BOSS Katana-50 Overview
Designed to provide you with gig-ready rock tones while minimizing your reliance on a pedalboard, the
Katana-50 Combo Amplifier from
BOSS delivers 50W into a 1x12" speaker cabinet, making it suitable for use in small venues and practicing at home. The amp gives you access to 61 BOSS effects via BOSS's Tone Central. Using a USB connection, you can port any 15 effects into the amplifier at any one time, with three separate effects available for simultaneous usage. Once you select among these effects—as well as among five different onboard amp character types and EQ controls—you can store your tone into one of two recallable Tone Settings memories. In this manner, you can easily change your tonal array onstage without a complicated tap dance routine.
Turn your attention to the rear of the amplifier chassis, and you'll notice a headphones/recording output, giving you the ability to direct your sound to headphones and recording devices with a minimal amount of maneuvering. An auxiliary input jack lets you play audio from compatible players through the amplifier. A footswitch input allows you to select between the two Tone Settings channels or to implement an expression pedal without turning your back on the audience. In addition, a built-in tilt stand allows you to angle the amp for monitoring or simply adjust the direction of sound projection.
Five Distinct Amp Characters
The Katana offers five amp characters with tones ranging from organic vintage to modern high gain; Clean is natural and transparent, Crunch offers a small amount of grit, Lead has a wide gain range to suit many styles, Brown delivers a refined high-gain tone, and the Acoustic character provides a tonality geared toward acoustic/electric guitars
Pedalboard Sounds without the Pedalboard
Via BOSS's Tone Central, you can choose from 61 effects—the Katana Version 3 update brings the Roland DC-30 Analog Chorus-Echo, the BOSS GE-10 Graphic Equalizer, and the 95E pedal wah—to load 15 different modules into the amp at any one time, using three of them simultaneously; two Tone Settings let you store custom amp and effects setups for instant recall, and you can always jump to the current panel settings at the touch of a button
Footswitching Possibilities
External control of specific parameters is possible with an input for an optional footswitch and expression pedal
Intuitive Operation
Dedicated knobs for multiple gain stages and the three-band EQ allow you to dial in tones by ear, just as you would with a standard tube amp; essential effects parameters are adjusted with a simple knob twist, and Tone Setting memories can be stored with a brief button hold
Power Control
A Power Control selector lets you reduce wattage, allowing you to lower the volume for home-playing without sacrificing tone
Computer Connectivity
You can send mix-ready, true stereo sound with Katana's effects to your DAW via the USB port, recording directly to your computer, without having to take an analog DI
Tone Central & Tone Studio
The Katana gives you access to Tone Central and Tone Studio; Tone Central provides a plethora of free amp and effect setups created by seasoned professionals and downloadable by you, while Tone Studio gives you a convenient way to organize your Katana presets for different gigs, recordings, and practice sessions
Notable Features
- 50W combo amplifier
- 1x12" speaker
- Five distinct amp characters: Clean, Crunch, Lead, Brown (derived from the Waza amp), and Acoustic (for acoustic/electric guitars)
- Full-time channel and global parametric EQs for refined tone shaping
- Three Cabinet Resonance types adjust the interaction between the amp’s output section and speaker, enabling you to fine-tune the feel and tone of the amp
- Cabinet simulation on the line, USB, and phones/recording outputs enhanced with three Air Feel settings for adding depth and dimension to direct tones
- Reverb section supports delay and delay-plus-reverb, in addition to reverb only
- Choose from 61 customizable effects with BOSS Tone Studio editor software
- Store 15 different effects on board, with three effects available at once
- Dedicated gain, EQ, and effects controls for adjusting sounds quickly
- Assign parameters to the front-panel effects knobs
- Four Tone Setting memories for storing and recalling all amp and effect settings
- Power Control for achieving cranked-up tones at low volumes
- USB jack provides mix-ready tones with effects intact
- Preset effects available at the BOSS Tone Central website
- Built-in tilt stand
