IETF Opus codec now ready for testing
Reply #114 – 2012-07-04 11:03:34
I think Android should add OPUS support. They've incorporated Vorbis from the start and any app can use that infrastructure to play Vorbis natively. Very plausible that OPUS support could get into other Google products such as GoogleTalk and GooglePlus Hangouts, some of which might get native Android support. I presume that fixed-point support implies compatibility with embedded or ARM-type architectures (I didn't spot implicit mention of integer decoding support, but fixed-point can usually be implemented using integer architecture with appropriate bit-shifting). It may be worth bringing up OPUS as a new standard with such a lot of strong selling points, all converging in one codec, giving the potential for new use-cases and improvements to existing use-cases: What really excites me about OPUS is (I think my understanding is correct on all these points): ONE CODEC SIMULTANEOUSLY CAPABLE OF CLASS-LEADING PERFORMANCE IN A WIDE VARIETY OF USES: • live or delayed listening; • speech & music; • mono, stereo or multichannel; • streaming or stored files; • bit-perfect or degraded transmission Specific features: - at ultra-low bitrates from 6kbps: good speech codec with low latency - at low bitrates: test-topping stereo music performance at low constrained bitrates, with low latency and packet loss concealment all at the same time - at higher-bitrates: transparent quality, low latency and packet loss concealment at same time - scalable anywhere between these extremes - seamlessly switchable between modes during live stream - floating/fixed-point compatible - topping low bitrate stereo music blind listening test (as CELT, despite competing in 25ms latency against the best high-latency codecs) - also capable of ultra-low bitrates as a speech codec - all the same advantages as Vorbis (open patent-free design philosophy - suitable for Wikipedia, for example), scalable from low bitrates up to perceptual transparency yet more data-efficient than Vorbis despite lower latency - very low or low latency - web embedding support - two-way/multi-way comms suitable including music-compatible at mobile-suitable bitrates with packet loss concealment - suitable for live-casting (e.g. potentially useful for personal playback for the hearing-impaired (or anyone) at live events with low latency - still lip synced with a live speaker - with modest bandwidth requirements) - potential for wireless headphone implementations given low latency - suitable for live jam sessions over hundreds of kilometres - many more uses can be developed given the convergence of these features in one codec for the first time And also, it's already got support coming or implemented in beta from some important players in the field.