“All the main food groups of electric guitar tone… The sounds are stellar”: Line 6 Catalyst CX 60 review

To call the Line 6 Catalyst CX 60 a guitar amp feels insufficient, a bit like referring to the latest iPhone as just a plain old telephone.

Sure, Line 6 has done its best to make this Catalyst series combo look and feel like a regular amp: the chickenhead dials on the control panel, the familiar three-band EQ, presence, a master volume, buttons for changing between two channels. It is a good looking amp, tidily assembled.

But this is very much a 2024 amplifier: digital, lightweight, packing a dozen amp voicings and 24 effects from Line 6’s industry-standard Helix modelling tech, a single 12” 60-watt driver in an open-back cabinet, and functionality out of the wazoo. Each of the amps has its own boost.

There’s a noise gate, onboard guitar tuner, an effects loop that allows you to bypass the preamp and run your pedalboard/preamp pedals through the power amp. There’s MIDI connectivity via USB, deep editing for all your sounds and presets via the user-friendly Catalyst Edit app, and you can use it as a guitar audio interface, too.

All of this is great. But amps live and die by their tones. Each of the six amp categories – Clean, Boutique, Chime, Crunch, Dynamic and Hi Gain – has two voicings and they cover all the main food groups of electric guitar tone, from spanky Fender-style cleans, sauced with a splash of spring reverb, through AC/DC crunch, ’80s hard rock and über metal.

Such are the array of sounds, the more adventurous player will have much room to explore – sonic extremists should find the octave-down synth a particular highlight.

It is more expensive than, say, the Boss Katana-50 Gen III, which retails at $229/£199 street, and you could make the case that price determines which is the better deal as a practice runabout.

But there are Line 6 acolytes who will tell you the sounds don’t get better than this, that this Catalyst combo is more than a practice amp. It’s hard to argue with them. The sounds are stellar. This is a convincing amp, and with its onboard attenuator, it is ideal for practice, too.

There are so many options. So many that we can’t help feel that a display screen would make it easier to use, but if you get your deep edits done on the Catalyst Edit app, then save them to your presets, you should have everything you need at the touch of a button – or via the optional LFS2 footswitch ($39/£44, sold separately).

Specs

• PRICE: $299/£293
• TYPE: Digital modelling combo
• SPEAKER: 1x12” Catalyst HC60 60-watt
• CONTROLS: Channel Bank Select Buttons, Selector, Boost/Gate, Gain, Bass, Mid, Treble, Presence, Channel Volume, Effect 1, Effect 2, Master Volume, Tap Tempo/Tuner, 4-way attenuator [on rear] for full, half 1-watt and mute
• CONNECTIVITY: XLR line output w/ground lift, MIDI, USB, 1/4” headphones out, aux in, effects loop w/ switch for power amp input
• WEIGHT: 18.9kg
• DIMENSIONS: 488 x 694 x 262 mm
• CONTACT: Line 6