Flexcode - flexible audio coding

Modern networks are highly variable and, as a result, source coders are commonly used under conditions that they were not designed for. We address this problem with a source-coding philosophy that aims at the instantaneous re-optimization of a source coder to match a wide range of constraints on rate or quality and a wide range of packet-loss rates. We present a number of technologies that can be reconfigured by solving analytic relations that use the current conditions and a statistical description of the source as input. The technologies include distribution-preserving quantizers, flexible multiple-description quantizers, and a rate distribution scheme. Based on the generic technologies, we created a complete audio coder. Formal listening tests show that the resulting audio coding scheme with full flexibility provides a quality that is on-par with the best standardized codecs for any particular rate.