EN 61606-1:2009

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-februar-2010
1DGRPHãþD
SIST EN 61606-1:2004
Avdio in avdiovizualna oprema - Digitalni avdio deli - Osnovne merilne metode
zvokovnih karakteristik - 1. del: Splošno (IEC 61606-1:2009)
Audio and audiovisual equipment - Digital audio parts - Basic measurement methods of
audio characteristics - Part 1: General (IEC 61606-1:2009)
Digitale Audio- und audiovisuelle Geräte - Grundlegende Messverfahren der Audio-
Eigenschaften - Teil 1: Allgemeines (IEC 61606-1:2009)
Equipements audio et audiovisuels - Parties audionumériques - Méthodes
fondamentales pour la mesure des caractéristiques audio - Partie 1 : Généralité (CEI
61606-1:2009)
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: EN 61606-1:2009
ICS:
33.160.30 Avdio sistemi Audio systems
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

EUROPEAN STANDARD
EN 61606-1
NORME EUROPÉENNE
November 2009
EUROPÄISCHE NORM
ICS 33.160.01 Supersedes EN 61606-1:2004

English version
Audio and audiovisual equipment -
Digital audio parts -
Basic measurement methods of audio characteristics -
Part 1: General
(IEC 61606-1:2009)
Equipements audio et audiovisuels - Audio- und audiovisuelle Geräte -
Parties audionumériques - Digitale Tonteile -
Méthodes fondamentales Grundlegende Messverfahren
pour la mesure der Audio-Eigenschaften -
des caractéristiques audio - Teil 1: Allgemeines
Partie 1: Généralités (IEC 61606-1:2009)
(CEI 61606-1:2009)
This European Standard was approved by CENELEC on 2009-09-01. CENELEC members are bound to comply
with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for giving this European Standard
the status of a national standard without any alteration.

Up-to-date lists and bibliographical references concerning such national standards may be obtained on
application to the Central Secretariat or to any CENELEC member.

This European Standard exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other
language made by translation under the responsibility of a CENELEC member into its own language and notified
to the Central Secretariat has the same status as the official versions.

CENELEC members are the national electrotechnical committees of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the
Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia,
Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain,
Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

CENELEC
European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization
Comité Européen de Normalisation Electrotechnique
Europäisches Komitee für Elektrotechnische Normung

Central Secretariat: Avenue Marnix 17, B - 1000 Brussels

© 2009 CENELEC - All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved worldwide for CENELEC members.
Ref. No. EN 61606-1:2009 E
Foreword
The text of document 100/1547/FDIS, future edition 2 of IEC 61606-1, prepared by IEC TC 100, Audio,
video and multimedia systems and equipment, was submitted to the IEC-CENELEC parallel vote and was
approved by CENELEC as EN 61606-1 on 2009-09-01.
This European Standard supersedes EN 61606-1:2004.
The significant technical changes with respect to EN 61606-1:2004 are the following:
– changed the period of preconditioning;
– add A weighting filter in measuring instruments;
– correct the wrong reference number;
– some inappropriate descriptions have been improved.
The following dates were fixed:
– latest date by which the EN has to be implemented
at national level by publication of an identical
national standard or by endorsement (dop) 2010-06-01
– latest date by which the national standards conflicting
with the EN have to be withdrawn (dow) 2012-09-01
Annex ZA has been added by CENELEC.
__________
Endorsement notice
The text of the International Standard IEC 61606-1:2009 was approved by CENELEC as a European
Standard without any modification.
In the official version, for Bibliography, the following note has to be added for the standard indicated:
IEC 61938 NOTE  Harmonized as EN 61938:1997 (not modified).
__________
- 3 - EN 61606-1:2009
Annex ZA
(normative)
Normative references to international publications
with their corresponding European publications

The following referenced documents are indispensable for the application of this document. For dated
references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the referenced
document (including any amendments) applies.

NOTE  When an international publication has been modified by common modifications, indicated by (mod), the relevant EN/HD
applies.
Publication Year Title EN/HD Year

1) 2) 3)
IEC 60038 – IEC standard voltages HD 472 S1 1989
+ corr. February 2002
A1 1995
1) 3)
IEC 60107-5 – Recommended methods of measurement on EN 60107-5 1992
receivers for television broadcast
transmissions -
Part 5: Electrical measurements on
multichannel sound television receivers using
the NICAM two-channel digital sound-system

1) 3)
IEC 60268-2 – Sound system equipment - HD 483.2 S2 1993
Part 2: Explanation of general terms and
calculation methods
1) 3)
IEC 60268-3 – Sound system equipment - EN 60268-3 2000
Part 3: Amplifiers + corr. January 2002

IEC 60958 Series Digital audio interface EN 60958 Series

1)
IEC 61079-4 – Methods of measurement on receivers for - -
satellite broadcast transmissions in the
12 GHz band -
Part 4: Electrical measurements on
sound/data decoder units for the digital
subcarrier/NTSC system
1) 3)
IEC 61079-5 – Methods of measurement on receivers for EN 61079-5 1993
satellite broadcast transmissions in the
12 GHz band -
Part 5: Electrical measurements on decoder
units for MAC/Packet systems
1) 3)
IEC 61606-2 – Audio and audiovisual equipment - Digital EN 61606-2 2009
audio parts - Basic measurement methods of
audio characteristics -
Part 2: Consumer use
1) 3)
IEC 61606-3 – Audio and audiovisual equipment - Digital EN 61606-3 2008
audio parts - Basic measurement methods of
audio characteristics -
Part 3: Professional use
)
Undated reference.
2)
The title of HD 472 S1 is: Nominal voltages for low-voltage public electricity supply systems.
)
Valid edition at date of issue.

Publication Year Title EN/HD Year

1) 3)
IEC 61606-4 – Audio and audiovisual equipment - Digital EN 61606-4 2006
audio parts - Basic measurements methods of
audio characteristics -
Part 4: Personal computer
1) 3)
IEC 61672-1 – Electroacoustics - Sound level meters - EN 61672-1 2003
Part 1: Specifications
1) 3)
IEC 61883-6 – Consumer audio/video equipment - Digital EN 61883-6 2005
interface -
Part 6: Audio and music data transmission

1)
ITU-R BS 468-4 – Measurement of audio-frequency noise - -
voltage level in sound broadcasting

1)
AES 17 – AES standard method for digital audio - -
engineering - Measurement of digital audio
equipment
IEC 61606-1 ®
Edition 2.0 2009-07
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
Audio and audiovisual equipment – Digital audio parts – Basic measurement
methods of audio characteristics –
Part 1: General
INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
PRICE CODE
U
ICS 33.160.01 ISBN 2-8318-1051-6
– 2 – 61606-1 © IEC:2009(E)
CONTENTS
FOREWORD.4
1 Scope.6
2 Normative references .6
3 Terms, definitions, explanations and rated values .7
3.1 Terms and definitions .7
3.2 Explanation of term “jitter” .9
3.3 Rated values .9
4 Measuring conditions.10
4.1 Environmental conditions .10
4.2 Power supply.10
4.2.1 Supply voltage.10
4.2.2 Frequency(ies) .10
4.2.3 High-frequency and harmonic components (or ripples) in the power
supply output.10
4.3 Test signal frequencies .10
4.4 Standard setting .11
4.4.1 Standard input conditions for the EUT .11
4.4.2 Standard output conditions for the EUT .12
4.4.3 Standard setting of controls .12
4.5 Preconditioning .12
4.6 Measuring instruments .13
4.6.1 General .13
4.6.2 Signal generator .13
4.6.3 Filter.15
4.6.4 Level meter .16
4.6.5 Distortion meter.17
4.6.6 Frequency meter .18
4.6.7 Group delay meter.18
4.6.8 Analogue spectrum analyzer.19
4.6.9 Digital waveform monitor .19
4.6.10 Voltage amplifier .19
4.6.11 Standard digital player.20
5 Methods of measurement (digital-in/analogue-out) .20
5.1 General .20
5.2 Input/output characteristics .20
5.2.1 Maximum output amplitude .20
5.2.2 Gain difference between channels and tracking error .20
5.3 Frequency characteristics.21
5.3.1 Frequency response .21
5.3.2 Group delay (phase linearity).21
5.4 Noise characteristics .21
5.4.1 Signal-to-noise ratio (idle channel noise) .21
5.4.2 Dynamic range .22
5.4.3 Out-of-band noise ratio.22
5.4.4 Channel separation .22
5.5 Distortion characteristics .23

61606-1 © IEC:2009(E) – 3 –
5.5.1 Level non-linearity .23
5.5.2 Distortion and noise.23
5.5.3 Intermodulation.23
6 Methods of measurement (analogue-in/digital-out) .23
6.1 General .23
6.2 Input/output characteristics .23
6.2.1 Analogue to digital level calibration .23
6.2.2 Maximum allowable input amplitude.24
6.2.3 Gain difference between channel and tracking error .24
6.3 Frequency characteristics.24
6.3.1 Frequency response .24
6.3.2 Group delay.25
6.4 Noise characteristics .25
6.4.1 Signal-to-noise ratio (idle channel noise) .25
6.4.2 Dynamic range .25
6.4.3 Folded noise.26
6.4.4 Cross-talk.26
6.4.5 Channel separation .26
6.5 Distortion characteristics .26
6.5.1 Level non-linearity .26
6.5.2 Distortion and noise.27
6.5.3 Intermodulation.27
Bibliography.28

Figure 1 – Analogue test signal waveform.14
Figure 2 – Digital test signal waveform .14

Table 1 – Actual frequencies used in the measurement .11
Table 2 – Impulse conditions and measuring range.19

– 4 – 61606-1 © IEC:2009(E)
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________
AUDIO AND AUDIOVISUAL EQUIPMENT –
DIGITAL AUDIO PARTS –
BASIC MEASUREMENT METHODS
OF AUDIO CHARACTERISTICS –
Part 1: General
FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote
international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To
this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications,
Technical Reports, Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as “IEC
Publication(s)”). Their preparation is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested
in the subject dealt with may participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-
governmental organizations liaising with the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely
with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by
agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all
interested IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of IEC
Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any
misinterpretation by any end user.
4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications
transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence
between any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in
the latter.
5) IEC provides no marking procedure to indicate its approval and cannot be rendered responsible for any
equipment declared to be in conformity with an IEC Publication.
6) All users should ensure that they have the latest edition of this publication.
7) No liability shall attach to IEC or its directors, employees, servants or agents including individual experts and
members of its technical committees and IEC National Committees for any personal injury, property damage or
other damage of any nature whatsoever, whether direct or indirect, or for costs (including legal fees) and
expenses arising out of the publication, use of, or reliance upon, this IEC Publication or any other IEC
Publications.
8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
indispensable for the correct application of this publication.
9) Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this IEC Publication may be the subject of
patent rights. IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
International Standard IEC 61606-1 has been prepared by IEC technical committee 100:
Audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment.
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition published in 2003. It constitutes a
technical revision.
The significant technical changes with respect to the first edition are the following:
• changed the period of preconditioning;
• add A weighting filter in measuring instruments;
• correct the wrong reference number;
• some inappropriate descriptions have been improved.

61606-1 © IEC:2009(E) – 5 –
The text of this standard is based on the following documents:
FDIS Report on voting
100/1547/FDIS 100/1581/RVD
Full information on the voting for the approval of this standard can be found in the report on
voting indicated in the above table.
A list of all parts of the IEC 61606 series, under the general title Audio and audiovisual
equipment – Digital audio parts – Basic measurement methods of audio characteristics, can
be found on the IEC website.
This publication has been drafted in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.
The committee has decided that the contents of this publication will remain unchanged until
the maintenance result date indicated on the IEC web site under "http://webstore.iec.ch" in
the data related to the specific publication. At this date, the publication will be
• reconfirmed,
• withdrawn,
• replaced by a revised edition, or
• amended.
A bilingual version of this publication may be issued at a later date.

– 6 – 61606-1 © IEC:2009(E)
AUDIO AND AUDIOVISUAL EQUIPMENT –
DIGITAL AUDIO PARTS –
BASIC MEASUREMENT METHODS
OF AUDIO CHARACTERISTICS –
Part 1: General
1 Scope
This part of IEC 61606 is applicable to the basic methods of measurement of the audio
characteristics of the digital audio part of audio and audiovisual equipment for all of consumer
use, professional use and personal computer.
The common measuring conditions and methods, described in this standard, are used for the
measurement of the performance characteristics of equipment having an audio bandwidth
equal to approximately one-half of the sampling frequency of a system, where the audio
information is processed in the form of digital data. CD players, DAT recorders, digital
amplifiers, digital sound broadcast receivers and television broadcast receivers with digital
sound are examples.
This standard describes test methods for equipment which has digital input with analogue
output and analogue input with digital output. Future revisions of this standard will cover
digital-in/digital-out and analogue-in/analogue-out tests.
This standard does not apply to a lossy compression signal and also does not apply to power
amplifiers.
NOTE 1 A digital audio system having an analogue input and an analogue output with digital signal processing
may have different characteristics from those of a pure analogue audio system due to sampling of the audio signal
and performance of incorporated A/D and D/A converters. Measurement methods described in IEC 60268-3 may
not give correct results when applied to a digital system.
NOTE 2 The methods described are mostly based on sampling frequencies of 32 kHz and higher.
NOTE 3 For tests of those systems of digital-in – digital-out, and analogue-in – analogue-out tests, refer to
AES17.
NOTE 4 This standard is planned to harmonize with the first edition of IEC 61606 (1997) , AES17 and EIAJ CP-
2i50.
2 Normative references
The following referenced documents are indispensable for the application of this document.
For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition
of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
IEC 60038, IEC standard voltages
IEC 60107-5, Recommended methods of measurement on receivers for television broadcast
transmissions – Part 5: Electrical measurements on multichannel sound television receivers
using the NICAM two-channel digital sound system
—————————
IEC 61606:1997, Audio and audiovisual equipment – Digital audio parts – Basic methods of measurement of
audio characteristics (this publication has been replaced by the IEC 61606 series)

61606-1 © IEC:2009(E) – 7 –
IEC 60268-2, Sound system equipment – Part 2: Explanation of general terms and
calculation methods
IEC 60268-3, Sound system equipment – Part 3: Amplifiers
IEC 60958 (all parts), Digital audio interface
IEC 61606-2, Audio and audiovisual equipment – Digital audio parts – Basic measurement
methods of audio characteristics – Part 1: Consumer use
IEC 61606-3, Audio and audiovisual equipment – Digital audio parts – Basic measurement
methods of audio characteristics – Part 3: Professional use
IEC 61606-4, Audio and audiovisual equipment – Digital audio parts – Basic measurement
methods of audio characteristics – Part 4: Personal computer
IEC 61079-4, Methods of measurement on receivers for satellite broadcast transmissions in
the 12 GHz band – Part 4: Electrical measurements on sound/data decoder units for the
digital subcarrier NTSC system
IEC 61079-5, Methods of measurement on receivers for satellite broadcast transmissions in
the 12 GHz band – Part 5: Electrical measurements on decoder units for MAC/packet systems
IEC 61672-1, Electroacoustics – Sound level meters – Part 1: Specifications
IEC 61883-6, Consumer audio/video equipment – Digital interface – Part 6: Audio and music
data transmission protocol
ITU-R BS 468-4, Measurement of audio-frequency noise voltage level in sound broadcasting
AES17, AES standard method for digital audio engineering – Measurement of digital audio
equipment
3 Terms, definitions, explanations and rated values
3.1 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
3.1.1
aliasing components
output frequency components below the folding frequency made from the input signal above
the folding frequency
3.1.2
analogue full-scale amplitude
nominal signal level at the analogue input of an EUT corresponding to the digital full-scale
level
3.1.3
coding format
series of data bit stream with control information in accordance with the standard for which
the EUT is designed, such as IEC 60958, IEC 61883-6 or some kind of AV interface
NOTE A coding word is arranged as a 2’s complimentary binary form in this standard.

– 8 – 61606-1 © IEC:2009(E)
3.1.4
digital audio signal
series of digital signals expressed by sampled data
NOTE This data is constructed with LPCM (Linear Pulse Code Modulation) data.
3.1.5
digital interface for measurement
type of input or output digital interface which is used for measurement, such as IEC 60958,
IEC 61883-6 or some kind of AV interface
NOTE Details are defined in IEC 61606-2 (consumer use) or IEC 61606-3 (professional use).
3.1.6
digital signal generator
all types of digital generators, which including digital sine signal generators or package media
or RF signal generators
3.1.7
digital zero
signal that has a value consisting of all zeroes for all samples
3.1.8
equipment under test
EUT
equipment to be measured using the methods described in this standard
3.1.9
folding frequency
one half the sampling frequency of the digital system
NOTE Signals applied to the input with frequency components higher than this frequency are subject to aliasing.
3.1.10
full-scale level
FS
signal level of a sine wave whose positive peak value reaches the positive digital full scale,
leaving the negative maximum code unused
EXAMPLE The largest positive value is 7FFFH and the largest negative value is 8001H in 16 bit data.
3.1.11
in-band frequency range
frequency range from 4 Hz to upper band-edge frequency (see 3 . 1. 19 ) .
3.1.12
jitter
deviation of the timing of the transitions of a clock signal from their ideal or nominal times
3.1.13
normal load impedance
impedance which is connected to output terminals of EUT
NOTE The concrete value is defined in IEC 61606-2 (consumer use) or IEC 61606-3 (professional use) or
IEC 61606-4 (PC use).
3.1.14
normal measuring level
signal level equal to –20 dB
FS
61606-1 © IEC:2009(E) – 9 –
3.1.15
normal source impedance
impedance which is connected to input terminals of EUT
NOTE The concrete value is defined in IEC 61606-2 (consumer use) or IEC 61606-3 (professional use)
IEC 61606-4 (PC use).
3.1.16
out-of-band frequencies
frequency range from folding frequency to 500 kHz.
NOTE Signals applied to the input in this frequency range are subject to aliasing.
3.1.17
sampling frequency
f
s
number of samples of a signal taken per unit time
3.1.18
signal level
dB
FS
result obtained from the following equation:
signal level (dB ) = 20 log (A/B)
FS 10
where A is the r.m.s. value of the signal whose level is to be determined, and B is the r.m.s.
value of a sine wave which corresponds to full-scale level in digital data or to analogue full-
scale level in analogue signals
3.1.19
upper band-edge frequency
frequency calculated by the equation:
f × 0,46
s
NOTE If f is higher than 44,1 kHz, the manufacturer may define the upper band-edge frequency between 20 kHz
s
and f × 0,46. In this case, the upper band-edge frequency should be stated in the system description by the
s
manufacturer.
3.1.20
word length
number of bits of a data element
NOTE The least significant bit of the data element should not be ignored.
3.2 Explanation of term “jitter”
The performance of conversion processes are potentially affected by jitter present on the
synchronization input, the digital audio inputs, or both. For example, if the sampling clock for
the analogue-to-digital converter inside the EUT is derived from or locked to either the
synchronization input or a digital audio input, jitter present on that input can degrade
conversion accuracy.
There are various types of jitter susceptibility to be considered such as analogue-to-digital
jitter susceptibility, digital-to-analogue susceptibility, and digital-to-digital susceptibility. See
AES17 for detailed discussion on the subject.
3.3 Rated values
For a full explanation of these terms, see IEC 60268-2. The following are rated conditions for
digital audio equipment and should be specified by the manufacturer:

– 10 – 61606-1 © IEC:2009(E)
• rated supply voltage;
• rated supply frequency;
• rated pre-emphasis and de-emphasis characteristics;
• rated digital input word length;
• rated sampling frequencies.
4 Measuring conditions
4.1 Environmental conditions
Air pressure
96 kPa ± 10 kPa
Ambient temperature 15 °C to 35 °C
Relative humidity 60 % ± 15 %
4.2 Power supply
4.2.1 Supply voltage
The rated power supply voltage, as specified in IEC 60038, shall be used. The tolerance of
the supply voltage should be ±1 % or less. A tolerance of up to ±10 % may be allowed if the
results of the measurements are not noticeably affected.
4.2.2 Frequency(ies)
The power supply frequency(ies) specified by the manufacturer shall be used. The tolerance
of the frequency should be ±2 % or less. A d.c. power supply may be used if specified.
4.2.3 High-frequency and harmonic components (or ripples) in the power supply
output
High-frequency components in the power supply output should be less than the level which
affects the result of measurement.
4.3 Test signal frequencies
The frequency of the test signal shall be selected from the actual values in Table 1. In
catalogues and other documents, where precision is not required or implied in the description,
it is permitted to use the normal figures shown in Table 1. Unless otherwise specified, the
reference frequency for measurements shall be 997 Hz, which may be stated in non-critical
contexts, as 1 kHz.
61606-1 © IEC:2009(E) – 11 –
Table 1 – Actual frequencies used in the measurement
Actual frequency
Nominal
Hz
Hz
f = f = f = f = f = f = f =
s s s s s s s
32 kHz 44,1 kHz 48 kHz 88,2 kHz 96 kHz 176,4 kHz 192 kHz
4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
8 7 7 7 7 7 7 7
16 17 17 17 17 17 17 17
32 31 31 31 31 31 31 31
63 61 61 61 61 61 61 61
125 127 127 127 127 127 127 127
250 251 251 251 251 251 251 251
500 499 499 499 499 499 499 499
1 000 997 997 997 997 997 997 997
2 000 1 999 1 999 1 999 1 999 1 999 1 999 1 999
4 000 3 997 3 997 3 997 3 997 3 997 3 997 3 997
8 000 7 993 7 993 7 993 7 993 7 993 7 993 7 993
10 000 10 007 10 007 10 007 10 007 10 007 10 007 10 007
12 000 12 503 - - - - - -
14 000 13 999 - - - - - -
14 500 14 501 - - - - - -
16 000 - 16 001 16 001 16 001 16 001 16 001 16 001
18 000 - 17 997 17 997 - - - -
20 000 - 19 997 19 997 19 997 19 997 19 997 19 997
22 000 - - 22 001 - - - -
30 000 - - - 30 011 30 011 - -
35 000 - - - 34 981 34 981 - -
40 000 - - - 40 009 40 009 40 009 40 009
44 0
...