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THAT Introduces High Performance
Dual Balanced Line Receiver ICs

THAT 1286 Dual Balanced Line Receiver

123rd AES Convention, New York, NY - THAT Corporation is introducing a new family of dual balanced line-receiver ICs. The high performance 1280-series is laser trimmed for 90dB common mode rejection ratio (CMRR), and features an industry-standard pinout in a 14-pin SO package. The family includes versions that support 0dB, +/- 3dB, +/- 6dB gain.

Les Tyler, THAT's president, said "these parts offer designers a great range of options on the price/performance curve. The 90dB CMRR of the laser-trimmed 1280-series offers precision performance that is practically unattainable with anything other than an integrated solution like this one. Its industry-standard pinout allows these parts to substitute for the TI INA2134 and 2137, while improving on bandwidth, slew rate, and noise."

The ICs are made using THAT's proprietary dielectric isolation (DI) process in their Milpitas, CA IC fabrication facility. Mr. Tyler said that, due to the DI process's ability to deliver discrete device performance, "these parts sound like discrete designs, with the size, reliability, and convenience of ICs."

Gary Hebert, THAT's chief technology officer, noted, "like their single-channel 1240-series cousins, these ICs live up to THAT's usual performance standards. THD is a low 0.0006%, bandwidth extends beyond 7MHz, and slew rate is a high 15V/µs. And the 0dB-gain 1280 uses lower internal impedances to improve the noise performance by 3.5 dB compared to TI's INA2134."

The parts' designer, Fred Floru, pointed out that "other manufacturers offer integrated balanced input stages with either 0dB or +/-6dB gain. -6dB gain allows these parts to accept full pro-audio differential signals of +24dBu or higher without clipping when used with +/-15V supplies. However, the -6dB configuration is overkill for this application, and compromises noise more than necessary. We know that -3dB gain achieves the best tradeoff between noise and headroom for pro audio applications. That's why we offer a +/-3dB version, the THAT 1283.

 

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THAT's First Dual Voltage Controlled Amplifier IC

2162 Dual Voltage Controlled Amplifier

New York, NY - THAT Corporation will unveil the new THAT 2162, the company's first dual Blackmer® voltage controlled amplifier (VCA) IC at the 123rd Audio Engineering Society (AES) Convention. The part is a low-cost, space-saving solution for multi-channel VCA applications.

Les Tyler, THAT's president, noted "The 2162 is basically a pair of our famous Blackmer VCAs integrated into one package. The part delivers great performance in a tiny package, offering 118dB dynamic range, 130dB gain-control range, and distortion under 0.1% without any adjustment. Performance-conscious designers can reduce THD further by using an external trim, if desired."

Packaged in a 16-pin QSOP package, the 2162's two VCAs are independent of each other, sharing only their power supply connections. Both positive- and negative-sense control ports are brought out separately for each VCA. As a result, the part can be configured for a wide range of stereo and multichannel applications.

Gary Hebert, THAT's chief technology officer and designer of the IC pointed out that "the 2162 operates over a wide range of (split) power supply voltages, from ±16 Vdc to as low as ±2.25V. It draws only 3mA at ±5V supplies, so it is suitable even for for battery-operated applications. Moreover, our Blackmer architecture uses current, not voltage, for input and output signals. So, the 2162's wide dynamic range is hardly compromised by low-voltage operation."

Fabricated in THAT's proprietary dielectric isolation (DI) process at its Milpitas, CA IC foundry, the 2162 delivers discrete analog circuit performance with the reliability and cost benefits of an integrated circuit. Mr. Hebert explained, "Conventional junction-isolated (JI) ICs suffer from parasitic diodes (and their associated capacitance) between critical components and a common substrate which can compromise performance. Discrete implementations (on a PCB) suffer from temperature drift, and difficulty in matching the discrete components. Our DI process significantly reduces many of the parasitics suffered by JI ICs, and maintains excellent thermal tracking and device matching over the entire circuit. We get the best of both discrete and monolithic design, which we put to good use in the 2162."

 

 

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THAT Corporation Gets the Lead Out

Lead-free THAT 2181S

Milford, MA - In a proactive move to comply with the European Directive RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances), THAT Corporation is pleased to announce its first shipments of lead-free integrated circuits (ICs).  The first parts available in a lead-free package are surface mount versions of THAT's 2181-series voltage controlled amplifiers (VCAs), used by many manufacturers throughout the pro audio industry.

"All electronics manufacturers selling within Europe must eliminate lead from their products by July 1, 2006 ," said Gary Hebert, THAT's chief technology officer.  "Compliance starts with component suppliers like THAT, who must offer lead-free versions of their products.  Then, pro audio equipment makers can re-engineer their soldering methods to eliminate the lead that they routinely add.  While this requires a non-trivial adaptation of current soldering processes, the entire world ultimately benefits from this cooperative effort through less lead in the environment."

Les Tyler , THAT's president stated "THAT's goal is to introduce lead-free alternatives throughout our product line by the end of 2004.  This will include our through-hole VCAs, our Analog Engine® family, and all our new input and output stages.  We intend to maintain dual inventory of our ICs until our customers are comfortable with switching completely to lead-free processes.".

Samples of the current lead free parts as well as additional information regarding lead-free products are available on request. Please mail to: icsales@cedos.com

The RoHS mandate for electronic equipment will require most electronic products sold (and imported) into to be lead-free by July 1, 2006 .  Historically, lead has been added to tin in solder and plating on component leads in order to reduce the temperature which electronics components see during the soldering process.  A variety of technologies are in use for lead-free component leads, including 100% tin, tin-bismuth alloys, and layered plating techniques such as nickel-paladium-gold.  No one process has yet emerged as a standard.  Equipment makers must match their soldering process to the plating process used in the components.

 

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THAT Reveals InGenius® Identity

InGenius Identity Panel Logo

Milford , Massachusetts -- In response to growing industry interest in its InGenius® line of balanced input stage ICs, THAT Corporation has announced details of its InGenius Identity Program.  According to THAT's marketing manager Denise Waterhouse, "the InGenius Identity Program will promote end-user awareness of THAT's InGenius technology, making it easier for equipment buyers to identify products that include InGenius.  Participating manufacturers will identify InGenius-equipped products via a family of logos to appear on the products themselves and in associated promotional materials."  Waterhouse continued, "Simultaneously, THAT will independently promote the InGenius trademark and logo to end users through a print and internet campaign.  Manufacturers who opt into the logo program will benefit from our and their combined advertising and marketing efforts."

 

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An InGenius Way to Eliminate Noise

Milford, Ma -- THAT Corporation is auditioning its InGenius® balanced line receiver ICs at booth 1519 on the AES show floor. According to the company’s President, Les Tyler, "With InGenius, design engineers can now build true, real-world interference rejection into their audio equipment. These ICs incorporate patented circuitry that significantly improves over the noise- and interference-canceling ability of other integrated solutions." THAT’s InGenius IC family is now available in surface mount and through-hole packages, in three different gain options to suit specific applications. According to Denise Waterhouse, Sales/Marketing Manager, all six versions are now available from stock.

THAT’s Chief Technical Officer, Gary Hebert, offered some details: "Conventional balanced line receivers must be driven by perfectly matched source impedances in order to effectively reject hum and interference in audio systems. It’s easy to sustain ideal conditions in the lab, but in the real world, audio outputs, cables and connectors are subject to all sorts of imperfections that cause impedance mismatches. You just don’t get lab conditions at a concert!"

THAT’s InGenius line receivers use technology developed and patented by Bill Whitlock, President of Jensen Transformers. He explained, "My design is almost completely insensitive to the source impedance imbalances which overwhelm typical balanced input stages. InGenius line receivers act like a transformer to present an extremely high input impedance to common mode (noise) signals. Even with a 600 ohm source-impedance imbalance, the InGenius topology delivers 70 dB typical common mode rejection. No other solid-state input stage can deliver that performance!"

THAT’s Principal Engineer Fred Floru, who designed the InGenius IC family, noted that the company will demonstrate just how much difference the InGenius can make. "Come by our booth and put on headphones to compare traditional balanced inputs with InGenius. Both Bill and I will be on hand to prove to you that one listen will make you a believer!"

Interested readers can learn more on Saturday Oct 30th, in session K (Signal Processing part 1) at approximately noon, when Bill presents a paper co-authored by Fred Floru. The paper is entitled New Balanced-Input Integrated Circuit Achieves Very High Dynamic Range in Real-World Systems.

Audio performance for the THAT 1200-series is uniformly high, with 12V/ms slew rate, 20MHz gain-bandwidth product, and 0.0005% audio-band THD. Fred Floru noted, "as with our 1240-family, the InGenius® 1200 family is available in three different gains – 0, -3, and -6dB – to match different customer requirements. The -3dB version is unique. We believe it represents the optimum tradeoff between noise and headroom for real-world applications."

The 1200-series are made using THAT’s proprietary dielectric isolation (DI) process in the company’s Milpitas, California fabrication facility. Mr. Tyler said that, due to the DI process's ability to deliver discrete device performance, "these parts sound like discrete designs, but with the size, reliability, and convenience of ICs."

Priced at $2.87 (1k) in an 8-pin SO package, the InGenius® THAT 1200-series is a superior alternative to all other line receivers. For more information, visit the 1200-series page

 

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THAT Corporation Introduces Quietest Microphone Preamp
THAT1512 debuts at Barcelona AES Convention

THAT 1512S Mic Preamp IC

THAT 1512S Microphone Preamp IC

Milford , Massachusetts -- Responding to industry demand for ever higher performance, THAT Corporation (booth # 2805) has released its advanced microphone preamp IC, the THAT1512.  Boasting lower noise over a wider range of gain settings than any integrated circuit preamp on the market, the 1512 offers lower distortion, wider bandwidth, faster slew rate, and reduced supply current compared to competitive models.

“The 1512 Mic Preamp IC is extraordinarily quiet at both microphone and line levels,” remarked Les Tyler, President of THAT Corporation. “Moreover, its bandwidth is nearly three times wider that of other ICs, which results in improved distortion and transparency on a par with discrete designs. This lets the 1512 delivers discrete performance in IC form.”

According to Gary Hebert, THAT's Chief Technology officer, "the THAT1512 is designed for the exacting requirements of professional audio equipment. At 60dB gain, its input noise -- at 1 nV/root-Hertz -- adds only 1.3 dB noise to that of a 200W microphone. Yet, at 0dB gain, the 1512's input noise rises to only 32 nV/root-Hertz -- matching that of most conventional line-input stages."  Hebert added, "this makes the 1512 capable of no-compromise performance from mic to line levels -- previously unheard of for an IC preamp."

Tyler pointed out that the 1512 pin configuration is compatible with several existing industry-standard ICs whose performance it surpasses, making it a candidate for drop-in replacement in existing designs as well as the choice for new development. The part operates over a wide range of supply voltages – from ±5V to ±20V – and typically draws only 6 mA of supply current.

Applications for the new part include input stages and summing amplifiers in mixing consoles, breakout boxes, portable recording equipment, and other gear requiring a versatile, high performance microphone preamp stage at a reasonable cost.

According to Fred Floru, designer of the 1512, critical listeners are likely to find the new IC unusually transparent in part thanks to its unique construction. Floru noted "the THAT1512 is manufactured using THAT’s proprietary 'dielectric isolation' (DI) process which encapsulates each transistor in its own insulating well.  The complete electrical isolation provided by the DI process means the 1512 more closely resembles a fully discrete design.  With device interaction reduced to a minimum, we’ve nearly eliminated the stray interactions that can impinge on the audio signal and ultimately degrade a microphone preamp’s sound quality.”

 The THAT1512 is available in DIP-8, SO-8, and SO-14 packages, all suitable for conventional or lead-free soldering processes. A companion part, the 1510, is available in DIP-8, and 300-mil SO16 packages.  Other packages will be considered upon request.  1k pricing for the 1512 SO-8 version is $2.46, for the 1510 DIP-8 is $2.05. For more specifications of our newest IC visit the 1510/1512 product page.

 

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Last modified: 11/03/09