IEC 61937-1:2021
(Main)Digital audio - Interface for non-linear PCM encoded audio bitstreams applying IEC 60958 - Part 1: General
Digital audio - Interface for non-linear PCM encoded audio bitstreams applying IEC 60958 - Part 1: General
IEC 61937-1:2021 applies to the digital audio interface using the IEC 60958 series for the conveying of non-linear PCM encoded audio bitstreams.
It describes the way in which this digital interface can be used in consumer applications. The professional mode is not considered within the scope of this document.
IEC 61937-1:2021 cancels and replaces the second edition published in 2007, and amendment 1 published in 2011. This edition constitutes a technical revision. This edition includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous edition:
a) Activation of Pe field;
b) Enhanced usage of channel status bits.
c) Addition of Annex B.
The contents of the corrigendum of March 2024 have been included in this copy.
Audionumérique - Interface pour les flux de bits audio à codage MIC non linéaire conformément à l'IEC 60958 - Partie 1: Généralités
L'IEC 61937-1:2021 s'applique à l'interface audionumérique conforme à la série IEC 60958 pour l'acheminement des flux de bits audio à codage MIC non linéaire. Elle décrit comment cette interface numérique peut être utilisée dans les applications grand public. Le domaine d'application du présent document ne couvre pas le mode professionnel. L'IEC 61937-1:2021 annule et remplace la deuxième édition parue en 2007 et l'Amendement 1:2011. Cette édition constitue une révision technique. Cette édition inclut les modifications techniques majeures suivantes par rapport à l'édition précédente:
a) activation du champ Pe;
b) utilisation élargie de la voie de signalisation;
c) ajout de l'Annexe B.
Le contenu du corrigendum de mars 2024 a été pris en considération dans cet exemplaire.
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IEC 61937-1 ®
Edition 3.0 2021-02
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INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
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inside
Digital audio – Interface for non-linear PCM Encoded audio bitstreams applying
IEC 60958 –
Part 1: General
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IEC 61937-1 ®
Edition 3.0 2021-02
REDLINE VERSION
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
colour
inside
Digital audio – Interface for non-linear PCM Encoded audio bitstreams applying
IEC 60958 –
Part 1: General
INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
ICS 33.160.30 ISBN 978-2-8322-9502-1
– 2 – IEC 61937-1:2021 RLV © IEC 2021
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 4
INTRODUCTION (to Amendment 1) .
1 Scope . 7
2 Normative references . 7
3 Terms, definitions, abbreviations and and presentation. 7
3.1 Terms and definitions . 8
3.2 Abbreviations .
3.2 Presentation convention . 9
4 General description . 10
5 Interface format . 10
6 Mapping of the audio bitstream on to IEC 60958 . 10
6.1 Coding of the bitstream . 10
6.2 Burst-payload . 17
6.3 Stuffing . 17
7 Format of data-bursts . 18
7.1 General . 18
7.2 Pause data-burst . 19
7.3 Audio data-bursts . 22
7.4 Null data-burst . 22
Annex A (normative) Channel status when IEC 60958 is used in consumer
applications . 23
Annex B (informative) Monaural linear PCM audio sample simultaneous transferred
with non-linear PCM encoded audio bitstream . 24
Bibliography .
Figure 1 – IEC 60958 interface format . 11
Figure 2 – Data-burst format . 13
Figure 3 – Burst-preamble . 13
Figure 4 – Burst-preamble with extended preamble . 15
Figure 5 – Length of the burst-payload specified by Pd . 17
Figure 6 – Burst spacing . 17
Figure 7 – Flow chart of transmission of a bitstream . 19
Figure 8 – Bridging gaps in-between data-bursts with three pause data-bursts . 20
Figure 9 – Data-burst format of the data-type pause . 21
Figure 10 – Null data-burst . 22
Figure B.1 – Frame and Block structure . 24
Figure B.2 – Example 1: Frame and Block structure @ 48 kHz IEC 60958 frame rate . 25
Figure B.3 – Example 2: Frame and Block structure @ 192 kHz IEC 60958 frame rate . 25
Table 1 – Bit allocation of the IEC 60958 frame . 11
Table 2 – Bit allocation of data-burst in IEC 60958 subframes . 12
Table 3 – Burst-preamble words . 14
Table 4 – Bit map of burst-preambles . 14
Table 5 – Fields of burst-info . 14
Table 6 – Burst-preamble words . 15
Table 7 – Fields of Pe (extended data-type) . 15
Table 8 – Fields of Pf . 16
Table 9 – Values of data-type-dependent info of the pause data-burst . 21
Table 10 – Burst-payload of pause data-burst . 21
Table 11 – Fields of a null data-burst . 22
Table A.1 – Allocation of the channel status bits . 23
Table B.1 – Relationship between sampling frequency for monaural linear PCM and
IEC 60958 frame rate for non-linear PCM . 26
– 4 – IEC 61937-1:2021 RLV © IEC 2021
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________
DIGITAL AUDIO –
INTERFACE FOR NON-LINEAR PCM ENCODED
AUDIO BITSTREAMS APPLYING IEC 60958 –
Part 1: General
FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote
international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To
this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications,
Technical Reports, Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as "IEC
Publication(s)"). Their preparation is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested
in the subject dealt with may participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-
governmental organizations liaising with the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely
with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by
agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all
interested IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of IEC
Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any
misinterpretation by any end user.
4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications
transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence
between any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in
the latter.
5) IEC itself does not provide any attestation of conformity. Independent certification bodies provide conformity
assessment services and, in some areas, access to IEC marks of conformity. IEC is not responsible for any
services carried out by independent certification bodies.
6) All users should ensure that they have the latest edition of this publication.
7) No liability shall attach to IEC or its directors, employees, servants or agents including individual experts and
members of its technical committees and IEC National Committees for any personal injury, property damage or
other damage of any nature whatsoever, whether direct or indirect, or for costs (including legal fees) and
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8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
indispensable for the correct application of this publication.
9) Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this IEC Publication may be the subject of
patent rights. IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
This redline version of the official IEC Standard allows the user to identify the changes made to
the previous edition IEC 61937-1:2007+AMD1:2011. A vertical bar appears in the margin
wherever a change has been made. Additions are in green text, deletions are in strikethrough
red text.
IEC 61937-1 has been prepared by technical area 20: Analogue and digital audio, of IEC
technical committee 100: Audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment. It is an
International Standard.
This third edition cancels and replaces the second edition published in 2007, and
amendment 1 published in 2011. This edition constitutes a technical revision.
This edition includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous
edition:
a) Activation of Pe field;
b) Enhanced usage of channel status bits.
c) Addition of Annex B.
The text of this International Standard is based on the following documents:
Draft Report on voting
100/3447/CDV 100/3522/RVC
Full information on the voting for its approval can be found in the report on voting indicated in
the above table.
The language used for the development of this International Standard is English.
This document was drafted in accordance with ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2, and developed in
accordance with ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1 and ISO/IEC Directives, IEC Supplement,
available at www.iec.ch/members_experts/refdocs. The main document types developed by
IEC are described in greater detail at www.iec.ch/standardsdev/publications.
The list of all the parts of IEC 61937, under the general title Digital audio – Interface for non-
linear PCM encoded audio bitstreams applying IEC 60958, can be found on the IEC websi
...
IEC 61937-1 ®
Edition 3.0 2021-02
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
colour
inside
Digital audio – Interface for non-linear PCM Encoded audio bitstreams applying
IEC 60958 –
Part 1: General
Audionumérique – Interface pour les flux de bits audio à codage MIC non
linéaire selon l'IEC 60958 –
Partie 1: Généralités
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form
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About the IEC
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is the leading global organization that prepares and publishes
International Standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies.
About IEC publications
The technical content of IEC publications is kept under constant review by the IEC. Please make sure that you have the
latest edition, a corrigendum or an amendment might have been published.
IEC publications search - webstore.iec.ch/advsearchform IEC online collection - oc.iec.ch
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committee, …). It also gives information on projects, replaced have access to up to date content tailored to your needs.
and withdrawn publications.
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containing more than 22 000 terminological entries in English
details all new publications released. Available online and
and French, with equivalent terms in 18 additional languages.
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(IEV) online.
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IEC 61937-1 ®
Edition 3.0 2021-02
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
colour
inside
Digital audio – Interface for non-linear PCM Encoded audio bitstreams applying
IEC 60958 –
Part 1: General
Audionumérique – Interface pour les flux de bits audio à codage MIC non
linéaire selon l'IEC 60958 –
Partie 1: Généralités
INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
COMMISSION
ELECTROTECHNIQUE
INTERNATIONALE
ICS 33.160.30 ISBN 978-2-8322-9429-1
– 2 – IEC 61937-1:2021 © IEC 2021
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 4
1 Scope . 6
2 Normative references . 6
3 Terms, definitions, and presentation . 6
3.1 Terms and definitions . 6
3.2 Presentation convention . 8
4 General description . 8
5 Interface format . 8
6 Mapping of the audio bitstream on to IEC 60958 . 9
6.1 Coding of the bitstream . 9
6.2 Burst-payload . 14
6.3 Stuffing . 15
7 Format of data-bursts . 15
7.1 General . 15
7.2 Pause data-burst . 16
7.3 Audio data-bursts . 19
7.4 Null data-burst . 19
Annex A (normative) Channel status when IEC 60958 is used in consumer
applications . 20
Annex B (informative) Monaural linear PCM audio sample simultaneous transferred
with non-linear PCM encoded audio bitstream . 21
Figure 1 – IEC 60958 interface format . 9
Figure 2 – Data-burst format . 11
Figure 3 – Burst-preamble . 11
Figure 4 – Burst-preamble with extended preamble . 13
Figure 5 – Length of the burst-payload specified by Pd . 14
Figure 6 – Burst spacing . 15
Figure 7 – Flow chart of transmission of a bitstream . 16
Figure 8 – Bridging gaps in-between data-bursts with three pause data-bursts . 17
Figure 9 – Data-burst format of the data-type pause . 18
Figure 10 – Null data-burst . 19
Figure B.1 – Frame and Block structure . 21
Figure B.2 – Example 1: Frame and Block structure @ 48 kHz IEC 60958 frame rate . 22
Figure B.3 – Example 2: Frame and Block structure @ 192 kHz IEC 60958 frame rate . 22
Table 1 – Bit allocation of the IEC 60958 frame . 9
Table 2 – Bit allocation of data-burst in IEC 60958 subframes . 10
Table 3 – Burst-preamble words . 12
Table 4 – Bit map of burst-preambles . 12
Table 5 – Fields of burst-info . 12
Table 6 – Burst-preamble words . 13
Table 7 – Fields of Pe (extended data-type) . 13
Table 8 – Fields of Pf . 13
Table 9 – Values of data-type-dependent info of the pause data-burst . 18
Table 10 – Burst-payload of pause data-burst . 18
Table 11 – Fields of a null data-burst . 19
Table A.1 – Allocation of the channel status bits . 20
Table B.1 – Relationship between sampling frequency for monaural linear PCM and
IEC 60958 frame rate for non-linear PCM . 23
– 4 – IEC 61937-1:2021 © IEC 2021
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________
DIGITAL AUDIO –
INTERFACE FOR NON-LINEAR PCM ENCODED
AUDIO BITSTREAMS APPLYING IEC 60958 –
Part 1: General
FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote
international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To
this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications,
Technical Reports, Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as "IEC
Publication(s)"). Their preparation is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested
in the subject dealt with may participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-
governmental organizations liaising with the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely
with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by
agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all
interested IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of IEC
Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any
misinterpretation by any end user.
4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications
transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence
between any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in
the latter.
5) IEC itself does not provide any attestation of conformity. Independent certification bodies provide conformity
assessment services and, in some areas, access to IEC marks of conformity. IEC is not responsible for any
services carried out by independent certification bodies.
6) All users should ensure that they have the latest edition of this publication.
7) No liability shall attach to IEC or its directors, employees, servants or agents including individual experts and
members of its technical committees and IEC National Committees for any personal injury, property damage or
other damage of any nature whatsoever, whether
...
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