I heard high praise for the Milwaukee 2590-20 M12 Worksite Radio. Incorporating DSP technology, its FM was supposed to be stellar in spite of a measly 6.5-inch rubber-coated telescopic antenna.
My radio, costing $99 with free shipping on Amazon, arrived yesterday. I took the small radio out of the box. Yes, it's small, measuring 7 inches in height and 10.5 inches across. With Gotham City flares and a unabashed red color, a construction worker should be able to spot it amidst the dust and rubble of a jobsite.
The first thing I had to do was get a Phillips screwdriver and remove the back-up battery compartment on the bottom. A single AAA battery keeps time and presets when the radio isn't powered.
I played a few stations around 8 P.M. and was impressed that the weak KPCC 89.3 came in loud and clear regardless of the position of the FM antenna. Was it the DSP technology compensating for the lack of antenna size? I can't say for sure. Other FM stations came in loud and clear with the exception of 88.9 KXLU, perhaps the weakest station on the dial. The DSP proved futile in the face of this lethargic college radio station and I got a lot of static. So for hard-to-find stations, let's be clear: The 2590-20 is no FM powerhouse like the Grundig/Eton S350DL or the C Crane CSW. But to be fair, I don't listen to 88.9 and I'm sure the 2590-20 will meet 99% of people's FM needs.
On AM, I got excellent reception but, ironically enough, the strongest AM station 640 showed up with a little background hum. Rotating the radio minimized the unwelcome sound, but I could still hear it. Go figure.
The speaker sounded loud and clear. I was very happy with the sound on both music and talk. So far so good.
But then the presets. They're a drag. The same odious presets on the C Crane CSW, which I had just happily sold. You get 10 presets (numerals 0-9) for both AM and FM. But there are no individual preset buttons, just one preset toggler that you scroll and you can only scroll upward. This isn't a pure preset system. This should have an industry-wide name. Call it SEMI-PRESETS. So readers be warned.
Comparing the Milwuakee 2590-20 to the Tivoli PAL
I decided to wait until the next morning and compare the Milwaukee Worksite radio to another commonly used "on-the-job" radio, my analog Tivoli PAL. I also wanted to see differences in day and nighttime reception.
Funny, the notorious aforementioned KXLU came in with surprising clarity on both the 2590 and the PAL. I'd give a slight FM edge to the 2590, which grabbed 89.3 with no antenna adjustment. With the analog PAL, you spend a lot more time locking in FM stations.
AM was almost a draw. I got slightly better reception on 640 with the PAL, but the 2590 had better reception on 710 ESPN. Also I should add here that background noise on 640 was less evident in the morning than it was last night. Other AM stations were about equal. Both radios barely received 1260, which on a scale of 1-10 I ranked a 4 for both. In contrast, using my Sangean PR-D5, with a 200mm ferrite, as a benchmark, I ranked 1260 with a 9 score.
Both the PAL and the 2590 are capable performers on both AM and FM and should meet most workers' reception needs.
Both the PAL and the 2590 have an auxiliary for playing an iPod or some other MP3 player. The PAL has a headphone jack; the 2590 does not. The 2590 has SEMI-PRESETS and the PAL does not. Let me say, the worst thing about the PAL is finding stations and locking them in.
Speaker Sound
While the 2590 gets loud and sounds good on both talk and music, I have to say it fell short of the PAL sound. The music tones were far warmer and richer on the PAL. Of course, sound is subjective, but there was a bit of tin and chilliness in the 2590 that I might not have noticed had I not done a side by side sound comparison with the PAL. However, in general the 2590 produces a lot of sound for such a small radio and I believe it will meet most people's listening needs. Also, the 2590 has an equalizer, which the PAL does not, and the cold tones may be the result of too much treble. I got up from my computer just now, reduced the treble and did "warm up" the 2590's sound a bit.
Price
The PAL comes with a rechargeable battery but the price is $220 on Amazon.
The $99 2590 does not include the M12 12-Volt Lithium-Ion, which costs about $40. Also you must by the 12 V charger, which costs another $44. So with a slightly better speaker sound, is the analog PAL worth $42 more than the 2590? Putting myself in the shoes of a construction worker, I'd buy the digital Milwaukee 2590 over the PAL unless I could find a new PAL for $150 or so.
I'd give the 2590 five stars if it had a better preset system, so 4 stars. Milwaukee 2590-20 M12 Radio
My compliments to the exhaustive comparative and contrasting discussion of the the previous reviewer. Having said that, one cannot have too high of expectations of a radio designed to get beat up, and costs a mere $99. I own an a Tivoli Audio product, the iPal, and I put these two radios in totally different leagues. A worksite radio, a dedicated worksite radio that is, is designed to do two things: 1) Play loud, and 2) do so in a harsh environment. I believe the Milwaukee does both reasonably well. The Tivoli iPal? Well, it sits on my desk and plays beautiful public radio offerings.
The only other worksite-type radio I have to compare the Milwaukee 2590 to is my second generation Bosch Power Box. Instead of the cheesy 6' wire aerial, I held out for the rubber duck style antenna. When I think of Bosch, I think of the phrase, "You may find better, but you'll never pay less," phrase. Knowing Bosch's history of fine German engineering, I will say that their Model 4410 10" SCM saw is if not the best, the heaviest. As an aftermarket accessory, I sprang for the while plastic pod that attaches to the side for protecting my various iPods.
The 2590's sound is adequate and the styling is very attractive. I like the front hatch area for stowing my iPod Touch when I want to play tunes through the radio, especially when working in basements or other areas that are not so RF signal friendly. If one keeps the radio's utility use in mind, then I'd have no probem recommending it to a friend, no problem at all.
My only criticism of the Milwaukee 2590 radio is that although there is a 12V power supply (it's one of those ugly black cube thing transformers that plug into the wall), someone at Milwaukee totally forgot to design the unit to charge an M12 battery at the same time as the radio is playing off AC power. Like the dual 110AC/18V new-ish Dewalt fluorescent work area light, you can either run off battery until it dies, or you can plug the unit in and run off shore power, but you can't charge an M12 battery.
For me, this single lack of battery charging issue keeps the Milwaukee 2590 worksite radio from getting all five stars. Other than that, the 2590 is the Mini Cooper of jobsite tune shooters.
That's what I think. - Portable Audio - Cordless Tools - M12 - Boombox'
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