McCormack Audio Corporation
MAP-1 Multichannel Audio Preamplifier
 Audiophiles are funny folk. We still
like LPs and turntables over 20 years into the digital era; and long after other,
ostensibly more rational folk have embraced the multichannel experience, many of us still
view any source that provides more than two channels as the work of the devil. It doesn't
matter to us that stereo itself is a bit of a trick (granted, an awfully good one); just
the suggestion of additional channels is enough to drive some of us batty with
indignation.
Hardcore audio purists who happen to enjoy movies
frequently have two systems -- a stereo for music and a 5.1 (or better) system for films.
But not all of us have the real estate, or the budget, for such separation of church and
playground. What then? Many people still listen to their films using the two-channel
analog outputs of their DVD players, simply adding the player and a video display to their
stereos. It doesn't give the full theatrical experience, but it has the virtue of leaving
the two-channel experience essentially intact (assuming the monitor isn't placed where it
messes up the soundstaging).
But what if you love your stereo for music and want
to have multichannel movie sound? That's obviously the question Steve McCormack set out to
answer with McCormack Audio's MAP-1. Since many DVD players have built-in DACs and output
six channels of analog signal (five channels of full-range info and one dedicated to the
subwoofer), the MAP-1 has two sets of six inputs that accommodate them. It's also a stereo
linestage with three pairs of stereo inputs, a pair of monitor outputs, and, of course, an
extra four amplifier outputs in addition to the customary pair.
What it doesn't have is any sort of digital
processing. So no Dolby Digital or DTS, no video switching or processing facilities. It
does, however, have a nifty little circuit called ARM (Ambiance Recovery Mode), which
extracts a center-channel signal and ambient information for the rear channels from
two-channel sources for those listeners who want to use their extra speakers when
listening to their legacy stereo recordings.
Hark! The shrill trumpet sounds, to horse, away
The MAP-1 is solidly built and features the sort of
no-nonsense styling that has long typified the products of McCormack Audio (and those of
its parent company Conrad-Johnson). That's to say that it features a solid faceplate
("aluminum-colored" aluminum) and a solid-metal chassis crinkle-painted black.
The MAP-1's faceplate is dominated by a centrally placed
trapezoidal LED display. There's a set of source-indicating LEDs to the display's right
and a row of push buttons beneath it that control power, volume, channel balance, mute,
set-up, source selection, and ARM. These functions are also repeated on the unit's remote.
The MAP-1's rear panel sports 26 RCA jacks: two sets of
six-channel inputs, a single set of six-channel outputs, three pairs of stereo line-level
inputs, and a stereo monitor output. McCormack makes a $395 card-mounted phono stage,
which can be inserted into the MAP-1 (and which would employ one of the stereo line-level
inputs). The rear panel also has an IEC mains receptacle and a 12V trigger.
 The unit rests upon four very squishy
Sorbothane feet, reminding some of us old-fart audiophiles of McCormack Audio
Corporation's Mod Squad antecendents.
The MAP-1 is described by McCormack as essentially
"the stereo RLD-1's circuit replicated three times." Beyond that, the company's
not particularly forthcoming about details, other than to note that "parts are
selected for quality and value . . . {since} we have found that high-quality parts
contribute a great deal to performance at a relatively small increase in total cost."
Interestingly, I haven't found this to be the case
-- at least not to the extent that many audiophiles seem to believe. I have heard
components that consist of nothing but high-quality parts but have sounded lackluster and
bland, and I have heard units that contain "questionable" quality parts but
could sing in the angel choir. Good sound usually comes down to the skill of the engineer
-- and the guy who voices the component.
And since that guy (Steve McCormack, in fact) seems
to definitely know what he's doing at McCormack Audio, the MAP-1 sounds like a million
bucks, no matter what the pedigree of its parts might be.
I ain't never heard no horse sing no song
As a preamplifier, the MAP-1 isn't really all that exotic
-- as McCormack points out, it simply has more channels than most minimally appointed
preamps offer. But it does offer one fairly unusual feature: that Ambiance Recovery
Mode. This is quite a different critter from "normal" multichannel simulation
processes such as Dolby Pro Logic. It extracts a center-channel signal by combining the
left- and right-channel information and potting it down in volume. Rather than creating a
center image that dominates the entire schmear, it takes all the information that's
identical and nails it to the center position. You still hear the full range of both right
and left loudspeakers and you still get tremendous left-to-right spread.
In creating the rear channel (or "surround," if
you prefer) information, the unit seems to perform the same "A-B" trick that
Dolby Pro Logic -- and the Hafler circuit -- also utilize. There's a reason everybody uses
this subtraction trick, after all: it works.
Of course, setting up the MAP-1 in multichannel mode
requires that you either let your dealer handle all the details or that you buy a demo
disc and a RadioShack SPL meter, since the unit doesn't incorporate test tones. That's not
an insurmountable problem, however. In fact, I tend to use a set-up disc and a meter even
when preamp/processors do feature their own set-up facilities. For the MAP-1, unlike most
pre/pros though, you will have to remember to adjust each of the six-channel inputs
individually.
Setting the subwoofer level is a leetle trickier
than usual (maybe), but even that's not a huge drag.
Behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was
called Faithful and True
When you use the MAP-1 with any DVD or SACD player with
six-channel output, the sound you get is essentially dependent upon the quality of the
unit's internal converter. The two players I had available during my audition (the Arcam
DV88 and TAG-McLaren DV32R) both performed extremely well, so I had no complaints. It's
possible that there are units out there that have less euphonious internal DACs, however,
so you might want to audition the MAP-1 with your own player before committing.
Through the TAG-McLaren, at least, Spider-Man was
expansive, enveloping, and LOUD! The sound with the MAP-1 was essentially
indistinguishable from that of the 32R/AV32R combination -- which is pretty heady company
for a $2400 preamp to be in, let me tell you.
Multichannel recordings like PentaTone's new Rachminoff Vespers
[PentaTone Classics 5186 027, Hybrid Multichannel SACD] were a treat through the MAP-1. As
with the other PentaTone releases I have heard, balance engineer Wilhelm Hellweg has taken
a great deal of care to get the multichannel mix just so. The center channel
contains only as much information as required to present a seamless full-frontal
soundstage and the surrounds are extremely subtle in their presentation of reflected
sound. The overall effect is one of astonishing fullness -- a musically appropriate
presentation that very sensitively reflects the work's heft and impact. (And the
performance is breathtaking as well, a point I should return to in a full review of the
disc in mid-July).
However, the sonic possibilities of the MAP-1 in
six-channel mode are about as numerous as the source components it can be paired with, so
my comments here will essentially be confined to its ease of use: it's dead easy. It's
essentially a pass-through device designed to do as little to the signal as possible --
and it meets that design goal quite nicely. If that seems a tad bald, well there's not
much to talk about because there's just not a lot the user needs to do, other than play
discs and set the playback level.
You want to use the MAP-1 to play your DVD movies or
concert videos? Knock yourself out - and you just might, even if you're essentially a
two-channel purist.
Two-channel sound, in fact, is where the MAP-1 comes into
its own -- whether you wish to listen to your stereo music "as is" or using ARM.
As is, used as a straightforward stereo preamplifier, the
MAP-1 performs like a good 'un. Three Guitars [Chesky JD 248 CD] by Larry Coryell,
Badi Assad, and John Abercrombie was delivered with tons of ringing overtones and woody
body. The three guitarists have extremely different personalities, and they play
guitars that are radically different from one another, yet the MAP-1 delivered all the
guitar universality you could ask for without blunting any of the individual differences.
The disc was recorded in St. Peter's Episcopal Church in
Manhattan, a large space with a supportive acoustic. Engineer Barry Wolifson knows that
acoustic like the back of his hand, and he did a great job of capturing it in the stereo
mix. What astounded me, therefore, was how the ARM retained all of that while creating a
center-channel signal, occupied almost exclusively by Badi Assad, without collapsing
either Coryell on the left or Abercrombie on the right. The rear-channel information was
extremely low in the mix and served primarily to emphasize the recording's natural
spaciousness.
This is flawless performance -- from both a musical
standpoint and a technical one. With Three Guitars, the MAP-1 delivered on its
promise -- with interest.
My purpose is, indeed, a horse of that color
Very few A/V products are as uncluttered in their goals as
the McCormack Audio Corporation's MAP-1. In a field that tries very hard to deliver
products that offer a little bit of everything for everybody, the MAP-1 is extremely
straightforward. It takes McCormack's highly regarded RLD-1 preamplifier circuit and
simply adds a few extra channels of that basic formula. Then it adds just enough
processing to give those extra channels something to work with when fed a two-channel
signal.
That simplicity is precisely what some audiophiles are
looking for. Before deciding if the McCormack MAP-1 is what you are looking for,
however, you'll need to determine exactly what you will ask it to do. If you have a DVD
player or multichannel SACD player with on-board surround processing and you listen
to, or wish to listen to, two-channel music with as much fidelity as possible, the MAP-1
is certainly a product that might interest you. If you would like to add
multichannel-music processing to your stereo system, then the MAP-1 might be just the
product you're looking for. If you want to add a little of both worlds to your listening
experience, it may well be the perfect component for your consideration. On the other
hand, if you want a component that will automatically make surround choices for you, or
give you bass management, or let you simulate different musical environments, the MAP-1
probably won't satisfy you. It's all a question of horses for courses, after all.
But if you know what you want and you want the best of both
worlds, the MAP-1 just might be the best horse in the stable.
...Wes Phillips
wes@onhometheater.com
McCormack Audio Corporation
MAP-1 Multichannel Audio Preamplifier
Price: $2395 USD.
Warranty: Three years parts and labor (upon product registration).
McCormack Audio Corporation of Virginia
2733 Merrilee Drive
Fairfax, VA 22031
Phone: (703) 573-9665
Fax: (703) 560-5360
E-mail: tech-spt@mccormackaudio.com
Website: www.mccormackaudio.com
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