The Milwaukee Job-site radio looks durable and tough like their power tools. It has an aggressive tool-style and produces great sound quality versus Bosch/Dewalt. It looks impressive in my workshop and the finish matches my Milwaukee tools. The only negatives are 1) large and heavy for what it offers (digital AM/FM tuner, 20 pre-sets, RockfordFosgate 3-level Punch EQ bass boost, 2 speaker system, auxilliary stereo jack & 12V output) and 2) does not achieve maximum total system power with 120V AC. It may not be too exciting for some owners as a non-job-site radio unless they are Milwaukee tool fans. The Makita job-site radio is more compact and not quite as durable-looking and lacks any extra "punch" options; however its compact size means I would probably bring the Makita to THE JOB-SITE.

This radio rocks! The "equalizer" button is basically a four stage bass boost that comes in handy for switching between different types of music and/or talk radio. The sound quality and reception is by far the best I've heard, and Ive heard them all. I also expect the weather proofing to outlast my buddies dewalt that suffered damage (due to water leakage) after 2 years of job-site use. Since Ive had it, this radio has been drenched in rain, frozen solid, and snowed on. Its tough enough by any standards. I gave it four stars because of the lack of a battery charger on board. All comparable radios with chargers emit interference when charging, so I understand why milaukee opted in favor of sound quality. If you have a charger and batteries for it there's no reason not to get one. Mine is outfitted with a v18 lith-ion battery and it will last nearly 20 hours cranked. Rock on!

This doesnt have a charger ,but i wasnt looking for one .Great Sounding heavy Duty Radio .Tremendous Value

Firstly, the radio is an awesome value even without the benefit of battery power. Very tough construction and sound is great. Thoughtfully designed bag and connections on back for accessories.
That being said, those who own Ridgid cordless 18v tools from Home Depot might be interested to know that their batteries will fit quite nicely (and perfectly snugly) within the battery compartment of this radio. With a couple of short pieces of wire (just enough length to connect with battery while it sits upon the opened compartment door)with male blade lugs crimped to one end and female lugs on the other, the Ridgid 18v battery will slide perfectly inside as long as the wires are formed in such a way as to curl to either side of the battery on its way into the compartment. Close the door and you're set. Be aware that when changing from ac to battery, the radio must be powered off and back on.
There is probably an easier connection method if thought is put into a homemade adapter plug, however, I've not bothered with another connection method or other battery brands since the wires work well enough and Ridgid tools are what I own.

I own Milwaukee, Dewalt, Bosch Power Box. Milwaukee has the best sound by far. Even if you do not already own a Milwaukee battery you should consider this radio. You do not need the battery. It has great sound and is very well made and the carry pouch on back is very handy to have. It is just plain built tough. Works easily with MP3 players or portable cd players. I have used mine on job site for two years now with no problems. My wife uses one around house or yard in summertime. With Amazon's price you cannot go wrong.

Not bad but not great. The batteries are so expensive that you can't justify buying one unless you own a drill or something. I expected better reception from the previous reviews. It could use a CD player but I realize that they don't last in harsh environments. Probably not worth the high cost but it does the job well enough.

This radio has been a excellent source of entertainment while working allowing me to work longer and not get bored. The 12 volt outlet is indispensible because it allows me to keep my cellphone charged onsite. The auxillary port allows me to play my IPod selections while working. I don't have Milwaukee cordless tools so I don't use the battery power at all. I use DeWalt cordless tools but chose this radio for the sound quality and 12 volt outlet. This is one of the best investments dollar-for-dollar for me in terms of productivity value. I highly reccommed.

The radio is great, looks good, sounds good, the only thing I dont like is that you can only use tool type batteries & it don't charge them when pluged into house current

I found this for my sister to purchase for her boyfriend. It only lasted about 4 months and then it broke. The only repair shop was 50 miles away and she hasn't got it back yet. Big disappointment.

Got this for my workshop, like it a lot. Separates signals well, comes in loud and clear. The weather channels are a nice addition. Haven't used the 12-volt outlet yet, but I like the idea for MP3 players, cell phone charging, etc. All in all a fine product at a good price.

An overall great clean sounding radio, way better than the Bosch jobsite radio. I have the Bosch jobsite radio and it gets bad reception, and the sound coming out of the speakers is really not that great. Eventhough the Bosch has a cd player, the Milwaukee gets good reception and its Rockford Fosgate speakers sound much clearer with more bass. I would definitely recommened this radio to others.

It's a 40 watt Fosgate great sound it was billed out as a 28volt but the 28 volt battery won't fit it must be a 18 volt wrong labeling!!

There have been many reviews on this product, I won't waste anyone's time repeating what has already been said about the technical aspects of this product. Some of the reviewers seem a little confused and think they are reviewing a radio/battery charger and therefore find fault with this product because it doesn't contain a charger. To make it perfect I suppose I could suggest that it should charge and operate with my Craftsman, Kawasaki and Makita batteries but that just doesn't seem fair. What I bought is a tough job site radio with sound that rivals my wife's Bose wave radio. Typical Milwaukee quality. It does the job it was designed to do perfectly. Good reception, wonderful sound quality and tough as the Milwaukee framing nails I use in my nail gun.

O.K. I have had this radio for over a year now. It has been inside my remodeling project for most of the last year with the exception of the time is spent on the roof while I demolished the chimney and fixed the solar collector. It is so covered with dust from my plaster demolition work that you can't tell what color it is. I have to brush the debris off the display to see what station I am listening to. It gets used about 4 days a week and still works perfect. The switches and controls must be well sealed. When I bought the radio it was on sale for $55. I think it was a good value at that price. The one thing that surprised me about this radio is the weight. It weighs twice what I expected it to weigh. This isn't a complaint, just an observation. This thing isn't going to get blown off anything you set it on, when you set it down it stays put. Great product.

I did my homework prior to purchasing this radio and after looking at the other major brands I decided on the Milwaukee. It worked ok for about 35 days and then suddenly that was it; the only noise that it would make was a loud electrical buzz. After many emails and phone calls I was able to get it replaced with a new one. I have only had it for twenty days so I am not prepared to say that it is a durable product. It works ok but the reception is not as good as I would have hoped. All things considered, the radio is a little pricey relative to the quality.

I have been through several cheap "boom boxes" and none of them hold up on the job site. The buttons get full of debris, and the antenna always snaps off. I got sick of it and bought the Milwaukee! What a great decision. This radio has a great fit and finish and you can tell it is heavy duty as soon as you pick it up. It is made to take a beating and it sound great! Just buy it!

tough radioand great sound.however radio reception was poor. sent off to repair or check out at milwaukee sercice center.

How I wish I had purchased this radio in the first place. It's tough, it's compact, and it has great sound that would be equally at home in the work site, gym, garage, kitchen, dorm, or wherever.

Only lacking a CD player, this "box" has everything else, including a storage bag, pass-thru plug, clock, etc. I purchased another "box" at considerably higher expense, only to wish I had spent more. I actually spent about the same on this machine, and it's superior in every way and might actually take a couple hits without crumbling. It's meant to be moved and carried around.

Whether or not you use Milwaukee tools and batteries, this is the choice for workplace radios. Someone broke in my workplace last spring and stole my last one. Now THAT'S a sincere endorsement!

So far I've been impressed by how well made this puppy is. The body is well isolated from impacts by a robust handle and a broad base. The base has rubber feet which, combined with its over sized dimensions provide excellent stability. The speaker grills are metal, so there's little chance of ruining one with an errant tool or the like.

I like the accessory bag on the back. I keep an extra iPod cable and a DC phone charger in it all the time (the radio has a 12V cigarette-lighter-style outlet). When I hook up the iPod, I just toss it in the bag, zip it up and I don't have to worry about it getting filthy.

On the downside, this thing ain't light, nor small, so keep this in mind if you haul your stuff around in a smaller vehicle. The audio quality is so-so, but then again, I'm partially deaf (or so my wife tells me), so I don't really mind. Besides, I listen mostly to talk radio, so the fact this thing is LOUD is most important - particularly on the job site.

Now if only I could figure out how to set the clock...

Many of my fellow workers have the DeWalt Jobsite Radio, and the reception isn't always that great--so I thought I'd be different, and get the Milwaukee Radio. I even bought the 24V Li-Ion battery (ouch!), and unfortunately had to buy a charger separately as well (because there's not one built in). Overall, a nice radio, sounds great, but, maybe because my battery isn't broke in, I'm not overly impressed with battery life yet. I'm not sure that the reception is better than other boom-boxes, as I'm often in rural areas struggling for reception. Would be great for anyone who already has Milwaukee cordless tools, and loves great sound--also like that it has AM, and Aux plugin for MP3,or Cd player. It does however need a built in charger, and maybe get rid of the big knobs that could be destroyed in a fall, and replaced with flush-mount rocker switches, thus making this a nearly perfect product.

Well i was a little unsure about the thing because I had one and the thing got no stations in a building. But this one must be newer because its great

After hearing the Milwaukee radio at another jobsite, I knew that was the one I wanted. It had the sound that I wanted. It had a 12 volt power port so that I could charge my cell phone. It had a auxilary input and storage bag for my mp3 player.

I passed on buying any battery for it. Lets face it, at ~$170.00 for a charger (The radio doesn't charge batteries) and a 28v battery that I have no other use for isn't very practical. I'll run a cord instead. As for the 18v battery.....I wasn't impressed by it from reading other reviews.

All-in-all, I couldn't be more pleased with my purchase. GET IT!

As an owner of other Milwaukee tools, I found this to be right in line with everything else they make. Awesome! The sound is better than I thought and there is plenty of volume. It seems very durable, I think it would be quite hard to break this thing. Great radio reception, AUX imput, digital tuner, great sound, durability, and hey, it's a Miluakee. What else do you need?

This job site radio is very well built and solid. The sound quality is excellent. I have had no problems with this radio running on battery power. It will run for days with out having to recharge the batteries. I am glad I got this!

Great radio! Love it. Good AM reception, but lacks a little on FM and weather band pickup. Has plenty of volume on radio reception, but it doesn't have as high a volume on the 1/8" stereo jack. Those are my only two complaints about it. My favorite thing about this radio is potability with my V28 batteries!!
I would definitely buy it all over again.

I have been very pleased with the radio. It has good quality sound,and is easy to use.

I didn't know what to expect when i purchased this radio for tailgating. I heard mixed reviews on how good it sounded when ran on the battery. I purchased a 14.4 volt battery and i think that it sound great. It does loose a little bit of sound quality when compared to being plugged into the wall, but overall i was very satisfied.

This a great radio, I had bosch and dewalt radios. The milwaukee out cranks them all and sounds the best. The only drawback is it doesn't charge batteries

The Milwaukee Jobsite Radio performed better than I ever expected. As we know, AM/FM radios are typically less than desireable on the jobsite, but this radio is fantastic as far as reception. I turned it on without putting up the antenna, and was amazed. I live in a fringe area where AM and FM are usually noisy, but this radio pulled in all stations I listen to.
Overall it is certainly worth every penny.
Milwaukee, you've done it again!

When, if ever, Amazon will co-operate and e-mail me a many times requested return number I will post an evaluation. It is impossible to evaluate a stereo product with only one of the speakers working properly.

This radio works great if it's plugged in but if you try and use a battery it's a no go. It seems to be missing a little prong where the battery gets plugged in at so it won't catch just right. I thought at first it was a bad battery but after several others we discovered this problem. AGGHHH so fustraighting!

I really like the radio. I use it with my iPod and the sound is very good. Radio reception is better than other radios I've had, but not stellar. My only complaint is the lack of a battery and charger. Adding a Milwuakee battery and charger would cost about $200, more than twice the cost of the radio. At that price I'll buy a complete Milwuakee Cordless Tool, which comes with battery and charger. Maybe that's Milwuakee's idea...
(In the interim, $200 will buy a lot of extension cords!)

Summery: If you are looking for a rugged work radio with good sound and plenty of volume, look no further. Buy the Milwaukee V28 radio!

Pros:
*Built like a tank! It should handle being knocked off a tailgate onto concrete with no problem.
*Good sound with plenty of volume.
*Twelve volt adapter coupled with a line-in jack is a good solution to handle all curent and future audio player formats.

Cons: (nothing is perfect so lets nit-pick)
*Built like a tank = heavy like a tank. With the 28V battery it weighs about 25 pounds.
*Flex antenna won't likely break but reception can be a little spotty indoors while in 3rd tear suburbs. As mentioned in other reviews, a Radio Shack replacement extendable antenna is $5.
*Only works with Milwaukee tool battery packs or 120 AC.
*Pass though AC plug flimsy. I bumped the radio into the wall and turned the plug prongs sideways. They straightened out quick enough with vice grips.
*Does not charge battery when on AC. A better sound quality is achieved because charging circuits cause interference in audio quality.

Output power demystified:
In a previous review it was stated "...radio only reaches stated output (44w) under battery power(28v). It only puts out about half that on AC, and only about 7w on 12v battery packs."

This radio was most likely designed to match AC output with the highest battery pack available at the time of design. I'm assuming the largest was 18 volt battery packs. The AC and 18 Volt wattage ratings are almost identical. Milwaukee most likely decided it wouldn't be worth the cost to update the internal AC step-down transformer to match the 28 Volt battery packs.

The additional voltage from the 28V power pack is likely used to directly drive the speakers thus doubling the output power from the 18 volt packs. Power = Voltage x Voltage / Speaker resistance. For a quick and dirty calculation of output power assume 16 total ohms (8 on each channel) resistance for the speakers. I would also assume a 1.4 volt headroom drop in the output stage. Typically power transistors are used to drive the speakers and they have a 0.7 Volt drop for both the top and bottom side. So subtract 1.4 Volts from the battery for head room.

(28V battery minus 1.4V headroom) -> 26.6V x 26.6V / 16 = 44 watts
(18V battery minus 1.4V headroom) -> 16.6V * 16.6V / 16 = 17 watts
(12V battery minus 1.4V headroom) -> 10.6V * 10.6V / 16 = 7 watts

The radio is great. I had a Dewalt radio before this purchase. The Milwaukee sounds 100 times better with more power, bass control etc.The radio is more rugged that its competition. This was a great purchase.

Todd Marek
Marek Landscape & Design Inc.

I've been buying cheap boom box's from circuit city/best buy and ruining one every year or two. The CD players always break first, and then one speaker decides to quit working etc.

The Milwaukee Jobsite radio seems much more durable, and the sound is better. I usually listen to the radio but now I get the pleasure of listen to my gigabeat (mp3 player). You can plug your cell phone in the DC outlet, run the radio off a Milwaukee battery, and plug your mp3 player in the in-line ac outlet. The radio reception is not the greatest, but there is a place to screw a long wire to. Overall I'm very pleased with this radio and would recommend it.

Nice radio. Very well made. Typical Milwaukee product. Great sound. Loud enough for just about any jobsite or garage.