LE Audio Development Advice

[robinvice]

Hi All,

I'm considering using the nRF5340 in an audio application.  I'd probably go for a 3rd party module in order to avoid getting FCC certs on my own.  Possibly the Fanstel BT40.

Can anyone give me some advice on the best dev hardware and tools to use?

I did a project using an nRF52830 years ago and ran into problems toward the end.  When I added DFU support, the code grew beyond the free Keil dev sw size limitation.  It was too expensive to purchase, so I had to change horses midstream over the the Segger SES.  That was a pain I don't want to repeat.  So what's the best development environment?  Is there a VS Code plugin?

Is there a good LE audio hardware development platform for the nRF5340?

What's the best IDE to use for generating code and debugging it?

What's the best tool chain for C/C++ development?

The finished product will play music delivered from Android/iOS devices, as well as handle incoming/outgoing phone calls.  So, I'll need to include Bluetooth profiles for those activities.  I'll need to find out about audio processing like, echo cancellation, EQ presets, compression, noise suppression, etc.

I want to make sure there's adequate support for whatever hardware and dev tools I end up with.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

robin

[ace.johnny]

Nordic is no doubt going to recommend that you consider their nRF5340 Audio DK and fantastic VS Code-based IDE, which ticks every single box of your requirements.

Be aware, however, that while the Audio DK's onboard CS47L63 codec is capable of advanced features such as noise cancellation and DSP effects, those abilities are completely walled off from individual developers as Cirrus Logic refuses to support (or even respond to) anyone other than large corps.

But I must confess it does seem perfectly suited to your needs if you're competent enough to master Zephyr, which is an entirely different discussion.

[dejans]

Hi Robin,

So what's the best development environment?  Is there a VS Code plugin?

You can start by looking at the nRF Connect for VS Code ( here as well) and nRF Connect for VS Code Extension Pack. For getting started, you can also look at Installing nRF Connect SDK.

What's the best IDE to use for generating code and debugging it?

With our nRF Connect for VS Code extension, installed nRF Connect SDK and the Toolchain, you will be effectively writing and debugging your code in the VS Code environment.

The finished product will play music delivered from Android/iOS devices, as well as handle incoming/outgoing phone calls.  So, I'll need to include Bluetooth profiles for those activities.  I'll need to find out about audio processing like, echo cancellation, EQ presets, compression, noise suppression, etc.

nRF5340 Audio DK webpage provides this information: "The three main components of this DK are the nRF5340 SoC, nPM1100 PMIC, and Cirrus Logic’s CS47L63 Audio DSP. The CS47L63’s high-performance DAC and differential output driver are optimized for direct connection to an external headphone load. It is perfect for earbuds with mono-only and direct speaker output."

Is there a good LE audio hardware development platform for the nRF5340?

Yes, we have available nRF5340_audio development hardware. nrf5340_audio-dk is best used with our reference nrf5340_audio application. You can read more about nrf5340_audio application in our documentation.

What's the best tool chain for C/C++ development?

You can look at installing the Toolchain in the documentation.

Please let me know if you have any further questions.

Best regards,
Dejan