The design combines a dual-core wireless SoC, audio DSP and power management to support Bluetooth LE Audio, TWS earbuds, headsets and Auracast development.
The growing adoption of wireless audio devices, including true wireless stereo (TWS) earbuds, business headsets, wireless speakers and broadcast audio receivers, is increasing the need for low-power connectivity and efficient audio processing. To support engineers developing these applications, Nordic Semiconductor offers the nRF5340 Audio Development Kit (DK), a hardware development platform designed for Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) Audio products. The development kit provides the hardware and software resources required to evaluate audio performance, implement wireless connectivity and develop application-specific audio solutions. It also supports Auracast broadcast audio features, allowing engineers to explore applications involving shared audio streams and multi-device audio distribution.
The nRF5340 Audio DK is built around three major components: Nordic Semiconductor’s nRF5340 system-on-chip (SoC), the nPM1100 power management integrated circuit (PMIC) and Cirrus Logic’s CS47L63 audio digital signal processor (DSP). The nRF5340 integrates a dual-core Arm Cortex-M33 architecture, comprising a 128 MHz application processor with 1 MB flash and 512 KB RAM, and a 64 MHz network processor with 256 KB flash and 64 KB RAM. The application processor handles custom applications and audio codec operations, while the network processor manages wireless communication and Bluetooth LE Audio protocol functions. This separation enables developers to distribute processing workloads while balancing performance and power consumption.
The CS47L63 audio DSP incorporates a high-performance digital-to-analogue converter (DAC) and differential output driver for direct connection to external headphone loads. This configuration supports audio output requirements in compact devices such as earbuds. The nPM1100 PMIC integrates a configurable buck regulator and battery charger supporting charging currents up to 400 mA. Together, these components provide a platform for evaluating audio processing, battery-powered operation and wireless communication in space-constrained designs.
The development kit supports the Low Complexity Communications Codec (LC3), which offers improved audio quality compared with the older Bluetooth Classic Subband Codec (SBC), even at approximately half the wireless data rate. Its hardware includes two 3.5 mm audio jacks for analogue input and headphone output, a 2.4 GHz antenna, an RF connector for direct radio-frequency measurements, five programmable buttons, four programmable LEDs, an SD card holder and connectors for accessing general-purpose input/output (GPIO) and other interfaces. An onboard SEGGER J-Link debugger supports programming and debugging, while dedicated measurement pins allow engineers to monitor current consumption during power optimisation.
For software development, Nordic provides the nRF Connect SDK with board support, Zephyr real-time operating system (RTOS), protocol stacks, hardware drivers and application examples. Engineers can use these resources to develop Bluetooth LE Audio, Bluetooth Low Energy, Thread and other connected applications. The kit can operate as a USB dongle for sending or receiving audio through a PC, a business headset or a TWS earbud. It is typically USB-powered and also provides a connector for a lithium-ion or lithium-polymer battery.
The design is suitable for prototyping and evaluating wireless audio products, including headsets, earbuds and Auracast-enabled devices. The development kit, software resources and technical documentation provide a starting point for engineers working on low-power audio connectivity and embedded wireless product development.
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