OT-Satelitte Radio

Zlax45 · Post by **Zlax45** » Wed Sep 14, 2005 2:08 pm

Anyone have Satellite Radio? I was wondering if it is worth getting for the 50 bucks they sell for now?

rubba19 · Post by **rubba19** » Wed Sep 14, 2005 2:16 pm

Yes. And yes.

I have Sirius, but am considering switching to XM, now that they will have both MLB and NHL broadcasts. (I listen to sports mostly, but the music channels are good for both.)

You can go to either sirius.com or xmradio.com to try the music channels out free for 3 days. I would highly suggest doing that before deciding between the two.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Wed Sep 14, 2005 2:38 pm

If you have Dish Network you can also try out Sirius...all of their channels are listed and you can listen to the programming that they use.

I've been fairly disappointed with Sirius as a whole. I've got it in my car and the reception has been sketchy at best. It's really no better than regular radio except for the lack of commercials. I rarely use it nowdays and I'm contemplating cancellation. It just isn't as great as they make it out to be.

The good part about it is as rubba said, the sports...and the traffic. Other than that, it would have been gone a long time ago.

GTHobbes · Post by **GTHobbes** » Wed Sep 14, 2005 2:48 pm

I got XM as a christmas gift last year and like it a lot. I've got a pretty short drive to work so it doesn't do me much good there, but it's perfect for long drives and also for listening to any baseball game you want. I didn't know they will also have NHL games, but I'm sure I'll be listening to more than a few Penguins games this year.

Jimmydeicide · Post by **Jimmydeicide** » Wed Sep 14, 2005 2:50 pm

Totaly disagree with Db sirius is brilliant dont know what hes on about ,reception is flawless for me, premiere league soccer, Nhl, commercial free music, 11 bucks a month.

I work construction, so i got the sportster, its portable and goes from both my cars to my boombox with ease and i have commercial free music at work all day ant type of music you want.

"I like it a llot"

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Wed Sep 14, 2005 2:57 pm

Jimmydeicide wrote:Totaly disagree with Db sirius is brilliant dont know what hes on about ,reception is flawless for me, premiere league soccer, Nhl, commercial free music, 11 bucks a month.

I work construction, so i got the sportster, its portable and goes from both my cars to my boombox with ease and i have commercial free music at work all day ant type of music you want.

"I like it a llot"

I guess some people are happy and satisfied with mediocrity...I'm not.

vinny-b · Post by **vinny-b** » Wed Sep 14, 2005 3:29 pm

well, i can weigh in on XM. Have been a subscriber for 2 yrs now. It has not met my expectations for 2 reasons:

1) as was alleged before i signed on, the music is compressed. Underlined, compressed. Yes it is clear (as in a strong, local FM station). It is certainly not CD sound quality level. Anyone who tells you otherwise doesn't know what they are talking about. And i'm not an audiophile.

2) the all 80's/90's stations like to play alot of obscure, lesser known tracks. When i signed up, i was hyped about hearing the hits i grew up with. Yes, they play hits but you are gonna hear alot of music that seemingly never made the charts. I got tired of XM never playing select popular songs (ie personal favorite hits) and finally went on a 'burning' crusade. Many/most of the titles, i've still yet to hear on XM.

the baseball programming is a wonderful addition (though, they simutaneously jacked the subscription price from $9.99/month to $12.99/month). The XM version of baseball tonight (their morning round table), is worthwhile, along with all the MLB games. Also like listening to JT 'the Brick' after working the evening shift.

if you don't live in a major city, or especially if you live in the country (ie lack of multiple, strong, FM stations), and you also happen to be a sports fan, i would give satellite radio a thumbs up. Otherwise, think about it some more.

injunwal · Post by **injunwal** » Wed Sep 14, 2005 4:03 pm

I have XM and really prefer it over Sirius. I was about to switch to Sirius when Howard Stern made his announcment but then after hearing it in my brothers car I stayed with XM.

The music stations are pretty similar on both the the sports stations on XM is what I really like.

MLB
Big 10, Pac 10, ACC Football and Basketball
ESPN Radio
Sporting News Radio
Fox Sports Radio
ESPN News
Tony Kornhieser

Just yesterday they announced that they will be airing NHL programming. Sirius and XM will both have NHL this year but starting next season NHL is an XM exclusive for for a long time.

I have an hour commute to work each way so XM has been a godsend. If I did not have a long commute I probably would not have either

fatheadX · Post by **fatheadX** » Wed Sep 14, 2005 4:07 pm

I've had XM for about 6 months and I really like it. I have the SkyFi2 and it is excellent. I use the built-in FM modulator as I don't have a cassette player, so sound quality is pretty bad no matter what I do, but I've heard the complaint about less than CD quality from others. It doesn't matter much to me, but it is something for you to consider.

I love that XM goes deep to find obscure songs, I've heard that Sirius tends to play the same songs more often. I love the lack of commercials and the instantaneous ability to skip songs you don't want to hear (by skimming through what the stations are playing).

XM has traffic information for 20 cities, but not mine, so that is a waste for me. Reception is fine except in the mountains and around tall buildings where the southern sky is obscured.

The baseball feeds are great and it was finally got me to spring for satellite radio. I'm glad I did.

icvu42 · Post by **icvu42** » Wed Sep 14, 2005 4:16 pm

I've had Sirius since January and really enjoy it. I've never had any reception problems in my car, and it is very enjoyable to listen to on long trips.

It was great last March during the NCAA tourney. They broadcat every game. They also air a ton of NCAA football and college hoops games. You can check their website for the conferences that they have.

The only thing I wish is that they had the baseball package, but they do have the NFL, NBA. Plus Howard will be on in January.

Rick

countzero2k5 · Post by **countzero2k5** » Wed Sep 14, 2005 4:42 pm

I have Sirius in both my car and my wife's car. I like it a lot. I have a tuner that talks directly to my head unit and my wife has a Starmate that plugs directly into the Aux on her head unit. I tried the FM Modulation on the Starmate and it worked but was a pain because you kept having to find the right frequency that doesn't have any music on it. So when she got her new head unit in her car with the Aux input I made the switch off of FM Modulation

I am also able to bring her Starmate indoors as I have a home unit that is pluged into the stereo.

I have tried XM and I like the music selection on Sirius better. As with XM they have uncensored commercial-free music (Even after 2 years its still neat that you can hear a song in its uncensored entirety). Another cool thing about the satellite's music channels is that they play a lot of music/bands that traditional FM stations do not. All the news channels are there as well as a spattering of comedy channels. I don't listen to sports on the radio so I can't comment there.

All in all, if you have the money and you are tired of 5 minutes of music and twenty minutes of annoying car commercials on traditional stations, go satellite, its awesome

Badgun · Post by **Badgun** » Thu Sep 15, 2005 5:14 pm

I've had XM for about a year and Sirius for about 6 months. I like them both a lot. I actually like the music selection of Sirius better than XM and the sound quality is crisper and cleaner than XM, BUT Sirius doesn't have a fraction of the repeaters that XM does so the signal drops out...A LOT. XM never drops out on me while Sirius might drop out 3 times in a 5 mile trip to the mall.

Sirius does have the NFL, but XM has Nascar, the PGA Tour, Major League Baseball, and now NHL hockey. Sirius has Stern, but he's a has been in my opinion. The future is Opie & Anthony and those guys are hilarious and probably the main reason I subscribe to XM.

It's probably a push when it comes to music, but I give the edge to XM with all the sports and specialty programming and I think constantly losing the signal is a big downer when it comes to satellite radio. XM has blown Sirius out of the water in terms of subscribers and XM stock is constantly on the upswing while Sirius stock is basically in the toilet for the past year.

I like them both, but if I could only have one it would be XM.

EZSnappin · Post by **EZSnappin** » Thu Sep 15, 2005 5:45 pm

I've had Sirius for a bit over a year and have been very satisfied. I live in the middle of nowhere and have nearly an hour commute. I've found only one "weak zone" nestled in a sharp canyonesque valley. Otherwise, signal has been strong and consistent, both in the car and at home. I chose Sirius specifically for the sports they carry - every NFL game (both home and away broadcasts), NBA, soccer, NCAA Hoops Tourney, etc. Baseball? Whatever.

I've been pleasently surprised by the range and lack of repetition on most of the music channels - particularky Disorder, which is a DJ's choice so you can hear Louis Armstrong followed by Ravel and Tom Waits. David Johansen (aka Buster Poindexter) has a show that is just amazing. Having multiple BBC options (including soon Radio 1) has been a plus as well.

Family and friends have XM and it has left me somewhat unimpressed. Sound quality is similar (which is serviceable, but not great, for both) but the programming I found less interesting.

ddtrane · Post by **ddtrane** » Sat Sep 17, 2005 12:52 am

It's probably a push when it comes to music, but I give the edge to XM with all the sports and specialty programming and I think constantly losing the signal is a big downer when it comes to satellite radio. XM has blown Sirius out of the water in terms of subscribers and XM stock is constantly on the upswing while Sirius stock is basically in the toilet for the past year.

I like them both, but if I could only have one it would be XM.
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Badguns statement says everything I want to say.

But the XM signal in my car makes the stock stereo sound so much better.