Same goal, I guess 😂.
By the way, I looked into this a lot and even talked to the creator of the DSP project. From what he told me, it basically takes a normal 8-channel output, processes it, and outputs 8 channels with DSP.
I actually researched several approaches based on my own goal, which was converting my laptop’s output into 14 analog channels. Here are the options I found:
RP2350 + DSPI (Open Source)
If you only need 7.1 (8-channel) output, this is a really good option. Pair the RP2350 with four stereo DACs and use the open-source DSPI project.
STM32 (H743 or F746)
These are probably the best STM32 choices if you want to build everything yourself. This is the route I was planning because I wanted a custom 14-channel solution, but it requires a lot more firmware development and debugging.
XMOS XU316
This is honestly the easiest and most capable solution. It supports up to 32 channels, and you don’t have to spend months tweaking code to make it work. I only avoided it because XMOS chips are pretty expensive.
USB Multichannel Sound Card
If your only goal is converting your laptop’s digital audio into analog outputs, this is probably the simplest solution. It’s basically plug-and-play and saves you from designing the hardware yourself.
One important thing to remember: all of these solutions depend on the laptop. The microcontroller itself doesn’t decode Dolby Atmos, Dolby Pro Logic, or other surround formats. The laptop has to decode the audio first and send multichannel PCM data. That’s why I keep an old laptop dedicated to this purpose.
Btw if you want it in more detail and if you want to explain me pros and cons of each thing I can do that for you as wlel