View Poll Results: XM or Sirius
XM because its XtreMe



41
30.37%
Sirius 4 seri0us



94
69.63%
Voters: 135. You may not vote on this poll
XM vs Sirius
#41
Originally Posted by hlpressley
I have Sirius via a direct tuner box hardwired into my Eclipse HU. The sound quality is horrible and the customer service is even worse. I was told by Circuit City that this direct tuner box would give me CD sound quality or better. That is bullÅÅÅÅ. My sound quality isn't even as good as the local AM talk station. It sucks and so does Sirius. I would ask for some type of satisfaction guarntee befor you buy. Just my experience.
BTW I have a three week old Eclipse Sirius tuner box for sale pretty cheap. It is covered under the additional warranty from Circuit City. PM me if interested. It will also come with continued service through August 06 from Sirius.
BTW I have a three week old Eclipse Sirius tuner box for sale pretty cheap. It is covered under the additional warranty from Circuit City. PM me if interested. It will also come with continued service through August 06 from Sirius.
#42
Originally Posted by Bumpin' Yota
but yeah the sales kids are trained to tell the customers that it's CD quality...but unfortunately it's not...
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.
#43
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.
#44
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.
#45
Originally Posted by 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.

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.
#47
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.
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.
#49
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
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
Last edited by ricky; Jul 11, 2006 at 12:47 PM.
#50
Originally Posted by 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.
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..
#52
Originally Posted by bamachem
this is the sirius receiver that i have:

i didn't mount my antenna. instead, i just coiled up the wire and put the antenna on the dash up by the windshield. i drop the power cord down to the glove compartment and then out (leaving the excess hidden) to the cig lighter for power. that way, it isn't permanently mounted and can me moved from car to car in a couple minutes at most.
reception is great, even on the trails. for me, it was easy to choose between sirius and xm. sirius carries crimson tide sports (alma mater) and radio margaritaville (i'm a hopeless parrothead). other than those, the services are pretty much the same.

i didn't mount my antenna. instead, i just coiled up the wire and put the antenna on the dash up by the windshield. i drop the power cord down to the glove compartment and then out (leaving the excess hidden) to the cig lighter for power. that way, it isn't permanently mounted and can me moved from car to car in a couple minutes at most.
reception is great, even on the trails. for me, it was easy to choose between sirius and xm. sirius carries crimson tide sports (alma mater) and radio margaritaville (i'm a hopeless parrothead). other than those, the services are pretty much the same.
#53
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.
#54
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.
#56
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.
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.
Last edited by ToyRunner1; Aug 21, 2006 at 09:24 AM.
#58
SIRIUS THE SHIZEL my NIZEL!
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.
#59
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.
I have the ecliplse HU 5435 and the sirius sat. adapter.
#60
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.


