Boss Nextone Special Guitar Amplifier Combo

Less effects than a Katana, but better tones that are just that much closer to real tube tone. It is still just slightly wetter and compressed than a tube amp, but this amp still sounds really good and is very loud. I have a Katana and a Headrush set up, both of which I enjoy for different reasons, but the Nextone Special gives me the most realistic Fender and Marshall tones.( I typically use Teles and play with clean country and jazz tones to a gritty Danny Gatton-ish) I also need a Jeff Beck/Eric Johnson tonal setup but haven't had the amp long enough to see if it will deliver that for me.The 3 presets are great and the basic boost, reverb and delay effects are just what I would typically use. It also handles pedals very well. I hooked up an EP boost, delay, ... MoreLess effects than a Katana, but better tones that are just that much closer to real tube tone. It is still just slightly wetter and compressed than a tube amp, but this amp still sounds really good and is very loud. I have a Katana and a Headrush set up, both of which I enjoy for different reasons, but the Nextone Special gives me the most realistic Fender and Marshall tones.( I typically use Teles and play with clean country and jazz tones to a gritty Danny Gatton-ish) I also need a Jeff Beck/Eric Johnson tonal setup but haven't had the amp long enough to see if it will deliver that for me.The 3 presets are great and the basic boost, reverb and delay effects are just what I would typically use. It also handles pedals very well. I hooked up an EP boost, delay, various overdrives, chorus etc. and the amp responded well to them all. With the power settings, power tube selections, 2 channels, 3 presets and effects it pretty close the perfect for my needs.

A little tweaking, and wow!

Overall:I don't write many reviews, but this amp is something, uh...special. I recently sold a bunch of tube amps and use modelers at church to accommodate our silent stage setup. I have a large collection of various guitars, and I wanted one amp for home, and possibly for gigging, that was versatile, sounded great, was a credible replacement for my previous tube amps, and was reasonably easy to use. I was drawn to the Nextone Special because of all of the front panel knobs. While that got me 80% where I wanted to be, the excellent computer-based application editor got me pretty close to 100% happy.My go-to tones are Marshall-based, Fender-based, Vox-based, and, occasionally, Mesa Boogie-based. And yes, they are ALL in here, yet with some surprises. One of the most ... MoreOverall:I don't write many reviews, but this amp is something, uh...special. I recently sold a bunch of tube amps and use modelers at church to accommodate our silent stage setup. I have a large collection of various guitars, and I wanted one amp for home, and possibly for gigging, that was versatile, sounded great, was a credible replacement for my previous tube amps, and was reasonably easy to use. I was drawn to the Nextone Special because of all of the front panel knobs. While that got me 80% where I wanted to be, the excellent computer-based application editor got me pretty close to 100% happy.My go-to tones are Marshall-based, Fender-based, Vox-based, and, occasionally, Mesa Boogie-based. And yes, they are ALL in here, yet with some surprises. One of the most magical elements to this amp is the power section. Not only are the power tube emulations very credible, but the bottom and top adjustments (high pass and low pass respectively) make the difference in taking great tones from the preamp section and making them almost perfect. Low end a little flubby? Then bring up the bottom control to tighten things up. Top-end a little too raspy? Just increase the top control and its smooth sailing. Using these controls is easy and super-effective...and all recallable from the presets.Marshall tones are relatively easy to dial in, and the key is in the bottom and top controls in the power section as mentioned above (using EL34 emulation of course). Vox is also relatively easy to get to with EL84 selected. I had to work on the Fender sounds a bit as my Silver Sky seemed to emphasize a nasty mid-frequency, which, in the computer-based editor, was a breeze to locate and dial out. Amazing.One of the surprises was found when trying to get the clean channel to overdrive. It is hard to do...until you bring the output power down and crank the master. There it is! And it is really good. If you want a tone of headroom, then you can get that too. Just run it on full power and engage the extra headroom switch if you so desire. Amazing pedal platform if you so desire.The next surprise was how good the Mesa Boogie tones can be gotten. The trick is to use the clean channel on an otherwise fairly American setting (EQ and power section) and then use the computer-based editor so that the boost is the Metal variant. Whoa - it totally chugs and is very musical. I was about to purchase an outboard pedal to get this sound before I tried this technique, and it is outstanding.The amp is amazing. Built like a tank as any Boss product is, and it sounds incredible. I wanted a single amp that works with all my (20) guitars and would inspire me to go into my home office/studio and just play for hours, and this has achieved that. I have read where some folks have been put off by the need to use your computer for deep editing. I understand that to some degree and, while the amp is excellent without those tweaks, it is simply incredible when you do use the editor. And it is super user-friendly. With the ability to store presets, you could very easily get things set up the way you want for a gig using the computer and then add the footswitch to access your tones at the gig.This is an amazing amp and scratches a big itch between the digital modeling world and the tube amp world. Buy one before Boss realizes they should be charging more. It's that good.

As a tube snob, surprised and delighted with the Nextone.

I'm pretty impressed with this amp. I've owned a lot of really highly regarded tube amps... I currently own a 70s Marshall JMP 2203 half stack and a Fender Super Reverb Reissue (rewired by Alessandro), so I have a couple great examples of stellar tone. I've been waiting a long time for a solid state combo to come along and rival a good tube combo, and now I think tubes are in trouble! Just didn't think it would be Boss who came out with a combo like this. I'd assumed Fractal, Kemper or Line6 would be first. Of course Fender's doing great with their Tonemaster series, but I love that this Boss is it's own thing, has more versatility, and let's you decide what style amp you want it to be. The speaker is surprisingly versatile and lets the amp be a chameleon.Overall, ... MoreI'm pretty impressed with this amp. I've owned a lot of really highly regarded tube amps... I currently own a 70s Marshall JMP 2203 half stack and a Fender Super Reverb Reissue (rewired by Alessandro), so I have a couple great examples of stellar tone. I've been waiting a long time for a solid state combo to come along and rival a good tube combo, and now I think tubes are in trouble! Just didn't think it would be Boss who came out with a combo like this. I'd assumed Fractal, Kemper or Line6 would be first. Of course Fender's doing great with their Tonemaster series, but I love that this Boss is it's own thing, has more versatility, and let's you decide what style amp you want it to be. The speaker is surprisingly versatile and lets the amp be a chameleon.Overall, for the price I paid (on sale), this amp is a keeper!

BOSS nextone special

I bought this because I was so impressed with the Waza Air setup. I still can quite get the same sound from the Boss nextone special but I'm working on it. Shame the footswitch isn't included but I was warned. This bit of kit looks cool and complicated, its not complicated but it is cool. Great tones from the presets and lots of options on the footswitch. The Tube logic tech is amazing and doesn't get hot, pop or crackle. Brilliant. Keep up the good work.

Holy Moly!!!

I gave this thing a good beating this morning with my single coil V Mod Strat, Shawbucker Strat, and my Gibson Les Paul Sutdio. I needed a good solid state for my teaching studio that I could turn down and still get a good sound. I have owned and also just played many nice and not so nice tube amps but never a "nice" solid state amp. This this is really cool and I would bring it as a backup and maybe even gig with it. I am blown away to be honest, and it takes a lot for me to say that. It has close to real tube feel for sure. If you spend a little time dialing it in and turn off all the boosters and let the amp do it's thing, it will sing for you. ;-)

Love it

Sounds fantastic. The ability to modify and call up as presets 4 different amp oresets with 2 channels each...its basically an 8 channel amp. This is a problem solver, its got the attenuation, its got the computer access to a lot more than just the face plate. You can add overdrive to a boost for example (trust me its powerful). It is solid state, so go ahead, drag it behind your truck to the gig, it will be fine. Its awesome, if you are on the fence on this, jump over, you wont be sorry.

Nextone Special + Special Editor + GA-FC = Tone Solution

With the amp's external controls, you are only able to get a passable tone; however, once you hook up the Nextone Special Editor, this amp can be tweaked into greatness setting the Bias and Sag controls, pre- and post-EQing, and editing its reverb tone. It loves my pedal board, too!

Surprisingly versatile

I found the Nextone Special a very tonally versatile amp. The tube modeling is for real and gives you very different charachteristics of response. I love the fact that you can dial in your exact tone and then, like a car radio, save that preset and call it up at awill.

Unique, feature filled amp with great sound

Let's get straight to it: you like digital for recording test tracks and for convenience. But you play live and something is missing. Ah, right, analog sound. Wouldn't be great to have an analog amp that sounds similar to tube amps, has modern features, some basic effects (boost, OD, distortion, delays w/ optional modulation, and reverb), and at a reasonable weight and cost? Welcome to the Nextone Special. You know the old pattern: the amp sounded great but I sure wish I could get it to *enter your desire here*. That's what the editor is for.