Boss Katana MKll Head

[UnderTheFlame83]

Is there a better amp under $400 than the Katana?

I have the Katana Mini and love the tones I get with it. I like it so much that I am thinking about getting the head version. Right now I am running a 2×12 Randall combo through a Marshall 2×12 cab. I like it and have no complaints. But the Randall needs a rest. I've had the amp almost 25 years and have played it almost everyday since. Still works great. But the Brown channel on the Katana is my favorite distortion. The Crunch channel is just as good and the Clean channel, too. Then there is all the effects and the Boss Studio... Would need the footswitch of course at some point...

Any of you own the Katana MKll head? I know some of you have the 50 watt combo, but what about the Katana MKll 100 watt head?

[UnderTheFlame83]

And as much as I want a 5150, its out of my price range

[UnderTheFlame83]

The selectable 5, 50, or 100 watts look nice. I would more than likely use the 50 watt if I get one. And the different cabs preset looks cool.

[beaubrummels]

I've only played through the 100 combo amp, but it's not mine so I haven't sat and played with it for enough length of time to evaluate all it's features. I just use it as a pedal P.A. It's built-in crunch sounds natural and tube-y.

[UnderTheFlame83]

Just placed my order on this amp and the cover. Can't wait to get my hands on it.

[UnderTheFlame83]

No footswitch?

Not right now. Later I will.

[UnderTheFlame83]

I'll come back to this thread and share my first impressions on the amp. I read that there's an update right out of the box? Curious how often the updates will be, or if they're required to use the amp.

[Top-L]

I bought and returned the first version. It was very cool for $300ish. In retrospect, the thing that bothered me about it was mainly the top mounted controls. Sitting on a 412, you have to lay it on its front face to access the controls (if sitting), then it is sprouting all the cables from the top.

It was a weird ergonomic choice. Probably made to sit on a low 2x12.

[FuseG4]

I bought and returned the first version. It was very cool for $300ish. In retrospect, the thing that bothered me about it was mainly the top mounted controls. Sitting on a 412, you have to lay it on its front face to access the controls (if sitting), then it is sprouting all the cables from the top.

It was a weird ergonomic choice. Probably made to sit on a low 2x12.

I had wondered if they did it intentionally, to sell the front panel artist model cuz for many it seems that top panel thing is a deal breaker

[Top-L]

Top-mounted controls are sub-optimal for my use, but it seems like Boss (and Fender and Marshall) want to keep their modeling amps from looking like modeling amps, at least from the front, so here we are. Nobody wants full frontal nerdity? Maybe I would use my computer and the footswitch a lot with it, so it wouldnt matter as much.

I think the reason it's top mounted is because thats the way the combos are. They adapted what they already had to a head version. I don't think it had anything to do with hiding the controls, although I do admit that it would look cheap if the top controls were front facing.

[ErikH]

Top mounted controls is all about what works for the design. Modeling combo amps tend to have taller or wider control panels than a solid state or tube combo, usually 2 and sometimes even 3 rows. Put that on the front and now the entire cabinet needs to be taller just to accommodate the speaker. Cabinet dimensions will affect the sound as well based on the speaker chosen, which are almost always picked for their wide frequency response that modelers have.

Line6 I think is one of the few that have the controls on the front of their modelers. But there again, they have one row of controls so the panel isn't overly big. Granted, the Katana has one row of controls but the height of the panel is about the same as double row of a typical amp.

I'm not picky on control location. My Vox AV30 has them on the top. If they were on the front, the cabinet would be a lot bigger which would make it heavier. The AD50VT I had before it had the controls on top as well. The Boss Katana amps are nice with a wide array of sounds available. Plus it's compact, lightweight, and affordable.

Look at tube combos and certain cases (like some Marshalls), you'll notice that the combo chassis is literally the head chassis flipped upside down with a different faceplate and the pots oriented to twist as expected. The rest is the same. Not all are like this but there are many examples of it.

[Obsessive Compulsive]

They both look like those digital Roland Cubes commonly found in teens' bedrooms. Maybe the ultra modern knobs and menus around the rotary knob? Put an LCD screen on it and it's just perfect!

[Obsessive Compulsive]

I will do my best to try to welcome the top-mount controls into my home the next time I am shopping for a modeling amp, but I cant ignore the reality that top-mount controls are part of the reason why my Hot Rod Deluxe is on permanent loan at a friends house. The Katana and the GTX100 are going to have to be a couple of pretty charming pigs.

Laney LV300 has slanted control legible from sitting down and standing up position. But it's no modelling.

[ErikH]

More like, "had". Sadly, that Laney is discontinued.

[Masta' C]

The front-mounted controls are precisely why I quickly upgraded to the Katana Artist in the first generation. I would still have it if not for the feature updates on the MkII and being able to sell my Artist for more than I paid as the generations changed.

I'm coping with the top-mount controls on my MkII KTN-100 combo, but definitely not my favorite. No idea why Boss insists on top controls with these, especially the heads. I know part of it is the "look", but front-facing controls are SO much nicer.

Also, they need a screen. If Mk3 doesn't feature a screen, I would be surprised.

As for the GA-FC footswitch, it's definitely a worthwhile investment. Sucks that it costs extra, but it is what it is.