Abstract: An electronic circuit (1100) including a processor circuit (1110) and a storage circuit establishing a speech coder (1170) for execution by said processor (1110), the speech coder (1170) for approximating speech by pulses having pulse positions selectable from a codebook (550), the speech coder (1170) operable to obtain (1310) a set of estimated pulse positions having a first number of pulse tracks of the estimated pulse positions, use (1320) a cost function (epsilon tilde {tilde over (?)}) relating to approximation to speech to find a first subset including a second number of one or more pulse tracks fewer in number than the first number wherein the first subset of pulse tracks contributed a lower contribution to the cost function relative to a second subset of pulse tracks, and control (1330) a subsequent pulse position search beginning with the lower-contributing subset of pulse tracks to yield pulse positions to provide a value of the cost function representing a better approximation to speech.

Abstract: An electronic circuit (1020) includes a storage circuit (Flash) and a microprocessor (1110) operable together with the storage circuit as a speech coder. The speech coder has a backward pitch enhancement (FIG. 6) in frames or subframes having a length and at least one main pulse and at least one backward pitch enhancement pulse preceding the main pulse by a portion of the length called a pitch lag, and is operable to limit (840) in number any such backward pitch enhancement pulse or pulses to a predetermined maximum number more than none upon an occurrence when the length divided by the pitch lag is at least one more than that maximum number. Other forms of the invention involve systems, circuits, devices, processes and methods of operation.