Satellite radio - who uses it?

[Martinjmpr]

Thinking of putting in satellite radio for my upcoming trip to Utah and beyond (NV and CA, looks like.) Tired of listening to the same CDs and thinking I might try sat radio. For those of you who have it, do you like it? Does it work well in the boonies? Any preferences of XM vs Sirius? Still on the fence about whether I want to get a detachable "tagalong" unit for my non-sat ready factory stereo or break down and get a new sat-ready head unit for true digital sound.

 

[goodtimes]

I'm happy with Sirius. I just can't listen to the same channel all the time...they seem to have about a billion niche channels, and nothing that has a bit of everything....

No problems in the boonies....as long as the antenna has a decent view of the sky, I have music.

 

[Rockcrawler]

My Jetta has Sirius radio in it. It is really nice to have while in the middle of nowhere... I don't get offroad w/ the Jetta obviously, but do end up in some pretty remote areas of western and southern AZ where traditional radio station reception is spotty.

I would get it again.

 

[TheRoadie]

Agreed. I wouldn't be without XM. In a canyon with no broadcast signals getting in, how else can you find out every morning if WWIII broke out and you need to just stay put and survive?

There are 4-5 channels I jump among, but my wife (ADHD sufferer) is glued to Fine Tuning (76) a totally eclectic mix of every possible (reasonable) genre (no hiphop) that suits her attention span perfectly.

BBC news - priceless.

On road trips where the only broadcast choices are Country and Christian Country, it preserves sanity.

 

[Hltoppr]

I have XM in my house, office, wife's car and the Troopy....

Love it! So nice to sit on a beach in Baja and be able to listen to BBC World news....

...and reggae through Copper Canyon Mexico is just too cool!

-H-

 

[Dragon]

I agree with all of the above posts. I love the Sirius that I have, and hardly listen to CDs any more. There is practically an endless selection that you can choose from even in the middle of Iowa or Nebraska or Kansas or .... well, you get the point.

Do it. You'll be glad you did.
I have the Sportster 5 which has a bit of record/playback . It's a nice feature for when you wish to listen to "Honey Hush, you know you talk too much" by Albert Collins one more time :sombrero: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lg9VPEQQ60

 

[conifers4]

My wife has XM in her truck and I have Sirius in mine. Both are good and IMO are really no different. I swore when satellite radio came out that I would never pay for something that was free but it truly is better than listening to the same thing all the time. You will not regret it!

 

[kcowyo]

XM here. I would put sat radio in the 'top 3 best mods' for a vehicle.

I believe Sirius and XM are merging soon, so it probably won't matter which company you chose.

.

 

[AFSOC]

Sirius here. No way I can do without. I don't know why it took me so long. The merger looks to bring expanded programing. Lifetime subscriber, zero regrets.

 

[DAJA]

My lady friend has XM and I have sirius.. Both are great, and the merger has taken place now, so soon it shouldn't make a difference which you go with. We both prefer the programming on Sirius, but we also both prefer the quality and technology of XM.. So once the merger is in full effect I look forward to having the programming of sirius and the technology of xm all in one unit.. For me the draw was that Sirius offered an improvisational rock channel that play live recordings of bands that you will never hear on regular terestrial radio. Absolutely no regrets!

 

[preacherman]

xm radio is the first thing I install in ANY truck and the last thing I remove when I sell it. I have been with XM since 2002 and love it. I have also had many friends with Sirius and they are just as happy.

Seriously it's the single best expo mod you can make for your travel enjoyment.

 

[Desertdude]

XM subscriber since 2005 - really dislike it - but still have it

XM does have its live channel (plays repeat concerts from the xm studio)

The various channels have to much repeating and not enough fresh content.

The channels sometimes miss tag music and cross genre.

The talk channels have much to be desired.

I guess I am picky with my music listening.

Not totally sure the merger is in the best interest of its subscribers...

I would much rather pay to set up my own playlists and have that technology downloaded to my radio something akin to Pandora.

"My music should be free, but its worth less and less" - Steve Hackett

:::

 

[mtnbike28]

Another Sirius

I have Sirius too, my Christmas present last year I love, only listen to local radio in am for news reports. My favorite channel when driving for long periods is 118 - radio Classics - radio shows from the 40s and 50s mostly, some including ads - funny/campy stuff! My favorite from my last trip were ads for Kellogg's Pep (I am not old enough to have even heard of them)
http://www.oldtimeradiofans.com/old_radio_commercials/Kellogs_Pep.mp3

Funny to hear how far toys in the box have come...

 

[JJackson]

Have two XM radios, one in the taco the other in the company truck and I can no longer listen to FM radio, the do not play what I like and the music is all like pop. I am upset that they took the punk channel off for an ACDC channel though, I need to do some more research to see if its only temporary. Works great in most places except with a thick canopy.

 

[Dave]

I've had XM for a couple years now and I do like it. I mainly use it on my daily commute. On long trips I do find myself going to the iPod more and more. It'd be tough for me to get rid of it now though because I'm hooked on Ron & Fez and Opie & Anthony on XM 202.

I think I read on Orbitcast that "dual band" radios will be out in October sometime. The new radios will allow for cross platform access since XM and Sirius have merged. I haven't really kept up with it, but I *think* you will either subscribe to XM with the option of getting "the best of" from Sirius or you will subscribe to Sirius with the option of getting "the best of" from XM. Last time I looked, there were no music channels lumped in to the "best of" category that would be offered. I don't know how far out a la carte programming is. I would look into it before picking up a new radio since change is coming.