The SAA7388 decoder is a block decoder buffer manager for high-speed CD-ROM applications that integrates real-time error correction and detection and host interface data transfer functions into a single chip. The SAA7388 has an on-chip 36-kbit memory. This memory is used as a buffer memory for error and erasure corrections. The chip also has a buffer memory interface thus enabling the connection of SRAM up to 128 kbytes, or DRAM up to 16 Mbits. The on-chip memory is sufficient to buffer 1 sector of data. The external memory can buffer many more, depending on memory size.