Guitar World Verdict
The PRS Archon Classic offers impressive value for guitarists seeking rich clean/overdrive tones and timeless distortion tones that range from classic crunch to hot-rodded high gain.
Pros
- +
Uncomplicated controls make it very easy to dial in desired tones.
- +
Clean channel provides wide variety of textures from full-bodied sparkle to aggressive crunch.
- +
Lead channel’s distortion tones retain excellent clarity and definition with attractive upper midrange voice.
- +
Noise-free operation.
- +
Very competitively priced.
Cons
- -
No switching for effects loop.
- -
Made in Indonesia, so low price may not last.
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What is it?
PRS has duly noted in their announcement of the new Archon Classic amplifier head that it is not a reissue of the original Archon amp, which PRS introduced 12 years ago in 2013.
Although the original Archon has undergone a few changes since then, it still remains pretty faithful to its original tonal characteristics, so a reissue simply isn’t needed.
The new PRS Archon Classic is actually a new amp circuit based on the Archon design but revoiced to offer “classic” tones based on the character of hot-rodded amps of the ’70s and ’80s.
Like the current PRS Archon 50 head, the Archon Classic is an all-tube 50-watt head featuring two fully independent channels. The Classic’s Clean channel is hotter than the Archon 50’s Clean channel.
Meanwhile, the gain of the Classic’s Lead channel is dialed back a bit and it has a different tonal personality than the Archon 50, which we’ll discuss in more detail. For players who lean more towards timeless, traditional tones over cutting-edge textures, the Archon Classic offers a compelling alternative.
My personal experience with guitar amps is that the more features, controls and switches put into the design, the more they take away from the guitar’s natural tone. The Archon Classic is about as simple as a two-channel amp can be while still providing useful tone-shaping capabilities and versatility.
The Clean and Lead channels each have their own independent sets of treble, middle and bass EQ controls, a Bright switch and volume and master volume controls. Global presence and depth controls are shared by both channels. Dialing in sounds is about as simple as it gets, with the controls doing exactly what you expect them to do.
Bias jacks and a bias adjustment trim pot make it easy to bias the amp after changing tubes without removing the chassis
While the Archon 50 can be ordered with either 6L6 or 6CA7 power tubes, the Archon Classic is only offered with a pair of JJ 6CA7 tubes. These “American” versions of the EL34 tube have similar tonal characteristics but don’t compress as easily as EL34 and provide slightly tighter bass and glassier treble.
Four of the Classic’s six ECC83S tubes are dedicated to the gain stages, while the fifth drives the effects loop and the sixth is a phase inverter.
The Classic comes with a single-switch footswitch controller for channel switching. The effects loop is a simple affair with mono ¼-inch send and return jacks – no level control.
Speaker jacks consist of a pair of parallel 4-ohm jacks (for connecting one 4-ohm or two 8-ohm cabs), a pair of parallel 8-ohm jack (for one 8-ohm or two 16-ohm cabs) and a single 16-ohm output. Bias jacks and a bias adjustment trim pot make it easy to bias the amp after changing tubes without removing the chassis.
Specs
- Launch price: $1,149
- Type: Tube amp head
- Channels: Two
- Controls: Volume, Bright Switch, Treble, Middle, Bass, Master Volume (per channel), global Presence and Depth
- Output: 50 watts
- Tubes: 2x JJ 6CA7 power tubes, 6x JJ ECC83S preamp tubes
- Connections: 2x 4 ohm parallel, 2x 8 ohm parallel, 1x 16 ohm, series footswitch, 1/4" mono footswitch input
- Dimensions: 546 mm x 254 mm x 254 mm
- Options: Archon 50 Head ($1,149), Archon 50 Combo ($1,349)
- Contact: PRS Guitars
Usability and sounds
Plugging into the Archon Classic amp, it’s easy to see why PRS decided to stick with the Classic name despite the potential for confusion. The Clean channel provides punchy, full-bodied clean tones with generous headroom, but the channel can also be pushed into overdrive with harmonically rich grit.
With the Clean channel’s master volume cranked up and the volume turned up from 0 to 5, the tone is crystal clear with a bold voice that is simply sublime – among the best clean tones I’ve ever heard from a multi-channel high-gain amp head.
The Lead channel’s gain is quite aggressive and goes into distortion territory pretty quickly when the volume control is increased. This channel has an attractive upper midrange emphasis that delivers singing, voice-like lead tones and chords that cut through a mix with precision and clarity.
At the volume control’s upper range the amp provides super-saturated tones that will please more modern-minded players, but the EQ’s range is not as aggressively voiced.
Having said that, the presence and depth controls are highly useful for shaping the upper mids/treble and low-end body, respectively, beyond the range of the traditional British amps that the Classic’s tonal signature is built upon.
These controls are particularly helpful for, say, making a Strat or Tele more full-bodied or dialing in more clarity and precision from a guitar with high-output humbuckers. The Archon Classic pairs well with a very wide variety of guitars, preserving their individual character while also refining the tone for assertive clean and aggressive distortion textures.
Verdict
Verdict: ★★★★½
Guitar World verdict: The PRS Archon Classic offers impressive value for guitarists seeking rich clean/overdrive tones and timeless distortion tones that range from classic crunch to hot-rodded high gain.
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