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has anyone tried satellite radio? which do you prefer, XM or Sirrius? I am so tired of the DJ chatter, and sometimes I would like to listen to some tunes that aren't on my CD's. Unfortunately, I see lots of hidden start up costs and the monthly advertised fee doesn't include taxes. In addition, what percentage of the stations on either system are comercial free? I'm not going to pay for monthly radio service, only to find out only a small percentage are commercial free. Trust me, the way my luck goes, none of the commercial free stations would be the ones I want to listen to... .
 
:cool: i have the sirius system-NO COMMERCIALS! only drawback is if you go under a long underpass you will loose the signal. it won`t be too long before one buys out the other
 
Sirius here!!!

and I love it!!!



Have a friend with XM, and he likes his, and I'm not 100% sure about this, but I do believe his music stations have commercials, where-as my music stations on Sirius don't! The talk radio and news channels do have commercials, but I only listen to the comedy channel out of those anyway.



Have 5 music stations I listen too... New Rock (Octane), Top 40 (US 1), New Country, 90's and today (Pulse), and Country Road.



One of the best things about the radio is that, at least with my Kenwood KDC-917 deck, when a song comes on it scrolls the name of the song and artist... I keep a piece of paper handy and write down the songs I want to download off my comp later at home.



I like mine... cost me $150 installed, plus I bought 12 months subscription... bought 11 months, got 1 free. It's not too spendy, and on my 900 mile trips 4 times a year (to school and back) it's worth every dime!!



I think that between the two companies it's a six-in-one-hand, half-a-dozen in the other sort of a thing... they're both good, just pick your poison.



Later, Josh
 
My XM unit is sitting on top of the 'to do' pile. I got it for my birthday a couple of weeks ago. According to a fellow at work, the only real comercials on XM are on the network stations like CNN, Fox, ESPN, etc. He says they all have short 15 second commercials for themselves. Like the country station will air a brief commercial to tell you you're listening to the country station and go right back into the music. He reports that he doesn't really even notice. I've got to get mine installed and check on the rates, but I was under the impression you get a little break if you pay for a year up front.
 
I have XM and love it.

True it does have a few comercials on some of the stations. However, most of the stations I listen to don't, those that do have maybe one or two comercials an hour. I like the 4 country stations (10-13)(only one has comercials), the BlueGrass station (14), The top hits Rock and Roll station (46 I think), XM Comedy (150) (Has some comercials), NASCAR (144), and then there are the CNN, HNN and BBC for long trips.

I think both systems use an 8-10 second buffer, most underpasses have no effect unless I'm creeping, tunnels are bad (if they're long enough) and I've lost signals a few times in the mountains if there is a cliff directly to the South of me. I also lost it going up Monteagle.

Josiah
 
I have XM and I like it. All of the talk and sports channels have commercials because they include breaks at the network level, but many of the music channels do not.

The total monthly cost with taxes is $10. 59. There is a ten dollar activation fee if you activate via xmradio.com or $15 if you call in and speak to a human.

I bought an fm modulated setup because I have the audio controls on the steering wheel and I want them to remain functional. I got everything that I needed from crutchfield.com and it was around $126 total after a $75 rebate from Sony.
 
XM here...

I have had my XM in my truck for over a year now. I run the Alpine setup, and I love it. I don't listen to anything else, I don't even carry CDs anymore. I do at least 1000 miles a week, every week and the few stations that have commercials don't bother me. One of the country stations has commercials, very few, and the other stations I listen to do not (comedy, rock, etc). The pricing is different, XM is less expensive per month, but Sirius has more commercial free stations. Like others have said, six of one, half a dozen of another. Personal preference to me. I like my XM, drive from New York to LA and the only time it drops out is if you are stuck under an overpass or long tunnel (although it still works in the underpass under Vegas Airport), and I found if I stopped behind some large grain silos in Kansas it was just enough to block the signal from the satellite.



YMMV...
 
One more Thumbs Way up for XM

I love mine... works in Big Bend Nat'l Park way out in Nowhere, Texas... . That's where you find out if Satellite radio is really worth the extra Money... I like XM because it has NASCAR channel, MTV Channel, as well as VH1 music channels, not to mention many other name brand channels... Just an honest opinion... .



-Chris-
 
xm here also

i have had xm for about 3 months and i love it. i bought the delphi unit and it is great! i also bought the boombox so i can take it out of the truck and listen to it while we are camping. when i first heard of sat radio i said that i wouldn't pay for something that i could get for free. never say never! it is honestly some of the best money i could have spent. it is great never losing a staion coast to coast and as much as we travel that is a good thing. i'm sure there is nothing wrong with sirius but i like the delphi unit and the ability to take it out of the truck and listen to it in the house or job site. as far as i know sirius doesn't offer a radio like that.



which ever one you choose you will love it!:)



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picture of xm radio installed in the truck
 
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I had XM for about 6 months and dumped it. Why? Got bored. I'm an "on demand" kind of listener, meaning that I want to listen to specific things when I want to. Towards the end, I was just popping CDs in like before.



Also, I don't like the sound quality of either XM or Sirius.
 
quality

I think that 99. 9% of the population would be hard pressed to hear a difference between a CD and satellite radio. Just my opinion tho...
 
Re: quality

Originally posted by nineonethree

I think that 99. 9% of the population would be hard pressed to hear a difference between a CD and satellite radio. Just my opinion tho...



i'm with you... can hardly tell the difference between sat. radio and cd.
 
love my XM...

got my XM about 6 months ago. Couldn't imagine being without it.



$9. 99 a month is nothing to pay for ALL that you get.



Don't know anything about Sirrius but I can't imagine it would be much different than XM...
 
I went with XM a year ago and have

become a complete believer in the

technology. I'm now working on having xm or sirius installed in my new 2003 2500

diesel. It sounds to me that I can tap

into existing 6 disc changer in the laramie.

Sound quality is only a notch below cd's
 
I have had xm for about a year. I noticed that you are in Texas, me also. I have noticed that the only places that I lose the signal is when I am at a signal light in a metroplex with huge skyscrapers on the south side of me. Some overpasses will give a short interruption, but nothing major. I wouldn't trade mine for anything, as I travel ALOT. As for commercials, there are a few, but they are hardly noticeable and last for less than 15 seconds.
 
JRS...

I run a XM in my large unit at work(drive truck for a living). I have the Delphi unit and carriers. It is second to nothing out there for coverage and ease of use. One major selling point of the Delphi deal is its adaptibility. It can be easily taken from truck to truck,used in the house or on the beach with the boombox. Its readout is far better than the others out there and can be fine tuned for better sound.



Delphi now has a mirror mount antenna(big rigs) setup for much better reception. It completely eliminates bridge fade and only gets lost inside a long tunnel. With me driving on the average of 6000 miles a week I'll not leave home with out it. It is the best $10 a month a person who drives can spend(ok,so I have had to cut back on my video games a little,LOL,just kidding).



Hope this helps... ... ... Andy



P. S. -Its a blast setting the metal music and never changing it all the way to coast and back... Rock On... .....
 
I couldn't wait to get XM installed, went with an XM ready reciever w/CD player. On the road 10 hours most days, got dam tired of pressing search button to locate something wherever I was. Even with my stock speakers it sounds a whole lot better than AM/FM. But they are tape programs, if you listen to the same station long enough it repeats.



Be Safe,

Steve J.



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Does anyone have pictures of the Delphi unit mounted in their 98-02 model with a manual. I am trying to cipher a nice clean, good looking way to mount it without drilling holes in my dash, but I havnt came up with any. Thanks
 
Antennas?

I'm getting ready to install my XM birthday gift. It didn't come with an antenna. What are you all using? Thanks.
 
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