Boss Katana
The Boss Katana is a line of modeling amplifiers for electric guitar and bass introduced by Japanese manufacturer Boss in 2016. While Boss—an effects pedal pioneer—had previously experienced some minor success in the amplifier market, the larger success of the Katana line helped turn Boss into one of the biggest amp companies in the world in less than a decade. The black-clad Katana's all-in-one formula combines a handful of amp model modes with numerous on-board effects options, and produces its sounds through a combination of analog circuitry and digital signal processing. The series is widely acclaimed for its tones, versatility, and affordability, and its high sales across multiple models have made it the best-selling amplifier line in the guitar industry.
Features
Across the Katana amplifier line, models share much of their functionality. Controls are divided into sections such as for the amplifier, equalizer, effects, and output. Its core feature, the "Amp Type" selector, initially had five selectable modes—Clean, Crunch, Lead, Brown, and Acoustic—all based on the brand's "Tube Logic" design architecture. Tube Logic attempts to emulate tube-like tones by modeling the collective behavior of individual components in a tube amp circuit rather than simply modeling the final output. Various modes' distortion are provided by analog gain stages. While most of the amp type modes are original Boss designs, Brown mode notably emulates the famed "Brown Sound" of Eddie Van Halen. Over 60 digital effects based on Boss's own pedals are included, depending on the Katana model, along with the ability to create and store presets with Boss's downloadable "Tone Studio" software. Katanas utilize a reactive Class AB analog power section, with power attenuation via a "Variable Power Control", and the sound is delivered by custom-designed speakers. Among the core Katana models, there are a handful of upgrades reserved for the 100-watt editions, such as an effects loop and compatibility with an expanded foot controller, the six-button GA-FC EX. Subsequent MKII and Generation 3 iterations of the Katana range have continued to add new features, such as a Pushed amp mode, a line out augmented with adjustable microphone simulations, and a "Contour" switch that allows players to tailor the frequency response of the amp to the acoustics of the room being played in.Models
Katana
In 2016, Boss announced its Katana amplifier line, named after the traditional, curved swords of Japanese samurai. Consisting of 50-watt and 100-watt combos and a 100-watt head, Boss wrote in a press release that the new line "embodies BOSS's determined pursuit of the ultimate rock sound." The amps notably combined amp model emulations with an expansive set of on-board effects, as well as other modern features, proving that "authentic valve-worthy tones and forward-thinking modern features could co-exist in harmony", according to a Guitar World retrospective. The Katana line was an "overnight success" for Boss, receiving praise from professional reviewers and, as of 2023, selling over a million units. This success helped propel Boss into the upper echelons of amp manufacturers and spawned an expanded line of Katana-branded sub-models from Boss.Despite strong sales of the original Katanas, Boss upgraded the line in 2019 with a second generation, the MKIIs. New features included a "Variation" button that offered a second version of each amp type, USB and headphones outputs, and a power amp input for use with dedicated preamps and modelers. In 2025, Boss released another update, dubbed "Generation 3". Gen 3 represents an incremental evolution of the product line, focusing on an overall improvement in tone quality while adding new features like a Pushed amp mode placed between Clean and Crunch modes and Bluetooth connectivity. While the lack of Bluetooth had previously been a consistent criticism of the main Katana models, the need for a separate adaptor to use Bluetooth with the Gen 3 models has also been criticized.