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HAPPY NEW AMP DAY....Boss Katana 100 watt 2X12 Combo


bernardo gui

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Took my Fender Twin Amp to Guitar Center for an "upgrade".

I love the clean tones of the amp & the way it took pedals, it's just too damn heavy.

Been checking out The Katana Series of amps for the last few months. On paper & in videos they look & sound good. REAL GOOD. Boss discontinued The Cube Series Amps & replaced that with The Katana Series. The 1st thing I liked about this amp was the weight: 45lbs. My Fender Twin Amp weighed 90. For a 2X12 Combo this amp is kinda "short". It has a "kick stand" that allows you to tilt the amp. Problem is, not enough angle of the tipping of the amp. All the tones are real damn good & THIS AMP IS LOUD, It kicks down from 100 watts to 5 watts. It's not 100 watts of tube power but this is easily THE LOUDEST 100 watt solid state amp I have ever heard in my life. The clean tones are super good & surprisingly the overdrive & distortion tones are the best I've ever heard on any Boss product. That's my problem with Boss: really nice modulation effects & crappy distortions & overdrives. The Katana delivers in spades. REALLY GOOD overdrive & distortion tones & the "Brown Sound" setting is mind blowing. Five amp voices: Acoustic, Clean, Crunch, Lead, Brown. Global volume & presence. 12 built in effects. USB input. Headphone input. Effects loop. You can use 3 effects at a time. I road tested this amp with a Crossroads Guitar Shop Custom built Strat w/ Fralin Blues Specials. The other guitar I used was a 2000 PRS Custom 24. The PRS sounded nice in all the setting but The Strat sounded stunning. I used the boost on the crunch setting and it was "Game Over".Gotta tell you, I was blown away. And again this is a loud amp. This amp did not come with a footswitch, had to order it. I gig regularly in The Washington area. I hate lifting heavy gear at the end of the night. There was a time when I didn't mind "suffering" for my tone. Those days are over. I took a 90lb. Fender Twin Amp to Guitar Center.They gave $500 for it. I immediately bought a 45lb. Katana 100 watt 2X12 Combo Amp. ($499). I ordered the footswitch for $89. I haven't bought ANYTHING from Guitar Center in 5 years. I deal strictly with Sweetwater. However the was a killer deal. I bought a killer amp & I am more than happy This amp does not sound, play or feel like a solid state amp. The Boss Katana Series. Try it. You are gonna be pleasantly surprised. I was.....

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Guitar stores can be like a gambling casino to some people. I'd never trade gear in with Guitar Center. They are notorious for ripping people off on used gear. They will undoubtedly get the best of you every time. I'm surprised you even got $500, but they likely knew you were also thinking about buying another amp from them.

 

From what I see is you simply traded down to a SS amp and took a big loss in the process. A used 85W Twin Reissue sells for $700~$800 used all day long. They move very fast too. Other models can of course vary in pricing.

 

The Katrina is being sold for $330 new, even at guitar center. They pay around half that wholesale cost. If you paid $499 that Boss that would mean they bought that used twin for about $165. If you're happy with that deal, then good for you.

 

Personally I would have sold the Fender and gotten an extra $250~300. Then I would have shopped for another amp. There again, I'm patient when buying or selling and rarely impulse buy any more.

 

If you're happy with that deal, then don't let my criticism of the deal concern you. Hopefully you'll get your money's worth out of the amp so none of this matters.

 

I guess I been a wheel and dealer for too long. I've been in the manufacturing and repair end of electronics all my life. You'd think I'd have gotten used to sales people earning a profit by now. That's one trade I could never hack. I'm too honest with people to be any good at sales. Cat keep a straight face trying to sell them something I know isn't worth the price.

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My amp was a Fender Twin Amp not a Twin Reverb Reissue.

These amps are 2 channel 100 watt amps. They sell anywhere between $600-$750.

Guitar Center has my amp on the floor for $649. Guitar Center has SEVERAL of these amps for sale on line. The Katana sells for $499. I don't feel I got ripped off at all. Although you are correct. Guitar Center is FAMOUS for ripping people off & buying gear for low prices & then selling the gear for top dollar. I had this amp on Craigslist several times, offering to sell it for as low as $ 550....I couldn't give it away. I think I got a good deal.

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Other guitarist in our band just got the 100w 1x12 version & I took it home over the weekend so I could learn how to program the patches & use the footswitch and then tutor him on it.......He's also got two Mesas, an HRD, and a Mustang III.....I was quite impressed with all the different sounds you can get out of (I'm mainly clean, he's mainly dirty.) Definitely all the power you'll ever need & I liked the effects & the way the footswitch allows you to switch patches and turn the FX on & off. It's versatile, it's powerful, & it's easy to get in & out of the car....and doesn't cost a week's pay. What's not to like?

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I know a tube lover on another forum give a great review of the amp you got. Regarding the trade, I think you got a fair shake. GC wants to make money and if someone will give them something I dare to say them or anyone else would take the deal. A person can always say no thanks and walk away. I've done it a number of times. Like GC I will send out a low ball offer almost 95 percent of the time. I don't mind being told no either but every now and then they say yes. Would like to hear a review of the pedal when you get it as well.

Took my Fender Twin Amp to Guitar Center for an "upgrade".

I love the clean tones of the amp & the way it took pedals, it's just too damn heavy.

Been checking out The Katana Series of amps for the last few months. On paper & in videos they look & sound good. REAL GOOD. Boss discontinued The Cube Series Amps & replaced that with The Katana Series. The 1st thing I liked about this amp was the weight: 45lbs. My Fender Twin Amp weighed 90. For a 2X12 Combo this amp is kinda "short". It has a "kick stand" that allows you to tilt the amp. Problem is, not enough angle of the tipping of the amp. All the tones are real damn good & THIS AMP IS LOUD, It kicks down from 100 watts to 5 watts. It's not 100 watts of tube power but this is easily THE LOUDEST 100 watt solid state amp I have ever heard in my life. The clean tones are super good & surprisingly the overdrive & distortion tones are the best I've ever heard on any Boss product. That's my problem with Boss: really nice modulation effects & crappy distortions & overdrives. The Katana delivers in spades. REALLY GOOD overdrive & distortion tones & the "Brown Sound" setting is mind blowing. Five amp voices: Acoustic, Clean, Crunch, Lead, Brown. Global volume & presence. 12 built in effects. USB input. Headphone input. Effects loop. You can use 3 effects at a time. I road tested this amp with a Crossroads Guitar Shop Custom built Strat w/ Fralin Blues Specials. The other guitar I used was a 2000 PRS Custom 24. The PRS sounded nice in all the setting but The Strat sounded stunned. I used the boost on the crunch setting and it was "Game Over".Gotta tell you, I was blown away. And again this is a loud amp. This amp did not come with a footswitch, had to order it. I gig regularly in The Washington area. I hate lifting heavy gear at the end of the night. There was a time when I didn't mind "suffering" for my tone. Those days are over. I took a 90lb. Fender Twin Amp to Guitar Center.They gave $500 for it. I immediately bought a 45lb. Katana 100 watt 2X12 Combo Amp. ($499). I ordered the footswitch for $89. I haven't bought ANYTHING from Guitar Center in 5 years. I deal strictly with Sweetwater. However the was a killer deal. I bought a killer amp & I am more than happy This amp does not sound, play or feel like a solid state amp. The Boss Katana Series. Try it. You are gonna be pleasantly surprised. I was.....

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There are more amps hidden in the firmware. At TGP they are calling them sneaky amps. Essentially the boss gt-100 collection.

 

If you can slog through the mega-mega thread in the amps forum (or google katana sneaky amps) you may be surprised.

 

You need to install all the software and drivers in the correct sequence so be forewarned.

 

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  • 9 months later...
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Sadly this amp DID NOT cut it. It was "too busy".

Maybe I'm getting old. I like "simple" amps.

One amp that does 2 or 3 things REALLY GOOD.

Instead of an amp the does 25 things o.k.

Dumped the Boss Katana for a BRAND NEW Roland JC-120.

This amp was being used in a studio. It's never been gigged.

This is the 4th JC-120 I have owned since 1985.

I keep going back to them...goodbye Boss Katana, hello Roland JC-120.

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