thanks im not really into any more monthly fees right now, i think ill stick with my cd's for a while but that sounds pretty cool i might look into it in the future.. is it just sirius.com or does anyone know the website?

 

sirius

 

I just got my xm radio receiver installed for my sony deck...all i gotta say is that its money well spent..sound quality is awesome..highly recommend it.

 

Hey, I've allways wondered what exactly the DAB is and where they have it. I know that my old headunit, the Pioneer P07300 supported it and im not sure whether or not my Alpine does or not. About the commercials on XM. Only some of the stations have commercials. I rarely hear commercials on it. If they have commercials at all, they are really short. I enjoy it a lot. I dont think that i have ever changed the channel on it to avoid a commercial.

 

FYI... this article discusses on the status of Xm and Sirius in the market. This article was a link from slashdot.org

 

The advantage of satellite radio is that you get great reception of all channels all over the country. If you are travelling and leave an area you don't lose the channel. The reception is good because it is broadcast from satellites that remain positioned above the States. Xm has 2 satellites and I think Sirius has 1. XM has about 100 channels, and they are pretty specific to different types of music or news. You can find stations that play pretty much blues, rap, whatever. About 20 stations are news. If you live in a remote area or travel much, satellite radio is great. If you have a lot of stations locally that you are happy with and you don't mind commercials, there is no need to pay the fee for satellite. If you're getting a new sound system I would definitely do some research on satellite reception. I remember when cable tv first came out, I thought I would never pay for tv. haa! That didn't last long. This might be the same for people that spend a lot of time in their vehicles.

 

I work at Best Buy in the Car Audio department. Yes we WERE offering free basic installation as well as a 75 dollar rebate for signing up with Sirius radio for 1 year and I think there is also a 45 dollar mail in rebate with the Sirius Antenna.

How it Works and the differences:

XM Radio Offers : 30 Commercial free channel, 2 satellites overhead, and a varity of channels, 3 dollars more a month gets you the Play Boy channel. They are also constantly taking away and adding new channels. You can listen to the same channel from here (CA) to New York, and it will not cut out on you.

Pros and Cons are all based off my personal opinions.

Pros for XM: Better sound quality than Sirius Radio. Better Products, such as the new very slick and stylish portable units by DELPHI. With the Delphi products you can listen in your car and then in your home. Very awesome unit. The 2nd portable unit to use XM Radio, the first one was Sony's rather bulky unit. The Delphi setup (made by General Motors) is a very much better design.

Cons for XM: 2 Satellites and adding more channels will take away banwidth from people causing signal loss and more poor sound quality.

Cost of one time startup fee = 14.95

Monthly fee = 9.95 a month

Just to let you know, the Delphi system/setup, goes for
XM reciever = 125 (comes with a remote )
Car Kit (so you can listen to XM in car) = 69.99
Home Kit (duh!) = 69.99

Very good stuff!!!!


Sirius Radio Offers: Live feeds from concert halls such as The House of Blues. Basically if there is a show playing and Sirius Radio is there to send the live feed, then you can listen to that band live on your Sirius Reciever. 3 Satallites overhead. 60 commercial free channels. You can listen to the same channel from here (CA) to New York and it will not cut out on you.

Pros for Sirius - 30 more commercial free channels than XM Radio. Live feeds from concert halls I.E. Hosue of Blues. Which is very nice I might ad And finally 3 satellites vs. 2 that XM Radio has.

Cons for Sirius - Sound quality isn't as good. They don't add channels to their line up. Which can and can't be a good thing depending on your perspective. No portable unit has been made for Sirius Radio yet.

Cost of one time startup fee = Flat 15.00

Montly fee = 12.95

None the less, with any company you go with, it sure beats the hell of out the cheap crap that radio is and has become. Yuck, I can't stand it. I never listen to it. I guess that's why the radio is free for us! Its full of advertisements and such, poor sound quality, and dumbass DJ's. heh...oh well, just thought I would contribute. And I am not here representing Best Buy, just throwing in what I have learned from all the XM and Sirius reps I have to talk to at work. Hope this helps, if you have any questions feel free to ask!

 

hey thanks for all that info.. but i do have one question.. the playboy channel???

 

Yea, hot chicks come out of your car stereo system..no no just kidding.

Basically what it is, is a Playboy channel for 3 dollars more a month + the 10 dollar a month fee, so a total of about 13 bux a month. Honestly, what the channel offers...I don't know. I don't need a playboy channel. I talked to the XM Rep and he said that it is, and I quote, "an experimental channel." XM is just trying to see what it is truly capable of. I would assume they have talk shows on their, like sex talk and stuff, new toys and what not. I mean common, Its playboy for crying out loud. Take a playboy magazine and try to see it on a radio show. I would assume that is what its like. Probably alot of Jazz music as well. I know Playboy does alot with Jazz music, hence the Playboy Jazz Festival. But thats just my 2 cents.

 

Basically, all the playboy channel is repeats of the call in show; Night calls... save your 3 bucks.

 

Aw man....Now I know what I want for Christmas!