I've been thinking for a while that I'd like to trade up from my Mustang ii v2, and the two options realistically seem to be the Boss Katana vs one of the new GT mustangs.
I'm still very much a beginner but have been using either multi effects (Boss ME80) or my own mini pedal board with a mild bluesy distortion, a delay and a looper for practice. I want an amp has has a bit more chunk, as I'm starting to play with others now and I want some bigger sound. The Mustang ii doesn't like pedals much either...
I've not tried either amp yet, but came across this today. From this, the mustang sounds vastly inferior. Is that just my ears or has he deliberately messed with the sound because reasons?
Anyone tried both or either and care to give me their tuppence worth?
Just because you're paranoid, don't mean they're not after you
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I've played the old Mustang and the Katana and I'd go Katana based on that.
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Just because you're paranoid, don't mean they're not after youI mean literally, it's bigger than my last amp so I have to sort of step around it to get at my strat
So you don't really need an amp with effects, but you do need one that takes pedals well.
That sounds like a Peavey Bandit to me.
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Just because you're paranoid, don't mean they're not after youMy son uses an SD1,DS1 and BD2 into the front and it sounds great.
Check local classifieds and eBay. I've seen bandits and solos (the 60 watt little brother iirc) go for well under £100 and a solo for as little as £60 in my local shop in amazing condition.
Current setup:
Mustang ii v2
Boss ME80
Pedal train nano+ with tuner, sweet cream (tone city), joyo quattro delay and a decent dual looper.
I tend to use compression and occasionally either chorus our flanger from the ME80 and the expression pedal for swells or wah. I also use the Boss for reverb and occasionally if I want more distortion than the sweet cream provides.
I want to achieve a better amp, and I know I need a noise gate and to cover the things I actually use from the ME80.
So I'll need a bigger pedal board, plus a comp, chorus, expression pedal and noise gate.
So I could sell the me80, nano+ and mustang and put the funds towards the pedals, amp and board. Sound doable? What should I be looking to raise / spend? Is there anything else I'd miss? Also 100 vs 50?
I know these are newbie questions. I'm told that's ok!
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Just because you're paranoid, don't mean they're not after youMy Trading Feedback | You Bring The Band
Just because you're paranoid, don't mean they're not after youAnd if you want to get rid of the Mustang once you have a new amp you can record out of the ME-80 can't you?
Thanks for the tips on the Peavey though, I'll have a look around
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Just because you're paranoid, don't mean they're not after youStick with the pedalboard and get either an inexpensive secondhand valve amp like a Jet City or an SS like a Bandit or Tech21 TM60.
Go entirely digital and get the best modelling thingy you can afford maybe a Katana and sack off everything else.
In my experience combinations of digital and analogue things, or multiple digital things just ends up being complicated and never sounds all that great.
Currently I run the mustang on a completely clean setting which is a patch I've saved. I get everything else from the pedals. What's appealing to me about the katana is the rave reviews about tone quality, good reviews when used with pedals, the channels that include a very nice clean and an acoustic pre amp (Because I don't have an acoustic amp but do play my electro acoustic quite often *through* the mustang but with the speaker off, so I can record it. It obviously sounds shite through the mustang when using the speaker), the price, and finally the variable power settings. I do a lot of home practice so the ability to reduce the head room and play at low volume would be useful.
To be honest, pretty much anything I do right now will be a compromise, because I can't afford multiple solutions. I therefore want something that does most things fairly well and will last me as I start to play more often with others, and at louder volumes in bigger rooms.
As nice as a quality valve amp would be, it will limit some areas of my use at the present time.
My Trading Feedback | You Bring The Band
Just because you're paranoid, don't mean they're not after youThe driven sound is very Marshally so bear that in mind. If you like that sound, you'll love the Katana. You can easily lose yourself in GnR riffs whilst forgetting it's not a valve amp.
I tried it with the footswitch and my mini pedal board and didn't lose anything, still sounded great at any volume. Plugged the ME80 into it and as predicted by others it didn't play nice. I'm sure I could fiddle with it and get a decent sound out of it but the amps own tones are so much better. So, I'm going for the katana plus footswitch and I'll supplement it with a couple of extras like an expression pedal and maybe a noise gate.
Thank everyone for your help. Now got to try and sell the me80 and mustang. Wish me luck!
My Trading Feedback | You Bring The Band
Just because you're paranoid, don't mean they're not after you