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I’m a fan of studio sites because I find that if I like the studio then I’m apt to like a lot of the material they make available. A good example of this is New Sensations, which I join regularly simply because they offer a lot of porn in the niches I like. I wasn’t really familiar with Arch Angel Video when I joined so I took a bit of a chance. I don’t regret joining, but for those who may be contemplating a membership there are a few factors you’ll definitely want to know about.
The porn is high-quality and it falls right into the zone where many studios also aim. I guess if you offer something for everyone you’re apt to get more customers. The production values are high, with professional lighting, sound and editing. The models are mostly A-list and all the porn aims for the mainstream where it isn't intentionally misogynistic and the women are the stars of the scenes (rather than sites where the males tend to want to make themselves the center of attention).
The site layout is simple and logical. It’s the model used by many other sites: the main site is broken down into pages and each of the pages shows a DVD box cover. Each DVD opens into a separate page with the scenes shown with performer information, a brief description and tags. This may be just a pet peeve, but there are no download or streaming options on this page. Each scene must be selected and that opens into yet a third page with all the viewing options. This is definitely a pet peeve, and one I’ll always complain about: the scene begins streaming automatically as soon as you open the link. Be sure to turn your speakers down.
Once at a scene page the viewer has a lot of options available. There are photos and screencaps available. Oddly, for 2016, the scenes are available as a series of clips too. Streaming and downloading both are available in four resolutions: 240p, 480p, 720p and 1080p. I downloaded the 720p scenes and they are 1080x720, 6000kb/s and 30fps. Those are good specs and the scenes look good on a 24” monitor and a 50” TV.
This isn't a pro or con, but the site does feature a lot of MILF/big breast porn for those who are into that. It’s a higher percentage than on other studio sites. But don’t worry if you’re like me; there are still lots of young and petite models too. Interracial scenes are fairly common too, and many of those play up the “big black cock” stereotype.
The site isn't without some serious drawbacks, with the two big ones being related. First, the site is small with only 25 DVDs currently on offer. Second, it seems destined to stay small since the last update was five weeks ago at the end of May, 2016. I looked at the Arch Angel Productions list at IAFD and they are a small studio but I can’t tell if they are still actively making new porn or not. To be safe, you may want to consider that if you join what you see is all of what you get and all of what you’ll ever get.
A secondary drawback to the site is that there is no TBP discount offered. With just 25 DVDs available this isn't a great value at $30.
The site supports download managers. (I use IDM and queue scenes for downloads.) I didn’t have an issue with links timing out and download speeds were good.
The bottom line is that while the site offers some great porn with some of the best models in the business, and offers that porn across several popular niches, the fact that the site seems to have died on the vine makes it hard to recommend unless there is specific porn here that you must have. Even then, you’ll pay full price for it which makes it an okay value. A TBP discount would make it a much better value. |
