Tensilica#Xtensa configurable cores

{{Self-published|section|date=November 2024}}

Cadence Tensilica develops SIP blocks to be included in chip (IC) designs of products of their licensees, such as system on a chip architectures for embedded systems. Tensilica processors are delivered as synthesizable RTL to aid integration with other designs.

Xtensa processors range from small, low-power cache-less microcontroller to more performance-oriented SIMD processors, multiple-issue VLIW DSP cores, and neural network processors.{{Cite web |date=2016-05-02 |title=Cadence DSP Targets Neural Network Development |url=https://www.eetimes.com/cadence-dsp-targets-neural-network-development/ |access-date=2024-12-28 |website=EE Times}} Cadence standard DSPs are based on the Xtensa architecture.{{Cite web |last=Emilio |first=Maurizio Di Paolo |date=2021-07-21 |title=New Cadence Tensilica DSP supports floating point for optimum PPA |url=https://www.embedded.com/new-cadence-tensilica-dsp-supports-floating-point-for-optimum-ppa/ |access-date=2024-12-28 |website=Embedded |language=en-US}} The architecture offers a user-customizable instruction set through automated customization tools that can extend the base instruction set, including and not limited to, addition of new SIMD instructions and register files.https://0x04.net/~mwk/doc/xtensa.pdf §1.2.2{{cite conference |last=Ingole |first=Anirudh |title=Instruction Set Design for Elementary Set in Tensilica Xtensa |url=https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/8944687|conference=10th International Conference on Computing, Communication and Networking Technologies (ICCCNT) |year=2019 |doi=10.1109/ICCCNT45670.2019.8944687 |url-access=subscription }}

The Xtensa instruction set is a 32-bit architecture with a compact 16- and 24-bit instruction set. The base instruction set has 82 RISC instructions and includes a 32-bit ALU, 16 general-purpose 32-bit registers, and one special-purpose register.https://0x04.net/~mwk/doc/xtensa.pdf Chapter 3 "Core Architecture"

File:Cadence Tensilica HiFi 2.svg{{Advert|section|date=November 2024}}

• HiFi Mini Audio DSP — A small low power DSP core for voice triggering and voice recognition{{cite web|access-date=2024-03-05 |date= |title=Tensilica Introduces the Smallest, Lowest Power DSP IP Core For Always-Listening Voice Trigger and Voice Recognition |publisher=design-reuse.com |url=https://www.design-reuse.com/news/31061/tensilica-hifi-mini-dsp.html}}
• HiFi 2 Audio DSP — DSP core for low power MP3 audio processing{{cite web|access-date=2024-03-05 |date= |title=Tensilica HiFi 2 Audio DSP Supports HE AAC by Dolby in Digital Radio Mondiale; Now Offers Decoders for All Major International Digital Radio Standards |publisher= design-reuse.com |url=https://www.design-reuse.com/news/20373/tensilica-hifi-2-audio-dsp-he-aac-dolby.html}}
• HiFi EP Audio DSP — A superset of HiFi 2 with optimizations for DTS Master Audio, voice pre- and post-processing, and cache management{{cite web|access-date=2024-03-05 |date= |title=Tensilica Introduces HiFi EP DSP Core for High Quality Audio in Home Entertainment and Smartphone Applications |publisher= design-reuse.com |url=https://www.design-reuse.com/news/22563/tensilica-hifi-ep-dsp-core-audio.html}}
• HiFi 3 Audio DSP — 32-bit DSP for audio enhancement algorithms, wideband voice codecs, and multi-channel audio{{cite web|access-date=2024-03-05 |date=2012-01-11 |title=Tensilica's HiFi 3 DSP IP Core Provides Over 1.5x Better Performance for Audio Post Processing and Voice in Smartphones and Home Entertainment |publisher= |url=https://www.electronicspecifier.com/products/design-automation/hifi-3-dsp-tensilicas-15x-better-audio-post-processing-voice-in-smartphones-and-home-entertainment}}
• HiFi 3z Audio DSP — For lower-powered audio, wideband voice codecs, and neural-network-based speech recognition.{{cite web|access-date=2024-03-05 |date=2017-07-28 |title=Tensilica HiFi 3z DSP IP Core Provides Enhanced Voice and Audio Processing |publisher=circuitcellar.com |url=https://circuitcellar.com/tech-news/product-news/tensilica-hifi-3z-dsp-ip-core-provides-enhanced-voice-and-audio-processing/}}
• HiFi 4 DSP - Higher performance DSP for applications such as multi-channel object-based audio standards.{{cite web|access-date=2024-03-05 |date=2015-01-06 |title=Cadence Announces Fourth Generation Tensilica HiFi DSP Architecture |publisher=prnewswire.com |url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cadence-announces-fourth-generation-tensilica-hifi-dsp-architecture-300016314.html}}
• HiFi 5 DSP - For digital assistants, infotainment, and voice-controlled products.{{cite web |title=HiFi 5 DSP |url=https://www.cadence.com/en_US/home/tools/ip/tensilica-ip/hifi-dsps/hifi-5.html |website=cadence.com |publisher=Cadence |access-date=4 October 2023}}

• Vision P5 and P6 DSP.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cadence.com/content/cadence-www/global/en_US/home/company/newsroom/press-releases/pr/2015/new-cadence-tensilica-vision-p5-dsp-enables-4k-mobile-imaging-with-13x-performance-boost-and-5x-lower-energy.html|title = New Cadence Tensilica Vision P5 DSP Enables 4K Mobile Imaging with 13X Performance Boost and 5X Lower Energy}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.cadence.com/content/cadence-www/global/en_US/home/company/newsroom/press-releases/pr/2016/cadenceannouncesnewtensilicavisionp6dsptargetingembeddedneuralnetworkapplications.html|title = Cadence Announces New Tensilica Vision P6 DSP Targeting Embedded Neural Network Applications}}{{Self-published inline|date=November 2024}}
• Vision C5 DSP, for neural network computational tasks.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cadence.com/content/cadence-www/global/en_US/home/company/newsroom/press-releases/pr/2017/cadence-unveils-industrys-first-neural-network-dsp-ip-for-automo.html|title=Cadence Unveils Industry's First Neural Network DSP IP for Automotive, Surveillance, Drone and Mobile Markets}}{{Self-published inline|date=November 2024}}

• AMD TrueAudio, available in select GPU products based on the GCN2 microarchitecture, integrates an HiFi EP Audio DSP on-die.{{cite web |date=2013-10-08 |title=Everything You Wanted to Know About AMD TrueAudio |url=http://www.maximumpc.com/everything_you_wanted_know_about_amd%E2%80%99s_new_trueaudio_technology_2013 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140711104556/http://www.maximumpc.com/everything_you_wanted_know_about_amd%E2%80%99s_new_trueaudio_technology_2013 |archivedate=July 11, 2014 |accessdate=2014-07-06 |work=Maximum PC}} Hardware integration of the DSP is dropped since GCN4, with TrueAudio Next switching to a GPGPU-based approach.{{Cite web |title=TrueAudio Next |url=https://gpuopen.com/true-audio-next/ |access-date=2024-11-11 |website=AMD GPUOpen |language=en-GB}}
• Microsoft HoloLens incorporates a custom coprocessor fabricated on TSMC's 28nm process node, integrating 24 Tensilica DSP cores. It has around 65 million logic gates, 8 MB of SRAM, and 1 GB of low-power DDR3 RAM.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2016/08/22/microsoft_hololens_hpu/|title = Microsoft's HoloLens secret sauce: A 28nm customized 24-core DSP engine built by TSMC|website = The Register}}
• Espressif ESP8266 and ESP32 Wi-Fi IoT SoCs use respectively the "Diamond Standard 106Micro" (by Espressif referred to as "L106"){{cite web|url=https://www.espressif.com/sites/default/files/documentation/0a-esp8266ex_datasheet_en.pdf#page=6|title=ESP8266EX Datasheet|access-date=2021-03-23|date=October 2020}} and the LX6.{{cite web|url=https://www.espressif.com/sites/default/files/documentation/esp32_datasheet_en.pdf#page=22|title=ESP32 SeriesDatasheet|access-date=2021-03-23|date=2021-03-19}}
• Spreadtrum, licensing the HiFi DSP.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cadence.com/content/cadence-www/global/en_US/home/company/newsroom/press-releases/pr/2016/spreadtrum-licenses-tensilica-hi-fi-audio-voice-dsp.html|title = Spreadtrum Licenses Tensilica HiFi Audio/Voice DSP}}{{Self-published inline|date=November 2024}}
• VIA Technologies, using the HiFi DSP in an embedded SoC.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cadence.com/content/cadence-www/global/en_US/home/company/newsroom/press-releases/pr/2013/customerspotlightviatechnologieslicensescadencetensilicahifiaudiovoicedsp.html|title=Customer Spotlight: VIA Technologies Licenses Cadence Tensilica HiFi Audio/Voice DSP}}{{Self-published inline|date=November 2024}}
• Realtek standardized on the HiFi audio DSP for mobile and PC products.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cadence.com/content/cadence-www/global/en_US/home/company/newsroom/press-releases/pr/2013/realteklicensescadencestensilicahifiaudiovoicedspipcore.html|title=Realtek Licenses Cadence's Tensilica HiFi Audio/Voice DSP IP Core}}{{Self-published inline|date=November 2024}}

• In 1997, Tensilica was founded by Chris Rowen.
• Five years later, Tensilica released support for flexible length instruction encodings, known as FLIX.
• By 2013, Cadence Design Systems acquired 100% of Tensilica.

The brand name Tensilica is a combination of the word Tensile and Silica, with the latter referring to silicon, the building blocks of modern integrated circuits.{{Citation needed|date=November 2019}}

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• {{Official website|ip.cadence.com}}

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