MAX9706/MAX9707
3-Channel, 2.3W, Filterless Class D Amplifiers
with Active Crossover
18
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tantalum-blocking capacitors, the MAX9706 charge
pump requires two small ceramic capacitors, conserv-
ing board space, reducing cost, and improving the fre-
quency response of the headphone amplifier. See the
Output Power vs. Charge-Pump Capacitance graph in
the Typical Operating Characteristics for details on siz-
ing charge-pump capacitors. There is a low DC voltage
on the driver outputs due to amplifier offset. However,
the offset of the MAX9706 is typically 1.7mV, which,
when combined with a 32
Ω load, results in less than
53A of DC current flow to the headphones.
In addition to the cost and size disadvantages of the
DC-blocking capacitors required by conventional head-
phone amplifiers, these capacitors limit the amplifier’s
low-frequency response and can distort the audio sig-
nal (Figure 8). Previous attempts at eliminating the out-
put-coupling capacitors involved biasing the
headphone return (sleeve) to the DC bias voltage of the
headphone amplifiers. This method raises some issues:
1)
The sleeve is typically grounded to the chassis.
Using the midrail biasing approach, the sleeve
must be isolated from system ground, complicat-
ing product design.
2)
During an ESD strike, the driver’s ESD structures
are the only path to system ground. Thus, the dri-
ver must be able to withstand the full ESD strike.
When using the headphone jack as a line out to other
equipment, the bias voltage on the sleeve may conflict
with the ground potential from other equipment, result-
ing in possible damage to the drivers.
Charge Pump
The MAX9706 features a low-noise charge pump. The
switching frequency of the charge pump is one-half the
switching frequency of the Class D amplifier, regardless
of the operating mode. When SYNC_IN is driven exter-
nally, the charge pump switches at 1/2 fSYNC_IN. When
SYNC_IN = VDD, the charge pump switches with a
spread-spectrum pattern. The nominal switching fre-
quency is well beyond the audio range, and thus does
not interfere with the audio signals, resulting in an SNR of
96dB. The switch drivers feature a controlled switching
speed that minimizes noise generated by turn-on and
turn-off transients. By limiting the switching speed of the
charge pump, the di/dt noise caused by the parasitic
bond wire and trace inductance is minimized. Although
not typically required, additional high-frequency noise
attenuation can be achieved by increasing the size of the
charge-pump reservoir capacitor C2 (see the Functional
Diagram/Typical Operating Circuits). The charge pump is
active in both speaker and headphone modes.
CONVENTIONAL AMPLIFIER
BIASING SCHEME
DirectDrive AMPLIFIER
BIASING SCHEME
VDD
VDD / 2
GND
+VDD
SGND
-VDD
Figure 7. Traditional Amplifier Output vs. MAX9706 DirectDrive
Output
FREQUENCY (Hz)
ATTENUATION
(dB)
100
-30
-25
-20
-15
-10
-5
0
-35
10
1000
DirectDrive
330
μF
220
μF
100
μF
33
μF
RL = 16
Ω
Figure 8. Low-Frequency Rolloff