I have the MKII 100 Katana. It was the first and only amp I have ever used so far. It is beyond amazing and i am not interested in upgrading anytime soon because of how amazing it is. I use it on the 0.5W mode most of the time because I practice at home in front of the amp. I tried the 100W once and I almost literally blew out my ear drums after just one strum. Never again!
Guys I would like to clear up a common mis-conception of the Boss Katana amp. It's not digital but a hybrid amp. The pre-amp & power amp stages are analog. The Power amp stage is A/B and not class D as found on digital models. The effect section is digital though. I owned both the Line 6 Flextone combo and a Spider 3 combo. Neither did it for me. Found a Peavey Vypyr combo that fared a lot better. Recently saw a Spider combo at my local Goodwill that was priced for 35 dollars. Hope some kid snapped it up as it looked to be in really good condition. Makes for a good beginner's amp.😉
Drives me crazy when I hear reviewers call the Katana a modelling amp- it's an analog signal path, like a Peavey Bandit, Randall, or JC 120, with modelled effects "pedals".
The Line 6 actually sounds pretty good in this video. If I were looking for a practice amp that I could use for occasional garage jam and I don't really care about having an endless choice of effects, $50 seems like a no brainer. I just don't hear enough of a tone difference in this video. Anyone else feel the same way?
Ah this takes me back. My secret to getting okay sounds out of the spider was only using the neck pickup to get rid of the amp’s lovely treble. Honestly the amp solved the problem of “I’m a teenager with no money but want to try a lot of different sounds” pretty well. And it was plenty loud for jams/gigs. Only now do I hear the problems with it-at the time I knew nothing about gear and couldn’t care less. I just wanted to rock out in my bedroom and it did the trick.
I am so confused :( In every video I feel like the Line6 sounds better but EVERYBODY hates on the Line6 Spiders and hyping up the Katana 50 :( I dont have a lot of money so I have to decide carefully and I only use it at home very silent because of the neighbours or even with headphones. Line6 Spider is half the price of the Katana 50.. Dont have any shops here to try it out. Somebody help pls
@@marxvenom3766 My Head explodes really.. doing research for a month now and everybody says something different. I think I just go for the Katana. I think it’s better for the long run and everybody loves it so it has to be good at least. And I think the Spider is something that may be good now if so, but when you get better you want something better and then you pay twice ..
Either one of these are perfect for beginners, but I bought the SpiderV right after it came out and I think this amp is a great choice. As a beginner, you don't know what kind of music is going to be coming out of you and there's a good chance it will not be exactly what you think. The SpiderV gives you options...like 6 wah pedals and 50 different effects...way more than you need. Some of the presets are not so hot, but some are great and every one of them can be altered. Spend your money on a guitar...it doesn't have to break the bank...but make sure you get one you want to pick up every time you walk by...kind of like a girlfriend you that you can't keep your hands off. Start with minimal modes like clean, high gain, fuzz and start building a little at a time. You are not going to master a SpiderV in a couple of weeks, which is ok because it is a blast to just noodle around with all the different settings when ever you get bored. Remember, the secret is progress...not perfection. One last thing...ROCK ON!
Katana of course sounds "better" but a lot of people would have loved that Line 6 as a kid. Very usable. It's funny though, tech has come so far I would have killed for a Katana Mini back in the day.
I just bought a new Line 6 spider V mk2. When I was choosing an amp to buy, amps not having the controls on the front where I can easily see them, deleted it from my list.
Nice video! Thank you! Line 6 was not an early adopter of amp modeling. Line 6 invented digital amp modeling and because of their success, the big boys followed 👍🏻
You can certainly plug an acoustic into it and you have the option of the acoustic processor in Tone Studio as well as the parametric EQ to play with. A feedback buster helps with plugging in any acoustic into an amp. It doesn't take much to dial in a great tone for an acoustic with the Katana. Know your gear.
I love your videos, even if it is just you guys digging up memories like in the first part of today's videos lol But I love the topics you choose as well, very recent and relevant ♥
I've got a spider IV 150w head running through a stack, a Carvin and a Randall with 2X12 and a 15. It's got a few settings that sound pretty good imo and it's fun to play around with all the weird sounds it can make. It's definitely loud enough, it'll vibrate things off of the shelves with the volume half way up. I've also got the hated Windsor which can do some distortions fairly well if you don't mind a little hearing damage. 😆 I lost my good amp in a fire and couldn't afford to replace it so that's how I ended up buying these. First I got the Peavey and thought it sucked for most stuff. Then got the spider and at least it was useable for more stuff but I've never been in love with either of them. I can't afford a really good amp right now so that's why I'm watching videos about these inexpensive amps. Neither of the amps I have right now sound very good with my pedals so I'm hoping these new amps will be better. I've got a spider III amp too that I've been using as a speaker for my phone for a few years now. It gets left on 24/7 for weeks at a time, I just never bother turning it off. It's a lot of work flipping that switch lol. Actually I just leave it on for background noise most of the time. This says a lot about how reliable some of these old amps are. There's not a lot of amps that could be treated like this for years. I started using it as a phone speaker over five years ago and it's been on more than its been off. I'm wondering how long it'll take to kill it. Its a pretty good speaker for a cellphone. I never really used it for guitar, it was part of a trade I did.
I still have a Spider ll line 6 . Love it (but not much uses)since most of the work I do is online. It’s got balls that can rock your socks off and can be clean but load.
In reference to your comments about plugging an acoustic in, I think you'd be surprised at how well it does the high end. In answer to why would you plug in an acoustic guitar... if you have an acoustic like a martin or a taylor, you mske a fair point, but if you have a cheaper guitar, the acoustig simulators give you some options to fill out a really nice acoustic sound that a guitar under $600.00 really struggles with. If you plug the katana into your computer, the tone editor is as fully packed and dynamic as you could possibly imagine.
I have a great question for you.. I just invested in a 2023 Gibson Les Paul 50's Standard. I want to obviously get the most out of this guitar. My concern with modeling amps is that I wasted money on a great guitar when any guitar would sound awesome through a modeling amp. I feel like I have to buy a tube amp to get my money's worth out of the guitar. My biggest question for you is- these tube amps say they have a line output that "simulates" the sound from the speaker. Does that mean the line out is a digital representation of a tube amp? Or is it a real analog output using the tubes? I just don't know. I feel like I bought way too much guitar and now I can't benefit from a modeling amp. If you have any feedback I'd LOVE to hear it. Thanks for your time.
Electric Guitars don’t sound different from one another, no opinion it’s a fact spectre sound studios has videos proving this… also the amp of tube amps aren’t really important there just presets on a theme.
They both sound equally not very exciting. Very happy for this video, I was wondering if the Katana had taken a huge step forward. I have a Line Sucks Spider III. My A rig is just so damn heavy to carry.
I have a Line 6 spider 3, but when i got my first Boss Katana 50 MkII i notice that the sound change more better and more realistic and i compared to the Line 6 spider 3 and there is much difference from 60$ Amp to 250$ amp its got better the sound and change also the character of the sound of my guitar.
It is a question, whether Katana is a modeling amp. I heard statements, that its gain stages are pure analog, with DSP only used for FX. If it is true, Katana is a solid-state - but not modeling - amp, with added digital effects.
I think the preamp section is digital as well, but the "models" are not really based on anything, it's really just a 4 channel solid state amp with built-in effects. It's not an amp modeller, but it's a modelling amps, as in it can model pedals, so they can get away with calling it that. However, the Spider is definitely way more of a "true" modeling amp than the Katana is. Boss got away with tons of shady marketing for the Katana amps, another example is that the 100w version of the Katana isn't actually 100 watts, it's closer to 30, but they wrote 100w and passed it off as an "arbitrary model number" and never actually wrote the wattage anywhere so people just assumed 100w means 100 watts. The Katana is from a technical standpoint a big black box of empty promises and false advertising that managed to fill a gaping hole in the market and caught on with players. The Spider is an engineering marvel that no one bothered to learn how to use properly so it got a bad rep. Take your pick.
@@beastydrummer1 every piece of electronic equipment has a little plaque or printed text at the back with various information such as warning labels, model numbers, and input power specs. As in, the maximum amount of power the device is rated to consume. For example, if you look at the back of a Fender Deluxe Reverb, it says the power input is rated at 240v ~ 50hz / 100w. Amplifiers are never 100% efficient, it's usually about 45% for solid state amps and 20-25% for tube amps. So if you take the rated input of 100w of the Fender and apply the 20-25% tube efficiency, that puts the amp at about 20-25w, which is spot on. You can do this with literally any amp and find the power output. Any. Except the Katana. The "100w" version of the Katana has a rated input power of 77w, and the "50w" is rated 47w. Since they're solid state amps, that puts them at ~35w and ~21w, respectively. Probably a bit less since the DSPs inside the preamps take a bit of power as well. I've dug through all the manuals and they never explicitly say "watts" when referring to the power output, they just call it "100w" or "50w" and pass them off as arbitrary measurements of power. And people assume it's referring to the output watts, because 1. Katanas are fitted with ridiculously high sensitivity speakers that effectively makes them as loud at true 100w/50w amps, and 2. because duh. I've done tons of research on this, and the Katana series is the ONLY exception I can find. What they're doing is shady at best and illegal at worst. Edit: if you don't believe me, I could run my own Katana 100 cranked through a loadbox and measure how much power it's pulling from the wall. If it's a true 100 watt amp, it should be pulling a little over 200w
OK but in this case what is the best modeling amp ? I tried the Fender mustang LT 25 but it's a piece of shit too I was used to the Roland micro cube for many years which was not excellent but very good I keep a very good memory of it
I returned my katana but I must say one of the things I did like on it was the acoustic settings. To each their own. I like that, but I did not love modeling in general. I plugged my acoustic into it and I was blown away.
I have the Spider 2 with the fbv express mk 2 pedal. Its ok not my Marshall stack but its rockable ive had issues with the soider 2 a popping sound unplug it and plug back in its ok again. No clue what that is. Ill use it till it blows so far so good (Knock knock) as for the pedal its ok yes a slight delay yes phone jack. The built in tuner tunes sharper then my other tuners but in tune. I also use my electric acoustic with it. Not bad sound i eq higher at the guitar to get great sound. Overall line 6 spider 2 isnt to bad. I paid nothing. Found on side of the road added power cord thats been 4 years ago. 🤘🤙
Ha ha, that Spider sounded not so bad. If I was sorta new to guitar and heard Cooper gett'in down on a Spider, I wouldn't think twice about picking one up. IMO, the fun factor on cheap equipment early on, is way higher than the high end stuff later on when you start spoiling yourself.
I bought my Spyder 3 new for $350 several years ago. All my guitar snob friends turned their nose up at it. But I still have fun playing with it. Haven't touched my regular Crate amp since.
The Spider III versus the Spider V MKII shows almost just as stark a difference as one is able to modify much more when it comes to more factors within the signal chain, down to simulated mic angle for the cabinet, in the Spider V. If anything, it comes closer to the Vetta than the older Spiders.
There is one thing the Line 6 win over the Katana is stereo. The Spider IV 120 I have came with 2 stereo speakers while I think Katana 212 combo is mono, the effects loop of Line 6 is stereo but the Boss is mono only. If you need stereo like me go for the 2 speaker Line 6, the 15 watt Line 6 (or Peavey Vypyr) is also better than Katana Air or Mini. If you need 50 watt without need for stereo then the better sounding Katana is better, but for me I'll go Peavey Bandit or some smaller tube amps plus effects.
Thanks guys. I have a Spider II 50W or something. But with 2 Celestions. Not bad but knew I shoulda bought a Fender tube or something. So...the store, is that in the Alamo basement?
So I'm taking a slightly different path. I have a used POD HD rack unit that I'm using to drive a 2x40w stereo amp into a 2x8 me-built cab with full range speakers that will go down to 39 hz and up to 12K. The speakers can soak up 120w each, so any clipping will be in the stereo amp section. All inexpensive, but an experiment for sure. Thing is I can crank the effects and line out in the POD HD, and cut back the stereo amp to control how much noise I actually make ... I'll have just over $200 in the whole thing, not counting my carpentry time building the cab. Curious about playing with stereo out of a mono source ?? I have a Viper to compare with : -)
I've had a Line6 Spider III since new. Some of the clean sounds are OK, most of the distortion settings, not so much. Here's the trick. Dial in a cool clean sound and put a TS9 Tube Screamer and a good wah in front. Now you have some kick-ass tones and all the volume you need.
Roland microcube been holding down the fort the longest! And I like the conviennce, might as well explore what tech can do I mean all the greats from the past didn’t just use gear from the 50s they soaked up any and all new tech that came out. I have had tube hybrid etc this year and the best option for me right now are my digital amps
I have a Line 6 Spider 4. Its ok. I kind of find the sound tinny and sterile. I’m not much for spending time tweaking things so it probably could sound better. I’m a plug and play guy. I think that’s why I’ve gravitated to acoustics.
I got two of the 75W Line 6 Spyder III amps and they are fine when you FINE dial in the tone and spend some time on it. Take a little doing to get it right but it's good with some pedals in front of it as well.
Okay since no one will tell you. 1.Holding the sound you want will KEEP the sound you want 2.Double tapping I have no clue. 3. If you wanna mimick for the song 'rain song' tap to the beat you want time to. You're welcome I've owned a Spider 2 for over 7 years still learning new bits. Pin this comment since I get straight to what people are looking for.
Are there some more good "tutorials" on getting everything you can out of this amp? How do you sing and play guitar with this amp. Easy question/easy answers? I bought the Line 6 Spider 120 V MK ii. Thank you
I remember being guided to a Spider, but I really didn’t like it. Too much and over the top for me. I compared it to a Vox Valvetronix 20 I think, and that had a lot more useable tones for my tastes. I’ve got the Katana now. I sold the Vox many years ago.
I had both the Line 6 Spider II and the Peavey Vyper. I've gone through so many modeling amps, effects pedals and boards (Digitech) over the years that I actually got fatigued from them so I downgraded to a Blackstar id Core which was much more basic in comparison but also refreshing. That said, the Boss Katana mkII looks really intriguing and the demos have been very impressive. I may actually go for it one more time.
I don't know how well the Katana's acoustic setting works for acoustic guitars, but it is sometimes fun to play with it with an electric guitar. P,leasingly mellow jazz tones. ETA: By the way, next to me here is my Line 6 Spider III acting as a stand for my Katana.
I had a Line 6 AX212 with the foot controller/ Great sound but you never knew exactly what it was gong to do when turned on. Ususaly fine but every once in awhile it would into a stuttering sound. I actually kept it for 6-7 years.
I'm still using a spider3 75 watt combo. I bought a open box dsl40cr couple months ago. I wasn't that impressed and sent it back. I've been looking at the mini amps( diezel, Bogner, ECT.) Anyone got an opinion on them?
They're all awesome. It depends on what you plan to play through it (genre wise). For metal, the diezel pretty much single handedly take the cake. For rock, blues, pop, etc, the soldano does it well and so does the Bogner. The Friedman is prolly the best classic rock sound, but it can do metal well too. The joyo Bandtamps are pretty great too. The vivo is probably their best one, next to the zombie.
OTOH, these amps are essentially disposable. They really can't be fixed and are so cheap it wouldn't make sense to. Compare that to a recent hand-wired (non PCB) or a 50+ year old tube amp which can still serviced by a amp tech and played
Kind of agree with your point. No possibility of servicing the digital stuff. And tubes still sound awesome. On the other hand, I spent about USD800,- the last couple of years servicing & re-tubing my big ol’ Marshall and Ampeg tube heads, and they are still too fragile to be gigged, so I don’t know... You can service the tube stuff but it is $$$. There’s place for both digital and old school stuff in people’s rigs I guess.
Not true. It is very simple for a tech to replace a PCB. Yes, my old Super Reverb can be easily fixed, forever. But finding PTP amps nowadays is either full-on boutique, or reissues. All of them are extremely costly. Very fine, hand-assembled amps with PCBs, are still pretty expensive, but PCBs are not created equal and many can be repaired or worst case, replaced. And, you're still way below the cost of PTP amps.
On the acoustic comment - I don't believe that setting is intended for use with an acoustic guitar. It's an acoustic simulation. In fact, I'm guessing that they're using the same type of sim as the old BOSS acoustic sim pedal. Makes an electric sound somewhat like an acoustic.
I have never liked the clean tones on the katana and yes it is nice to have all those onboard effects if you are new to effects and want to discover them, but otherwise pedals or a multi effect is much more convenient. The other thing I really didn't like about the katana is that it is not Bluetooth nor wifi so, when you want to access all its features it needs to be plugged to the computer, lastly the usb out for recording is very low output and barely unusable.
It has an acoustic channel, which is, according to the manual, is for playing acoustic through it. 99% of reviewers claim that it is for simulating acoustic guitar sound when playing electric - but it is not what manual says.
It is for a acoustic guitar and is not acoustic sim. It sounds great to, just need to increase gain a little. Also it's great for harmonica on acoustic setting. Great amp. Ive had mine 3 yrs now and it is my favorite amp.
Chris can you please do a video of Yamaha FG series, i know you have done the reviews of FG 830 and 800 in the past but can you do it this time comparing all the FG models from like 800 to 850.
I thought modelers were inherently digital because you are attempting to recreate a real amp via the modeled information in the program. I kind of classified the Katana as just a bunch of analog circuits crammed into one housing. So they get a pass so to speak because they did not commit the cardinal sin of saying their amp would sound like X, Y, and Z amps. 😂
It's kinda silly saying a Spyder 3 for fifty bucks isn't a bad deal. It's like saying, if you can find a used Toyota in perfect running condition for $300. You should buy it! Thanks for the sage advice professor. 😒
I always hear fizziness or white noise overtone in the katana and the demos are rarely impressive. Maybe the katana can be dialed in but it doesn't sound better than line 6, not in this comparison
@@troopin nope, never EVER promoted as a modelling amp. "Outdated DSP" ? Who gives a monkeys - even if that's true ? Doesn't stop it running rings round every one of its competitors.
@@kevinmcguinness1113 promoted doesn't matter. It's digital. It models an amplifier and effects. Not a specific amp (I know that's what you mean). There's nothing analog on the signal path besides the input board and power amp.. it's a modeling amp, anything that isn't analog (tube or ss)
@@troopin meh. Tomayto, tomatto ... your interpretation of what constitutes a modelling amp is different to generally accepted wisdom, although you do seem to agree there are no specific amp sims or speaker sims in it. The whole term "modelling amp" is a con anyway IMO ... "here's how you can sound like a [insert amp name here]". Great for those who want to try and bypass the effort of trying to find your own sound. I"ve never found a so-called modelling amp that sounds anything like what it professes to be modelling. Change the guitar and it'll sound totally different anyway.
@@kevinmcguinness1113 explain how it operates differently than a "modeling amp". You can't. It's an algorithm like every other "modeling amp". It's a repackaged gt100 (which was a "modeling" unit, haha). Saying it's not a modeling amp implies there is something unique going on in a circuit etc. Again I knew what you meant from the get go but I disagree. If it's not a modeling amp, what kind of amp is it?
I have the MKII 100 Katana. It was the first and only amp I have ever used so far. It is beyond amazing and i am not interested in upgrading anytime soon because of how amazing it is. I use it on the 0.5W mode most of the time because I practice at home in front of the amp. I tried the 100W once and I almost literally blew out my ear drums after just one strum. Never again!
Guys I would like to clear up a common mis-conception of the Boss Katana amp. It's not digital but a hybrid amp. The pre-amp & power amp stages are analog. The Power amp stage is A/B and not class D as found on digital models. The effect section is digital though. I owned both the Line 6 Flextone combo and a Spider 3 combo. Neither did it for me. Found a Peavey Vypyr combo that fared a lot better. Recently saw a Spider combo at my local Goodwill that was priced for 35 dollars. Hope some kid snapped it up as it looked to be in really good condition. Makes for a good beginner's amp.😉
Drives me crazy when I hear reviewers call the Katana a modelling amp- it's an analog signal path, like a Peavey Bandit, Randall, or JC 120, with modelled effects "pedals".
The Line 6 actually sounds pretty good in this video. If I were looking for a practice amp that I could use for occasional garage jam and I don't really care about having an endless choice of effects, $50 seems like a no brainer. I just don't hear enough of a tone difference in this video. Anyone else feel the same way?
Not a no-brainer. The Spider Valve is the no-brainer. It costs less than a katana used. It’s all-tube.
Ah this takes me back. My secret to getting okay sounds out of the spider was only using the neck pickup to get rid of the amp’s lovely treble. Honestly the amp solved the problem of “I’m a teenager with no money but want to try a lot of different sounds” pretty well. And it was plenty loud for jams/gigs. Only now do I hear the problems with it-at the time I knew nothing about gear and couldn’t care less. I just wanted to rock out in my bedroom and it did the trick.
The line 6 IV was used in many recording studios one of them was Sigma Sound Studios..so at least the IV was good..
I am so confused :( In every video I feel like the Line6 sounds better but EVERYBODY hates on the Line6 Spiders and hyping up the Katana 50 :( I dont have a lot of money so I have to decide carefully and I only use it at home very silent because of the neighbours or even with headphones. Line6 Spider is half the price of the Katana 50.. Dont have any shops here to try it out. Somebody help pls
Same problem here
@@marxvenom3766 My Head explodes really.. doing research for a month now and everybody says something different. I think I just go for the Katana. I think it’s better for the long run and everybody loves it so it has to be good at least. And I think the Spider is something that may be good now if so, but when you get better you want something better and then you pay twice ..
@@pitchblvke yep good point, also the Line6 Spider it’s kinda complicated to use even tho you have way more tones
@@pitchblvke then yeah, Katana could be a good option…but again people now say modelling amps are shite..
Either one of these are perfect for beginners, but I bought the SpiderV right after it came out and I think this amp is a great choice. As a beginner, you don't know what kind of music is going to be coming out of you and there's a good chance it will not be exactly what you think. The SpiderV gives you options...like 6 wah pedals and 50 different effects...way more than you need. Some of the presets are not so hot, but some are great and every one of them can be altered. Spend your money on a guitar...it doesn't have to break the bank...but make sure you get one you want to pick up every time you walk by...kind of like a girlfriend you that you can't keep your hands off. Start with minimal modes like clean, high gain, fuzz and start building a little at a time. You are not going to master a SpiderV in a couple of weeks, which is ok because it is a blast to just noodle around with all the different settings when ever you get bored. Remember, the secret is progress...not perfection. One last thing...ROCK ON!
Katana of course sounds "better" but a lot of people would have loved that Line 6 as a kid. Very usable. It's funny though, tech has come so far I would have killed for a Katana Mini back in the day.
The katana has a white noise overtone, so I say the Line 6 sounded better...not saying it was great just better in this comparison
I just bought a new Line 6 spider V mk2. When I was choosing an amp to buy, amps not having the controls on the front where I can easily see them, deleted it from my list.
I've been in love with a peavy bandit 112 red stripe for years now. The tones are amazing and it takes pedals with the best of them
I got the line 6 spider 15 watter. It’s my go to. I love the distortion. Gonna get the bigger one
Nice video! Thank you! Line 6 was not an early adopter of amp modeling. Line 6 invented digital amp modeling and because of their success, the big boys followed 👍🏻
I actually preferred the Line 6 for distortion. The Line 6 has great sustain & seems like the Boss choked out.
I went from a Line6 Spider III 15W to a Boss Katana 100 (mark 1) 2 years ago. Amazing upgrade :D
Thanks for letting me know it's an upgrade. I have the same line6 amp and think it sounds horrible
You can certainly plug an acoustic into it and you have the option of the acoustic processor in Tone Studio as well as the parametric EQ to play with. A feedback buster helps with plugging in any acoustic into an amp. It doesn't take much to dial in a great tone for an acoustic with the Katana. Know your gear.
I love your videos, even if it is just you guys digging up memories like in the first part of today's videos lol
But I love the topics you choose as well, very recent and relevant ♥
Why a Spider III instead of Spider IV or V ?
Who gives a shit
Line 6 Spider IV and V Amps are incredible Amps
5 mk2 is decent but spider 4 sucks.
@@droksbeel most certainly disagree. by the way have you Actually had the Spider IV 75 Watt and how long did you play out of it
I've got a spider IV 150w head running through a stack, a Carvin and a Randall with 2X12 and a 15.
It's got a few settings that sound pretty good imo and it's fun to play around with all the weird sounds it can make.
It's definitely loud enough, it'll vibrate things off of the shelves with the volume half way up. I've also got the hated Windsor which can do some distortions fairly well if you don't mind a little hearing damage. 😆
I lost my good amp in a fire and couldn't afford to replace it so that's how I ended up buying these. First I got the Peavey and thought it sucked for most stuff. Then got the spider and at least it was useable for more stuff but I've never been in love with either of them.
I can't afford a really good amp right now so that's why I'm watching videos about these inexpensive amps. Neither of the amps I have right now sound very good with my pedals so I'm hoping these new amps will be better.
I've got a spider III amp too that I've been using as a speaker for my phone for a few years now. It gets left on 24/7 for weeks at a time, I just never bother turning it off. It's a lot of work flipping that switch lol. Actually I just leave it on for background noise most of the time. This says a lot about how reliable some of these old amps are. There's not a lot of amps that could be treated like this for years. I started using it as a phone speaker over five years ago and it's been on more than its been off.
I'm wondering how long it'll take to kill it. Its a pretty good speaker for a cellphone. I never really used it for guitar, it was part of a trade I did.
@@anthonyvalentino9483not something to disagree on, objectively undeniably sounds shit.
I went from a spider II 120 watt combo to a Boss katana with a 212 cab, big improvement!
Only two years late to the party - I have one still (🕷️) 🤣🤣🤣
I still have a Spider ll line 6 . Love it (but not much uses)since most of the work I do is online. It’s got balls that can rock your socks off and can be clean but load.
The first amp I ever bought was a Vox Pathfinder 15 with a true spring reverb and I wish I could have it back now.
In reference to your comments about plugging an acoustic in, I think you'd be surprised at how well it does the high end. In answer to why would you plug in an acoustic guitar... if you have an acoustic like a martin or a taylor, you mske a fair point, but if you have a cheaper guitar, the acoustig simulators give you some options to fill out a really nice acoustic sound that a guitar under $600.00 really struggles with. If you plug the katana into your computer, the tone editor is as fully packed and dynamic as you could possibly imagine.
I have a great question for you.. I just invested in a 2023 Gibson Les Paul 50's Standard. I want to obviously get the most out of this guitar. My concern with modeling amps is that I wasted money on a great guitar when any guitar would sound awesome through a modeling amp. I feel like I have to buy a tube amp to get my money's worth out of the guitar. My biggest question for you is- these tube amps say they have a line output that "simulates" the sound from the speaker. Does that mean the line out is a digital representation of a tube amp? Or is it a real analog output using the tubes?
I just don't know. I feel like I bought way too much guitar and now I can't benefit from a modeling amp.
If you have any feedback I'd LOVE to hear it. Thanks for your time.
Electric Guitars don’t sound different from one another, no opinion it’s a fact spectre sound studios has videos proving this… also the amp of tube amps aren’t really important there just presets on a theme.
They both sound equally not very exciting. Very happy for this video, I was wondering if the Katana had taken a huge step forward. I have a Line Sucks Spider III. My A rig is just so damn heavy to carry.
I have a Line 6 spider 3, but when i got my first Boss Katana 50 MkII i notice that the sound change more better and more realistic and i compared to the Line 6 spider 3 and there is much difference from 60$ Amp to 250$ amp its got better the sound and change also the character of the sound of my guitar.
It is a question, whether Katana is a modeling amp. I heard statements, that its gain stages are pure analog, with DSP only used for FX. If it is true, Katana is a solid-state - but not modeling - amp, with added digital effects.
I think the preamp section is digital as well, but the "models" are not really based on anything, it's really just a 4 channel solid state amp with built-in effects. It's not an amp modeller, but it's a modelling amps, as in it can model pedals, so they can get away with calling it that. However, the Spider is definitely way more of a "true" modeling amp than the Katana is.
Boss got away with tons of shady marketing for the Katana amps, another example is that the 100w version of the Katana isn't actually 100 watts, it's closer to 30, but they wrote 100w and passed it off as an "arbitrary model number" and never actually wrote the wattage anywhere so people just assumed 100w means 100 watts.
The Katana is from a technical standpoint a big black box of empty promises and false advertising that managed to fill a gaping hole in the market and caught on with players. The Spider is an engineering marvel that no one bothered to learn how to use properly so it got a bad rep. Take your pick.
@@trulsolsen683 it goes up to 100 Watts tho lol. Where did you get the information it only goes up to 30?
@@beastydrummer1 every piece of electronic equipment has a little plaque or printed text at the back with various information such as warning labels, model numbers, and input power specs. As in, the maximum amount of power the device is rated to consume.
For example, if you look at the back of a Fender Deluxe Reverb, it says the power input is rated at 240v ~ 50hz / 100w. Amplifiers are never 100% efficient, it's usually about 45% for solid state amps and 20-25% for tube amps. So if you take the rated input of 100w of the Fender and apply the 20-25% tube efficiency, that puts the amp at about 20-25w, which is spot on.
You can do this with literally any amp and find the power output. Any.
Except the Katana.
The "100w" version of the Katana has a rated input power of 77w, and the "50w" is rated 47w. Since they're solid state amps, that puts them at ~35w and ~21w, respectively. Probably a bit less since the DSPs inside the preamps take a bit of power as well.
I've dug through all the manuals and they never explicitly say "watts" when referring to the power output, they just call it "100w" or "50w" and pass them off as arbitrary measurements of power. And people assume it's referring to the output watts, because 1. Katanas are fitted with ridiculously high sensitivity speakers that effectively makes them as loud at true 100w/50w amps, and 2. because duh.
I've done tons of research on this, and the Katana series is the ONLY exception I can find. What they're doing is shady at best and illegal at worst.
Edit: if you don't believe me, I could run my own Katana 100 cranked through a loadbox and measure how much power it's pulling from the wall. If it's a true 100 watt amp, it should be pulling a little over 200w
@@trulsolsen683 thanks for the helpful comment.
@@beastydrummer1 no problem, I feel like this is an issue with the Katana that never gets talked about. Now you know
I've got the spider 5 m2 is there a big difference from it compared to older ones
OK but in this case what is the best modeling amp ? I tried the Fender mustang LT 25 but it's a piece of shit too
I was used to the Roland micro cube for many years which was not excellent but very good I keep a very good memory of it
Like to see the Katana vs a new Line 6......
I returned my katana but I must say one of the things I did like on it was the acoustic settings. To each their own. I like that, but I did not love modeling in general. I plugged my acoustic into it and I was blown away.
I have the Spider 2 with the fbv express mk 2 pedal. Its ok not my Marshall stack but its rockable ive had issues with the soider 2 a popping sound unplug it and plug back in its ok again. No clue what that is. Ill use it till it blows so far so good (Knock knock) as for the pedal its ok yes a slight delay yes phone jack. The built in tuner tunes sharper then my other tuners but in tune. I also use my electric acoustic with it. Not bad sound i eq higher at the guitar to get great sound. Overall line 6 spider 2 isnt to bad.
I paid nothing. Found on side of the road added power cord thats been 4 years ago. 🤘🤙
Ha ha, that Spider sounded not so bad. If I was sorta new to guitar and heard Cooper gett'in down on a Spider, I wouldn't think twice about picking one up. IMO, the fun factor on cheap equipment early on, is way higher than the high end stuff later on when you start spoiling yourself.
I bought my Spyder 3 new for $350 several years ago. All my guitar snob friends turned their nose up at it. But I still have fun playing with it. Haven't touched my regular Crate amp since.
The Spider III versus the Spider V MKII shows almost just as stark a difference as one is able to modify much more when it comes to more factors within the signal chain, down to simulated mic angle for the cabinet, in the Spider V. If anything, it comes closer to the Vetta than the older Spiders.
Not far enough , I want to push a button and sound like Jimi in 1969 , push another button and sound like the Gipsy Kings 1987 .
Say what ya want. The Line6 Spider 3 is a really great amp. I use it more than my Marshall
There is one thing the Line 6 win over the Katana is stereo.
The Spider IV 120 I have came with 2 stereo speakers while I think Katana 212 combo is mono, the effects loop of Line 6 is stereo but the Boss is mono only.
If you need stereo like me go for the 2 speaker Line 6, the 15 watt Line 6 (or Peavey Vypyr) is also better than Katana Air or Mini.
If you need 50 watt without need for stereo then the better sounding Katana is better, but for me I'll go Peavey Bandit or some smaller tube amps plus effects.
Thanks for the review. I've been debating on which of these 2 to get. Puro pinche 956!!!!
Thanks guys. I have a Spider II 50W or something. But with 2 Celestions. Not bad but knew I shoulda bought a Fender tube or something. So...the store, is that in the Alamo basement?
So I'm taking a slightly different path. I have a used POD HD rack unit that I'm using to drive a 2x40w stereo amp into a 2x8 me-built cab with full range speakers that will go down to 39 hz and up to 12K. The speakers can soak up 120w each, so any clipping will be in the stereo amp section. All inexpensive, but an experiment for sure.
Thing is I can crank the effects and line out in the POD HD, and cut back the stereo amp to control how much noise I actually make ... I'll have just over $200 in the whole thing, not counting my carpentry time building the cab. Curious about playing with stereo out of a mono source ??
I have a Viper to compare with : -)
I've had a Line6 Spider III since new. Some of the clean sounds are OK, most of the distortion settings, not so much. Here's the trick. Dial in a cool clean sound and put a TS9 Tube Screamer and a good wah in front. Now you have some kick-ass tones and all the volume you need.
Surely a better comparison would be using a line 6 spider III 100w model?
Roland microcube been holding down the fort the longest! And I like the conviennce, might as well explore what tech can do I mean all the greats from the past didn’t just use gear from the 50s they soaked up any and all new tech that came out. I have had tube hybrid etc this year and the best option for me right now are my digital amps
Thank you for doing a clean tone
No dislike wow for a video with a spider iii
Took care of that for ya. Thanks for pointing it out.
I have a Line 6 Spider 4. Its ok. I kind of find the sound tinny and sterile.
I’m not much for spending time tweaking things so it probably could sound better.
I’m a plug and play guy. I think that’s why I’ve gravitated to acoustics.
line 6 for a good sound you have to start with a 75 watts. 15-30 watts not enough. sound like a lunch box. 120-150W are really monster machine
@@titvitequelcrissall line sixes suck
I got two of the 75W Line 6 Spyder III amps and they are fine when you FINE dial in the tone and spend some time on it. Take a little doing to get it right but it's good with some pedals in front of it as well.
got them both for 75 dollars by the way lmao
@@xburninxthexremainsxwow, amazing
It’s okay for practice
Okay since no one will tell you. 1.Holding the sound you want will KEEP the sound you want
2.Double tapping I have no clue.
3. If you wanna mimick for the song 'rain song' tap to the beat you want time to.
You're welcome I've owned a Spider 2 for over 7 years still learning new bits.
Pin this comment since I get straight to what people are looking for.
Are there some more good "tutorials" on getting everything you can out of this amp? How do you sing and play guitar with this amp. Easy question/easy answers? I bought the Line 6 Spider 120 V MK ii. Thank you
I remember being guided to a Spider, but I really didn’t like it. Too much and over the top for me.
I compared it to a Vox Valvetronix 20 I think, and that had a lot more useable tones for my tastes.
I’ve got the Katana now. I sold the Vox many years ago.
I had both the Line 6 Spider II and the Peavey Vyper. I've gone through so many modeling amps, effects pedals and boards (Digitech) over the years that I actually got fatigued from them so I downgraded to a Blackstar id Core which was much more basic in comparison but also refreshing.
That said, the Boss Katana mkII looks really intriguing and the demos have been very impressive. I may actually go for it one more time.
I don't know how well the Katana's acoustic setting works for acoustic guitars, but it is sometimes fun to play with it with an electric guitar. P,leasingly mellow jazz tones. ETA: By the way, next to me here is my Line 6 Spider III acting as a stand for my Katana.
I had a Line 6 AX212 with the foot controller/ Great sound but you never knew exactly what it was gong to do when turned on. Ususaly fine but every once in awhile it would into a stuttering sound. I actually kept it for 6-7 years.
I'm still using a spider3 75 watt combo. I bought a open box dsl40cr couple months ago. I wasn't that impressed and sent it back. I've been looking at the mini amps( diezel, Bogner, ECT.) Anyone got an opinion on them?
They're all awesome. It depends on what you plan to play through it (genre wise). For metal, the diezel pretty much single handedly take the cake. For rock, blues, pop, etc, the soldano does it well and so does the Bogner. The Friedman is prolly the best classic rock sound, but it can do metal well too. The joyo Bandtamps are pretty great too. The vivo is probably their best one, next to the zombie.
OTOH, these amps are essentially disposable. They really can't be fixed and are so cheap it wouldn't make sense to. Compare that to a recent hand-wired (non PCB) or a 50+ year old tube amp which can still serviced by a amp tech and played
Kind of agree with your point. No possibility of servicing the digital stuff. And tubes still sound awesome. On the other hand, I spent about USD800,- the last couple of years servicing & re-tubing my big ol’ Marshall and Ampeg tube heads, and they are still too fragile to be gigged, so I don’t know... You can service the tube stuff but it is $$$. There’s place for both digital and old school stuff in people’s rigs I guess.
Not true. It is very simple for a tech to replace a PCB. Yes, my old Super Reverb can be easily fixed, forever.
But finding PTP amps nowadays is either full-on boutique, or reissues. All of them are extremely costly.
Very fine, hand-assembled amps with PCBs, are still pretty expensive, but PCBs are not created equal and many can be repaired or worst case, replaced. And, you're still way below the cost of PTP amps.
Real comparison here: Recent practice amp with analog technology vs 15 year old Digital practice amp with watered down digital technology
The only amp that could make me switch from my MKII is a MKIII (whenever that happens) 😄
Boss seemed alot brighter to me
I've used both, dumped them both and went back to fender twin
On the acoustic comment - I don't believe that setting is intended for use with an acoustic guitar. It's an acoustic simulation. In fact, I'm guessing that they're using the same type of sim as the old BOSS acoustic sim pedal. Makes an electric sound somewhat like an acoustic.
Look at this photograph... ♪♪♪
I have never liked the clean tones on the katana and yes it is nice to have all those onboard effects if you are new to effects and want to discover them, but otherwise pedals or a multi effect is much more convenient. The other thing I really didn't like about the katana is that it is not Bluetooth nor wifi so, when you want to access all its features it needs to be plugged to the computer, lastly the usb out for recording is very low output and barely unusable.
Can the Katana be used with Acoustic guitar too?
yes
It has an acoustic channel, which is, according to the manual, is for playing acoustic through it. 99% of reviewers claim that it is for simulating acoustic guitar sound when playing electric - but it is not what manual says.
@@borisv8766 Thanks for the info.
It is for a acoustic guitar and is not acoustic sim. It sounds great to, just need to increase gain a little. Also it's great for harmonica on acoustic setting. Great amp. Ive had mine 3 yrs now and it is my favorite amp.
Chris can you please do a video of Yamaha FG series, i know you have done the reviews of FG 830 and 800 in the past but can you do it this time comparing all the FG models from like 800 to 850.
Guys, way too much talking and not enuf demo of the amps. This vid should have been like 4 minutes long...Go to 15:00 and thank me later...
Aye! 956!!!🤙🏽
line 6 all the way. for the metal heads out there
I play live gigs with my line 6 and I went and got a boss 100 and played a gig with it and it sucked and I sent it back.
Any amp sound fantastic when you can dial it in correctly
I thought modelers were inherently digital because you are attempting to recreate a real amp via the modeled information in the program.
I kind of classified the Katana as just a bunch of analog circuits crammed into one housing. So they get a pass so to speak because they did not commit the cardinal sin of saying their amp would sound like X, Y, and Z amps. 😂
Modeling amps??
Will you guys be able to ship to the United States if Texas seceded from the Union? #Texit
You'd have a lot more to worry about than shipping logistics if Texas tried that
Come on guys! It’s a RJ45 not an RJ11 and it’s an ethernet cable not a phone cable and they’re not spotty at all.
Cant say if its the person who set the amp controls or not, but, both amps sound like recycled dog shit
agree! I'll stick with my 1987 Marshall Jubilee 50/100 W stack
Ok, now do a comparison of the Katana against the Crate GFX 120 or 212 w/ DSP. 🤢
It's kinda silly saying a Spyder 3 for fifty bucks isn't a bad deal. It's like saying, if you can find a used Toyota in perfect running condition for $300. You should buy it!
Thanks for the sage advice professor. 😒
I always hear fizziness or white noise overtone in the katana and the demos are rarely impressive. Maybe the katana can be dialed in but it doesn't sound better than line 6, not in this comparison
16:00
Put it against a line 6 vetta.
Too much talking.
Nice vídeo, but guys ... Please stop auto-translating your videos.... It's not helpfull at all, it's horrible
Boss is not a modeller
you're wearing a sweater with your shirt also unbuttoned... cmon
The Katana isn't a modelling amp ... just saying.
it is, running off an outdated dsp to boot
@@troopin nope, never EVER promoted as a modelling amp.
"Outdated DSP" ? Who gives a monkeys - even if that's true ?
Doesn't stop it running rings round every one of its competitors.
@@kevinmcguinness1113 promoted doesn't matter. It's digital. It models an amplifier and effects. Not a specific amp (I know that's what you mean). There's nothing analog on the signal path besides the input board and power amp.. it's a modeling amp, anything that isn't analog (tube or ss)
@@troopin meh. Tomayto, tomatto ... your interpretation of what constitutes a modelling amp is different to generally accepted wisdom, although you do seem to agree there are no specific amp sims or speaker sims in it.
The whole term "modelling amp" is a con anyway IMO ... "here's how you can sound like a [insert amp name here]". Great for those who want to try and bypass the effort of trying to find your own sound. I"ve never found a so-called modelling amp that sounds anything like what it professes to be modelling. Change the guitar and it'll sound totally different anyway.
@@kevinmcguinness1113 explain how it operates differently than a "modeling amp". You can't. It's an algorithm like every other "modeling amp". It's a repackaged gt100 (which was a "modeling" unit, haha). Saying it's not a modeling amp implies there is something unique going on in a circuit etc. Again I knew what you meant from the get go but I disagree. If it's not a modeling amp, what kind of amp is it?