Case Study: Yamaha Corporation achieves doubled DSP functionality and tapes out six months early with Synopsys Processor Designer

Yamaha’s XMP-1 DSP Doubles Functionality While Taping Out Six Months Early with Processor Designer

Yamaha’s semiconductor team developed the XMP-1, a custom DSP for high-definition sound and LED control, but faced a one-year schedule with only three engineers, tight deadlines, and the need to reduce development time for the software toolchain (including a C compiler) while increasing functional flexibility to meet changing market requirements.

Using Synopsys Processor Designer, Yamaha automatically generated the toolchain, ISS and RTL from LISA-based processor descriptions to enable HW/SW co-design and fast verification. The approach doubled the device’s sound-channel functionality, delivered the project six months early, reduced silicon size by 20% and cut overall cost, while preserving the flexibility to add new algorithms after platform completion.

Yamaha Corporation

Morito Morishima

Product Development Department Manager, Semiconductor Division