Tone comparisons between Archon 25 and 50?

[Alcyone]

Hi, all. Newb here looking to move from a Mark V:25 to an Archon combo.

I want a combo because of my atypical situation. I don't play live anymore but I do a good amount of recording guitars. ALL of my recording now is from the amp to a reactive load and into an IR loader on the computer. The only purpose in having a combo is for the times I feel like maybe doing some practice or playing around in "full analog mode." A combo is simpler for this.

Keeping in mind that I can crank any amp into my load box and capture the signal in all its glory, I still wonder whether the 25 watt suffers in the "oomph" category due to maybe the 5881s instead of 6L6s, or maybe because of smaller transformers (I assume they are smaller in the 25?).

A big problem with the Archon being such a hidden gem is that there's just not much stuff on youtube or soundcloud. With the Mark V, it is well demonstrated that my 25 is very, very close to its big brother but still doesn't quite have that low end and low mid thump. Is it the same in Archonland?

 

[elvis]

I tried the 25 extensively. It sounds muffled in its own combo cab, but sounds huge through a recto 2x12. A head version would have been cool.

The 5881 is essentially a derated 6L6, so it does have oomph. The speaker and small open cab make it sound less oomphy. A load box and cab sim should sound great. But why get the combo for this instead of a 50W head. Smaller form factor for the studio.

 

[elvis]

I had a Mark V and a Mark V:25. I gigged the 25 for a while, but the el84 output couldn't make low end power at gig volume. The 5881 should be better.

 

[Alcyone]

Thanks. Yeah, I was hoping the 5881s might not be too different in character from the 6L6s. Still wasn't sure about other down-sized components affecting the tone, though.

But why get the combo for this instead of a 50W head. Smaller form factor for the studio.

You're right; the head would be better if it were pure recording. But sometimes I like to get the heck away from the computer and just play straight through an amp. For that purpose, I think a combo is overall smaller and more convenient than a head plus even a 1x12. It's all one, relatively more compact unit. Definitely agree regarding the boxiness of the sound, but that doesn't matter much since it's just for me to practice or noodle when I feel the urge.