The True Wireless earbud market is entering a new era thanks to xMEMS Labs, who has just revealed a technological breakthrough in the microspeaker domain. This revolution, represented by the new Cypress transducer, is distinguished by its innovative use of ultrasonic technology to produce exceptionally accurate sound.
Cypress: the future of wireless earbuds
The new Cypress transducer is presented as a revolutionary “air pulse generator”. It harnesses the unique characteristics of MEMS (Micro Electro Mechanical Systems) to deliver high definition sound more efficiently.
The driver generates amplitude-modulated ultrasonic pulses, promising a reproduction that is incredibly faithful to the original recording across all frequencies. A demodulator signal demodulates the ultrasonic pulse synchronously, transferring the acoustic energy to the baseband, thereby producing the desired audible sound. This revolutionary technology redefines the way sound is reproduced from the electrical signal.
According to xMEMS, the Cypress transducer retains all the advantages of its predecessors but benefits from significant improvements:
- A faster mechanical response for improved detail, clarity, and separation;
- near-zero phase shift for a more precise and accurate sound reproduction;
- better spatial imaging;
- greater clarity in the mids and highs thanks to rigid silicon diaphragms;
- non-magnetic for reduced weight and less electromagnetic interference;
- superior part-to-part quality, reliability and consistency thanks to the solid-state semiconductor process.
By shifting to a ‘sound from ultrasound’ principle, the xMEMS Cypress microspeaker can now officially replace traditional coil-and-magnet speakers in active noise canceling earbuds… Cypress maintains all of the benefits of xMEMS’ existing speakers, while being 40 times louder in low frequencies, achieving a key requirement for ANC [active noise canceling] earbuds.
Mike Housholder, vice president of marketing and business development for xMEMS.
Promising technological advancements
In addition to improved sound quality, the Cypress driver promises exceptional active noise-cancelling abilities, where the inverted sound wave must be perfectly out of phase with the original sound for cancellation to be effective. With faster electric-acoustic conversion, it provides a wider ANC bandwidth, to effectively cancel out higher frequency noise sources.
Moreover, the near-constant electrical-to-acoustic conversion time reduces DSP filter complexity which, in turn, leads to reduced DSP latency and power consumption when processing ANC.
The Cypress’ miniaturization, measuring just 6.35 x 6.60 x 1.52 mm, makes it ideal for earphones. Sound pressure levels (SPL) exceeding 140 dB at frequencies as low as 20 Hz testify to its performance (measured in a standard IEC60318-4 ear simulator).
The first public demonstrations of Cypress will take place in January at CES 2024, offering a preview of the future of portable audio. With working samples scheduled for June 2024 and mass production to follow later in the year, it’s clear that xMEMS is poised to redefine the wireless earbud industry. If the adoption of this technology by major in-ear monitor manufacturers becomes widespread, the potential impact on the listening experience promises to be significant.
