Much love has been given out to the BOSS Katana amp line since it was released and over time, it has gained many devotees; myself included. Still, there are those folks out there who will argue that it’s still just a solid-state amp and could never be as good as a real tube amp.
I get that. I have eight tube amps ranging in wattage from 5 watts to 50 watts. They’re all set up differently and each has its own distinctive characteristics. With my Plexi-style amps, there really is nothing like the high-end sizzle when the amp is cranked. My Fender Hot Rod Deluxe has a hauntingly rich and beautiful clean tone. And let’s face it: There’s really nothing like the power sag of a tube rectifier.
But despite all those great things about tube amps, my Katana Artist (v1) is my #1 amp for both stage and studio. Why? For one, simply because it has a sound and feel that speaks to me and I’m inspired every time I play it. But perhaps more importantly, it has a sound and feel that’s all its own. I don’t look at it as a digital, solid-state amp. I look at it as a great amp that gives me the tone and dynamics that I expect out of any amp that I call my own.
That said, historically, there is a justifiable reason for the stigma around solid-state amps not being as good tube amps. Twenty-five or so years ago, with just a couple of exceptions, solid-state amps were definitely the cheap alternatives – at least the ones built for electric guitar.
Acoustic guitar amps, on the other hand, tended – and still tend – to be all solid-state. To me, SR and Genz-Benz have been my go-to standards, and I still play through my SR California Blonde. It’s a 75-lb. behemoth with a 15″ speaker. Even as old as it is, I’ll pit it against any other acoustic amp. Sorry, I digress. Back to electric guitar solid state amps…
Back in the day, solid-state amps sounded horrible and felt even worse with little to no dynamics, and don’t get me started with their “overdrive” sound. They totally sucked! They were bad enough that they left a lasting impression and a stigma built up against them that lingers even to today.
And it’s really unfortunate because there are amps like the Katana and the recent Fender Tone Master amps whose sound quality and dynamics are just simply stellar. But where the Tone Master amps are copping the Deluxe and Twin, the amps in the Katana line, at least to me, have their own sounds, and not trying to copy specific amps. And that’s the thing that sold me with my original Katana 50 and now with my Katana Artist. They both have their own sounds. But because of that historical stigma with solid-state amps, lots of people still frown upon them.
To be clear though, amps like the BOSS Katana and the Fender Tone Master are digital amps, which are a far cry from just a collection of chips. These amps are run by powerful digital signal processors that model the behavior of tube amps. Sure, they use solid-state components, but the DSPs set them apart from traditional solid-state amps.
But as with any amp, you have to take the time to dial it in with your playing style and equipment. When I got my Katana 50, I had to spend lots of time getting the gain, volume, and EQ dialed in for my guitars. Playing a Les Paul, I had to bump the mids and highs. With my Godin, I had to roll off the highs and bump up the bass. That’s not even taking into account the fact that I had to break in the speaker, which makes EQ adjustments a moving target!
The same went for my Katana Artist. But I spent even more time playing to break it in because that Waza speaker has just gotten better with time. I recently did a recording session with the Artist and at first, I was using the DI. But I noticed that the speaker sounded SO good that I ended up miking the amp.
The point to this is that no amp, whether digital or valve is going to sound great right out of the box with everything set in the middle. You have to invest time into getting it dialed in and broken in before you get a truly great sound out of it.
Now I realize there will still be detractors. That’s unavoidable. All I can say is this: You do you. But I’m willing to bet that if a detractor kept an open mind and really spent some time dialing in a Katana, while they may not take the plunge and buy one, they may at least get over the notion that all digital amps are bad.
Guitar Gear 
I love my Marshall DSL40C, but it keeps blowing fuses and although I suspect changing the power tubes will help, I’m not certain – I’ve got to spend $50 to find out. A good solid-state amp is looking real appealing right now!
I LOVE that amp! A buddy of mine has one and even at lower volume levels, that amp has big balls! Hopefully, the problem is just the power tubes. I know it’s a little bit of money, but a matched pair of JJ EL34s should only set you back about $30.00. I’d just swap them out in any case.
It’s a fantastic amp! I do love the Marshall crunch. I splashed out on a pair of Mullard EL34s which should arrive tomorrow – fingers crossed they do the job.
Mullard! Nice. The NOS Mullards are awesome, but the newer ones perform very well.
To close the loop, the new tubes work great. My dad used to be an EE, so I texted him to brag about my electronic self sufficiency. His response: “Get yourself a transistor amp!”
OMG!!! Now THAT is hilarious! Thank goodness it was just bad power tubes.
Great timing to read this post, I’m just about to buy a Katana!
Awesome! Which one are you getting?
I’m thinking the 50w version, I have a young family and the neighbours don’t really need to hear my ‘classic 80’s rock riffs’ all day!!!! Any thoughts on the 100 vs 50?
Either will work. But what I like about the 100 is that it has a balanced line out. You can hook up a TRS cable to it and plug directly into a PA board -or- an interface for totally silent recording or jamming. I recorded the guitar parts for this clip at my kitchen table with my Katana Artist (which is a 100 at its base) while my family slept. https://soundcloud.com/goofydawg/artist-lp.
I gave my son the 50 and he has it set up in his room. When he wants to play late at night, he just hooks up headphones.
To be honest, I’ve very little need of a line out, I rarely record these days and I don’t play live now, it’s just for fun and distraction. I used a Digitech amp modeller/effects board for a good 10 yrs without an amp at all, just playing though headphones, then last year I bought a Blackstar mini amp that’s just too thin and nasal sounding, I’m looking for a quality sound at low volumes! Have you any other suggestions? It seems the Katana is heads above every other amp on its field, although I don’t need the effects I have an ever grinding pedal board! Thanks for reaching out, great blog 👍🏻
Then the Katana 50 is definitely the way to go! Though I “gave” mine to my son, when I’ve got a small gig, I just grab that amp. It’s still fantastic.
Nice article. I have been struggling with amps since Summer 2021. I have received and returned 5 amps due to shipping damage and poor Q.C. I have 2 katanas and a handful of tube amps. Lately the feel of an amp has become more important due to medical issues. My playing style is rock & metal with a lot fast palm muting for half of my stuff. The lack of gain I use shocks everyone who plays my rig who assume that I use a lot of gain. I’m always torn between the katana’s and my tube amps. The katana is 90% there for me. There’s a lot of songs that the katana can compete with my tube amps. Then there’s songs that the katana can get through but lacks the dynamics for the chorus or breakdown. Then there’s a few songs where the katana completely fails to feel and sound good to me. But the plug & play of the katana can not be overlooked along with another 20 things it has over a tube amp rig. My biggest complaint about the katana is it’s too focused. If you take 2 steps to the side the katana sounds like it has a uhal blanket over the cab compared to the tube amp that fills the room with nice highs. So I’m constantly playing the game of going back and forth from katana to tube amp. Then I tweak the katana more while wishing it was just a little better. I have ran the stereo link into the power section of my tube amps and it does fill the room with a more pleasing sound but it still lacks that 10% dynamic feel. I also have OCD about running a katana amp into a tube amp that cost 7x more than the katana. Like a lot of people I’m hopin boss makes a hybrid katana.
I’m the rare person that actually uses the Katana like a tube amp. I don’t use the onboard effects except for when I play my acoustic through it. But when I play my electric, I have one preset channel set up and I run my board into the amp. I’ve always found that to have a much more open sound than using the onboard effects.
I’ve owned my Katana 100 Mk1 for three years now, and recently downloaded the Sneaky amps. I upgraded the speaker to an Eminence Red White & Blues. The Sneaky Amps have really transformed the amp for me. Just what I was looking for. From the Line out to PA, the Rec out for DAW, and the power scaling there are so many reasons to use the Katana. I have four tube amps: Peavey Delta Blues 115, Peavey Classic 50 2×12 (with the Blue mods), Bugera V22, & Bugera V5 modded. The Katana gets most of the playing time now. I do have a Bugera PS-1 power soak when I want to get the most out of my tube amps. The Boost function on the Delta Blues is so sweet and with the 15″ speaker the sound is huge. The cleans on the Classic 50 are nice and the Dirty Channel has a great character to it. The V22 has its own thing going on and I like it. Same for the V5. With a 10″ speaker, choke, and upgraded OT it’s a little beast. Fun.
All that being said, the Katana gets most of the playing time these days. A few days ago my Katana 100 Mk2 arrived. Now I have a nice stereo rig if I need it.
It’s hard to argue against buying a Katana, especially at the price. It’s a steal. Get in the editor and tweak all the settings. Spend the time to dial it in as it will be worth it. And, crank the Master volume as I believe it does sound better.
How do you like the RWB in the Katana? I’ve been thinking about getting one to put in my 100.
Great summary—you hit the nail on the head. I’ve been playing and buying tube amps since the late 60s and have kept 5-6 around at all times. I love them. But I was impressed with a friend’s Kemper and it opened my eyes. I tried a Kemper for 45 days then decided that the 212 100 watt Katana would be a great power amp for the Kemper, But, surprisingly I enjoyed the Katana sounds so much, I returned the Kemper and play with the Katana now. It’s very special and it has the feel and sound of a good tube amp. Very handy for me as I play many live gigs and i can dial in the 8 sounds I want for the gig and head out. No problems and great sound. Yes, I’m still a tube snob but have seen the light and accept the Katana in all it’s glory. — Gator
Same here. I still have 8 tube amps but I only use 1 regularly and have used it less and less as the Katana does pretty much everything I need.
I’ve owned my Katana MKII 100 for more than a year now and I am quite disappointed with it. The high gain voicings are useless to me because the amp is so damn noisy. I’ve checked my power sources, have a conditioner/surge protector installed, new cables, have invoked the noise suppression in the Tone Studio, etc.. Nothing matters. The damn is noisy and reducing the noise level via the equalizer, lowering gain etc.. ends up costing me tone. Zero gain on any of the crunch, lead and brown voices is my only option on any of those voicings. Turning up the master and power levels just increases the noise (…mostly buzz. It’s not 60 cycle hum). I’ve plugged it in at other locations and the same symptoms are produced.
The boost effects are near useless to me… just produces squeals and whistles.
Don’t tell me to get it repaired. The BOSS service network locally sucks and I’m not sending it to LA. THESE AMPS ARE SO CHEAP THAT THEY ARE MADE TO BE THROWN AWAY.
I will be trading mine in and use the cash to buy something that is better built and near noiseless. (I personally can’t sell something to a buyer that sucks this badly)
I salute you from Japan. This is a great summary and assessment. I love KATANA as much as you do. However, KATANA is not so popular in Japan.
Some users say, “This is inferior to tubes,” “It sounds cheap” and “Toodigital.”
But. I’ve never seen them make a good sound better than a KATANA.And I haven’t met anyone who knows more about KATANA’s features than I do. I find that very disappointing.
KATANA is not a top of the line product, but it has enough quality and power to stimulate the mind.
Unfortunately, there are a good number of Japanese who do not like BOSS. They insult BOSS, but they don’t even know that their beloved musicians record with BOSS.
I hope that one day such “preconceptions” and “prejudices” will disappear.
Yeah… It’s funny that guitar players are also some of the most toxic people when it comes to gear – no matter the country. Well, luckily we don’t have to play to other guitarists. At a recent gig, a dude came up to me after one of our sets and was surprised to see my Katana. He thought I was playing through a Deluxe. 🙂
BOSS has gotten a bad rap over the years, especially when the boutique pedal market exploded. But here’s the thing about BOSS pedals: They may not always have the best sound, but they’re always reliable. I still have several BOSS pedals and am still using my 1981 BOSS CE-2 Chorus. I probably shouldn’t since it’s so old, but I haven’t found a chorus that pleases me as much as my CE-2. Compare that to several small-scale boutique pedals that I’ve bought over the years – they break and aren’t nearly as hardy as BOSS pedals.
I hear you, man. That stuff happens. Personally, I’ve never pushed my amp into high gain because I usually set it just below the edge of breakup and use an overdrive pedal to push it over the top. Plus, even when I’m playing out, I set my volume to where I can hear the amp and use the excellent Line Out to go into the board and let that be my sound reinforcement.
[…] Can I Be Honest About BOSS Katana Amps? […]
Plain and simple. If it gets you the tone you like and inspires your playing, who gives a rats ars how you get it? Most of the time the audience won’t hear any difference anyway and if they do they won’t care.
At the risk of being snarky, tube amp sniffers care… as in those whose minds are so closed they are convinced a digital amp couldn’t sound good. Like you, I’ve evolved my thinking about gear: If it sounds good, it is good.
I’ve owned my share of amps over the years, but roughly 20 years ago I owned a Marshal JTM halfstack… and that was MY sound. I generally just ran a LP Studio straight into the amp, used it for everything from reggae to hardcore, and got lots of compliments on my tone from guys running huge pedal boards through more expensive amps.
Since I got rid of it (eventually it became WAY more amp than I needed) I’ve owned some good amps but never really connected with them the same way… until I got my Katana 100 a couple months ago. I’m running a LP Special through it, and between the P-90’s and the Katana, WOW… when I plug in it sure feels like 99 all over again.
And that’s the beauty of the Katana. It really has a sound all its own, and more importantly, it just “feels” great. Glad you’ve re-found your sound!
Yeah, p90’s lend a more lively feel to almost any amp. They are kind of associated with a bright/ fizzy high gain tone but thats not really my thing, with the various gain and boost options on the Katana I can get the gain way up there but still maintain a nice full tone.