NEW Boss Katana 100 Gen 3 vs. Line6 Catalyst CX 100 | Gear Check | Thomann

Clash of the Combos: Boss just released the new Katana 100 Gen 3, but how does it compare to the Line6 Catalyst CX 100? Let's find out as each of both has it's special assets!
Gear used: tho.mn/fdigd
Recorded in Presonus Studio One: bit.ly/S1Pro6
Recorded and mixed with Universal Audio: tho.mn/uadx1
Monitors optimised through Sonarworks: tho.mn/sonar
We use Cordial cables exclusively: www.thomann.de/intl/cat_brand...
Interesting bits and pieces:
0:00 Intro
0:30 What do we have here?
1:22 Clean playing | Boss Katana 100 Gen 3
1:49 Clean playing | Line6 Catalyst CX 100
2:28 Clean Conclusions
4:05 Crunch playing | Boss Katana 100 Gen 3
4:21 Crunch playing | Line6 Catalyst CX 100
4:40 Crunchy Conclusions
6:12 Rock playing | Boss Katana 100 Gen 3
6:30 Rock | Line6 Catalyst CX 100
6:51 Rock Conclusions
8:48 Input & Models
9:06 Effects
9:46 Presets
10:00 Line6 Footswitch
10:10 Boss Footswitch
10:28 Midi
10:49 Katana BT Dual Adaptor
10:51 Bluetooth
11:16 Boss Bluetooth Adaptor
12:24 The Systems
14:02 Conclusions
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[@ThomannsGuitarsBasses]

Hey, I want to address 2 things: 1. we use the Catalyst CX100 in the video, sorry for the confusing "CX60" on your screen. 2. True, the BOSS Katana 100 has 8 presets, not 4 like we said in the video. Thanks for the correction in the comments, we honestly didn't find this info when we did our spec checking research before making this one. Apparently this is a common misunderstanding, like other guitarists (and guitar channels) we also didn't find out about the additional 4 presets in time. Sorry, definitely our bad. Thanks for the comments and for spreading your experience and knowledge on these two awesome amps. Best community ever!! 💛 Cheers //Kris

[@WeekendWarrior92]

5:40 you forgot to mention how well it transitions from Bonkle to Scringo

[@jenton70]

I bought a Gen 3 Katana 50 as I needed a quick grab for a light and low-volume friendly amp and the shop had it in stock. I love it and it's quickly becoming my main amp. I haven't had to mess around much. A few tweaks to suit the guitars I use and bang there's the sound. Low-cost and not as glamorous as tubes but it's working for me!

[@jasminduncanson2520]

Great video 📹

[@leonardofigueredo2913]

Good video guys.

[@MrJingles021]

I have the original Catalyst, which upgrades to the CX for free, and I love it. If my amp broke, I'd absolutely go for another Catalyst.

[@randomname2505]

Could you please tell me how you dial in the second effect on the amp? Does the second FX button (reverb) change colours like the CX version or is it always one colour?

[@yetimatzenightcat8702]

Kettensägenmassaaaaaaakkkeeeerrrr, sehr schön, danke 👍🛸

[@michaelschneider7590]

Enjoyed your detailed comparisons! I have a Catalyst CX60 and love it for the clean and crunch channels especially. But, there are very few additional tones available via Line 6’s Customtone utility (many are redundant copies of one another, and many others are poor). It would be great to be able to draw on the rest of the Line 6 “ecosystem,” like the many Helix presets, other than by buying a Helix HX Stomp in addition (roughly twice the cost!) and then using the Catalyst merely as a powered speaker. Why not enable using Helix native plugins on the Catalyst??

[@indigos290]

In my earbuds the catalyst kills it! The simplicity of the tone is amazing!

[@AT-wl9yq]

When you are using headphones, you're bypassing the amp and preamp. All you're hearing is the dsp and the headphone amp.

[@antalantal2366]

I have a catalyst and it is excellent for clean and crunchy sounds and for the effects. The other settings are OKish but nothing more than that.

[@sorenahlback]

I sold my Katana 50MKII and bought then new 100 Gen3, both are great but three plus for the 100 watt is 8 presets, better speaker and GA-FC EX works. I have today put around 50 songs on Spotify only using Katana Amps, also the Bass 110, and have atm around 25000 monthly listeners. And that on short instrumental music I write and play only for my own pleasure. Boss Katana are great amps for sure! I guess Catalyst are too, never tried though.

[@GabrielSkolderblad]

What amp group did you use on the Catalyst? Group 1 or 2 that is new with the CX?

[@nickguitarrist750]

I wish there were some modern metal tones with a high output superstrat

[@rickhill6277]

How does the PUSHED setting sound on the Katana??

[@ThomannsGuitarsBasses]

Hi, we showed the new pushed setting in our review on the gen 3 Katanas: kzbin.info/www/bejne/f3K6ZZmilq5ojbM Cheers //Kris

[@nightworkband7715]

I have seen some videos saying that the Gen 3 with all the settings set the same as the earlier models has a drop off in volume. Did you guys notice this in your comparisons? Thank you!

[@ThomannsGuitarsBasses]

We haven't noticed that, but even if it's the case, these still can get super loud. I'd still recommend the 50 for at home and smaller / quieter events and the 100 (and above) for gigs and louder rehearsals. Cheers //Kris

[@nightworkband7715]

@@ThomannsGuitarsBasses thanks for the response. I am in a working band and currently have the Artist MK2. Some may say I'm crazy but I have already pre-ordered the Artist gen 3 and will be trading in or selling the MK2. The MK2 is great for live shows but I am intrigued buy the new Pushed amp and the bloom feature not to mention Bluetooth Etc. However I seem to be in the minority regarding trading an MK2 for the Gen 3. Lol. oh well.

[@PooNinja]

So get em both and run them in parallel?

[@PooNinja]

I’m planning on getting the Katana head and buying the midi dongle and it’s still a hyper affordable option for my moon bucks.

[@stefpenfield5918]

But can we talk about that Larry Carlton? I really don't need to be buying a new tstyle and a new amp this month.

[@deschwann]

I think the katana has 8 presets. A and B versions of the 4 channels. Hold the panel button.

[@ThomannsGuitarsBasses]

True, thanks and sorry for the false info. I pinned a comment regarding this. //Kris

[@sejtaridiss]

For me: clean -> Line6. Crunch -> a draw. Metal -> Boss

[@GCKelloch]

I think the Katana speaker sounds better. The amp is also class AB vs D in the Line 6.

[@horschy4856]

I had the Katana 100 and it sounded great! But I couldn't resist tweaking, and tweaking, and.... tweaking. So it had to go for something more straight forward. About to test the Baroni Afk 150 😊

[@daddio307]

It's funny that on almost every channel that demoes the Gen3, the only thing they always play is the new 'push'.

[@ThomannsGuitarsBasses]

Correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think we even played the pushed setting in this video. 😅 Oh wait, G might have used that in the intro playing. But for the 3 rounds we went for clean, crunch and high gain. //Kris

[@SpunktAlex]

The Katana on Lead/Overdrive sounded way better to my ears. Clean and Crunchy the Catalyst sounded amazing, but in the end for me the heavier gain channels would be the more important ones. If I'd play more clean or edge of breakup Catalyst it would be.

[@TheToneWork]

Very hard to tell from KZbin's special "magic" and really just preference, but... the Catalyst sounded thin and nasal to my ears compared to the Katana. I've played both in person and ended up with the Katana. The Catalyst excels in the scooped sounds more like the Boogie, but that's not really what I like. Great video.

[@ntomatas1]

but that's the CATALYST X 100 not the 60

[@ThomannsGuitarsBasses]

True, so sorry, it's corrected where ever it was still possible (title, time stamps, etc). Cheers //Kris

[@ntomatas1]

@ThomannsGuitarsBasses no need to apologize Kriss. Keep rocking guys.

[@BababooeySoundEffect]

I came here just to say that I had a chance to test the new katana and the catalyst myself not too long ago. I REALLY wanted to like catalyst. I was biased towards it because I have Katana ver 2 and I wanted a new amp, simple as that. I'm not a fan of Boss Katana, for me it has 2 usable sounds. But those 2 sounds are better than anything catalyst has. I really feel sorry for line 6 but that amp just has no soul. Also the biggest turnoff is how bad is amp type switching in catalyst. You have to press two buttons at the same time. If you fail it loads a preset and wipes out anything you've just set with the knobs. Both are fair, budget friendly amps with loads of features but one is superrior. Even if in ver 3 boss added almost nothing when Line 6 changed all the amp models it is still more musical than the catalyst.

[@mdp303]

You should draw conclusions or what’s the point. What’s the price difference if you are saying they are the same then buy the cheapest

[@karltraunmuller7048]

Will there ever be a time when Thomann considers looking at Hiwatt?

[@nightworkband7715]

GUYS!!!! Come on! How can you not know the Katana can save 8 presets??? You and Andertons both said the same thing. Kind of baffling that you ( and they) would give incorrect info. on such a key feature. Still you guys are great!

[@ThomannsGuitarsBasses]

Hey, true and sorry for that. Actually it's not that easy to figure that out, unless you own it and read all the infos or the manual. There's no hint on the amp itself, the product infos didn't mention the "hidden" extra 4 presets and apparently a lot of others miss this feature too. I guess Boss doesn't focus on this fact that much, they advertise the Katanas much more with the other features. The only place I found that it has 8 presets is on the official Katana product page, somewhere in the middle of the page and written small somewhere in the middle of a sentence, haha. //Kris

[@nightworkband7715]

@@ThomannsGuitarsBasses I was messing with you little bit. Like I say you guys are great and I enjoy your videos. Your demos and comparisons are some of the best on KZbin. Speaking of which a lot of people are saying that the katana Gen 3 is not as loud as the previous models using the exact same settings across the board. Have you guys noticed a drop off in volume?

[@DebowyMocny]

Am I missing something? Katana 100 can store 8 presets (2 banks of 4) and not 4 as you state.

[@nightworkband7715]

EXACTLY!! These guys are not the only ones to make the mistake. Andertons did too!! As knowledgeable as all these guys are I can't believe they would make such a stupid mistake

[@ThomannsGuitarsBasses]

You're right, we are sorry for missing that. Actually, the only place I've found the amount of presets was on the Boss product page, somewhere in the middle of a section. It's not written on any of the product ads, not shown on the control plate of the amp and not listed as a feature anywhere. I believe that kind of explains, how multiple channels forget about those extra 4 presets. This is not an excuse, it's on us for sure. But it's definitely an explanation as of why we all oversaw it. Cheers //Kris

[@DebowyMocny]

@@ThomannsGuitarsBassesno problem Kris. I thought this was important to point out because I think the biggest selling point between the 50 and the 100 is the fx loop and extra preset slots in my opinion.

[@jasminduncanson2520]

Katana is the best,better sound no contest 🎉 in my opinion plus it's the clear choice

[@georgiagreen1340]

The Katana is a solid state amp. Not a digital amp. It has digital effects. The Catalyst is a digital amp.

[@AT-wl9yq]

There's no such thing as a digital amp. Its impossible. Both units have analog amps and preamps. The analog power amp in the Katana runs the output transistors in class ab and the analog power amp in the Line 6 runs the transistors in class d. I understand some manufacturers advertise class d as digital, but they're not being honest. They twist the facts and hope no one will notice. The only thing that's digital in both of these amps is the dsp functions. After processing, the signal is converted to analog, and is sent to the preamp. There's so much bad information out there, I highly recommend you don't take anyone's word for anything, including mine. Do some fact checking to verify I'm giving you good info. I am, but you should still check. You can't amplify a bunch of 1's and 0's.

[@janbuyck1]

False dichotomy: Fractal , etc.

[@davidschaer]

just buy a bloody tube amp..

[@deluxeedition46]

Lol why? So they can buy something expensive breakdowns and 95% of people dont even gig (pub gig these more than enough) just snobby crap most ppl under 40 dont use tube amps dont want/think of it when these amps do so much at this price, it like some moron going "my 6 grand custom shop strat better than yours.." am like what kind of misinformed moron would even pay 6 grand on a guitar in 2024 unless you millionare i and people more qualified than me say same, kurt cobain would buy 2nd hand japan fenders when he in his prime as usa priced stuff gets bashed up people afraid to use equip meant to be used not like gibson (art musem decor peices at these prices) where guitars so expensive now people afraid to play them to devalue them you dont play you dont improve so inconclusion f""k you and your tube amps you got money to burn ya pro level musican fine 95% of ppl dont want expensive tempermental stuff just stuff affordable and useable, bingo.

[@brattmoore]

For me : too much talking, not enough sounds 😥

[@bennyharderguitar]

The effects switching on the Line 6 is awful

[@jasq99]

I think in general katana wins here.

[@RICO_SUAVE21]

Line 6 just needs to come out with a helix amp! Enough of the catalyst trying to be a better katana… 🥸 all in one helix stomp with power amp and frf speakers in one box unit 😊