It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Subscribe to our Patreon, and get image uploads with no ads on the site!
Base theme by DesignModo & ported to Powered by Vanilla by Chris Ireland, modified by the "theFB" team.
Comments
When I had an exam to do I brought the Katana 50 programmed to my exact sounds rather than using the house amp and pedals. In the report the examiner mentioned the "superb sound quality" or something along those lines. This is a professional examiner in full-on critical mode complimenting a sub-£200 amp. All I needed was a wah, overdrive and delay on a small board. I knew I'd get exactly the sounds I wanted because I programmed them beforehand. I would not have wanted to try and get all my sounds from a pedal board plugged into whatever unknown amp I was going to be faced with in the pressure of an exam situation. So I can practice at home on the 0.5w mode and get the exact same sound in a live situation by just turning up the power. Brilliant.
Regarding the Katana head, I use the clean channel with a boost in front and the on-board delay to give a bit of slap-back. I played a big marquee the other day, set it up on the 50w mode with all the knobs at 12 o'clock, and the sound guy was seriously considering not miking it up because it was so loud. And clean. The line out sounds great so it doesn't actually need miking up anyway. A proper professional tool for £300.
Honestly, it's not a case of "this isn't bad for the money", these things do the job 100% for any price. I wouldn't be without them. Yes I like faffing with valve amps, and I would probably use a valve amp if I was in the studio and putting a tone on tape for all time, but for live work the Katanas are unbeatable IMHO.
And unlike the Katana, it also has the controls in the right place, which for some unaccountable fashion reason is now unusual. I’d certainly want to try one before buying a Katana.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
When you spend a few thousand quid on an amp you know where you stand.
I was wrong about not liking it though. It does exactly what I wanted it to better than I thought it would.
Me? Never. I can see the appeal of a ss amp like the katana for 100% fail proof live use.
Although, as @ICBM had already pointed out, when s solid state amp fails it nearly always fails completely. Valves will often at least give some warning.
The problem with modern digital amps is that it’s usually even worse - a failure will often mean you need a complete PCB replacement from the manufacturer, and if they won’t or can’t supply one then you just have a large doorstop.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein