I have XM, who has Sirius?

[whitllam]

I am currently an XM subscriber and am pretty happy with XM's service so far (had it since last December), especially in allowing me to hear music that I've never heard and become familiar with new artists & genres. However, since the "grass is always greener" on the other side, I've always contemplated whether it would be worth the switch to Sirius sometime next year. I've heard that their playlists aren't as deep as XM's, but is that really the case? Also, I find XM's rock selection a little limited and have heard that Sirius's is a little more robust. I love XM's coverage of MLB and now the NHL, but since NASCAR is leaving and the NFL and Howard Stern (he's entertaining!) are on Sirius, I guess I just want to know what their service is like. Thanks for any input that anyone can provide.

[nakedeye]

It sounds like trash. the compression is horrible

[NBC4ENG]

I have Sirius and I love it. I drive a long way to work and it beats terrestrial broadcast hands down. The stuff I listen to is commercial free. They have a local transmitter in the downtown area to fill in dead spots when the satellite is blocked. This has a limited range though.

The audio quality is very good. I have an adapter that lets the audio enter through the CD player. The unit also transmits a low power signal on any FM channel you pick.

Because I'm an older dude, the old radio program channel brings back a lot of memories for me. Have Gun, will Travel, Gunsmoke, The Green Hornet, to name a few. Regards.

[nakedeye]

Ohh god I think that might be one of my biggest fears! My locals station eng. is okay with compression artifacts!!!!!!!!!


j/k

[jchiso]

I've had Sirius since late May. I would describe it as "okay" for my purposes. I only listen to a handful of (rock) channels, so I am not as enthusiastic as some are about the breadth of options. I do find the depth of the playlists to be lacking. I generally listen to (internet station) RadioIO '70s whenever I am near a computer, so I have become somewhat spoiled in terms of playlist quality.

My unit (a Starmate) worked well for the first few months, but recently has experienced frequent dropouts while driving locally. I must admit that I have the antenna attached to the inside of my trunk and the surface area of said trunk is not particularly large.

[dshoults]

I have the Sirius Streamer GT. I got my streamer off EBay about 2 months ago when Sirius had their $30.00 rebate costing me nothing but shipping for the unit. (Added bonus) I hardwired the car kit in to my dash of my Nissan Xterra and also have the home kit so I can bring the Streamer inside. I also have a VW Camper that I use the home kit with an inverter when I’m traveling and camping. I haven’t listened to terrestrial radio since I installed Sirius. I got Sirius because of everything I read about better choices of music channels and yes, I like Howard Stern. (Although I believe that once he’s on Satellite it won’t be worth listening to. I do miss it though.)

The PROS of Sirius over XM in my mind:
- Better Channel Lineup
- Howard Stern, better sports package
- The DJ format that they use with special guests appearing on things and in their studios. I love One More Saturday Night with Bill Walton.
And this for example:
November 1st is "Trey Day" on Jam ON
Tues 11/1 7:00 am ET
*SIRIUS declares November 1st "Trey Day" and hands the controls over to Trey Anastasio on the very same day he releases his much anticipated new album, Shine. The former Phish front man will pick the tunes and serve as your host for a full day of musical mayhem.

*SIRIUS Jams with Trey Anastasio
Fri 11/4 12:00 pm ET
From his days in Phish to the release of his brand new album, Shine, Trey Anastasio leaves no topic un-discussed when he visits the SIRIUS studios. Plus, jam along as Trey performs songs from his new CD.


The CONS of Sirius over XM in my mind:
- The song list doesn’t seem as deep
- They have 3 satellites going around in an oval instead of the XM satellite staying right over the US you have to either have a really good spot in your house to always stay connected to a satellite or you constantly have to move the antenna around throughout the day. (I could easily fix this by getting an extender for the indoor antenna and mount it up higher outside of my house, but with XM that isn’t a problem.)

Both Sirius and XM have compression issues and once you hear the Sssssss role off a DJ it will stay with you forever; like the rainbow on DLP projectors. Satellite radio isn’t for you to steal the music and rip it on to CD’s it’s for listening to good music all the time commercial free. I think it sounds pretty good in the car and in my house. Is it CD quality, NO. But, it beats the crap out of seating around playing mister DJ at a party all night or listening to Wags and Elliot laugh at each other all morning long…

[nakedeye]

Well I have to say XM is far supirior to Sirius as far as sound quality goes. Yes it is also compressed, but it does not sound like a cat dying in the upper freq. Also voices sound relativly normal compared to the metalic over compressed crap you get on sirius

[TvPat]

dshoults, I would agree with pretty much all of your arguments. The three satellite issue would actually be a PRO in northern states and Canada, where the equator is nearly at the horizon. In my case, I have my home antenna pointed directly at the western XM satellite. It the my only way to get reception. Sirius would not work for me, because the satellites keep moving.

The XM AAC+ codec seems to be widely considered to be superior to Sirius. I have been impressed when comparing 128k versus 64k AAC+ feeds of online radio stations, such as Radio Paradise. I am disappointed, however, with XM sound quality on any good stereo. On a boom box, it's fine.

Another con in my opinion of XM is that is available for free in many other places. For example, you gen a lower bitrate version for free at AOL Radio and with the latest version of WinAmp. A higher bitrate version is available for free through RoadRunner by getting a free AOL account. It will soon be available through DirecTV. Sirius is only available through Dish Network. It makes me want to switch to Sirius because I can already get XM in so many other places.

As far as better channel lineup, that depends on who you ask. They do seem to have better talk, and I really wish XM had a station like Jam On. But check out below the top 10 rated XM stations on AOL Radio. It's almost all pop crap! The only station out of that 10 I listen to is Mix, and that tends to get repetitive after a while.

Top 10 XM stations on AOL Radio:
1) 20 on 20 (Pop) Interactive Top-20 countdown
2) KISS (Top 40 Hits) Pop Hits of the NOW Millenium
3) Mix (Pop Mix) Pop music mix
4) '80s The awesome '80s
5) The Heart (Love Songs) All love songs 24/7
6) '70s Best of the '70s
7) Highway 16 (Top Country) Country music's new superstars.
8) The Blend (Lite Rock) Adult contemporary
9) '60s The authentic '60s sound
10) The City (Urban) Hip-hop and R&B from today's biggest superstars.

[nakedeye]

XM Radio Lab is the most jamming channel iMHO

[stevec999]

I have Sirius and am happy with it. Have an Alpine deck in my truck and a Audiovox PNP we move between the wifes van and the Mustang. I like the playlists and the channel selection.