A source channel encoder, source channel decoder and methods for implementing such devices are disclosed herein. The source channel encoder includes a linear transform encoder configured to generate a plurality of source components. A successive refinement quantizer is configured to generate a plurality of bit planes based on the source components. A systematic linear encoder configured to map the bit planes into channel-encoded symbols. The linear transform encoder may be configured to apply a Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) or a Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT). The linear transform encoder may be configured for differential encoding.