The Nextone Special is far superior to the Katana amps. The Roland Blues Cubes had real wood cabinets, poplar. The Katana amps are all MDF, not designed for tuned sound with cheaper speakers. The Nextone Special is first rate design and components all the way, tuned cabinets with the WazaCraft speakers. The Special with the deep editing via computer screen is what a professional musician can use to dial in sound exactly and save the the patches in user presets. Even if you are not a pro, the Special has it all. I have a a couple of Blues Cubes, a Katana, a Special and a Fender Tone Master Deluxe (Pine cab). The 1st place Special beats them all. Next in terms of sound quality is the Blues Cubes; Blues Cube Hot (6V6) and Blues Cube Hot British EL84 Modified. Then Fender Tone Master (with the upgrades from the Fender website via USB). The Katana amps are in last place in that group in terms of sound quality. The beauty of the Blues Cubes is that it gives you the tube sounds right out of the box. Playing those amps on stage, getting overdrive with a bit of harmonically musical feedback, everybody thought I was playing a tube amp. The Special gives you that and many more musical options, especially with the deep editing. The Special is what you use for stage and recording, effects loop, (IR). The Tone Master also is good for stage and recording (IR). The Blues Cubes good for stage, no IR, no effects loop. Katana for cottage. In conclusion; Be in the room with the amp. Don't rely on the demo you hear over computer speakers.
Wow, thanks for that excellent insight much appreciated! I also own a Blues Cube Artist and added the Ultimate Blues tone capsule (mimics 6V6's). The BC Artist does have an FX loop and dual channels. I have a couple of Blues Cube Hots, love 'em! The Katana Artist does sport a Waza Craft speaker and there is a notable tonal difference between the KT Artist and the other Katana Models.
No mic in front of the speaker? No sound from the XLR out on the back? Just a room mic a few feet away? This doesn't really do much to show what the amp is capable of. I appreciate the video but if you take the time to mic it and hook up the XLR out, then demo the sound of each and the sound of them combined it will be much appreciated and give a better representation of what the amp is capable of.
Noted. This was really more of an "unboxing" type of vid. I had been waiting months for the amp to come in and only had it out of the box for about an hour. I know there was next to nothing out there on UA-cam at the time so I wanted to do something that was fairly quick and easy that went over the main features of the amp. Thanks for the input :-)
I have both amps. The Special is a far better amp. I do like the Tone Master. It is a good amp. However, the Special has so many advantages. First you have separate effects for each channel for the Special. Then there is the deep editing capability, and memory presets when you dial in patches you want to save. The Tone Master emulates a 6V6 tube and with a Fender Tone Stack The Special gives you 6V6, 6L6, EL84, EL34 with either British or Fender Tone Stacks in each channel. The Special has delay as well as reverb. The Delay has 3 types: Digital, Tape, Analog. The Reverb has: Spring, Plate, Hall. The Special has 4 times the power, but can also run at 0.5 watts in A/B power amp mode. The Special has an effects loop. The Special has a 6 button footswitch for complete control quickly for stage work. The Special can sound like a Marshall, Fender, Mesa Boogie or Vox. The Tone Master Deluxe sounds like a Fender Deluxe, which is ok. The Special can really nail both clean and high gain sounds. The deep editing on the Special is a generation ahead of the Tone Master. I use a 32" HD monitor at home with my computer when doing editing so the graphic user interface is really clear. That is the way to do editing. You can do a lot of editing on the front panel of the amp. However, the graphic user interface on the computer gives a detailed visual which is intuitive. There is no editing for the Tone Master. You can get results in seconds but only the simplest parameters are adjustable. The Tone Master is a fine amp if you want something simple. The only tricky part of the Tone Master is doing a USB upgrade from the Fender website. It is quick but very awkward. I had to put the amp on my bed, face down, with a spotlight on the USB jack, because it is on the underside of the panel, connect the cable between the amp and computer and follow the printed instructions and screen prompts. It worked but it was an ordeal. The Special has the USB jack on the back of the amp where it is conveniently visible without the acrobatics required for the Tone Master. I use both amps. The Special is the superior product. The fact that Boss had Eric Johnson advising on sound properties during R&D guarantees that the sound will be first rate.
Yeah I’m in the same position. I’ve got a Mk2 Katana 100 but love the options in the Nextone Special, especially with the types of power ‘valves’. Huge advantage! Great demo though 🙌
I have not played the Nextone Artist but I am familiar with the Katana Artist which has the upgraded Waza Craft Speaker (as does the Nextone Special). The Waza makes a huge difference between the KTN Artisit and the KTN 100, so I can only imagine that it would make a significant difference between the NXT Special and the NXT Artist. Special also has the ability to switch EQ between "American" and "British" voicings which makes a huge difference in the ability to shape the sound to your liking.
Hard to say until I've had a little more time on the Nextone. My initial thought is that if you are the type of player that likes to use your own pedal set up and get a few really great tones and distortions from your amp, that the Nextone is the way to go. The Katana Artist is an awesome amp. If you are a guy with a lot of pedals the Artist is probably overkill. I would go for the artist if I wanted to reduce the amount of external gear that I wanted to use. Having said that, I have used the artist with a fairly extensive pedal set up and with minimal onboard fx and the things sounds amazing for about $300 less than the Nextone...
@@PACK-ge5gu haha its been a while, in a place where i live they were out of stock (i preordered it and just waited for them to arrive from Japan, but a month passed and there was no news, so i cancelled it). After that i just got a bit more money and got Boss GT-1000 with 2 Yamaha HS-7 speakers. GT-1000 is great, i have no complaints, you can lose yourself for a long time doing some magic with tones with this thing.
The Nextone Special is far superior to the Katana amps. The Roland Blues Cubes had real wood cabinets, poplar. The Katana amps are all MDF, not designed for tuned sound with cheaper speakers. The Nextone Special is first rate design and components all the way, tuned cabinets with the WazaCraft speakers. The Special with the deep editing via computer screen is what a professional musician can use to dial in sound exactly and save the the patches in user presets. Even if you are not a pro, the Special has it all. I have a a couple of Blues Cubes, a Katana, a Special and a Fender Tone Master Deluxe (Pine cab). The 1st place Special beats them all. Next in terms of sound quality is the Blues Cubes; Blues Cube Hot (6V6) and Blues Cube Hot British EL84 Modified. Then Fender Tone Master (with the upgrades from the Fender website via USB). The Katana amps are in last place in that group in terms of sound quality. The beauty of the Blues Cubes is that it gives you the tube sounds right out of the box. Playing those amps on stage, getting overdrive with a bit of harmonically musical feedback, everybody thought I was playing a tube amp. The Special gives you that and many more musical options, especially with the deep editing. The Special is what you use for stage and recording, effects loop, (IR). The Tone Master also is good for stage and recording (IR). The Blues Cubes good for stage, no IR, no effects loop. Katana for cottage. In conclusion; Be in the room with the amp. Don't rely on the demo you hear over computer speakers.
Wow, thanks for that excellent insight much appreciated! I also own a Blues Cube Artist and added the Ultimate Blues tone capsule (mimics 6V6's). The BC Artist does have an FX loop and dual channels. I have a couple of Blues Cube Hots, love 'em! The Katana Artist does sport a Waza Craft speaker and there is a notable tonal difference between the KT Artist and the other Katana Models.
Great video!
Best review I have seen, you sold me, I thank you, my wife not so much !
this was more of just a conversation about the amp. PLAY that moma faakaa !!
nice review, really cool amp :)
No mic in front of the speaker? No sound from the XLR out on the back? Just a room mic a few feet away? This doesn't really do much to show what the amp is capable of. I appreciate the video but if you take the time to mic it and hook up the XLR out, then demo the sound of each and the sound of them combined it will be much appreciated and give a better representation of what the amp is capable of.
Noted. This was really more of an "unboxing" type of vid. I had been waiting months for the amp to come in and only had it out of the box for about an hour. I know there was next to nothing out there on UA-cam at the time so I wanted to do something that was fairly quick and easy that went over the main features of the amp. Thanks for the input :-)
I appreciate the layed back video format. This is what the amp is going to sound like in a room jamming with friends. Informative as well
@@gavinlay8862 true
Great video! I was looking at this vs the Tone Master deluxe reverb and I think I might be sold on this one.
I have both amps. The Special is a far better amp. I do like the Tone Master. It is a good amp. However, the Special has so many advantages. First you have separate effects for each channel for the Special. Then there is the deep editing capability, and memory presets when you dial in patches you want to save. The Tone Master emulates a 6V6 tube and with a Fender Tone Stack The Special gives you 6V6, 6L6, EL84, EL34 with either British or Fender Tone Stacks in each channel. The Special has delay as well as reverb. The Delay has 3 types: Digital, Tape, Analog. The Reverb has: Spring, Plate, Hall. The Special has 4 times the power, but can also run at 0.5 watts in A/B power amp mode. The Special has an effects loop. The Special has a 6 button footswitch for complete control quickly for stage work. The Special can sound like a Marshall, Fender, Mesa Boogie or Vox. The Tone Master Deluxe sounds like a Fender Deluxe, which is ok. The Special can really nail both clean and high gain sounds. The deep editing on the Special is a generation ahead of the Tone Master. I use a 32" HD monitor at home with my computer when doing editing so the graphic user interface is really clear. That is the way to do editing. You can do a lot of editing on the front panel of the amp. However, the graphic user interface on the computer gives a detailed visual which is intuitive. There is no editing for the Tone Master. You can get results in seconds but only the simplest parameters are adjustable. The Tone Master is a fine amp if you want something simple. The only tricky part of the Tone Master is doing a USB upgrade from the Fender website. It is quick but very awkward. I had to put the amp on my bed, face down, with a spotlight on the USB jack, because it is on the underside of the panel, connect the cable between the amp and computer and follow the printed instructions and screen prompts. It worked but it was an ordeal. The Special has the USB jack on the back of the amp where it is conveniently visible without the acrobatics required for the Tone Master. I use both amps. The Special is the superior product. The fact that Boss had Eric Johnson advising on sound properties during R&D guarantees that the sound will be first rate.
Brother, thanks so much for the excellent insight! Really appreciated!
Yeah I’m in the same position. I’ve got a Mk2 Katana 100 but love the options in the Nextone Special, especially with the types of power ‘valves’. Huge advantage! Great demo though 🙌
I've heard this sounds better than my Nextone Artist. Is this true?
I have not played the Nextone Artist but I am familiar with the Katana Artist which has the upgraded Waza Craft Speaker (as does the Nextone Special). The Waza makes a huge difference between the KTN Artisit and the KTN 100, so I can only imagine that it would make a significant difference between the NXT Special and the NXT Artist. Special also has the ability to switch EQ between "American" and "British" voicings which makes a huge difference in the ability to shape the sound to your liking.
Which one would you recommend, the katana artist or this one?
Hard to say until I've had a little more time on the Nextone. My initial thought is that if you are the type of player that likes to use your own pedal set up and get a few really great tones and distortions from your amp, that the Nextone is the way to go. The Katana Artist is an awesome amp. If you are a guy with a lot of pedals the Artist is probably overkill. I would go for the artist if I wanted to reduce the amount of external gear that I wanted to use. Having said that, I have used the artist with a fairly extensive pedal set up and with minimal onboard fx and the things sounds amazing for about $300 less than the Nextone...
@@ontrackmaster thanks for the answer! I've already ordered the artist but now with new nextone special videos i was starting to waver a bit
@@ElvisDman how do you like the artist?
@@PACK-ge5gu haha its been a while, in a place where i live they were out of stock (i preordered it and just waited for them to arrive from Japan, but a month passed and there was no news, so i cancelled it). After that i just got a bit more money and got Boss GT-1000 with 2 Yamaha HS-7 speakers. GT-1000 is great, i have no complaints, you can lose yourself for a long time doing some magic with tones with this thing.
Best review on UA-cam I’ve seen of this product. I love how you started with all the knobs at 12 o clock.