have a dedicated audio processor with full-on 5.1 or 7.1 processing in realtime. otherwise, it would be a step back from Xbox's MCPX.

then again, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to have on-chip audio within the ATI VPU. it's going to have hundreds of millions of transistors anyway. I mean audio processor within the LSI that also contains the ATI graphics core. like it is with Flipper.

though I would still perfer to see a seperate audio processor. Nintendo is reported to be setting a $299 pricepoint for N5 / GCNext, seemingly to match performance with its competitors. actually Nintendo's console should outperform Xbox 2 since the Nintendo machine is coming later.

seperate audio processor would be wonderful since there would be no transistor budget to be careful with, as would be if audio is on the main LSI which also has the graphics.

what do you audiophiles think?

 

[archie4oz]

Gamecube doesn't have this problem of audio sapping the CPU/Graphics since the audio subsystem within the Flipper LSI has its own path to memory. but still, it DOES take up space & logic on Flipper, regardless of how little.

I think you're making a bigger deal out of this than need be...

though I would still perfer to see a seperate audio processor.

I would rather not... I actually REALLY liked the GCN design since it was very cost effective.

 

[cybamerc]

Megadrive1988:

> think it should. since the audio logic in Flipper and RCP took away space
>for graphics.

Eh... it doesn't really matter where the logic is located. A seperate chip would add more to the costs of the system and that would just mean that the transistor budget for Flipper would be reduced.