Boss Katana 100 MKII

Mikäli vahvistimen koko ei häiritse, soveltuu Katana 100 watin tehostaan huolimatta loistavasti myös kotona soitteluun. Pienellä volyymilla soitettaessa vahvistimeen tehtaalla ladatut presetit eivät antaneet kovin hyvää ensivaikutelmaa, mutta Boss Tone Studio -ohjelmisto muutti tilanteen täysin! Suosittelenkin lataamaan vahvistimeen käyttäjien tekemiä presettejä ja kokeilemaan EQ:n eri asetuksia.

Katanan sisäänrakennetut efektit ovat laadukkaita, ja niitä löytyy enemmän kuin tarpeeksi. Katana mahdollistaa viiden efektin samanaikaisen käytön, mikä tekee äänisignaalin muokkaamisesta todella hauskaa puuhaa, varsinkin jos vahvistin on liitettynä Boss Tone Studioon.


Mitä jäin kaipaamaan?

Olisi mukava, jos Boss Tone Studiota kehitettäisiin tulevaisuudessa niin, että efektisignaali-ketjua pystyisi muokkaamaan nykyistä vapaammin. Tällä hetkellä käytössä voi olla vain yksi booster-efekti kerrallaan (overdrive, distortion, fuzz jne.) Boss Katana 100 MKII sisältää onneksi efektiloopin, joten ongelma on ratkaistavissa myös ulkoisilla pedaaleilla.

Toinen pieni parannusta kaipaava kohta on Katanan kuulokeliitäntä. Jos vahvistimen kytkee usb-kaapelilla tietokoneen DAW-ohjelmistoon, voidaan ääntä nauhoittaa efektien läpi stereona. Vahvistimen headphone out -liitännästä äänen saa kuitenkin pihalle ainoastaan monosignaalina.

Boss Katana 100 MKII on pienistä puutteistaan huolimatta erittäin laadukas kitaravahvistin, ja niitä isoja puutteita vahvistimesta onkin vaikea löytää. Katanan ääni on erotteleva, ja erityisesti high-gain -soundit miellyttävät omaa korvaa.

Boss Katana 100 MKII has a ton of different settings for your sound, from acoustic to heavy metal. With Boss Tone Studio software (USB A-B required) you can easily configure your settings for the knobs, and try out different boss pedals from gain to reverb. With Tone Studio, you can preset 3 different "effects" for each effect knob to use without tone studio. Reverb and Delay tempo has to be set by tapping. Built in Amp models sound really good and they suit every playstyle. You can also configure at which point you want your amplifier to be at the effect chain. You wont need any pedals if you have Katana MKII amplifier. Wattage switch is also really handy when you don't want to play loud.

I moved to the Katana after my starter pack of Fender Squier with the Frontman 15G. I was pretty happy with my Frontman, but I decided to try and expand my possibilities with the Katana.

Buying the Katana was a great decision that allowed me to evolve as a guitarist and learn about tones. I moved from the two channels (clean / overdrive) of my previous amp to all the different amp modes of the Katana (4 with variation + acoustic) and all the effects it includes. I think this is a great option for exploring possibilities and checking out how different pedals / effects sound for those who are not very familiar with tone crafting. At this point I have to say that the sheer number of possibilities can be daunting, but you can always start from the presets or third-party tones available in online communities.

PROS:
- A lot of effects and amp modes with endless possibilities for different tones, which allow trying new sounds, especially useful for beginners.
- You can connect it to your computer for recording or to manage the tones through the GUI.
- 8 patches can be stored in memory, allowing to switch between different tones quickly without using the computer. For this, the switch pedal sold separately is great, allowing to switch while playing.
- The effects loop comes in quite handy for my looper pedal.
- The amp sounds great to my inexperienced ears.
- The power switch allows to play indoors without the neighbors having to call the police.

CONS:
- With the huge number of possibilities it might be a daunting task fiddling around with all the options to find the tones you like. Also, the official tone patches were quite limited last time I checked, relying heavily on non-official communities.

Overall, I am really happy with my purchase and would never think about going back to my Frontman after this, I think it's great value for the money. I would recommend buying it with the switch pedal for changing channels while playing.

Using the Boss Katana with a GA-FC and Expression pedal really opens up access to a variety of tones and effects from the amp.
I have not enjoyed the sound or experience of modelling amps until I tried this one. The tone is good, most of the effects seem to be near perfect emulations of the actual pedals.
The software to edit amp settings really allows for a wide tonal palette for your amp but can be a bit tricky to learn and set up (i spent the first 2 days just creating/editing tones & patches for the amp). But it is worth it.
The amp itself is also not the heaviest. It is a comfortable weight to be carried by the handle. (something I noted as a gigging musician)
The power adjustment (0.5W, 50W, 100W) is exremely useful going from apartment, to practice space, to the gig.
This is by far the most versatile jamming & gigging amp I have come across, but it is essential to have a footswitch (and expression pedal) to exploit the amps features.
As an added bonus the software allows you to assign quite a few footswitches and expression pedas to give you very detailed control of your sounds & patches from your feet.
It is definitely a great foundation for a customisable rig!