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Boss Katana Bass ...

#245
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The Boss is plenty loud enough. The Yamaha is only if I play a bigger stage!
 
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#246
Boss Katana 210 review:
I am vey pleased with this purchase.
I replaced an SWR 350x head and Goliath Jr. 8ohm 210 cab with the Katana, and it is easily as loud, and a much easier load in. I first ran the combo with my GT1000 CORE plugged in to the power amp in of the Katana, which bypasses the preamp/fx section of the Katana and gives me the CORE as my preamp and FX. This may be how I run things, as the sound was almost exactly what I was getting from my SWR set up. Plenty of low end, and very punchy. Very true tone with almost no coloration from the Katana cab. Very FRFR. I was running the SWR in a similar fashion, using the FX return and bypassing the preamp.
I then plugged straight in to the Katana, and with some knob turning was able to get a very pleasing tone from the amp itself. The compression in the Katana was very easy to dial in, and could be more fine tuned with the online editor, though I did not feel this was necessary. The drive setting allowed me to dial in just a touch of hair! I used the Vintage preamp setting and dialed the Blend in to taste.
The EQ section is very versatile, as you can customize the Lo mid and High mid EQ points using the Editor, but the settings on board (three for each) worked very well, and I was able to get the tone I was looking for.
The FX on board were a very nice feature and they sounded great. I will probably not use them, as I have everything I need in my CORE. That being said, I could easily do a gig with just the Katana and the available Foot switch, and be perfectly happy.
All in all, I feel this was the right purchase for me. This is a very versatile combo, and could easily replace an amp and pedalboard. The 48lb weight is a little heavier than we are used to these days, but it is a vey easy to carry load, and much lighter than the SWR set up. The on board 160 watts is plenty loud for the gigs I am doing. Mostly Brew pubs with between 100-200 people, and I will definitely be heard over drums, two guitars, sax and a singer in my current band.
 
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#247
So the Bass Katana did very well at the outdoor gig I Han today. It was a Teen Challenge event which is an organization that helps teens get off drugs and alcohol through Christ. We had FOH, and the DI worked flawlessly, and my onstage volume was great. Punchy and warm with plenty of low end. I ran the GT1000 CORE into the Power Amp In on the 210. Very pleased with my tone.
 
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#248
Johno Dunn said:
So the Bass Katana did very well at the outdoor gig I Han today. It was a Teen Challenge event which is an organization that helps teens get off drugs and alcohol through Christ. We had FOH, and the DI worked flawlessly, and my onstage volume was great. Punchy and warm with plenty of low end. I ran the GT1000 CORE into the Power Amp In on the 210. Very pleased with my tone.
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Congrats on such a worthy show and that the Katana worked well for you. I’ll be interested in the coming months to read more comments from owners and to see what Boss decides to do to advance the line.

Now back to stretching my combo’s speaker...:roflmao:
 
#252
Johno Dunn said:
Ssssttttrrrreeeeaaaaccccchhhhh!:D
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Without sounding pretentious, is there any possibility of you taking your 210 out minus the CORE just to see what it can do, preamp-wise? Obviously, it's nothing more than a request, but I haven't read to this point of folks gigging with this line yet and you may be our resident guinea pig at the moment. You did a fine job explaining its power, etc, but I'd appreciate knowing, as well as others too, how the combo does as a single unit under gigging conditions. Please think about it and if you're willing, I'll sub to this thread to read your findings. Thanks!
 
#253
iagtrplyr said:
Without sounding pretentious, is there any possibility of you taking your 210 out minus the CORE just to see what it can do, preamp-wise? Obviously, it's nothing more than a request, but I haven't read to this point of folks gigging with this line yet and you may be our resident guinea pig at the moment. You did a fine job explaining its power, etc, but I'd appreciate knowing, as well as others too, how the combo does as a single unit under gigging conditions. Please think about it and if you're willing, I'll sub to this thread to read your findings. Thanks!
Click to expand...
If I had the footswitch and the time to set it up I would, but the CORE does all that I need, and it’s already set up and ready to go. I will say that the Katana has everything you need to find a great tone, and with the online editor the options are pretty limitless. It’s pretty easy to dial in a great tone, but you do need a footswitch to have access to the FX.
 
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#258
It’s Roland’s best attempt at bass amplification and I’ve been using their stuff on and off for twenty years.

As for your apartment volume issue, ya use their one-watt setting and relax. You’ll still hear it, but you won’t get the slam you’ll get with it at full power. I myself still like running my 110 at full but keeping tabs on the master volume.

If you’re gonna gig you have to go with the 210, but if it’s never gonna leave the apt, save yourself the money and threats from your neighbors and grab the 110. I think it’ll be loud enough to still jam with buddies. Good hunting!
 
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