Holy crap, son of Archon

[RedGuitars]

Just saw the 50/25 watt switchable archon on FB. Been traveling for biz, but interested to hear more about them, and what they cost.

 

[thieves&foxes]

dang it Paul. Take my money.

 

[Michael B]

Awesome! With such a badass amp, its good to see other versions of perfect amp! Love my Archon!

 

[prs19]

Can any of the dealers comment on MAP for these?

 

[CoreyT]

I am still debating whether I would want the 6L6 head, or the 6L6 combo.
I might leans towards the combo since it takes up less room.

Have not heard back from my dealer yet, so yes, it would be nice to hear from vendors here what these will be going for if they post these up in the vendor section.

Also I wonder if these have updated tubes in them to cut back on the effects loop hum, as I read two other posts here where members had changed out the power section/pre amp tubes and they got rid of the hum and also got better sound.

http://prsguitars.com/forum/showthread.php?10421-Archon-Re-Tube-Bias-Results

And post 25 in this thread with new power section tubes only.
http://prsguitars.com/forum/showthread.php?10029-Archon-Owners-chime-in!

 

[jfb]

Not sure if you're kidding, but basically, all volume controls are in fact gain controls.

Gain doesn't = distortion. Distortion is the result of more gain than the circuit can handle without distorting.

Definitely kidding.

 

[shinksma]

Not sure if you're kidding, but basically, all volume controls are in fact gain controls.

Gain doesn't = distortion. Distortion is the result of more gain than the circuit can handle without distorting.

I want an amp with channel volume, pre-amp volume, pre-amp gain, master volume, master gain, and "Loudness". And they all need to go to "11". I'm sure that would be awesome, right?

:vroam:

 

[CoreyT]

Also a knob that says "Paint Pealer" on it.

 

[vchizzle]

I really want a 2nd Archon, a grab & go combo is kind of tempting, although not real practical for my situation...I should have another 100w head to use as a backup with the band. I think the next time a get in the studio, I'm going to track one side with 6L6 and the other side with EL34's. I think the 50w is a great addition.

It's interesting that they downplay the EL34 compatibility of the 100-watt head, which accepts those tubes without issue.

On an separate note, the 100-watter sounds great at low and middling volumes, as well as paint-peeling ones.

I've always found it odd too. I think they recently added it to the website on the 100, pretty sure it wasn't there at launch...and yes, I've been preaching the master is great on the 100 for a while. I've played at barely audible volumes at home and it sounded great.

 

[rising farce]

Perhaps they underestimate the technical sophistication of the amp's target demographic. Coming from the Egnater/Randall modular world, tube swapping and bias experimentation for optimum tone are second nature to me.

PS - The global master doubles as the "Paint Peeler" knob.

 

[mikef09]

Definitely a great option. Still love my 100w though!

 

[Michael B]

I agree....I love my Archon in 100 watt mode!

 

[CoreyT]

Sweetwater has prices listed.
They are not listing though the option for the EL34s, only the 6L6 tubes.

PRS Archon Two Channel 50/25-Watt 1x12" Tube Combo - Stealth Black

PRS Archon Two Channel 50/25-Watt Tube Head - Stealth Black

My dealer has not emailed me back either on this amp.

 

[shinksma]

Sweetwater has prices listed.
They are not listing though the option for the EL34s, only the 6L6 tubes.

PRS Archon Two Channel 50/25-Watt 1x12" Tube Combo - Stealth Black

PRS Archon Two Channel 50/25-Watt Tube Head - Stealth Black

My dealer has not emailed me back either on this amp.

Hmm, I'm on the fence whether I would want to pony up the difference in price and just grab the 100W Archon. I know an amp that is half the power won't be half the price, but I do look for more price differentiation than ~12%...

 

[László]

Hmm, I'm on the fence whether I would want to pony up the difference in price and just grab the 100W Archon. I know an amp that is half the power won't be half the price, but I do look for more price differentiation than ~12%...

It's not much cheaper to make a 50 watt amp as opposed to a 100. Same chassis, same guts, the only differences are the transformer (maybe, depending on design) and not having to put in two tubes.

It's not like building a 50 is a money-saver. It's the same danged amp with a little less power!

I'm guessing that they came out with the 50 not to have a lower priced option but to have a lower power option.

 

[rising farce]

Hmm, I'm on the fence whether I would want to pony up the difference in price and just grab the 100W Archon. I know an amp that is half the power won't be half the price, but I do look for more price differentiation than ~12%...

I probably won't endear myself to the PRS people by saying this, but I recently paid a near-scandalous $1,300 shipped for my very lightly used 100-watter.

 

[Mark Ray]

HAWT DAMN!

Just what I need, another amp! A combo would work great for me. My band plays a lot of gigs where just grabbing a combo in one hand and my double guitar gig bag in the other would be nice. I think one reason these are a "bit pricey," is that Paul puts nice tubes in these amps. Correct me if I'm wrong. I am tired of buying a decent amp (Egnater, Hughes & Kettner, etc.) and immediately having to replace the junk tubes that are in them from the factory.

 

[CoreyT]

Mark, see this thread post 25.
http://prsguitars.com/forum/showthread.php?10029-Archon-Owners-chime-in

A member put in much better tubes that what came from the factory, and it fixed some problems he had.

 

[alantig]

I want an amp with channel volume, pre-amp volume, pre-amp gain, master volume, master gain, and "Loudness". And they all need to go to "11". I'm sure that would be awesome, right?

:vroam:

No boost????

 

[CoreyT]

Archon 50 (Head) Demo w/ Dave Weiner