Time for more silicon pr0n! When Virgin Media supplied me with a new modem, they requested I “recycle” the old one, so naturally it got gutted for the component parts. This particular IC is the frontend of the RF tuner. Unfortunately no datasheet is available, but I did manage to find some info in a press release. The sections are clearly identifiable, the RF section is on the left, while the rest of the demodulating logic is hidden on the right under a metal layer.
The MxL261 is based on MaxLinear’s low-power, digital CMOS process RF and mixed-signal technology. It is a single-die, global standards, digital cable front end with integrated splitter, two 100MHz wideband tuners, four QAM demodulators and a four-channel-wide IF output.
