Boss unveils a professional 500-watt bass amp with advanced Boss technology and companion two-way speaker cabinet.
Katana-500 Bass Head
The compact Katana-500 Bass Head brings serious bassists a next-generation sound experience backed by decades of BOSS R&D. This amp is incredibly clear, punchy, and responsive, realized with 500 watts of carefully tuned Class D power. Cab Resonance takes things further, using high-tech calibration to internally fine-tune the power output section for the user’s preferred speaker cabinet.
With a simple button press, the Cab Resonance feature in the Katana-500 Bass Head calibrates the amp’s reactive output stage circuitry to match the unique impedance and frequency properties of the connected cabinet. This proprietary BOSS process analyzes numerous elements, including the lowest frequency the cabinet can produce, high-end resonances, and many other factors. With this information, advanced processing dynamically enhances the output to provide superior feel and response, powerful lows, and high-definition overall sound.
The Katana-500 Bass Head offers a deep selection of controls to hone the primary sound. There’s a four-band active EQ with three adjustable frequency options for both the low-mid and high-mid controls. A Bottom knob tunes the low end for different stages, while three Hi Cut settings smooth the sound as needed. With the Shape button, users can instantly revoice the amp with mid-scoop, bright, and wide-range curves.
The Katana-500 Bass Head also includes sophisticated tone-shaping tools to refine the fundamental sound. Via the Amp Feel switch, the player can apply Modern or Vintage tonal characteristics for different styles if desired. Comp and Drive types are available to control dynamics and introduce grit and aggression, while the FX section provides three bass-tuned effects for color and inspiration. There’s also a Blend knob to dial in some direct bass sound for additional clarity.
The Katana-500 Bass Head integrates a versatile range of connectivity into its compact design. Two locking-style speaker outputs support high-current operation, and the XLR line output can be used to send a direct, pre, or post signal to a house PA. Players can shape the line output voice from the front panel with three mic’d speaker emulation presets and three custom settings. There’s also a dual-function output for headphones practice or analog recording, plus USB for capturing mix-ready tracks in computer music software.
With BOSS Tone Studio for Windows and macOS, players can edit amp parameters and access over 60 BOSS effects to swap alternate types for the Comp, Drive, and FX sections. Plugging in a GA-FC or GA-FC EX foot controller provides remote operation of numerous amp functions, including the front-panel user memory and two additional memories. The optional Bluetooth® Audio MIDI Dual Adaptor allows users to stream music from a mobile device and wirelessly shape tones via the BTS editor app for iOS and Android.
Katana Cabinet 112 Bass
The Katana Cabinet 112 Bass delivers big, punchy, and articulate sound for any professional bass amp. It’s an ideal match for the Katana-500 Bass Head, providing full support for the amp’s 500-watt output in a compact, space-saving footprint.
The Katana Cabinet 112 Bass features a two-way design with a 12-inch woofer and a high-frequency tweeter. It comes loaded with an Eminence Neodymium Series woofer, a highly regarded driver with powerful sound and reduced weight. Switches on the rear panel allow the tweeter to be bypassed or set to two preset levels. The cabinet features locking-style connectors on the primary speaker input and the link output for connecting a second cabinet.
BOSS KATANA-500 BASS HEAD | Outstanding Bass Tones with Innovative Cabinet Calibration
You can purchase the new BOSS Katana-500 Bass Head and the Katana Cabinet 112 Bass at authorized US BOSS retailers in May for $799.99 and $699.99 respectively.
To learn more about Katana-500 Bass Head and Katana Cabinet 112 Bass, visitwww.boss.info.
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Day 4 of Stompboxtober brings a chance to win a pedal from TWA: The Chemical-Z! Don’t miss out—enter now and return tomorrow for more!
TWA CHEMICAL-Z
Roy Z signature overdrive pedal designed by TubeScreamer creator Susumu Tamura. Inspired by Maxon OD808, OD808X, and APEX808 circuits, Chemical-Z features the "Magic" IC used in APEX808 for less compression & more even frequency response than a standard 808. Increased output level. Two footswitch-selectable clipping modes - normal & hot.
Many listeners and musicians can tell if a bass player is really a guitarist in disguise. Here’s how you can brush up on your bass chops.
Was bass your first instrument, or did you start out on guitar? Some of the world’s best bass players started off as guitar players, sometimes by chance. When Stuart Sutcliffe—originally a guitarist himself—left the Beatles in 1961, bass duties fell to rhythm guitarist Paul McCartney, who fully adopted the role and soon became one of the undeniable bass greats.
Since there are so many more guitarists than bassists—think of it as a supply and demand issue—odds are that if you’re a guitarist, you’ve at least dabbled in bass or have picked up the instrument to fill in or facilitate a home recording.
But there’s a difference between a guitarist who plays bass and one who becomes a bass player. Part of what’s different is how you approach the music, but part of it is attitude.
Many listeners and musicians can tell if a bass player is really a guitarist in disguise. They simply play differently than someone who spends most of their musical time embodying the low end. But if you’re really trying to put down some bass, you don’t want to sound like a bass tourist. Real bassists think differently about the rhythm, the groove, and the harmony happening in each moment.
And who knows … if you, as a guitarist, thoroughly adopt the bassist mindset, you might just find your true calling on the mightiest of instruments. Now, I’m not exactly recruiting, but if you have the interest, the aptitude, and—perhaps most of all—the necessity, here are some ways you can be less like a guitarist who plays bass, and more like a bona fide bass player.
Start by playing fewer notes. Yes, everybody can see that you’ve practiced your scales. But at least until you get locked in rhythmically, use your ears more than your fingers and get a sense of how your bass parts mesh with the other musical elements. You are the glue that holds everything together. Recognize that you’re at the intersection of rhythm and harmony, and you’ll realize foundation beats flash every time.“If Larry Graham, one of the baddest bassists there has ever been, could stick to the same note throughout Sly & the Family Stone’s ‘Everyday People,’ then you too can deliver a repetitive figure when it’s called for.”
Focus on that kick drum. Make sure you’re locked in with the drummer. That doesn’t mean you have to play a note with every kick, but there should be some synchronicity. You and the drummer should be working together to create the rhythmic drive. Laying down a solid bass line is no time for expressive rubato phrasing. Lock it up—and have fun with it.
Don’t sleep on the snare. What does it feel like to leave a perfect hole for the snare drum’s hits on two and four? What if you just leave space for half of them? Try locking the ends of your notes to the snare’s backbeat. This is just one of the ways to create a rhythmic feel together with the drummer, so you produce a pocket that everyone else can groove to.
Relish your newfound harmonic power. Move that major chord root down a third, and now you have a minor 7 chord. Play the fifth under a IV chord and you have a IV/V (“four over five,” which fancy folks sometimes call an 11 chord). The point is to realize that the bottom note defines the harmony. Sting put it like this: “It’s not a C chord until I play a C. You can change harmony very subtly but very effectively as a bass player. That’s one of the great privileges of our role and why I love playing bass. I enjoy the sound of it, I enjoy its harmonic power, and it’s a sort of subtle heroism.”
Embrace the ostinato. If the song calls for playing the same motif over and over, don’t think of it as boring. Think of it as hypnotic, tension-building, relentless, and an exercise in restraint. Countless James Brown songs bear this out, but my current favorite example is the bass line on the Pointer Sisters’ swampy cover of Allen Toussaint “Yes We Can Can,” which was played by Richard Greene of the Hoodoo Rhythm Devils, aka Dexter C. Plates. Think about it: If Larry Graham, one of the baddest bassists there has ever been, could stick to the same note throughout Sly & the Family Stone’s “Everyday People,” then you too can deliver a repetitive figure when it’s called for.
Be supportive. Though you may stretch out from time to time, your main job is to support the song and your fellow musicians. Consider how you can make your bandmates sound better using your phrasing, your dynamics, and note choices. For example, you could gradually raise the energy during guitar solos. Keep that supportive mindset when you’re offstage, too. Some guitarists have an attitude of competitiveness and even scrutiny when checking out other players, but bassists tend to offer mutual support and encouragement. Share those good vibes with enthusiasm.
And finally, give and take criticism with ease. This one’s for all musicians: Humility and a sense of helpfulness can go a long way. Ideally, everyone should be working toward the common goal of what’s good for the song. As the bass player, you might find yourself leading the way.Fuchs Audio introduces the ODH Hybrid amp, featuring a True High Voltage all-tube preamp and Ice Power module for high-powered tones in a compact size. With D-Style overdrive, Spin reverb, and versatile controls, the ODH offers exceptional tone shaping and flexibility at an affordable price point.
Fuchs Audio has introduced their latest amp the ODH © Hybrid. Assembled in USA.
Featuring an ODS-style all-tube preamp, operating at True High Voltage into a fan-cooled Ice power module, the ODH brings high-powered clean and overdrive tones to an extremely compact size and a truly affordable price point.
Like the Fuchs ODS amps, the ODH clean preamp features 3-position brite switch, amid-boost switch, an EQ switch, high, mid and low controls. The clean preamp drives theoverdrive section in D-Style fashion. The OD channel has an input gain and outputmaster with an overdrive tone control. This ensures perfect tuning of both the clean andoverdrive channels. A unique tube limiter circuit controls the Ice Power module input.Any signal clipping is (intentionally) non-linear so it responds just like a real tube amp.
The ODH includes a two-way footswitch for channels and gain boost. A 30-second mute timer ensures the tubes are warmed up before the power amp goes live. The ODH features our lush and warm Spin reverb. A subsonic filter eliminates out-of-band low frequencies which would normally waste amplifier power, which assures tons of clean headroom. The amp also features Accent and Depth controls, allowing contouring of the high and low response of the power amp section, to match speakers, cabinets andenvironments. The ODH features a front panel fully buffered series effects loop and aline out jack, allowing for home recording or feeding a slave amp. A three-position muteswitch mutes the amp, the line out or mute neither.
Built on the same solid steel chassis platform as the Fuchs FB series bass amps, the amps feature a steel chassis and aluminum front and rear panels, Alpha potentiometers, ceramic tube sockets, high-grade circuit boards and Neutrik jacks. The ICE power amp is 150 watts into 8 ohms and 300 watts into 4 ohms, and nearly 500 watts into 2.65 ohms (4 and8 ohms in parallel) and operates on universal AC voltage, so it’s fully globallycompatible. The chassis is fan-cooled to ensure hours of cool operation under any circumstances. The all-tube preamp uses dual-selected 12AX7 tubes and a 6AL5 limiter tube.
MAP: $ 1,299
For more information, please visit fuchsaudiotechnology.com.
Jackson Guitars announces its first female signature artist model, the Pro Series Signature Diamond Rowe guitar.
“I‘m so excited about this new venture with the Jackson family. This is a historic collaboration - as I am the first female in the history of Jackson with a signature guitar and the first female African American signature Jackson artist. I feel so honored to have now joined such an elite group of players that are a part of this club. Many who have inspired me along this journey to get here. It’s truly humbling.” says Diamond.
Diamond Rowe is the co-founder and lead guitarist for the metal/hard rock band Tetrarch. Since co-founding the band in high school, Tetrarch has become one of the most talked about up-and-coming bands in the world - with several press outlets such as Metal Hammer, Kerrang, Revolver, Guitar World and many others boldly naming Diamond Rowe the world’s next guitar hero. Tetrarch has connected with many fans while performing on some of the world's biggest stages garnering spots alongside several of the heavy music world’s biggest names such as Guns N’ Roses, Slipknot, Lamb of God, Disturbed, Avenged Sevenfold, Sevendust, Rob Zombie, Trivium, and many many others. The Jackson Pro Series Signature Diamond Rowe DR12MG EVTN6 is based on Jackson’s single-cut Monarkh platform and is a premium guitar designed for progressive metal players seeking precision and accuracy.
Crafted in partnership with Diamond, this model boasts a 25.5 “ scale, Monarkh-styled nyatoh body draped with a gorgeous poplar burl top, three-piece nyatoh set-neck with graphite reinforcement, and 12˝ radius bound ebony fingerboard with 24 jumbo frets. The black chrome-covered active EMG® 81/85 humbucking bridge and neck pickups, three-way toggle switch, single volume control, and tone control provide a range of tonal options. The Evertune® bridge ensures excellent tuning stability, while the Dark Rose finish with a new custom 3+3 color-matched Jackson headstock and black hardware looks simply stunning.
To showcase the Pro Plus Signature Diamond Rowe DR12MG EVTN6, Diamond shares her journey as a guitarist, delving into the inspiration behind her unique design specifications and the influential artists who shaped her sound within a captivating demo video. This video prominently features powerful performances of Tetrarch’s latest release, “Live Not Fantasize,” and “I’m Not Right” showcasing the DR12MG EVTN6’s unparalleled tonal versatility and performance capabilities.
MSRP $1699.99
For more information, please visit jacksonguitars.com.