27.5 Changing Channel or Reference Selection

The MUXn and REFS1:0 bits in the ADMUX Register are single buffered through a temporary register to which the CPU has random access. This ensures that the channels and reference selection only takes place at a safe point during the conversion. The channel and reference selection is continuously updated until a conversion is started. Once the conversion starts, the channel and reference selection is locked to ensure a sufficient sampling time for the ADC. Continuous updating resumes in the last ADC clock cycle before the conversion completes (ADIF in ADCSRA is set). Note that the conversion starts on the following rising ADC clock edge after ADSC is written. The user is thus advised not to write new channel or reference selection values to ADMUX until one ADC clock cycle after ADSC is written.

If both ADFR and ADEN is written to one, an interrupt event can occur at any time. If the ADMUX Register is changed in this period, the user cannot tell if the next conversion is based on the old or the new settings. ADMUX can be safely updated in the following ways:

1. When ADFR or ADEN is cleared.
2. During conversion, minimum one ADC clock cycle after the trigger event.
3. After a conversion, before the Interrupt Flag used as trigger source is cleared.

When updating ADMUX in one of these conditions, the new settings will affect the next ADC conversion.