This video was filmed back in 2019 before any social distance guidelines were released. Looks like we forgot to upload this shootout & wanted to put the vote out for the King of Lockdown Guitar Amps! Stay tuned as we have loads of new content on the way! Stay safe. Team Andertons ❤️🤘
The Boss Katana Air is a great amp for beginners as they can just carry their guitar and amp to a lesson with a music teacher. No need to carry guitar cables as well.
As someone that owned both of these my honest opinion is simple: if you want convenience with the slight sacrifice of tone, go Boss. If you want tone with the slight sacrifice of convenience (for the wired version anyway) go Yamaha. Both are great, but the one I ended up keeping for my desk was the THRII.
As many times as the Yamaha has been reviewed, nobody has mentioned one feature that is available on the wireless versions. That is the battery gauge. You push the power button quickly and it gives you the battery life gauge.
The difference is night and day. The Boss sounds like an alarm clock radio and the Yamaha sounds really good. Especially the 30 watt model which sounds absolutely incredible.
Thank you so much for uploading videos during this time. Your positive attitudes and happy personalities have helped so many of us during these times. You guys are awesome for staying positive and distracting us from all this bullery these days. Cheers m8’s 🤟 🍻
Since they cost the same new, you should be able to sell yours on eBay and get the Yamaha used without putting more than 30$ on top. But to be honest, the Katana also sounds great so it’s questionable if it’s worth the effort..
I own the Yamaha. I can confirm that it is better. I tried both at stores for months before settling on the Yamaha THR10X. The cleans are better, the distortion is better; and honestly, it is more inspiring. I use a Roland JC120 for my live and studio rigs. It honestly pains me to say that the Yamaha is better, considering the fact that Roland owns Boss. I feel like they dropped the ball a bit.
I had the Katana Air. It sounded like a transistor radio. I returned it 2 weeks after receiving it. I now own the THR30II. It’s still in my practice room along with my tube amps.
Katana air with gain you have to spend a while dialing in. I realized after a while it sounds best when gain is under half and you use a boost to tighten up. Yamaha sounds better out the box without much twiddling
I would hope yamaha does sound better out of the box yamaha developed the 5 presets (15)to suit the amp they had built. Boss is a completely different animal. I use it the same as my big amps. Start with amp channel add pedals effects sound chain changes etc to build the sound you want. if yamaha was bad out of the box you would be stuffed as you only got those 5 (15) preset sand even through tiny app can't do anything with them. No deep eq. No sound chain alterations just basic 3 band eq and add 1 of 4 effects my thr30 was so restrictive got rid of it. Got bored of playing some one else's idea of a nice sound.without being able to do nothing with it
The Yamaha is incredible, I have a Helix rack and the latest katana 50, but it’s the Yamaha I use most for just noodling around, sounds very very good indeed
I have the katana mk2 and the spark and I think I like the sound of the katana better but features of spark. Thinking about returning both and getting the yanaha.
My biggest takeaway from this video is how much the Captain's playing has improved over the last 5-6 years that I've been watching. Of course, when you have teachers like Pete, Rabea, Chappers, etc. I guess some of that has to rub off, right?
I own the THR10X. I can honestly say that it is the best sounding practice amp bar none. The fact that it also comes with Cubase is incredibly impressive. It made me reconsider everything that I knew about Solid State. Here is a link for an incredible sleection of soundbanks and presets for all of the Yamaha THR models. Enjoy! I love this little amp to death!
I use the katana air on the clean channel (with a little boost and reverb) when busking. It works well, loud enough for people to hear you from a small distance and sounds great with a tube screamer!
These are both practice amps. I suppose the benefit is you learn what you like. Spend most of your time pretending to play through a Fender Princeton? You should probably be buying a Fender Princeton then.
What you can't get with yamaha is amp in the room sound and so little alterations even through app your stuck with this finished but detached sound out of the amp ,that's why I got rid of mine. With tweaking you can get a brilliant amp in the room from the kat air and that's the sound I wanted- so thr30 had to go
The Katana, in all honesty, sounds like a toy. Like a really cheaply made bluetooth speaker. Not like an amp. The Yamaha THR sounds so much better it's crazy to me that anyone would choose the Katana Air over it. I get that it has more tones, but they just sound so awful. I can get better tones playing Rocksmith.
Growing up I could never practice electric guitar because it was always "too loud" (at any volume) and I was constantly reminded i needed to clean up the "mess" created from having a guitar, amp, and various cables. I would get very discouraged at my parents constant henpecking and eventually stopped practicing electric guitar only playing acoustic guitars away from home. Later in life i lived with roommates, where if i left music gear out i may come home to find it missing and a house full of people that didn't know "what guitar" i was talking about. all of that said i love being able to have a wireless amp that i can easily take with me wherever, and all the features work and i can play with amp dynamics at low volumes which i really missed. It took me almost 9 of searching but it was well worth holding out for that thr30 its better than every shitty practice amp ive bought over the years that i could never play past 1 on the volume knob and no amp has character at that level. Ive never played with a drummer but every guitarist i've jammed with tends to have their amp turned way down so you can talk on the side without yelling i feel like the 30 watt amp plugged in is plenty of volume for every practice or lesson ive ever done.
on equal settings, I prefer the katana for clean and the yamaha for higher gain. But I'm sure both can be tweaked for personal preference. All things considered, I prefer the katana. Plus it comes equipped with that cordless gizmo.
I have the original THR10 and it’s an incredible little amp. I play at home and have a family so I can’t crank and am too loud. If you take the time to dial these things in and use the app or editor you can really shape some great tones. I play mostly harder blues based rock and have really shaped some sweet “modded plexi tones”. I play along to songs and backing tracks and the ability to mix the auxiliary and the guitar is exceptional. I’m sure the boss has lots of potential too if you take the time but the THR10 is a keeper.
I tried both amps and the Yamaha wins hands down. The Boss Katana Air sounds like a buzz saw and even with tweaking it via app it doesn't catch up to the THR10ii.
I honestly don't think people realise that they are trying to sell them both! This isn't the place for an impartial review. Any of my gear would sound 100 times better in that studio in Pete's hands.
Yep, the enclosure is bad for the Kat Air. It does sound great through headphones though. Had both, didn't like enough either. Right now I'm using a Spark. Far from perfect, kind of bassy, but overall I feel nicer to use than either of those, without even factoring in the price.
Yamaha THR sounds a lot less boxy and overall more like a tube amp to my ears. Hard to argue with the Katana Air's pricing though. The Katana Air is 28 euros cheaper than the wireless THR10-II and it comes with the transmitter for guitar which is an extra cost for the THR.
If it's a home amp, is wireless all that necessary? I suppose it stops yer granny from tripping over the lead and needing a hip replacement, but would she even be in the same room?
It also makes you reliable on their crappy, outdated mobile app and won't let you connect it to your desktop Tone Studio (as other Katanas will) so it will be the source of endless frustration, which $28 less cannot fix. Speaking from experience.
When are you going to open Adertons Music in the US. I always watch your channel to make a buying decision of guitar stuff and lately I have been spending way to much thanks to you guys. Your site has to be the most watched by Musicans all over the world. Thanks for what you do. Joe Makin
All the gimmicks aside: to me the Yamaha sounded the most pleasurable. Though I do realize that sounds coming to me by YT and trough my computer never tell the whole story.
It would have been useful if you’d kept the room mics live for us to hear the volume relative to you speaking. With high quality mics on them they might as well be regular ‘big’ amps.
I just brought home two different THR10's and they both have a crackle when played clean. No matter the eq or volume, a predictable and repeating crackle is audible through the headphones and speaker output. After trying all 4 guitars, 3 cords and an iso transformer I took the one I purchased from amazon and guitar center back to the store to test it in the store. Same results, at any volume through both amps through their equipment. None of us could get either amp to play without the crackle. The crackle has a distinct wind up and pattern that is identical in both units no matter the instrument or playing method, its very odd. A quick google search shows a lot of buyers with this same "crackle". The only remedy is a return. There is something seriously flawed with a recent run of these THR's.
STOP READING MY MIND! In all seriousness, I was just looking at videos for the Yamaha and I need something better than my frontman (not bad, not good). Keep up the great videos!
The Yamaha sounded better to me, however I’d still rather have the more versatile Blackstar BEAM, or even the Blackstar IDCore 20MKII both with superwide stereo.
My little one bedroom apartment has 20 guitars and six amplifiers. Why am I here?? You guys!!!! I promote Anderton"s everywhere I go! Love to hear you guys. Music therapy for the 67 year old musician.... ohhhh yeah! I think the Boss Katana Air would get my money. But you know I want the Yamaha 30amp as well.
The question on my mind is whether or not the THRII sounds significantly better than the MK1 THR. Yamaha said it does, but of course they would say that. I would like to see a shootout between the MK1 and MK2 THR.
"better" is subjective. however, on THRV2 (1st gen) vs THR-II what I can say is that there's a lot more gain on tap (even the clean models have more oomph and break up earlier), sound is overall clearer, but less warm and not as smooth. Overall, I didn't like the THR10II non-wireless and trying out the THR30II with wifi and all didn't improve my impression enough to keep it. There's a distinct input delay even when you're using a cable that's got on my nerves when jamming along to BTs (even moreso with the wifi dongle), overdrive tones are just "okay", overall rendition is quite harsh, trebly, no bass, midrange not as clear... dunno, didn't like the new THRs enough for any purpose (including music rendition, although I do like how they render jazz and classical and especially the voice), regardless of the setting for the speakers (Open, Focused), EQ. They both sound decent with Factory Presets loaded from the app but dunno, they're overpriced and overhyped in my opinion. Cool products for sure, just not my cup at all. Tried hard to like them, really did. The older 1st gen models were somehow more pleasant in terms of overall sound rendition in my experience. I'd sooner get a cheap used 10, 10c or 10x used even if it lacks BT. Of the bunch, I feel 10c was the best overall, along with the Brown I channel from the 10x. If they somehow merged... :)
When Lee exhales in relief when his first solo turn is over - I know that feeling. All these hypercritical yobbos will comment on every glitch or not quite perfect note. My arse tightens up every time the camera comes on. I feel ya brother! The solo was tits 😜🤘🏻🎸
Lee taking a breath?. You describing that feeling of taking a solo?This is why I have people come watch my videos and then shred me in my own comment section. I met a lot of good people because of you-tube. But I met a lot of guitar players who live in their Ivory towers and make judgment on everybody else because they're playing isn't up to par as to what that person in the Ivory tower thinks is the standard. They had no idea what I've been through in my life.they had no idea that I was wrapped up in the music industry and play hundreds of shows.That I suffered a traumatic brain injury.that I'm lucky to be alive let alone holding a guitar and try to play it.I have severe arthritis and cannot play like I used to.it's extremely frustrating knowing that it's inside your brain but you are physically unable to do it. It's even worse when somebody comes in the comments section and tells you how bad you suck. You are absolutely right. My ass tightens up too every time I play a solo. I'm to the point now where I don't care what these idiots say. Sometimes? I will make a video that I think is slightly better than my previous ones. Then somebody comes along to slap me in the face. I honestly think people troll me just because they want to.I don't think my playing is always great but I don't think it's always terrible either. They're trying to get a rise outta me.lately I've been up the habit to erase their comments and block them. I'm tired of the BS.I am non monetized and I do it fun.there should be no reason somebody comes on my channel and says how terrible I am.if they do it they get their comment erased and they get blocked.
I still like my THR-C ! A lot more than just a practice amp. I used it in front of my window during lockdown for small gigs with backing tracks, and my neighbors could hear me quite clear.
Me too. Got me 2 THR10C for stereo amp setup, they sound great with TC Mimiq doubler and stereo fx. That amp provides me with all the guitar tones I need. And that Bluetooth technology will die eventually and then what. THR iii? Of course. No thanks. I learned how these companies work, I'm not buying into these marketing bulshit anymore. Got me what I need. Ain't gonna chase the wind. Brian May uses all his career only one style amp and one guitar. I think I'm set with the THR C. We are spoiled these days with so many gear out there. It's always good to know, when to stop buying and focus on real playing and writing music.
@@savanaviolenta products are going to improve regardless, for new buyers. It's when they intentionally hold back on features and slowly dole them out. I don't see that happening here. What, you're against products improving? You don't have to buy anything you don't want, and the new features are clearly spelled out so you can do whatever you like.
@@JunkBondTrader Wanting and needing are very different things. Guitar players are constantly being marketed to so companies can move product, and they do their best to make you want it. It'd be nice to think the majority or people are smart enough to realise what they need or don't need and act accordingly, but marketing has been fine tuned for many decades to coax people into buying products they don't really need. Walk into Andertons as a singer and all they really have to sell you is maybe microphones, and to get to the mic section right at the back, you have to walk past acres of guitars of all descriptions, endless amp choices and multiple cabinets full of pedals of all types. A singer has to get by with the voice they were given, they won't get another, but guitar players seem very susceptible to marketing, as most music shops are full of guitar gear. How much gear do you really need?
For me it's the Katana...as I own one!! Lol...the eq is hugely flexible so you can get a much bigger tone by tweeking. It's tone makes it cut through the mix on a track perfectly. I do demos using the headphone recording socket and it sounds superb. Love it....
@@digitalninjatools5670 depends on what you want. want a good lead tone then lead it is. boost on red mode and add gain to where it saturates fine for you. i prefer lead instead of brown myself. think brown sound to fat.
I've owned both and have since sold the Katana Air. Good amp for sure, but Yamaha does two things better, imo. One, the user interface of the Yamaha app is so much better. The Boss app was clunky, Yamaha's is so easy to follow. Two, I think Yamaha sounds so much better, especially when it comes to high gain tones. Katana required more tweaking to get to tones that were better sounding. This is of course subjective and if you love your Katana Air more power to you, but I just think Yamaha THR-II is possibly the best so-called practice amp in the market right now.
Appreciate your honest review about the katana air and the Yamaha because I’m losing my mind trying to decide which one to get. I’m 4 months into playing and just want a great sounding convenient practice amp. There are so many positive boss reviews, but there are also so many negative ones as well. My lead guitarist in my band has his vote on Yamaha and told me to trust him but I’m torn. Sounds like if I want to spend more time practicing and less time tweaking for sounds the Yamaha is the way to go huh?
@@tuneintotj Happy to help! I did indeed feel like I was spending too much time tone tweaking with the Katana Air. I have a Helix if I want something more complex; I don't want to do that with a practice amp. A big reason for the longer tweaking on the Katana was the app; I personally didn't find it user-friendly. You might want to check out some specific app reviews and see what you think before you even consider the tones. The Yamaha app, imo, is so much better because it's a lot simpler. You have fewer options but it's more than enough. In terms of the tones themselves, this is where it gets tricky because it's so subjective. I mostly play metal (Megadeth, Savatage, Iron Maiden, that sort of thing) and I prefer how the Yamaha sounds. Katana Air was good with cleaner tones too; so I like them equally on those; but for metal, Yamaha, imo, has the edge. I've never regretted going with it. Good luck with your decision!
Well I bought a Kemper stage, interface and a pair of good studio monitors just before the lockdown. I'd say that is the ultimate lockdown amp, if you've saved up enough money :-)
Are you happy with the amount of profiles built in, and what do you make of the effects? I was contemplating a helix or even a pod go because apparently they have better effects, but I've noticed nobody says anything bad about the kemper, yet there are a lot of arguments about whether the helix is good enough.
@@renhoek3851 yes, there are almost too many profiles already on it, many of them very good! Then I downloaded some free packs (Tone Junkie, Rhet Shull) and bought 2 Michael Britt packs, because I wanted a good overdriven Orange sound. More recently I've discovered how many great (free) profiles there are on RigExchange. You just hook up your Kemper to your pc, and look through literally thousands of free profiles made by other users. To summarize: expensive, yes, but I'm very happy with it!
For the money the Yamaha and Boss are way better options. And for practicing you don't need the Rolls-Royce, the kemper has another purpose=replacing your home rig+practicing but unfortunately it doesn't have nice effects. I feel like with modeling stuff you are better off buying today inexpensive stuff that sounds awesome rather than something 5x the price for a 15% better sound just because you will pay for the technology that will become super affordable within a couple of years...
Gilouch that’s why I was asking about the effects. If I sold all my effects pedals and spare amps I would probably have nearly enough for a kemper and would save a bunch of space and hassle. I have a yamaha thr10 and although it’s great, I know that it can’t do everything as good as some amps. Plus there are a few sounds where it’s a bit meh, especially with headphones
I'm currently running a Boss Katana 50 (Mk.1) and I love it. But if it came to these two, given how I use the K50, I think I'm loving the Yamaha more (I'd go with the 30). Interesting!
I agree with that but I suppose that's what'makes me love it. So many ways to tweek can get any sound you want and tailor it to perfection . Yamaha vox spark bored no control presets. All Stifling
Just download one of the 120 presets that load on in complete component form and adjust the pedals . Sound chain. Parametric eq. Graphic eq to get the sound you want. I don't use the presets I just build up from basic amp channel and pedals to what I want change sound chain etc and tweeks with parametric or graphic eq
Boss is more complete, let you control the whole chain of effects and change the order. Eq is more on the flat side. Yamaha has scooped mids. It has less control over sound, more simple, but sounds good out of the box. Katana can get very wild out of control easily with its boost modes with crazy highs. Can be tweaked in the global Eq, but for a no worries session at my winter house I prefer the Yamaha.
I read through the comments and one comment says that the Katana is better and literally the next one says "the Yamaha is so much better". This just goes to show you that everything is a matter of personal perception when it comes to the sound. To me, the Yamaha is just easier to get good tones out of the box, so for a beginner it will be a lot better choice. Otherwise, for home amps, both sound great.
A shootout between these two and the Positive Grid Spark would make for an interesting video. Unfortunately, the Spark is only available through direct order from PG.
@@bobmandy916 - PG have certainly cocked up the public launch of this product, no question. But there are10s of thousands of Sparks in the wild now. I'm sure a quick Facebook or Instagram request for one from an Andertons fan would mean the store could have one in about 15 minutes. Of course, since Andertons won't be selling the Spark it's a pointless shootout for them to do. Perhaps we'll see an honest shootout from a customer who has all three.
I bought the THR10II wireless for my lockdown amp. Which I could have gotten the the THR30II but it is out of stock everywhere in the UK and EU. Was hard to find the Wireless 10. Anyhow, I can not over state how happy I am with it. It just blows all my tube apps and Boss Katana 100 out the water for playing at home. Full sounds at a volume range from speaking level to room fulling. You will NEVER gig with these but that is not what they are for. The built-in battery is good for 5 hours + practise at the volume I use and the line 6 G10T works flawless. I 100% recommend. But I still wish I had been able to find the THR30II, It is the one to go for in my opinion. Just having assess to the modern / boutique / classic amps without the app plus the line outs is enough to justify the extra price. The bigger speakers are a extra bonus.
I pre-ordered the Positive Grid Spark and probably paid less than either of these and pretty happy with it. Good to see these exist though. Wish we had something like this when I first started learning. Newbies got it good these days.
I have the THR10. It has a really natural tube-like sound. It's good with music too, as it is more of a hi-fi technology.The Boss seems a little cheap and boxy sounding to me.
We used Katana 50s at School of Rock. I'm not a student, but used them for a season as a adult performance particpant. Hated the Katana. It was even worse in a live situation even mic'd up. It sounded generic, lacked dynamic feel and I couldn't hear it clearly when you're not in front if it. What sucked was that I wasn't permitted to EQ the damn thing. I have seen and heard the earlier version of the THR. A guy I knew had one abd brought them to meet ups. We used to tell him to turn it down because he was too loud. I was impressed by how close to a tube amp it was. It sounded far better than the two Mustangs I owned at different points in time.
I know it's standard practice and every amp reviewer does it.... but there isn't much point to having all controls at noon, because no one uses their amps like that. Much better to dial in the best clean tone on amp 1, compare that to the best dialed in clean tone on amp 2. Do the same for crunch tones. Repeat for distortion tones. Hopefully gear reviewers can get away from this "everything on 12" nonsense.
Yes!! It's so arbitrary! Amp 1 wins because it just happens to be voiced better (for a given guitar) at "noon" than amp 2 out of the box, or vice versa? What use is that? They put knobs on for a reason...
I agree but id like them to start at noon showing that difference and tweak from there. Many amp builders set the EQ so that noon is more or less the tone they have in mind for a certain level of volume and gain. One example is my Friedman sounds great at noon for medium gain and lowish volume. I’d roll back bass if i push the gain or increase volume or both, but noon is fine starting point.
If you are deciding which one to buy, I would tell you: The THRii sounds (guitar isolated) absolutely divine, gorgeous and wide. This is really good when you play for fun without other instrument or with a light mix (bass & drums only). However when I want to learn a Foo Fighters song or Metallica, I struggle to cut through the mix. My fantastic isolated tone disappear in the Backing track. I have to push the treble and mids and even change in the remote app to a 1x12 or 2x12 cab. My fantastic tone is suddenly harsh and unpleasant but works wonderfully well in the mix. I love my THR30 but a presence knob is missing to learn (famous rock and metal) songs by playing backing tracks. The Katana air in this video sounds thin, boxy and harsh compared to the THR30. But these characteristics will turn to an advantage when you want to play your favorite rock or metal backing tracks. Nothing cuts better in a mix than a gnarly and harsh tone (with bite). I would recommend to buy a THR 30 if you want to play isolated guitar and hear gorgeous tones. Buy a Katana air if you want to learn by playing Backing tracks with busy mixes. You will hear yourself much better and with the Plethora of FX you will always approach the song tones (wah solos etc). And if you are a lucky person who can afford both, then go for it !! 😎 These amps complement each other, they are the best :)
yeah the yamaha is too muffled, I roll down the bass to 0 still bassy and when you raise the treble it feels like the frequencies around 4khz are boosted like crazy it's just painful to stand that it, if they had a parametric eq like the katana to cut those unwanted frequencies that would be a blessing
Before watching-BOSS Katana Air produces an awesome sound and is truly versatile, but it is also one of the most regretful purchases of my life. Roland/BOSS purposefully stripped it of some features (compared to Katana 50/100) for no reason whatsoever-the most griping being that *you cannot connect it to the desktop Tone Studio* (nor use it with Librarian) so you have to rely on their outdated mobile app which is, to mildly put it, utter and total garbage (and only had a tiny update last year which didn't solve any of the plethora of issues that you can read in all the negative reviews). I used to be a Roland/BOSS fan but after the experience with Katana Air, and their blatant refusal to fix the issues, I won't be touching anything they produce ever again!
This is my concern with tying amps to mobile apps (or desktop apps). Amps are long term purchases for a lot of people and if companies don't keep the apps updated, they're paper weights in a few years. Let alone the actual design/UX expertese and effort it takes to make a good app, of which Boss doesn't have in the Tone Studio... I'm curious if the apps improved at all for you with the Air (if you still have it). I don't play much, but I'm thinking of selling my Katana 100 (i got it for an insane price) for the THR-15 or a DSL5CR.
@@briannash1603 I've had it for 2 years and love the convenience. It's small enough to put it in a suitcase when traveling, it has a great sound and the "pick the guitar and play" really makes everything easier. I also love how you can use it as an audio interface. But the fact you can't use all the patches for the other Katana amps and the shitty app are really big turnoffs. The app is crap, it's always been crap and it hasn't gotten any better since they launched it. My man issue is that it doesn't connect to the amp automatically. Every time you open the app you need to MANUALLY search for the Katana, select it and THEN you can use it. It's ridiculous. The UI itself it isn't great, though I understand you're limited in what you can do when using a mobile phone. Perfect, why the hell not letting us use a desktop app as well? Why not making it easier to share patches? Why can't we import patches made for the other Katanas? Who the hell knows.
I have the Yamaha Thr10x.....it;s the best practice amp ever. My daughter starts to play guitar so I wanted to give her a practice amp, I have try them all, but nothing beats a THR. So I have decided to give her my thr10x and buy the thr30II for myself. The white one....look so cool.
I own a Boss Katana. I almost bought that Yamaha amp instead of the Boss.In retrospect I'm very glad I bought the Boss instead of the Yamaha.I'm mainly a blues player.I personally think that the boss can you give a really good blues sound if you put it right on the edge of breakup between clean,& if you attack the strings harder,you'll get a bit of overdrive.the Yamaha it's just a bit too hot for me as far as overdrive and stuff like that.I tried both amplifiers in the music store and I preferred the Boss.To be totally honest I would kind of like to own both.
I purchased the Yamaha THR10 (wired) in 2020 and it blew me away. It changed my perception of the tones you can get at home. After that, I have had a Spark Mini, Fender Mustang Micro, Mooer and Bozz Waza Airs... If I had to go back to my original decision, I would pick the Boss Katana Air. The THR is fantastic but having more amps is not necessarily better without certain boosters/OD/DS pedals. It is a personal opinion, but I think the Boss nails it in the end (and I still own the THR, nothing against it). You can't go wrong with either, but lean towards booster/OD+amp tones and what you get out of the Boss Katana range is fairly good. I am not sure if you can also get the "sneaky amps" in this Katana.
I absolutely love my thr10ii my only complaint is the lack of tone presets. Otherwise, no issues! It's light, portable, takes up only a little bit of space, and you can make MASSIVE sounding tones. Especially when you add in that sweet sweet stereo chorus
If you are thinking about buying a THRII30w and only have a Fender Telecaster, be aware that the cup-shaped jack socket in the Telecaster will not be able to activate the wireless connector!!
For me it's because air starts with a basic amp channel that you add pedals to like a 'real' amp and then can fully eq with parametric graphic etc. Rearrange sound chain etc etc and build any tone you want when I had thr30 it's too much a click a sound toy with no control over base sound even through app. It's just basically playing a very limited number of other people's sound
I like the Sound on the Yamaha and prefer the look of the Boss. Nice comparison. Great opening jam (not easy to go toe-to-toe vs. Danish Pete) = he is a fantastic player.
Check Ola Lindgren playing on his Katana Air and you’ll be amazed. It didn’t come through well here. Then again maybe the Yamaha is just the better choice. I’m still on the fence.
@@timothy6966 I havent watched that video but I'm pretty confident that for recording the amp was plugged into the computer, so that doesn't say anything about how it sounds in the room. Im still on the fence too
I can’t fathom why pay so much for a practice amp!! I bought a Subzero 15 watt tweed for 40 quid. Put an OD before it and it sounds awesome! Couldn’t be happier. For £100 you can also get a Pignose, best practice amp ever!
You had this recorded all the time but didn’t upload it?! I’ve been undecided on these two for months. Never order anything without your recommendation now. Actually ordered one of the recently. Still waiting for delivery. Haven’t seen your conclusion yet. Hope I made the right choice.
Had both plus the line 6 Spark 40. THR blows everything out of the water sound and response wise. It’s app is less expansive BUT you get amazing tones out of it without fiddling a lot where as with the other 2 units i had to tweak and tweak to get somewhere I enjoyed and stil it didn’t compare to the THR. I sold the Katana as it really sounded like a toy in comparison but kept the Spark 40 because it is very easy to record with on an iPad. THR is a beast.
![[Eng Sub] Boss Katana Air guitar amplifier (no more wires)](/img/1.gif)
This video was filmed back in 2019 before any social distance guidelines were released.
Looks like we forgot to upload this shootout & wanted to put the vote out for the King of Lockdown Guitar Amps!
Stay tuned as we have loads of new content on the way!
Stay safe.
Team Andertons ❤️🤘
How bout a shootout between peavey Delta Blues 115 and fender bassbreaker 30r looking to get one or the other.
You probably didn't upload because nobody could spell description..
The Boss Katana Air is a great amp for beginners as they can just carry their guitar and amp to a lesson with a music teacher. No need to carry guitar cables as well.
@@GrouchoMarx54 I should have read your comment first...Oh well, I'm leaving mine. (".)
So it should be for £600 and is higher wattage
As someone that owned both of these my honest opinion is simple: if you want convenience with the slight sacrifice of tone, go Boss. If you want tone with the slight sacrifice of convenience (for the wired version anyway) go Yamaha. Both are great, but the one I ended up keeping for my desk was the THRII.
Zgadzam się z tobą w całości. Ja odkąd kupiłem Yamahę THR 30II to inne moje wzmacniacze stoją i zbierają kurz.
As many times as the Yamaha has been reviewed, nobody has mentioned one feature that is available on the wireless versions. That is the battery gauge. You push the power button quickly and it gives you the battery life gauge.
The difference is night and day. The Boss sounds like an alarm clock radio and the Yamaha sounds really good. Especially the 30 watt model which sounds absolutely incredible.
Thank you so much for uploading videos during this time. Your positive attitudes and happy personalities have helped so many of us during these times. You guys are awesome for staying positive and distracting us from all this bullery these days.
Cheers m8’s 🤟 🍻
I own a Katana Air but I must admit, the Yamie sounds the goods here. More natural response over all.
I have a katana air too- I totally agree with you- Yamaha is definitely superior sounding
Since they cost the same new, you should be able to sell yours on eBay and get the Yamaha used without putting more than 30$ on top.
But to be honest, the Katana also sounds great so it’s questionable if it’s worth the effort..
I own the Yamaha. I can confirm that it is better. I tried both at stores for months before settling on the Yamaha THR10X. The cleans are better, the distortion is better; and honestly, it is more inspiring.
I use a Roland JC120 for my live and studio rigs. It honestly pains me to say that the Yamaha is better, considering the fact that Roland owns Boss. I feel like they dropped the ball a bit.
I had the Katana Air. It sounded like a transistor radio. I returned it 2 weeks after receiving it. I now own the THR30II. It’s still in my practice room along with my tube amps.
Funny, I love the katana and hate my thr2
I wish I knew that before buying it
@@valebliz Why do you hate the thr2?
Katana air with gain you have to spend a while dialing in. I realized after a while it sounds best when gain is under half and you use a boost to tighten up. Yamaha sounds better out the box without much twiddling
I would hope yamaha does sound better out of the box yamaha developed the 5 presets (15)to suit the amp they had built. Boss is a completely different animal. I use it the same as my big amps. Start with amp channel add pedals effects sound chain changes etc to build the sound you want.
if yamaha was bad out of the box you would be stuffed as you only got those 5 (15) preset sand even through tiny app can't do anything with them. No deep eq. No sound chain alterations just basic 3 band eq and add 1 of 4 effects my thr30 was so restrictive got rid of it. Got bored of playing some one else's idea of a nice sound.without being able to do nothing with it
I feel like that after watching this video that I can't go wrong with either one. It's amazing how great these little units sound.
Cap10 is my favourite player... He knows how to make pauses between licks making the music to breath...
The Yamaha is incredible, I have a Helix rack and the latest katana 50, but it’s the Yamaha I use most for just noodling around, sounds very very good indeed
I have the katana mk2 and the spark and I think I like the sound of the katana better but features of spark. Thinking about returning both and getting the yanaha.
@@seanarmao7385 Ain't that the truth!? ... LOL x 10
My biggest takeaway from this video is how much the Captain's playing has improved over the last 5-6 years that I've been watching. Of course, when you have teachers like Pete, Rabea, Chappers, etc. I guess some of that has to rub off, right?
I own the THR10X. I can honestly say that it is the best sounding practice amp bar none. The fact that it also comes with Cubase is incredibly impressive. It made me reconsider everything that I knew about Solid State. Here is a link for an incredible sleection of soundbanks and presets for all of the Yamaha THR models. Enjoy! I love this little amp to death!
yamahamusicians.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=9613
I use the katana air on the clean channel (with a little boost and reverb) when busking. It works well, loud enough for people to hear you from a small distance and sounds great with a tube screamer!
What do you sing through?
the boss katana sounded more like a practice amp compared to the yamaha. the yamaha sounded like something you can perform with
Since it's blasting out 'recorded guitar tones' a lot of people report getting it lost in the mix when using it live for rehearsal. YMMV
The Yamaha sounds pretty bad, the Boss slightly better.
These are both practice amps. I suppose the benefit is you learn what you like. Spend most of your time pretending to play through a Fender Princeton? You should probably be buying a Fender Princeton then.
What you can't get with yamaha is amp in the room sound and so little alterations even through app your stuck with this finished but detached sound out of the amp ,that's why I got rid of mine. With tweaking you can get a brilliant amp in the room from the kat air and that's the sound I wanted- so thr30 had to go
sound comparison with everything at 12 isn't really relevant
The Katana, in all honesty, sounds like a toy. Like a really cheaply made bluetooth speaker. Not like an amp.
The Yamaha THR sounds so much better it's crazy to me that anyone would choose the Katana Air over it. I get that it has more tones, but they just sound so awful. I can get better tones playing Rocksmith.
Clearly the Yamaha has the tone. Crunch on up sounds similar to each other setting. … Going to get me a THR30ii Thanks for the great demo guys 😊
The Yamaha + Cap10 is so hot, but Pete + Katana is full of soul too!! It is a tough question
Growing up I could never practice electric guitar because it was always "too loud" (at any volume) and I was constantly reminded i needed to clean up the "mess" created from having a guitar, amp, and various cables. I would get very discouraged at my parents constant henpecking and eventually stopped practicing electric guitar only playing acoustic guitars away from home. Later in life i lived with roommates, where if i left music gear out i may come home to find it missing and a house full of people that didn't know "what guitar" i was talking about. all of that said i love being able to have a wireless amp that i can easily take with me wherever, and all the features work and i can play with amp dynamics at low volumes which i really missed. It took me almost 9 of searching but it was well worth holding out for that thr30 its better than every shitty practice amp ive bought over the years that i could never play past 1 on the volume knob and no amp has character at that level. Ive never played with a drummer but every guitarist i've jammed with tends to have their amp turned way down so you can talk on the side without yelling i feel like the 30 watt amp plugged in is plenty of volume for every practice or lesson ive ever done.
The Yamaha sounded amazingly close to a tube amp ! I'll consider it.
on equal settings, I prefer the katana for clean and the yamaha for higher gain. But I'm sure both can be tweaked for personal preference. All things considered, I prefer the katana. Plus it comes equipped with that cordless gizmo.
Still rock'n the 5E3 I bought used in 1959.
Low watt is king !
I'm jealous! Enjoy!
I have the ol thr10x best bang for your buck purchase i ever made. Its so natural sounding, even beats the amp sims on the market.
LEEEE 3 years ago and you played great! I love your new videos and how you've grown as a player.
I have the original THR10 and it’s an incredible little amp. I play at home and have a family so I can’t crank and am too loud. If you take the time to dial these things in and use the app or editor you can really shape some great tones. I play mostly harder blues based rock and have really shaped some sweet “modded plexi tones”. I play along to songs and backing tracks and the ability to mix the auxiliary and the guitar is exceptional. I’m sure the boss has lots of potential too if you take the time but the THR10 is a keeper.
Yamaha sounded more like an amp, seems like Boss one needs more lows and a high rolloff.
but u can use another cab
@@mr.popoballballl745 But you shouldn't have to. 🤷
I have a Katana Air. Fell out of and then back in love with it recently.
I love the convenience...
The initial comparisons are Yamaha all the way.
I tried both amps and the Yamaha wins hands down. The Boss Katana Air sounds like a buzz saw and even with tweaking it via app it doesn't catch up to the THR10ii.
I honestly don't think people realise that they are trying to sell them both! This isn't the place for an impartial review. Any of my gear would sound 100 times better in that studio in Pete's hands.
Yep, the enclosure is bad for the Kat Air. It does sound great through headphones though. Had both, didn't like enough either. Right now I'm using a Spark. Far from perfect, kind of bassy, but overall I feel nicer to use than either of those, without even factoring in the price.
Buzz saw lmaoooo
Yamaha THR sounds a lot less boxy and overall more like a tube amp to my ears.
Hard to argue with the Katana Air's pricing though. The Katana Air is 28 euros cheaper than the wireless THR10-II and it comes with the transmitter for guitar which is an extra cost for the THR.
28 euros is an easy price to pay for a better quality sound.
Oddly I thought the backing track sounded better on the Katana but agree the Yamaha sounded closer to a bigger amp
$28 is gonna bother you, compared to enjoying a better sound for the rest of your life? geez that a few cups of Starbucks
If it's a home amp, is wireless all that necessary? I suppose it stops yer granny from tripping over the lead and needing a hip replacement, but would she even be in the same room?
It also makes you reliable on their crappy, outdated mobile app and won't let you connect it to your desktop Tone Studio (as other Katanas will) so it will be the source of endless frustration, which $28 less cannot fix. Speaking from experience.
Yamaha wins hands down! I have recently played it at a friend's, it kicked ass, so much headroom, felt like tube...
When are you going to open Adertons Music in the US. I always watch your channel to make a buying decision of guitar stuff and lately I have been spending way to much thanks to you guys. Your site has to be the most watched by Musicans all over the world. Thanks for what you do. Joe Makin
All the gimmicks aside: to me the Yamaha sounded the most pleasurable. Though I do realize that sounds coming to me by YT and trough my computer never tell the whole story.
Isn't the Yamaha like 3x more expensive?
@@nickguzman1734 nope
It would have been useful if you’d kept the room mics live for us to hear the volume relative to you speaking. With high quality mics on them they might as well be regular ‘big’ amps.
I just brought home two different THR10's and they both have a crackle when played clean. No matter the eq or volume, a predictable and repeating crackle is audible through the headphones and speaker output. After trying all 4 guitars, 3 cords and an iso transformer I took the one I purchased from amazon and guitar center back to the store to test it in the store. Same results, at any volume through both amps through their equipment. None of us could get either amp to play without the crackle. The crackle has a distinct wind up and pattern that is identical in both units no matter the instrument or playing method, its very odd. A quick google search shows a lot of buyers with this same "crackle". The only remedy is a return. There is something seriously flawed with a recent run of these THR's.
Yamaha THR for the win! Got mine last month and it is beyond solid, best practice amp I have played with.
I got THR10v2 just but can not make the app work in order to tune sounds.
@@johannessilver8653 Facebook has a THR amp group, they can help you with any problem you may have. 🤘
But the app is terrible
I've owned Katana Air and a THR10ii and it's the Yamaha I kept. Wasn't a contest to be honest.
Why??
STOP READING MY MIND! In all seriousness, I was just looking at videos for the Yamaha and I need something better than my frontman (not bad, not good). Keep up the great videos!
The Yamaha sounded better to me, however I’d still rather have the more versatile Blackstar BEAM, or even the Blackstar IDCore 20MKII both with superwide stereo.
I prefer the Yamaha, but I must say Black star would be my second choice.
My little one bedroom apartment has 20 guitars and six amplifiers. Why am I here?? You guys!!!! I promote Anderton"s everywhere I go!
Love to hear you guys. Music therapy for the 67 year old musician.... ohhhh yeah!
I think the Boss Katana Air would get my money. But you know I want the Yamaha 30amp as well.
The question is now... Is Spark PositiveGrid a better investment? The technology at the moment is improving quite fast for modellers :)
The question on my mind is whether or not the THRII sounds significantly better than the MK1 THR. Yamaha said it does, but of course they would say that. I would like to see a shootout between the MK1 and MK2 THR.
"better" is subjective. however, on THRV2 (1st gen) vs THR-II what I can say is that there's a lot more gain on tap (even the clean models have more oomph and break up earlier), sound is overall clearer, but less warm and not as smooth. Overall, I didn't like the THR10II non-wireless and trying out the THR30II with wifi and all didn't improve my impression enough to keep it.
There's a distinct input delay even when you're using a cable that's got on my nerves when jamming along to BTs (even moreso with the wifi dongle), overdrive tones are just "okay", overall rendition is quite harsh, trebly, no bass, midrange not as clear... dunno, didn't like the new THRs enough for any purpose (including music rendition, although I do like how they render jazz and classical and especially the voice), regardless of the setting for the speakers (Open, Focused), EQ. They both sound decent with Factory Presets loaded from the app but dunno, they're overpriced and overhyped in my opinion. Cool products for sure, just not my cup at all. Tried hard to like them, really did.
The older 1st gen models were somehow more pleasant in terms of overall sound rendition in my experience. I'd sooner get a cheap used 10, 10c or 10x used even if it lacks BT. Of the bunch, I feel 10c was the best overall, along with the Brown I channel from the 10x. If they somehow merged... :)
When Lee exhales in relief when his first solo turn is over - I know that feeling. All these hypercritical yobbos will comment on every glitch or not quite perfect note. My arse tightens up every time the camera comes on. I feel ya brother! The solo was tits 😜🤘🏻🎸
what
Lee taking a breath?. You describing that feeling of taking a solo?This is why I have people come watch my videos and then shred me in my own comment section. I met a lot of good people because of you-tube. But I met a lot of guitar players who live in their Ivory towers and make judgment on everybody else because they're playing isn't up to par as to what that person in the Ivory tower thinks is the standard. They had no idea what I've been through in my life.they had no idea that I was wrapped up in the music industry and play hundreds of shows.That I suffered a traumatic brain injury.that I'm lucky to be alive let alone holding a guitar and try to play it.I have severe arthritis and cannot play like I used to.it's extremely frustrating knowing that it's inside your brain but you are physically unable to do it. It's even worse when somebody comes in the comments section and tells you how bad you suck. You are absolutely right. My ass tightens up too every time I play a solo. I'm to the point now where I don't care what these idiots say. Sometimes? I will make a video that I think is slightly better than my previous ones. Then somebody comes along to slap me in the face. I honestly think people troll me just because they want to.I don't think my playing is always great but I don't think it's always terrible either. They're trying to get a rise outta me.lately I've been up the habit to erase their comments and block them. I'm tired of the BS.I am non monetized and I do it fun.there should be no reason somebody comes on my channel and says how terrible I am.if they do it they get their comment erased and they get blocked.
@@ziggylayneable you could avoid that by not partaking in so called social media !?!
The Yamaha sounds a thousand times better here....i need to try this one. All Katanas i tried i did only like Clean
Same for me. I owned a Katana 100w 2x12, never really liked the cleans. Got a THRii yesterday and it sounds better, I am like wtf !!
Katana Mini is great tough.
I still like my THR-C ! A lot more than just a practice amp. I used it in front of my window during lockdown for small gigs with backing tracks, and my neighbors could hear me quite clear.
10C for the win. Still loving mine as well.
Me too. Got me 2 THR10C for stereo amp setup, they sound great with TC Mimiq doubler and stereo fx. That amp provides me with all the guitar tones I need. And that Bluetooth technology will die eventually and then what. THR iii? Of course. No thanks. I learned how these companies work, I'm not buying into these marketing bulshit anymore. Got me what I need. Ain't gonna chase the wind. Brian May uses all his career only one style amp and one guitar. I think I'm set with the THR C. We are spoiled these days with so many gear out there. It's always good to know, when to stop buying and focus on real playing and writing music.
@@savanaviolenta products are going to improve regardless, for new buyers. It's when they intentionally hold back on features and slowly dole them out. I don't see that happening here. What, you're against products improving? You don't have to buy anything you don't want, and the new features are clearly spelled out so you can do whatever you like.
@@JunkBondTrader Wanting and needing are very different things. Guitar players are constantly being marketed to so companies can move product, and they do their best to make you want it. It'd be nice to think the majority or people are smart enough to realise what they need or don't need and act accordingly, but marketing has been fine tuned for many decades to coax people into buying products they don't really need.
Walk into Andertons as a singer and all they really have to sell you is maybe microphones, and to get to the mic section right at the back, you have to walk past acres of guitars of all descriptions, endless amp choices and multiple cabinets full of pedals of all types. A singer has to get by with the voice they were given, they won't get another, but guitar players seem very susceptible to marketing, as most music shops are full of guitar gear. How much gear do you really need?
The Yamaha one sounds better to my ears.
For me it's the Katana...as I own one!! Lol...the eq is hugely flexible so you can get a much bigger tone by tweeking. It's tone makes it cut through the mix on a track perfectly. I do demos using the headphone recording socket and it sounds superb. Love it....
could you leave some tips on this? (the eq) - I've been searching high and low for some videos/forums about this and found nothing :(
@@digitalninjatools5670 depends on what you want. want a good lead tone then lead it is. boost on red mode and add gain to where it saturates fine for you. i prefer lead instead of brown myself. think brown sound to fat.
I've owned both and have since sold the Katana Air. Good amp for sure, but Yamaha does two things better, imo. One, the user interface of the Yamaha app is so much better. The Boss app was clunky, Yamaha's is so easy to follow. Two, I think Yamaha sounds so much better, especially when it comes to high gain tones. Katana required more tweaking to get to tones that were better sounding. This is of course subjective and if you love your Katana Air more power to you, but I just think Yamaha THR-II is possibly the best so-called practice amp in the market right now.
Getting mine tomorrow pretty hyped!
Appreciate your honest review about the katana air and the Yamaha because I’m losing my mind trying to decide which one to get. I’m 4 months into playing and just want a great sounding convenient practice amp. There are so many positive boss reviews, but there are also so many negative ones as well. My lead guitarist in my band has his vote on Yamaha and told me to trust him but I’m torn. Sounds like if I want to spend more time practicing and less time tweaking for sounds the Yamaha is the way to go huh?
@@tuneintotj Happy to help! I did indeed feel like I was spending too much time tone tweaking with the Katana Air. I have a Helix if I want something more complex; I don't want to do that with a practice amp. A big reason for the longer tweaking on the Katana was the app; I personally didn't find it user-friendly. You might want to check out some specific app reviews and see what you think before you even consider the tones. The Yamaha app, imo, is so much better because it's a lot simpler. You have fewer options but it's more than enough. In terms of the tones themselves, this is where it gets tricky because it's so subjective. I mostly play metal (Megadeth, Savatage, Iron Maiden, that sort of thing) and I prefer how the Yamaha sounds. Katana Air was good with cleaner tones too; so I like them equally on those; but for metal, Yamaha, imo, has the edge. I've never regretted going with it. Good luck with your decision!
Brilliant 'Call and Response' between you both at the 'outro'! Love it!!
Maybe now it's time to a Comparison With Positive Grid Spark!
Well I bought a Kemper stage, interface and a pair of good studio monitors just before the lockdown. I'd say that is the ultimate lockdown amp, if you've saved up enough money :-)
Are you happy with the amount of profiles built in, and what do you make of the effects? I was contemplating a helix or even a pod go because apparently they have better effects, but I've noticed nobody says anything bad about the kemper, yet there are a lot of arguments about whether the helix is good enough.
I did the same. Bloody hell those things are good. Blown away by it.
@@renhoek3851 yes, there are almost too many profiles already on it, many of them very good! Then I downloaded some free packs (Tone Junkie, Rhet Shull) and bought 2 Michael Britt packs, because I wanted a good overdriven Orange sound. More recently I've discovered how many great (free) profiles there are on RigExchange. You just hook up your Kemper to your pc, and look through literally thousands of free profiles made by other users.
To summarize: expensive, yes, but I'm very happy with it!
For the money the Yamaha and Boss are way better options. And for practicing you don't need the Rolls-Royce, the kemper has another purpose=replacing your home rig+practicing but unfortunately it doesn't have nice effects. I feel like with modeling stuff you are better off buying today inexpensive stuff that sounds awesome rather than something 5x the price for a 15% better sound just because you will pay for the technology that will become super affordable within a couple of years...
Gilouch that’s why I was asking about the effects. If I sold all my effects pedals and spare amps I would probably have nearly enough for a kemper and would save a bunch of space and hassle.
I have a yamaha thr10 and although it’s great, I know that it can’t do everything as good as some amps. Plus there are a few sounds where it’s a bit meh, especially with headphones
I thought the Yamaha sounded A LOT better, particularly the overdriven/dirty tones...
I'm currently running a Boss Katana 50 (Mk.1) and I love it. But if it came to these two, given how I use the K50, I think I'm loving the Yamaha more (I'd go with the 30). Interesting!
The boss is an amp that needs tons of tweaking and i mean TONS, but when you get that sweet spot, it sounds brilliant
I agree with that but I suppose that's what'makes me love it. So many ways to tweek can get any sound you want and tailor it to perfection . Yamaha vox spark bored no control presets. All Stifling
Have you any tips on how to fix all the tone pre sets? I don’t know how to ifentify what could be fixed or improved on tone
Just download one of the 120 presets that load on in complete component form and adjust the pedals . Sound chain. Parametric eq. Graphic eq to get the sound you want.
I don't use the presets I just build up from basic amp channel and pedals to what I want change sound chain etc and tweeks with parametric or graphic eq
Every single tiny detail and values can be altered for the presets via app
The Yamaha has a few more tricks for the bucks, but I bought the Catana Air about a month ago and still love it!
Mannn I miss you guys in the same room. Have a great one guys!!!
Boss is more complete, let you control the whole chain of effects and change the order. Eq is more on the flat side. Yamaha has scooped mids. It has less control over sound, more simple, but sounds good out of the box. Katana can get very wild out of control easily with its boost modes with crazy highs. Can be tweaked in the global Eq, but for a no worries session at my winter house I prefer the Yamaha.
I read through the comments and one comment says that the Katana is better and literally the next one says "the Yamaha is so much better". This just goes to show you that everything is a matter of personal perception when it comes to the sound. To me, the Yamaha is just easier to get good tones out of the box, so for a beginner it will be a lot better choice. Otherwise, for home amps, both sound great.
Yamaha wins. More natural sounding. Sound thick!!!! Boss sounds very digital. Its like brewed coffee vs instant coffee.
A shootout between these two and the Positive Grid Spark would make for an interesting video. Unfortunately, the Spark is only available through direct order from PG.
An easy shootout. One you can buy now and one you wait 6-8 months for.
@@bobmandy916 - PG have certainly cocked up the public launch of this product, no question. But there are10s of thousands of Sparks in the wild now. I'm sure a quick Facebook or Instagram request for one from an Andertons fan would mean the store could have one in about 15 minutes. Of course, since Andertons won't be selling the Spark it's a pointless shootout for them to do. Perhaps we'll see an honest shootout from a customer who has all three.
I bought the THR10II wireless for my lockdown amp. Which I could have gotten the the THR30II but it is out of stock everywhere in the UK and EU. Was hard to find the Wireless 10. Anyhow, I can not over state how happy I am with it. It just blows all my tube apps and Boss Katana 100 out the water for playing at home. Full sounds at a volume range from speaking level to room fulling. You will NEVER gig with these but that is not what they are for. The built-in battery is good for 5 hours + practise at the volume I use and the line 6 G10T works flawless. I 100% recommend. But I still wish I had been able to find the THR30II, It is the one to go for in my opinion. Just having assess to the modern / boutique / classic amps without the app plus the line outs is enough to justify the extra price. The bigger speakers are a extra bonus.
I got the smallest of the 3 yesterday and I too am blown away. Sounds almost as good as my small tube amp with a ton more sounds in it!
I ordered the 30 watt and had to wait 2 months hahah, glad I did though, was worth the wait
Have you guys used pedals or a multieffects pedal, yet? How does it sound?
My 30 should arrive tomorrow.. can’t wait !!
@@Tom4369-y9x who good is it?
I pre-ordered the Positive Grid Spark and probably paid less than either of these and pretty happy with it. Good to see these exist though. Wish we had something like this when I first started learning. Newbies got it good these days.
I have the THR10. It has a really natural tube-like sound. It's good with music too, as it is more of a hi-fi technology.The Boss seems a little cheap and boxy sounding to me.
We used Katana 50s at School of Rock. I'm not a student, but used them for a season as a adult performance particpant. Hated the Katana. It was even worse in a live situation even mic'd up. It sounded generic, lacked dynamic feel and I couldn't hear it clearly when you're not in front if it. What sucked was that I wasn't permitted to EQ the damn thing.
I have seen and heard the earlier version of the THR. A guy I knew had one abd brought them to meet ups. We used to tell him to turn it down because he was too loud. I was impressed by how close to a tube amp it was. It sounded far better than the two Mustangs I owned at different points in time.
I totally agree. Didn't find this out until I got the boss
was so excited you were back in the same room and then read the cards and was like " YEAHHHOohhhhhhh :("
Do you guys ever bang your heads on those arrows. Guess it helps that they're yellow.
Lol
I know it's standard practice and every amp reviewer does it.... but there isn't much point to having all controls at noon, because no one uses their amps like that. Much better to dial in the best clean tone on amp 1, compare that to the best dialed in clean tone on amp 2. Do the same for crunch tones. Repeat for distortion tones. Hopefully gear reviewers can get away from this "everything on 12" nonsense.
Yes!! It's so arbitrary!
Amp 1 wins because it just happens to be voiced better (for a given guitar) at "noon" than amp 2 out of the box, or vice versa? What use is that? They put knobs on for a reason...
I agree but id like them to start at noon showing that difference and tweak from there. Many amp builders set the EQ so that noon is more or less the tone they have in mind for a certain level of volume and gain. One example is my Friedman sounds great at noon for medium gain and lowish volume. I’d roll back bass if i push the gain or increase volume or both, but noon is fine starting point.
If you are deciding which one to buy, I would tell you:
The THRii sounds (guitar isolated) absolutely divine, gorgeous and wide. This is really good when you play for fun without other instrument or with a light mix (bass & drums only).
However when I want to learn a Foo Fighters song or Metallica, I struggle to cut through the mix. My fantastic isolated tone disappear in the Backing track. I have to push the treble and mids and even change in the remote app to a 1x12 or 2x12 cab. My fantastic tone is suddenly harsh and unpleasant but works wonderfully well in the mix.
I love my THR30 but a presence knob is missing to learn (famous rock and metal) songs by playing backing tracks.
The Katana air in this video sounds thin, boxy and harsh compared to the THR30.
But these characteristics will turn to an advantage when you want to play your favorite rock or metal backing tracks. Nothing cuts better in a mix than a gnarly and harsh tone (with bite).
I would recommend to buy a THR 30 if you want to play isolated guitar and hear gorgeous tones.
Buy a Katana air if you want to learn by playing Backing tracks with busy mixes.
You will hear yourself much better and with the Plethora of FX you will always approach the song tones (wah solos etc).
And if you are a lucky person who can afford both, then go for it !! 😎
These amps complement each other, they are the best :)
yeah the yamaha is too muffled, I roll down the bass to 0 still bassy and when you raise the treble it feels like the frequencies around 4khz are boosted like crazy it's just painful to stand that it, if they had a parametric eq like the katana to cut those unwanted frequencies that would be a blessing
Just ordered the Spark yesterday, looking forward to it
Hope you’ll get it one day..
Love my katanna air. So glad i chose it over the spark and the yamaha
And you even say that after watching this video? The Yamaha sounds thrice as good.
Before watching-BOSS Katana Air produces an awesome sound and is truly versatile, but it is also one of the most regretful purchases of my life. Roland/BOSS purposefully stripped it of some features (compared to Katana 50/100) for no reason whatsoever-the most griping being that *you cannot connect it to the desktop Tone Studio* (nor use it with Librarian) so you have to rely on their outdated mobile app which is, to mildly put it, utter and total garbage (and only had a tiny update last year which didn't solve any of the plethora of issues that you can read in all the negative reviews). I used to be a Roland/BOSS fan but after the experience with Katana Air, and their blatant refusal to fix the issues, I won't be touching anything they produce ever again!
This is my concern with tying amps to mobile apps (or desktop apps). Amps are long term purchases for a lot of people and if companies don't keep the apps updated, they're paper weights in a few years. Let alone the actual design/UX expertese and effort it takes to make a good app, of which Boss doesn't have in the Tone Studio...
I'm curious if the apps improved at all for you with the Air (if you still have it). I don't play much, but I'm thinking of selling my Katana 100 (i got it for an insane price) for the THR-15 or a DSL5CR.
@@briannash1603 I've had it for 2 years and love the convenience. It's small enough to put it in a suitcase when traveling, it has a great sound and the "pick the guitar and play" really makes everything easier. I also love how you can use it as an audio interface. But the fact you can't use all the patches for the other Katana amps and the shitty app are really big turnoffs. The app is crap, it's always been crap and it hasn't gotten any better since they launched it.
My man issue is that it doesn't connect to the amp automatically. Every time you open the app you need to MANUALLY search for the Katana, select it and THEN you can use it. It's ridiculous. The UI itself it isn't great, though I understand you're limited in what you can do when using a mobile phone. Perfect, why the hell not letting us use a desktop app as well? Why not making it easier to share patches? Why can't we import patches made for the other Katanas? Who the hell knows.
I have the Yamaha Thr10x.....it;s the best practice amp ever.
My daughter starts to play guitar so I wanted to give her a practice amp, I have try them all, but nothing beats a THR.
So I have decided to give her my thr10x and buy the thr30II for myself. The white one....look so cool.
I own a Boss Katana. I almost bought that Yamaha amp instead of the Boss.In retrospect I'm very glad I bought the Boss instead of the Yamaha.I'm mainly a blues player.I personally think that the boss can you give a really good blues sound if you put it right on the edge of breakup between clean,& if you attack the strings harder,you'll get a bit of overdrive.the Yamaha it's just a bit too hot for me as far as overdrive and stuff like that.I tried both amplifiers in the music store and I preferred the Boss.To be totally honest I would kind of like to own both.
“Yeah-maha”
Yamaha always sounds good, katana needs to be tweaked a lot. Thats why I sold it and keeping the thr10x.
I tweaked it once for a couple of hours to my liking, since then plug and play... but it doesn't satisfy like a tube amp.
I purchased the Yamaha THR10 (wired) in 2020 and it blew me away. It changed my perception of the tones you can get at home. After that, I have had a Spark Mini, Fender Mustang Micro, Mooer and Bozz Waza Airs... If I had to go back to my original decision, I would pick the Boss Katana Air. The THR is fantastic but having more amps is not necessarily better without certain boosters/OD/DS pedals. It is a personal opinion, but I think the Boss nails it in the end (and I still own the THR, nothing against it). You can't go wrong with either, but lean towards booster/OD+amp tones and what you get out of the Boss Katana range is fairly good. I am not sure if you can also get the "sneaky amps" in this Katana.
Bought a THR10ii yesterday. What a coincidence
Haha I ordered one two days ago. This vid is confirmation that we made the right purchase
What a coinkydink
I absolutely love my thr10ii my only complaint is the lack of tone presets. Otherwise, no issues! It's light, portable, takes up only a little bit of space, and you can make MASSIVE sounding tones. Especially when you add in that sweet sweet stereo chorus
If you are thinking about buying a THRII30w and only have a Fender Telecaster, be aware that the cup-shaped jack socket in the Telecaster will not be able to activate the wireless connector!!
wow! thanks!
Excellent job guys. I like the Yamaha but like the convenience of the Boss. Which will I get?
I have both, and it's the Air for me.
How come?
For me it's because air starts with a basic amp channel that you add pedals to like a 'real' amp and then can fully eq with parametric graphic etc. Rearrange sound chain etc etc and build any tone you want when I had thr30 it's too much a click a sound toy with no control over base sound even through app. It's just basically playing a very limited number of other people's sound
I like the Sound on the Yamaha and prefer the look of the Boss. Nice comparison. Great opening jam (not easy to go toe-to-toe vs. Danish Pete) = he is a fantastic player.
that moment when you're listening to a recording of a Yamaha THR through the speakers of your Yamaha THR
Nice!
Guitar Inception.
@@derred723 Lol, exactly!! Don't think many people got your awesome joke!
I had a Yamaha THR10. Loved it. So good. Upgraded to a Kemper though :)
Ooh, check you out, fancy pants!
Can you replace the battery on the Yamaha when it losses it’s capacity after a couple of years?
I was thinking about this too
...remember u can plug in any multi FX unit into the aux in too...
Replaced my boss with the Yamaha , Yamaha app is kind of a pain but once you log the tones u like it is much better than the boss
Damn Capt Lee ;D That tone, those moooves. I've been really impressed the last 2 months with your playing :,D
The Captain is getting some damn good chops!! Sounding great!
Pete is as always just feakin HOT!
This felt oddly heated for some reason. Some tension almost as if they were defending their amps😂
On clean, I could live with either. Any distortion, the katana sounds like ass.
Check Ola Lindgren playing on his Katana Air and you’ll be amazed. It didn’t come through well here. Then again maybe the Yamaha is just the better choice. I’m still on the fence.
@@timothy6966 I havent watched that video but I'm pretty confident that for recording the amp was plugged into the computer, so that doesn't say anything about how it sounds in the room.
Im still on the fence too
I can’t fathom why pay so much for a practice amp!! I bought a Subzero 15 watt tweed for 40 quid. Put an OD before it and it sounds awesome! Couldn’t be happier. For £100 you can also get a Pignose, best practice amp ever!
That intro jam tho....
There's that cold direct flat grey boss preamp sound everyone loves for some reason .
Never liked the boss tone....So harsh but loving the sound of the Yamaha, so much more like an amp
The 30 sounds incredible
I have both Yamaha by far
You had this recorded all the time but didn’t upload it?! I’ve been undecided on these two for months. Never order anything without your recommendation now. Actually ordered one of the recently. Still waiting for delivery. Haven’t seen your conclusion yet. Hope I made the right choice.
Maybe you rely on the cult of personality way too much ?
But didn't you say you won't buy anything until you "get the haps from the caps" !?!😂🤮💸
How did you realize you forgot the upload? 🤔 This was half a year ago. Did one of you wake up at night in terror and sweat and thought ☝️😨 THE UPLOAD!
Nice jam and review. Thanks both speakers are good
Had both plus the line 6 Spark 40. THR blows everything out of the water sound and response wise. It’s app is less expansive BUT you get amazing tones out of it without fiddling a lot where as with the other 2 units i had to tweak and tweak to get somewhere I enjoyed and stil it didn’t compare to the THR.
I sold the Katana as it really sounded like a toy in comparison but kept the Spark 40 because it is very easy to record with on an iPad. THR is a beast.