DALI Katch G2 Portable Bluetooth Speaker, Wireless, Compact, Outdoor Speaker, 30 Hours Playtime, With Fabric Dust Cap, Pressure Level 95 dB, Chilly Blue

Product Information

KATCH comes in a choice of three colours – Cloud Grey, Moss Green and Dark Shadow, the latter a sort of bluey/grey shade that adorned my test sample. If truth be told, it isn’t the most electrifying selection of colours – the speaker equivalent of GAP clothing – but all three look perfectly tasteful. Drivers 4x 50W Class-D amplifiers, 4x 11.5cm passive drivers, 4x 9cm low-frequency drivers, 2x 21mm tweeters If all you have to say on the subject of a tiny portable speaker is that it contains some leather on a forum thats set up for reviewing sound and the overall quality of an item then I'm afraid your opinion isn't worth noting.

DALI KATCH G2 | award-winning portable speaker | DALI Loudspeakers DALI KATCH G2 | award-winning portable speaker | DALI

We switch to Pandemonium by Masked Wolf, and the jangling of keys and unbolting of prison cell bars are jagged and impactful through the treble. These are expertly separated from the hard-hitting hip-hop beat too, proving the Dali doesn’t scrimp on veracity or grip when it comes to the low notes, either. Old favourite “Blue In Green” by Miles Davis is an absolute treat in that respect – Coltrane’s sax lines are solid and substantial, but they’re also laced with silky, expressive detail. Treble reproduction is smooth and refined, making hi-hats sound like they’re being played rather than spat out. The most striking aspect of the KATCH’s design is the sheer slimness of the cabinet – 47mm to be precise. That makes it compact and easy to carry around, despite the inherent heft of the high-quality cabinet. There’s a leather carry handle at one end that slides away from the main body, which not only aids portability, but also looks nice when stowed away. What jumps out is how loud it plays. Hold down the volume “+” key and it just keeps going up and up and up. Before you know it there’s a huge, authoritative sound filling the room, with none of the chuffing or hardness you’d normally associate with a cheap Bluetooth speaker. It holds its composure with ease; the sound remains clear and focused.The speaker’s fully digital Class-D amp musters 2 x 25W of power. There’s a Bluetooth 4.0 receiver with high-quality aptX streaming from compatible devices and, thanks to NFC, owners of Android phones will save themselves precious seconds when pairing. If you’re in the market for a superb-sounding Bluetooth speaker, and money is no object, then I haven’t heard many better performers than the DALI KATCH. Its ability to produce a powerful, detailed and composed sound from a slender cabinet is nothing short of miraculous, while lengthy battery life, suave design and fuss-free operation further justify the price tag. Having seen DALI’s jaw-dropping full-size speakers, it comes as no surprise that KATCH is a beautifully designed unit. Its pill-shaped aluminium cabinet oozes class, with a glinting chamfered edge lending a little razzle dazzle. The main body feels remarkably solid too, the use of aluminium and ABS/polycarbonate baffles allowing DALI’s engineers to create a structure that maximises internal volume without compromising on rigidity. The original DALI Katch was one of the best Bluetooth speakers in its class. The Katch G2 takes all that’s great about the original – great sound, unique style and long battery life – and makes it even better. Improvements to the sound, connectivity and battery life simply make the best better still.

DALI Katch review | What Hi-Fi? DALI Katch review | What Hi-Fi?

Running along the top edge are five firm, responsive buttons that govern volume, power, Bluetooth pairing and sound modes (more on those later). Four lights surround the standby button, which light up incrementally to indicate the volume level, as well as denoting the sound mode, pairing and power status.

Meanwhile, the dual 3.5-inch woofers use a specially designed chassis, inverted aluminium membranes and special spider suspension. These may sound like comic book super powers but they’re actually things that help produce the bass of a traditional woofer within the confines of the shallow cabinet. The woofers are reinforced by two 73 x 52mm passive bass radiators. It’s worth noting that there’s no scope for further wireless daisy-chaining of multiple Dali Katch G2 speakers, which is a much-loved feature of JBL speakers thanks to their PartyBoost button. The Danish-made Dali Katch is possibly the best of the lot, though, at least in terms of the way it sounds. Dali Katch review: What you need to know This soundbar will make a delightful addition to your TV set up. The crisp, dynamic audio is far beyond what you’ll get from your flat panel and this is sonically superior to all of its similarly priced rivals. Just make sure you’ve got the space and inclination to position it properly.