This is one of the most stunning Bluetooth speakers I've ever tested — there's just one problem

When I’m testing a Bluetooth speaker, the first thing I evaluate is sound quality. Before battery, before looks, before features, before anything else, I want to know whether it sounds good. That all went out of the window with the Dali Katch G2.

First impressions matter, and from the moment I pulled the Katch from the box I knew I had something special on my hands. A wonderful design that looks different to nearly everything else in the testing room? Count me in, I can’t wait to see how the speaker sounds…until I saw the US price.

Since those first impressions, I’ve given the Katch G2 a proper road test to see just how well it performs beyond its stunning design. If you’re outside of the US, you’ve got an excellent portable musical companion — for those who live stateside, you might want to look elsewhere for something a little cheaper.

Dali Katch G2 review: Price and availability

• Well-priced in the UK and EU
• It’s going to sting more in the US

Where I live, in the land of Fish & Chips, the Dali Katch G2 is £299. It’s not cheap, but neither is it completely out of reach. That’s slightly more than the similarly specced UE MegaBoom 3, but it’s £100 less than the Bose SoundLink Max.

But then we hop on a transatlantic flight to the US, where the MSRP is $599 and some retailers like Best Buy sell it for $700, and it's a lot harder to stomach. Amazon is also selling the Dali Katch G2 for $700, and it looks like the price recently increased from $599, so it could be tariff related.

That’s now more than twice the price of the equivalent Boom speaker in the US, and the Bose Soundlink Max is $200 to $300 less. That’s a lot of money. In fact, it's more than even the Sonos Move 2, a speaker that features WiFi — at $150 less.

Dali Katch G2 review: Design and Build

• Lovely metal accents
• Leather strap
• Slick design

When I first laid my hands on the Dali Katch G2 at the Bristol HiFi show, I was immediately impressed with the build quality of the speaker. There’s a reassuring heft to the device, presumably thanks to the premium plastic grilles and lovely metal accents that adorn the speaker.

Getting it out of the box, that feeling remained perfectly intact. It’s a heavy little speaker, and thanks to that metal construction it feels much better built than most speakers that you might put it up against. The metal is what pushes it over the build quality edge here, feeling even higher quality than the Sonos Move 2.

The design of the speaker is good as well. I think it would happily fit into any room in the house, thanks to its Danish-made design. It’s a flat design that stands up on rubber feet so that it doesn’t slip around. You might think it could topple over — but unless you give it a really big push, there’s unlikely to be any issue with the speaker falling down in everyday use.

The best bit though is the leather handle. It’s hidden away most of the time, but then it simply slides out when you need it and it clicks into place. You wouldn’t even know it was there when it's tucked away in the speaker itself, and then it makes taking the speaker around the house or to parties much easier.

There are a couple of things to note: There’s no dust or water resistance, so it definitely feels like an indoor speaker rather than one to take outside for use next to the pool, or at the beach. There’s also small rubber stopper to stop water getting into the charging port, but that’s all that's preventing the speaker from getting waterlogged.

Dali Katch G2 review: Controls

• Simple controls
• No app control
• Physical buttons

Across the top edge of the Katch G2, you’ll find the speaker’s controls. They’re easy enough to follow — there’s a Bluetooth connection button, a power button, volume up and down and then an EQ button.

They’re all positively clicky, and each button does exactly what you’d expect. That’s it! Beyond skipping, pausing and changing volume on the connected device, there’s no other way to control the speaker. No app, no extra controller. It’s refreshingly simple, but there’s a hitch...

Dali Katch G2 review: Features

• No app
• Epic battery life
• An AUX port

Thanks to the lack of app control, there’s no way to change the EQ beyond the ‘Bass’ and ‘HiFi’ presets that Dali has provided you with. Now, they’re both very good presets, and it’s likely that you won’t mind too much when you use the speaker, but it’s an omission that’s not found on speakers from UE and even Bose.

The lack of an app doesn’t get rid of Bluetooth 5.0 benefits like Auracast, however — grab another Katch G2, and you can connect the two together for stereo sound. (If you’ve got $1,089 lying around, of course. I suspect not. If you do, you should probably look at the Cambridge Audio Evo One instead.)

Dali has chosen to keep things simple with the Katch G2, and I don’t think that’s any great shame. The lack of an app is a sting, but the battery life is exemplary: 30 hours means that it lasts longer than the Bose Soundlink Max’s 20 hours, and even more than the Sonos Move 2’s 24 hours.

Want to get juiced up quickly if you’re in a hurry? No problem, it’ll only take a couple of hours to go from 0 to 100 percent. It is a shame there’s no fast charge that might net you some battery from a five minute charge, but 2 hours isn’t that long to wait.

Although you won’t be charging with USB-C, instead, you’re going to need to use the included power brick which uses a barrel jack. If that dies or if you lose it, you’re going to need a new one; and they’re $49 from Dali.

One connector plus is the AUX connector though. Remember those!? A physical connection to your speaker? I do, and I love it. Perfect if you’ve got an older iPod to hook up, or if you’ve got a phone with a 3.5mm jack.

Dali Katch G2 review: Sound Quality

• Controlled low-end
• Delicate top-end
• Well-rounded sound signature

Dali isn’t about making a statement with its sound. It’s about sonic control, and understated quality that gets you into the groove without pummeling you into submission. It’s an effortless presentation, and as a result, the Dali Katch G2 excels at most genres.

The midrange is wonderfully smooth and well-represented and doesn’t suffer from any kind of over-layering. The soundstage is remarkably stable, in fact, and there’s great instrument separation to make sure that things don’t get blurred together.

Some might find the bass lacking, but they’d be looking in the wrong place. There’s plenty of low-end, especially if you hit the EQ button for the ‘bass’ preset, and it’s beautifully well controlled and well defined. It’s not going to rock your socks off, but it lends extra warmth to make sure things don’t become overly analytical.

The highs are detailed, with plenty of clarity and brightness. Cymbals and other high-range sounds are great, with plenty of energy. It all adds up together for an easy listen — one that’s not too harsh on any one part of the frequency range. There might not be customizable EQ, but with sound this good, you won’t mind.

My test tracks came from Qobuz, one of the best streaming music services around, thanks to its hi-res streaming. The Katch uses aptX HD for streaming for a maximum bitrate of 576 kbps — which isn’t quite as good as LDAC's 990 kbps — but not a deal breaker.

Each guitar pick in Just To See You Smile from Tim McGraw is crystal clear, never getting overtaken by the rest of the ensemble. McGraw croons with his southern lilt, smooth and instantly recognizable. The bass is well defined too, and the violins dance across the top. Those violins often have a tendency to get blended into the rest of the track — not so with the Katch. Everything is present and correct.

If you want to feel the bass hit more, then Them Changes is a great way to go. Thundercat’s chunky bassline is well produced by the Katch, and while it might not go as low as the likes of the UE or Bose alternatives, it's a whole lot more musical and more fun to listen to.

Overall the Katch is more controlled, and while less bassy, a whole lot more sonically impressive than the likes of the Bose SoundLink Max and the UE MegaBoom 4. But then, when it costs this much more, you’d hope so.

Dali Katch G2 review: Verdict

For £299, the Dali Katch G2 is one of the best Bluetooth speakers that more than justifies its slightly higher price. With sound that rivals the more expensive Sonos option, battery life that conquers all, and a wonderful metal build quality, £299 doesn’t feel too expensive at all for the package at hand.

Yet, in the States, that $599 tag hangs over the speaker like a monetary sword of Damocles. I can’t, in good conscience, say that it’s a good buy at that price. It sounds excellent, it’s built incredibly well, and it features a stunning industrial design — but $599 (or $700 at retailers like Amazon and Best Buy) is simply too much.

This is a speaker for the most ardent sound quality fan. For everyone else, you might want to take your money and buy something from UE or Bose. Will they sound as good? Absolutely not, and you’ll not get that super premium design. But you'll get most of the way there and still have a little bit of money left over in your pocket when you’re done.

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