BOSS Katana-50 MkII EX

THE KATANA SERIES amps from Boss recently expanded with the introduction of three new Mkll models: a 50-watt 1x12, a 100-watt head and a 2x12 cabinet with Boss Waza speakers.

- ART THOMPSON

The Katana-50 Mk II EX on review here features a compact open-back cabinet with corner protectors that carries a 12-inch ceramic-magnet speaker. The top mounted controls are clearly labeled and make for easy viewing when standing above the amp.

Starting on the left side is the amp type knob, with five settings (clean, crunch, lead, brown and acoustic), along with a variation button that provides an alternate tone option for each. Clean becomes brighter and more "American" sounding; crunch goes from Plexi-style grind to a higher-gain JCM 800 response; lead becomes tighter and more modern sounding; brown goes from Plexi-with-Variac, à la EVH, to a tighter, more overdriven 5150 response; and acoustic goes from an open, natural sound to a punchier, small-body tone. In all, variation is a useful feature that helps get you into the ballpark of the sounds needed, and from there it's easy to dial everything in with the gain and volume knobs and the EQ section's bass, middle and treble controls.

A big reason for the Katana's player friendliness is the Tube Logic amp concept, which takes into account the preamp and power tubes, transformers and other components. Connected to a solid-state Class-A/B power section and speaker to inject an analog component into the mix, it provides realistic emulations of tube amps.