Obscure audio codec is a perfect fit for the N64(phoboslab.org)
260 points by frostbyte7 6 days ago | 31 comments
tl;dr: The author ported ULC (Ultra Low Complexity Codec), an obscure MP3-like transform codec originally designed for Game Boy Advance, to the Nintendo 64 by offloading the IMDCT to the RSP coprocessor using 16-bit fixed point math. The result delivers 44100 Hz stereo audio at near-Opus bitrates using only ~4% CPU and ~5% RSP time, making it viable for in-game music and speech. It's already been merged into Libdragon and used in a recent N64 port of Half-Life to fit 2,500 sounds and 27 music tracks on a 64MB cartridge.
HN Discussion:
  • •Historical patent context would have prevented this codec's use on N64 in its era
  • ↑Clarifies that perceived audio quality issues are from the source track, not the codec
  • ↓Concern about LLM usage harming the homebrew/demoscene community
  • ↑Speculation about applying this codec to other constrained DSP hardware like MAS3507D
  • ~Questions practical viability given RSP instruction memory also needed for graphics