PRS Archon 50W Valve Electric Guitar Amplifier Head Overview:
High-Gain Hero
Greek for “ruler” or “lord ” the PRS Archon is a commanding 2-channel amp with versatile overdriven tones and sparkling cleans with plenty of headroom. Designed with five gain stages before the master volume the Archon’s lead channel is voiced to cover everything from Classic Rock to Metal with full lush distortion. The clean channel provides rich tones that retain clarity even at high volume and there is ample headroom creating an excellent platform for pedals. The Archon has remarkably responsive tone with incredible note separation whether you’re playing on the clean channel or chugging on the lead.
The PRS Archon is powered by two 6L6 tubes offering full articulate tone with smooth high end and tight low end. They chug distort and get heavy without over-saturating and they sing without becoming harsh.
Utilizing a ‘no flash or trash’ approach the Archon’s control layout allows for detailed and intuitive tone shaping. Each channel features volume treble middle bass and master volume controls as well as a bright switch. The 3-band EQ lets players better dial-in their desired tone while the volume and master controls work together to command the amp’s distortion and loudness. The bright switch acts almost as a treble boost putting a shine on the amp’s high-end without going into icepick territory. The global presence and depth controls in the Archon’s power amp section both work to modify the feedback network of the amp to unleash the potential of the high- and low-end respectively. Turning up the Presence control releases more high- mid and treble frequencies bringing the amp’s tone forward. Depending on the tone stack and volume settings the Presence can change the gain/ texture and loudness of the high-end making your tone wilder and more 3-dimensional (or more “present” sounding). In addition to adding low-end Depth adds a resonance to those frequencies that more 3-dimensionally shapes the Archon’s tone.
Bottom Line: The Archon 50 delivers full lush gain a remarkable clean channel and a versatile control layout that players of all genres will appreciate.
PRS Archon 50W Specifications
Electronics
Wattage: 50
Front Panel Controls
Lead Channel: Master Volume Bass Middle Treble Bright Switch Volume
Clean Channel: Master Volume Bass Middle Treble Bright Switch Volume
Global Controls: Presence Depth
Back Panel Features
Inlet: Fused Power Inlet (IEC)
Effects Loop: Series - tube driven
Bias: Adjustable with Monitoring Jacks
Extension Speaker Jacks: 5
Ohm Switching: (2) 4 ohm & (2) 8 ohm parallel (1) 16 ohm
Channels: Lead & Clean
Hardware
Covering: Black Textured Vinyl
Panel: Brushed Black Metal
Piping: Black Embossed Welt
Tubes
Power Tubes: 2x 6CA7 or 6L6GC
Preamp Tubes: 6x 12AX7 / ECC83
Preamp Tube Positions & Functions
V1: Common Input
V2: Clean Channel
V3 & V4: Lead Channel
V5: Effects Loop
V6: Phase Inverter
Measurements
Amp Width : 21.5”
Amp Depth: 10”
Amp Height: 10”
Amp Weight: 32.4 lbs
