Spektrum DX6 Rugged

[Col_Sanders]

I'm a long time Futaba guy. I used a 4PLS on dozens of different RCs for about a decade. I loved the radio but it was starting to show its age and I really wanted something with momentary switches for winching. I've been exploring different radios over the past several months. I bought a Noble NB4, which I also love, but operating the winch one handed is not the easiest due to the layout.

I had looked at the DX5 Rugged in the past but I saw a lot of complaints about the touchpad. That and having no backlight prevented me from buying one. Enter the DX6 Rugged. It adds a backlight and a new touchpad where you no longer have to do the awkward swipe so I figured I'd give it a try. Of course I bought the orange one. Figured I'd give a little review...

The case appears to be largely unchanged from the DX5 Rugged, meaning it is larger than it should be and it still feels cheap (especially the wheel). Button layout is perfect for one hand winch operation. It still has a small screen but at least it has a backlight now. The touchpad is responsive enough but some setup is very tedious since there is no left/right buttons. Even not having used a Spektrum radio in several years I was able to set it up for my comp rig pretty fast.

Frankly, keeping in mind the $260 price, the ONLY positive thing I can say about this thing compared to the competition is the button layout is good. Even compared to my >10 year old Futaba, it seems primitive and cheap. If they had shrunk the housing down a bit, added a larger nicer screen, rechargeable battery pack, and left/right buttons, it would be a much nicer radio. As it stands, I feel like its ~$100 overpriced.

I'll only be using this thing on my comp rigs. Everything else will still be on the Noble NB4.

 

[smog]

I have the dx5 rugged. I bought it on sale a few years back. It's the TouchPad version. At first I hated it, but once I got a feel for the touch pad it was no longer an issue. My big complaint is that I find it drains the AA batteries too quick. My older DX4 radios are better in that way. I expect with a lit screen, the dx6 Rugged should be an even worse power hog.

I agree , the rugged housing is clunky, it could be way more refined. Spektrum is also overpriced. I would never recommend their product for quality or price to be honost

I even had a disappointing experience with their service.

Sent from my SM-G990W using Tapatalk

 

[Col_Sanders]

I used to get several hours runtime on the Futabas with AAs. Some crawling sessions can be hours long so it just felt like they died quick. I ordered a lifepo pack for this thing though.

The touchpad isn't horrible, but the joystick/button thing on Futabas is FAR superior. I've been using the FlySky Noble NB4 for ~9 months now and it is such a nice feeling radio. It really feels and performs like a quality piece of equipment. Hard to believe it actually costs less than the DX6 Rugged and includes 2 receivers. That radio has a couple little quirks but it is overall pretty darn nice.

 

[Col_Sanders]

Been running this radio for a few months now and I'm a bit more comfortable with it. It is still big, clunky, and cheap feeling. It made a world of difference for me on winching during competitions. Having the momentary switch right by my thumb allows me to winch exactly how much I need to without going too far or wasting time fumbling with the radio or hook. Last year, i hit a couple gates due to that and it cost me a spot on the podium. Not a problem this year. Every truck I have with a winch is using this radio now.

The 2300 mah 2s LIFE pack lasted quite a while, but I learned that it kinda makes the battery indicator on the radio useless. It was down to ~60% charge but the indicator still showed almost full. Just have to remember to charge it after every few runs. I almost wish I had just stuck with NIMH rechargeables because they are easy to swap and I could still use regular AAs in a bind.

I figured out the cheapest way to get receivers for it is to buy takeoff radio sets from ARRMAs on ebay. A TX and RX is cheaper than an RX by itself.

 

[Col_Sanders]

Every now and then I loan one of my trucks out to a buddy or family member so we can crawl together. Since most of my trucks are on one radio, this obviously poses a problem. I was just going to leave a FlySky and Spektrum radio in some trucks and swap wires as needed, but I stumbled upon a great deal on a green DX5 Rugged from a member here and bought it. Now I can just use one Spektrum RX per truck and rebind as needed.

This was my first time really messing with the DX5R so I figured I'd give my thoughts comparing the two...The swiping motion on the DX5R took me a few minutes to figure out and while it is useable, it is a dumb idea. To me, being able to just press the pad vs swipe means the DX6R is more natural feeling. Navigating menus and setting everything up is definitely easier on the DX6R than the DX5R. The backlight also makes it easier to read the screen in various lighting.

Other than that, no major differences that I have noticed. They are both big, clunky, and cheap feeling. In the DX6R, have yet to run the 2300mah pack down all the way, but I estimate about 8-10 hours of runtime. I think I'm going to stick with NIMH rechargeables on the DX5R. I bought some Panasonic Eneloop Pro batteries that are rated at 2600mah.

 

[89Industries]

Nice summary review. The wanting to run the same controller yet be able to loan a truck is also an issue I've had. Good to see how others figure it out.

I use the Panasonic eneloop rechargeables in my tx's also and never had them run out of juice on the trail until a week or so ago. It was nice to just swap in the emergency AA batteries I carry around just for that scenario and continue on with my drive.

 

[Col_Sanders]

I used to run rechargeable Energizer AAs in my TXs and a lot of other stuff but they got pretty crappy so I tossed them in the trash. A few months ago, the kids started burning through batteries like crazy so I finally broke down and started switching over to NIMH on all their toys. Got a nice easy to use Panasonic charger too so even my wife can handle charging.