Bumpin' Yota

You just bought it 21 days ago? You do realize that you can return it for a full refund right? We have a 30 day return policy....but yeah the sales kids are trained to tell the customers that it's CD quality...but unfortunately it's not...

midiwall

It's "funny"... the marketing fluff for both XM and Sirius states "digital quality" which in itself is a misnomer, but then the floor-jockies get ahold of it and decide that "digital" equals "CD".

argh.

But yeah... hlpressley, if the audio quality is as bad as you say it is (re: "...isn't even as good as the local AM talk station") then something is wrong with the receiver or the installation. Take it back, stand on a table, and get them to fix it.

4mydogs

I have XM built-in to my 4Runner (see my sig), and a Roady2 in my work truck. Music sounds better on the built-in, but in the work truck I'm usually tuned to sports, talk, news, etc. anyway. I'm very pleased with XM's selections.

linuxrunner

I also have a roady2 and i think i could tell when they changed the quality a while back, i remember listening and i thought it was good, better than FM for sure, but now almost all of the channels i listen too sound so bad that i avoid the XM and listen to CD's i can't stand it much longer, and i hope that they figure out a way to fix this.

midiwall

There are a couple of ways to fix it, none will happen.

a) Launch new sats that can handle more bandwidth. Even if they could find a couple of hundred mil, your present receiver would either be non-functional, or only carry a partial list of channels.

b) Ditch some stations in order to regain the bandwidth that new stations took up, then relax the audio compression and turn back up the bit rate. This won't happen because of market pressure... Both services just keep adding new stations.

c) Reduce your monthly bill as a way to say "sorry, we can no longer deliver what we promised". heh... yeah, that won't happen for obvious reasons.

turboale

Had serious for 4 years, had friends who had sirius try xm and within 2 weeks the XM was in the closet and Sirius was back in... I have been pleased so I haven't looked back!

RobD

Ah, here goes. My first YotaTech post.

I bought the Delphi SkyFi2 XM receiver back in February of this year. I love it. Used it in a Corolla up until buying my 4Runner about a month and a half ago. Originally, I used the built-in FM modulator, but since getting the 4Runner, I've installed a Pioneer DEH-P5800MP head unit and picked up the Pioneer IP-Bus cable so I can hardwire it directly to the head unit. Did all the wiring tonight and it absolutely rocks. I've heard some of the older sat receivers did not offer great sound quality and that there might be a newer decoding scheme offered that newer units recognize. Perhaps there's someone out there with more knowledge about it to answer that question. Anyhow, I went with XM because there is NO Howard Stern. First, they paid him an obscene amount of money to be...well, obscene, and second, if I want to hear lesbian and fart references, I have the two uncensored comedy channels to chose from. I've also added a home kit and portable boom box to the sat mix, so I can listen to it anywhere. I would have to say that my sound quality, for most channels except the talk channels, is on par with my MP3 player or better. Besides, at highway speed, I think I lose a lot of the nuances and subleties of the music. Oh, and because I'm Canadian, I love the hockey broadcasts, too.

Just my first 2 cents worth.

crackerjack

I like the talk channels with XM they have the Newsweek minute and the science minute. The Newsweek was all leftwing and the science minute keep comparing us to monkeys so I cancelled

ricky

I have a Panasonic head unit cq-7401U or something like that, using the universal XM tuner. I have considered checking out sirius, but that was until they picked up Stern (Stern is a douche bag). But I am really curious as to if the audio quality (without a piece of crap FM modulator) on sirius, really is of higher quality. That would really surprise me.

Anyway, I've had XM for near 4 years now. The FM antenna in my truck broke off in a car wash bout 6 months after I bought it, and I never replaced it. FM sucks, and I would never go back to listening to anything but satellite radio

ldivinag

must be an opie and anthony fan???? jk...

the audio output from my sirius audiovox PnP2 unit is not quite CD quality.

but then again, i just listen to the dance stations and howard 100..

calamaridog

I have awesome reception with my Sirius set up. I've never listened to Stern either, but I prefer the rest of the content to XM.

KyleT

i have the same one and have had no problems with receptopn at all, except one spot where i cross under a metal truss bridge. even under concrete overpasses it still has reception here.

gregbreakseverything

My old red screen Starmate just died. It doenst get any reception anymore. I have to find another antenna to see if its the antenna or the radio. I have to get it fixed fast because the local radio around here sucks.

SoL

Just bought an XACT Visor (Sirius) receiver a couple of days ago. Of course, the visors in the 4Runner are so dang thick that it doesn't sit up there well. I've been thinking about getting a Starmate or Sportster 4 instead but does anyone know if they make them with the black/orange displays so that it will match the interior? I haven't seen any yet... Nonetheless, so far I'm happy with the music selection on Sirius. If they ever get MLB, I'll be in heaven.

calamaridog

I've been meaning to add this. I love logging onto Sirius at work and enjoying the music. Makes the service an even better value.

ToyRunner1

My son in law has XM which I like, but I like NFL and don't really care for MLB so I got Sirius. I've got 2 different receivers and like them both. In my wife's 4Runner I have the Starmate Replay. I read a post where someone said they didn't like it because it was so bright. I felt the same way when I drove her 4Runner at night. I went into "Settings" and found one for the display brightness. It was very easy to turn it down. Since I move mine around a lot I got one of the little cheapos in case it gets damaged. It works flawlessly but doesn't have the nice display like the replay. It has a 1 line scrolling display. I don't hard mount them either. I have the antenna mounted to the roof only by the magnet instead of the dual sided tape and haven't had any problems at all. I even took mine on my last business trip and mounted it in the rental. Worked great. My daughter even liked the Sirius better than her husbands XM so she got a receiver and put it on my account since it was only another $7.

I also love being able to listen to it on the computer while at work, but a co-worker with XM does the same thing, so I know it's available with that service as well.

gregbreakseverything

I can only listen to sirus in my work truck. With the stock speakers it sounds just like good fm radio. If I put the sirus in my 4runner, it sounds terrible. Its cd's only in the 4runner.

Kroninn

I got Sirius in Jan of this year when Howard went on. Sirius has everything...I hate regular radio. XM is goin under. They are slashing subscription fees and also giving away months for free. They won't last, but a few more years at the most.

imprttuner88

i absolutely love sirius. have had it for 2 years now. I will never go back to regular fm radio anymore. my cd's have been replaced by my ipod.

I have the ecliplse HU 5435 and the sirius sat. adapter.

Tofer

i got sirius because it works better then xm for my brother in alaska. so far i love it. its nice to be able to listen to everyhting i want while camping. i find myself having musical adhd because there is so much to listen to.