A dedicated FireWire audio controller IC will be launched and demonstrated by Oxford Semiconductor this week. Compatible with FireWire and FireWire 800 connections, the OXFW970 chip provides eight digital audio output channels and is designed to enable the creation of surround sound systems for both Mac and PC platforms. The FireWire audio controller can receive and process 32-bit audio data sampled at up to 48kHz at a streaming speed of up to 100Mbytes/sec. FireWire’s power carrying capability also means that the speaker configuration doesn’t require the use of external power supplies.