Katana 50 mk2

thefez · June 2023

Any katana 50 mk2 users out there?

Looking for a new amp for home use and this looks like it could be a winner with all the effects built in too. I'm looking for something I can play at home volumes while I figure out to do with the sick tone master.

darthed1981 · June 2023

I've got a Mk1.

It's been everywhere from the living room to jams and even played one in a small gig. Never missed a beat in any of those situations.

As an all in one box solution you can use for everything it's great.

It's fair to say though, be pre-warned, that a lot of people on the Fretboard are pretty anti-katana.

Also, I'll add myself, the market isn't what it was when they first came out, there are a lot of digital amps in the same bracket which do a lot of FX stuff, though most don't come close to the "GT-100 attached to a power amp in one box" solution you get with the Katana.

PAL · June 2023

Boss Katana is and worth buying But would advise Buying the current Boss Katana 50 MK II EX as has a few more options
like you can now use the Boss EX Footswitch with it.

Yorkie · June 2023

The Katana is a dream come true for many people. If it works for you, it’s good. I sold mine because the interaction with the computer was getting in the way — I don’t have a lot of time to practice and record, so I need a very simple and straightforward amp.

Rkphilpot · June 2023

Use a MK2 and have gigged it loads. Superb amp for the money, the tone studio is pretty straightforward, but you can also get a lot out of the amp without ever plugging it into a computer.

The only thing with the 50 is it doesn't have an FX loop for external pedals.

If you get one you won't regret it.

thefez · June 2023

FX loop doesn't bother me as I've never had one in my life. But good to hear.

The Boss Cube LX thread below now has me considering that too.

Yorkie · June 2023

If you see yourself tweaking stuff on a laptop, go for the Katana. If not, the various Cubes are phenomenal value. I have kept mine and it’s not going anywhere.

Nikc · June 2023

When I was in Anderson's buying my new Reverend Double Agent the demo room had a Katana in it - they asked if i'd like another amp but I thought we'll see how I get on - sounded pretty good I used clean and crunch settings in the main and lead just of a little and yep pretty good. I did notice the whoever had used it last had dialled in a mids and treble circa 3/4 and bass just under half way i didn't need to adjust anything just played..

My Orange Cr60c sounds better and the new Guitar is great through it, but I could live with a Katana which I never thought I would be able to say.

On the same day I picked up a Street Cube, I wanted something that I could pop downstairs with and have looper in plus ability for a mic (I like to sing and want to monitor the vocal). Its really good like I'd be fine if that's all I had for home or all I had room for shockingly good in fact. The only draw back is the volume on the looper - I normally set a looper with lower vol output so the loop is in the background and I noodle over it for hours on end - so I need to dial back the guitar volume to record the loop. That's fine at home but I wonder how well it would work on the fly playing live .. Small issue and if that's all I find as a niggle then all in all its a pretty good product and well worth buying.

SteveF · June 2023

I have the 100 as I wanted the FX loop and GAFC foot switch. It is a great amp. Easy to get a good tone at a reasonable volume. The built in effects are excellent and the editor software is easy to use. I actually most often just use the panel settings and it's great for that too.

DonnyMac · June 2023

I bought the Mk2 Artist when I went electric and bought my Tele, it's great fun to play around with the various settings though I've found one of the default crunch patches sounds great to my admittedly untrained ears.

JayGee · June 2023

Mk1 (100 watt 2x12) Katana owner here. Not inspiring but very, very, very useful, very, very usable, and very, very good value for money.

Biggest downside is the number of people telling you that no matter how happy you are with it for whatever purpose you bought it to serve it’s actually shit and that you should hate it, but then you can say that about a lot of things… :-)

Grumpyrocker · June 2023

True. Just daring to say you like your katana seems to send a strong signal out to the "well actually..." crowd.

darthed1981 · June 2023

JayGee said:
Biggest downside is the number of people telling you that no matter how happy you are with it for whatever purpose you bought it to serve it’s actually shit and that you should hate it, but then you can say that about a lot of things… :-)

That really says more about people than the Katana.

You summary is spot on - no it's not the amp to sit and listen to the tail of every note and scratch your chin and smile like you've done a very warm fart - but it is a bloody useful tool.

I've used mine at a number of jams and it's like two or three knob turns (ooh-errr) from a useable tone for any song we are ruining.

I've got the MK 1 50 and very tempted to go further down the rabbit hole with a Mk2 100 and get the footswitch - with which conceivably you could bring zero pedals.

maw4neu · June 2023

I have the Katana 50 Mk2 . . . I use it for Band Practice practice mostly but I have also tried it in the house where it shines . . . Great Amps and well worth the hype in my humble opinion . . . I paid £150 for mine and it was definitely money well spent . . Bargain !

Sassafras · June 2023

Sorry to piss on yer chips:

https://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/249728/my-katana-mk2-head-just-died#latest

skunkwerx · June 2023

Sassafras said:

Sorry to piss on yer chips:

https://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/249728/my-katana-mk2-head-just-died#latest

Hehe sorry.

I have had a mk1 50, and a mk1 100 combo prior to
the head. No issues.

Roland contacted me today asking for a pdf receipt and a video of the problem to progress it..

I'll take a video of silence for them and try and dig the receipt out and let you know the outcome. If they fix it under the expired warranty then at least thats a good outcome.. or even if I can find out the root cause, will share the info.

Personally, if they cant or wont fix it, I would buy another (if I cant get this one fixed) because it works for me in terms of what I want (when it worked lol).

Really though, I fancy a Hughes and Kettner Black Spirit 200 but its like £900

JayGee · June 2023

darthed1981 said:

I've got the MK 1 50 and very tempted to go further down the rabbit hole with a Mk2 100 and get the footswitch - with which conceivably you could bring zero pedals.

GA-FC footswitch is the biggest single reason for my getting the 100 over the 50 (with the 2x12 option[1] being a combination of “because I can” and the 1x12 seeming to be out of stock at all the usual suspects at the time I wanted/needed to buy it). And yes, with the addition of an expression pedal it can (and in my case did) replace a pedal board, making rehearsal and fast in/out or restricted space/access gigs a piece of cake compared to my “full fat” rig.

[1] Still usefully more compact and immeasurably lighter and easier to manage than a Blackstar Series One head and Marshall 1936 cab…

SteveF · June 2023

Although I am an owner, I hadn’t heard one in a live setting. I saw a band at the weekend and the guitarist was playing though a Katana 100 Mk2 with a switch and it sounded great. In the context of a full band mix in a crowded pub I’m not convinced a valve amp would have sounded any better (and could conceivably have sounded worse given the restrictions on being able to crank it properly) After that I’d happily gig the Katana

skunkwerx · June 2023

Update on my 'broken' one.. it wasnt broken at all.. the problem was a sticky Fx pedal switch and my fault finding missed it first time round lol..

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