I saw the first version of the Hilti Jobsite Radio at the 2017 World of Concrete. The new model looks very similar but lacks both the battery charging feature and a 120V power cord. My goal was to see if the Hilti R 6-22 Jobsite Radio had the same or better audio performance, as well as examine its features to see how it performs overall.
Hilti R 6-22 Radio Key Features
The Hilti Nuron Jobsite Radio has a pretty basic set of controls. The power button is clearly marked and also serves as the volume dial. The right-side button lets you change stations when connected to AM or FM radio and skip songs when connected to streaming services like Spotify. When you want to adjust settings, the right-hand dial facilitates this as well.
Five buttons below the LCD display control mode, presets, Bluetooth, EQ, and clock settings.
Connections
You get the full suite of connections with the Hilti Nuron Jobsite Radio. That includes 9 AM and FM presets as well as connecting to mobile devices via Bluetooth, NFC (near field communication), or an Aux cord. As a matter of interest, many of Hilti’s tools are moving to NFC connections with your phone as they develop smart tools.
Anytime you’re looking at a jobsite radio, you need to look at the antenna. Those old metal ones will never survive and some leave them rather exposed. Hilti cleverly puts its pivoting antenna on the inside of the back housing, offering plenty of protection for when not in use.
USB Charging
The particularly nice thing about the USB charging port is that it’s a 2.1-amp port. That means you’ll charge your device much faster than the standard 1-amp ports on many radios.
Protection
The Hilti R 6-22 Radio provides several levels of protection. First, the weight of the unit (11.2 pounds) actually works in its favor. The weight and rectangular base make it pretty tough to knock over if it’s on a flat surface.
The housing itself is a pretty tough thermoplastic design and the battery slot is recessed into the back. Additionally, rubber overmold protects all four corners, the handle, and the speaker’s face. It should hold up well against potential drops.
Listening to the Sound
Hilti doesn’t play around in the volume department. Each turn of the dial offers a significant increase in volume. With a pair of 20-watt speakers, it gets pretty loud, but it also distorts at those higher volumes. Practically, this means you don’t want to turn the volume up above 3/4 volume indoors. Outdoors, this distortion is less noticeable.
I turned on some Switchfoot and measured 84 dBA – at half volume. Turned all the way up, the volume maxed out at 101 DB(a). I took those measurements at 36 inches—roughly how far away my ears are when I’m adjusting the volume. Obviously, those numbers will back off quite a bit at a normal listening distance.
Sound Quality
The Hilti Nuron Jobsite Radio sounds almost identical to the previous model. It does pretty well at low volumes. Like many radios we review, the low frequencies suffer. You can hear them, but they’re not as filling as they need to be to balance out the highs. To remedy this, raise the bass EQ setting while dropping the output volume lower than its maximum.
The most natural sound indoors involved knocking a bar off the treble and adding some bass in the EQ setting. Otherwise, you get a slightly “tinny” sound.
The soundstage of this radio is very narrow due to the lack of separation between the left/right speakers. I typically like separate tweeters and woofers as they tend to deliver higher fidelity. Hilti clearly optimized this radio to emphasize higher volume and output.
The Bottom Line
The Hilti R 6-22 Nuron Jobsite Radio delivers loud output for outdoor use and runs off of any Nuron 22V battery. It delivers fast USB charging along with AM, FM, DAB+, auxiliary, and Bluetooth connections.
Where Hilti stumbles is in the sound quality department. Compared to high-quality speakers, you’re missing some of the fullness of the sound range. The quality is high enough to genuinely enjoy your music or clearly hear the early game’s radio broadcast. The only major complaint is the quality drop off as you get near the top of the volume range.
Pricing on this model is set at $285. That makes it one of the more expensive options out there—particularly for a radio that doesn’t plug into the wall or charge batteries. All things considered, it’s a little more than I’d like to pay, but if you’re on a Hilti battery platform, it’s certainly worth considering.
Hilti Nuron Jobsite Radio Features
- Bluetooth pairing with NFC
- 2 x 20W powerful two-way speakers
- Thermoplastic bumpers protect the entire unit
- Includes Hilti Tool Service
Hilti R 6-22 Specifications
- Model: Hilti R 6-22
- Battery type: Nuron 22V
- Connectivity: Bluetooth, NFC, Aux
- Radio: AM, FM, DAB/DAB+
- Dimensions (LxWxH): 11.5 x 11.7 x 13.8 in.
- Weight: 11.2 lbs
- Warranty: 2 years
