Whether the audio system performance is high, these two components are critical

Power efficient systems often use low dropout regulators (LDOs), and there are many companies around the world that manufacture LDOs. When selecting an LDO, the specifications that are of most concern are often low noise and high power supply rejection ratio (PSRR). However, product design based on these parameters alone does not truly provide the best audio performance, and the transient response of the regulator must also be checked because the load demands on the LDO may change when the audio device changes its operating mode. Digital circuits do not adapt well to large voltage transients.

Analog Devices has some LDOs with excellent transient response performance that are best suited for high resolution and high quality products. For example, the positive linear regulators LT1763, LT1965 and the negative linear regulators LT1964, LT3015 help improve voltage regulation and eliminate load transient voltage spikes, thereby providing better audio performance.

A key device in the signal chain is the operational amplifier, which takes the input from the high performance DAC and provides the output to the power amplifier like a unity gain buffer with the lowest distortion. Any noise or distortion introduced or added by this buffer is very bad. Devices such as the general purpose amplifier AD826 and the high speed amplifier LT1364 are best suited for use as such a buffer as the penultimate or final stage of the system.

In this article, Tvb Subbu, Senior Program Manager at ADI, tells us to focus on high-quality transient response LDOs and low THD amplifiers, because the entire product signal chain for high-performance audio requires quality components in order to achieve the best sound quality.