🚀 go-pugleaf

Johnny, et al.-

I'm in a similar situation, with a project in mine that will
require several bands of adjustable parametric EQ in each of
2 to 4 channels.  I am
contemplating SHARC or other DSP chips, but also am looking
at specialized filter chips like the TAS3001/2/4 series,
or the upcoming Analog Devices Sigma-DSP series (AD1954).
These chips have a specialized DSP with several bands of
biquad filter pre-programmed; the user can specify the
coefficients.

Questions:

* Does anyone have experience with any of these more specialized
chips?  Is the biquad topology a significant limitation for
more-or-less standard audio filtering?

* A big hesitation of the general DSP route for me is that I'd
like to build stand-alone devices after development.  The
specialized chips are much smaller (smaller pin count, larger
pin spacing) and will be easier for someone with a small lab
to work with.  Have any readers here gone from an EZ-Kit project
to a standalone project?  How hard is it to design/assemble
a PCB for SHARC-scale chips?  Right now I'm just learning
surface-mount assembly techniques, using basic Pace tools
(e.g., miniwave solder tips).  I would use a board house
to make the boards, but I'd be assembling them myself.

Thanks,
Tom Loredo