Satellite Radio

[Tdog]

Anyone subscribe to satellite radio? Does that mean I have to replace my car radio? How well does it work? How long a contract do you have to sign? Any other info would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Ivan1547]

Anyone subscribe to satellite radio? Does that mean I have to replace my car radio? How well does it work? How long a contract do you have to sign? Any other info would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Jack

I got XM radio free for a year when I purchased a 2009 Jeep Patriot.
A add on satellite radio usually just plugs into your cigarette lighter and you tune in your radio to a certain FM modulation.
It works very well and you get a ton of channels.
Is it worth it? If I was in the vehicle travelling for 8-10 hours per day, then yes. Otherwise no, I will not be subscribing when my subscription is over.
It has good music and good talk channels, but I do miss my local networks.
You usually have to sign up for a year contract.

Ivan

 

[tommu56]

I got XM radio free for a year when I purchased a 2009 Jeep Patriot.
A add on satellite radio usually just plugs into your cigarette lighter and you tune in your radio to a certain FM modulation.
It works very well and you get a ton of channels.
Is it worth it? If I was in the vehicle travelling for 8-10 hours per day, then yes. Otherwise no, I will not be subscribing when my subscription is over.
It has good music and good talk channels, but I do miss my local networks.
You usually have to sign up for a year contract.

Ivan

ditto except it was a ram 2500.

After that I did change stock radio to a hd radio to try that it is ok I must be on fring reception area and it switches back and forth from digital to analog on my drive to work in 20 miles.

The digital is crisper and cleaner but just like DTV it is on or off.

tom

 

[/pine]

The only problem with satellite radio is when it started out it was supposed to be "commercial free"...no endless car/fast food etc advertisements...

...but there was so much competition between Sirius and XM they both built up so much (Billion$) in debt...now that have merged there is almost as much advertising as there is on public broadcast radio...

 

[thatguy]

We have had satellite radio (Sirius) since 2004ish in two vehicles.. We love it and its hard to get used to regular radio now after satellite..

We have the receivers that play thru a FM modulator or a direct MP3 connection (also plays thru the cassette adaptor)..

As /pine mentioned they do have advertising on any station other than the music channels (before the merger XM had some music channels that played commercials, but I never found a Sirius music channel with any)..

I dont remember what they promised at the very beginning as far as commercials on channels though.. Also some ppl hate having a dj talk between songs - I dont have trouble with that.

Even with the commercials i still think it is well worth the $20/mth (2 receivers) for the service.. its nice to be able to drive anywhere you want and never have to find another station. We will stay subscribers until the company goes out of business - if that ever happens

Brian

 

[westcliffe01]

If you live in a location that has hazardous weather (tornado alley) it may be a better deal to get one of the XM weather recievers. That way you get the best possible weather information (with up to date dopler radar etc) and get a free satelite radio subscription.

I no longer think it is worth the cost for just the sattelite radio alone. I can fit 33000 songs on an Ipod and whatever you buy you own forever in digital. But if you add in the weather service and you avoid damage to your property or getting trapped in a blizzard or worse (tornados) it will have earned its keep.

 

[Ivan1547]

If you live in a location that has hazardous weather (tornado alley) it may be a better deal to get one of the XM weather recievers. That way you get the best possible weather information (with up to date dopler radar etc) and get a free satelite radio subscription.

I no longer think it is worth the cost for just the sattelite radio alone. I can fit 33000 songs on an Ipod and whatever you buy you own forever in digital. But if you add in the weather service and you avoid damage to your property or getting trapped in a blizzard or worse (tornados) it will have earned its keep.

I have not heard of that service before...that is part of what I did not like about XM...lack of weather/news reports.

Ivan

 

[Wayne County Hose]

I had at one time or another both XM and Sirius. I dumped them both and went back to FM. They kept changing the programming and channel locations. The last straw was when Sirius dropped Buzzsaw and picked up the XM equivalent. I called Sirius and told them I dropped XM because they stunk and now they are using the XM's programs. I bought an I-pod and now if I get sick of FM, I have any music I want.

 

[deereman64]

Currently listening to Radio 1's Weekend in Ibiza. Closest the wife will ever let me get to a hedonistc holiday

 

[Western]

I get the news on XM. about more channels than I like. I also get local traffic/weather in large metro's if I desire. I hear a few commercials but most are for other xm channels.

I like the 70's-90's stations mostly, and the Fox news network. I haven't found local news, but this isn't cable.

I travel allot and its nice to have the option of hearing the genre I like when the mood hits.

My son bought and receiver for $100 that looks like a gps thingy, it gets the xm/surius and works through his installed radio speakers, plug and play like.

 

[Therios Pendragon]

Had satellite for a year. Won't pay for it. Got a new cell phone from AT&T and it has a massive number of music feeds and even FM radio. Plus I use pandora.com.

only issue is that I need to get amplified headphones. I listen to audio books on the cell phone as it is an player as well... with my 32Gb card, I have about 3.7 billion songs...

my phone even does tv shows and hulu if I want to. Amazing how many things the cell phone does these days... just gotta figure out how to make a call now.

 

[caver]

I just bought a dock and play receiver. No contract and you can select how long of a period you want to pay for. I got the mostly music package. Be warned, that fees will be tacked on at the final checkout for royalties and taxes. That 9.99$ package gets closer to 15$. I went and got the FM direct unit because I was getting a bit of static through the wire extension transmitter. In the house I used RCA jacks with no outside noise that I can hear. I'm listening to it right now. the antennae will loose signal at the basement window but I can point it up through the upper floors and roof and get a signal....
I've not heard any advertising on Boneyard or Hair Nation but the DJ sometimes has brief chatter between songs.
This thing will be great on vacation traveling across the remote areas of western states.
I hear some repetition on the two channels I listen to but it's not as bad as Pandora. I used to really like Pandora but I had to change some songs from like to dislike as the service would play them every time I had it on the 'puter.
I LOVE pizza but do not want to eat it everyday.

 

[Mike120]

I had four different XM units when it first started. Very little chatter and mostly music. Now most of the stations chatter as much as regular radio. I've still got one unit activated in one of my trucks so I can check traffic but I've found that I can do that faster on my iPhone (and play the music I want to hear). When I get around to it I'll probably cancel it....They're just a pain to deal with...especially when you are cancelling.

 

[luscsmith]

I travel every week and after six years I bought a lifetime subscription for $400. That will help keep me happy when I stop working.

Scott

 

[bigtiller]

I travel every week and after six years I bought a lifetime subscription for $400. That will help keep me happy when I stop working.

Scott

I am glad to hear you say that. I was beginning to wonder if I was the only one that has a life time subscription, or did I get suckered into just another year.

 

[smfcpacfp]

XM radio costs me $77 per year and it is worth it to me. It is especially nice on a long trip. You can consistently listen to the same station as you travel across the country. My car has built in antenna in the outside mirrors.

The reception sometimes fades if I go in valleys of trees or in town with tall buildings, but seldom is it annoying.

 

[tallyho8]

XM radio costs me $77 per year and it is worth it to me. It is especially nice on a long trip. You can consistently listen to the same station as you travel across the country. My car has built in antenna in the outside mirrors.

The reception sometimes fades if I go in valleys of trees or in town with tall buildings, but seldom is it annoying.

How do you get it so cheap? All the packages I have found are twice that price.

 

[smfcpacfp]

How do you get it so cheap? All the packages I have found are twice that price.

That was the renewal cost which I received when XM Radio rebilled me this year, so I didn't do any searching.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

Never ever will I ever have XM again. In my opinion, they are crooks. I had a free 3 month trial with my new vehicle. after it expired, they made me several offers, finally I took one, that was 5 months for the price of one month. After the 5 months, I called and cancelled the service, except XM wouldn't cancel the service, and they kept billing my credit card. This went on for months. XM would simply not cancel the service and kept charging my card. I finally had to dispute the charges on my credit card before XM did anything. I got part of my money back, but not all of it.

As far as the service itself, I only found a couple stations I liked, and every time I drove under a bunch of trees it cuts out. Today XM and Sirius are one and the same. I prefer to load up my MP3 player and use it.

 

[westcliffe01]

XM WX Satellite Weather General info



Garmin 478C at The GPS Store, Inc.

Link to the Garmin GPS Map 478 for $700 with turn by turn navigation and overlaid XM weather. And it will handle XM radio stations too.

XM radio is best for the long road trips when there are either no stations or that change every 15 minutes. When close to home, an Ipod / MP3 player works well.