XM & Sirius Satellite Radio

nippononly

I thought the same thing and was MOST relieved to discover that was not the case. The update on my radio actually happened on Tuesday night while I was listening to it. I thought I had lost signal but when I looked at it, it was doing the updates.

If you use the website to figure out new channel lineups, beware! The "customized guide" will give you an incomplete list of channels, so it is not worth the time to create it. Better just to pull up the entire new lineup for the package you have...I did that and discoered there were a couple of channels listed that I didn't know about before that I want to listen to.

qbrozen

huh. Mine wasn't smart enough. Oh well.

fintail

Mine updated itself too, I was very pleased - thought I was going to have to print out a list and do it all manually.

tallman1

Mine updated too... very quickly. I had a short trip first thing in the morning and I thought it might not finish by the time I got there but it was ready by the end of the driveway.

Presets all look very strange now (with different numbers) but they stayed in the same position so I'll be able to remember them. The category button on my radio makes a bit more sense now. After the merge, it was all over the place.

michaellno

I guess I should take my wife's CX-7 out today and see if the resets take place. We've got Sirius, so not exactly sure what changes will be made.

stever

"More than 45 million cars and light-duty trucks will have Internet radio in 2018, up from about 4 million this year, research firm Strategy Analytics said, adding that almost half of those Internet radio-connected cars will be in North America."

Internet Car Radios Will Surge By 2018 (AutoObserver)

cdnpinhead

access from my car, along with the capability to download shows for playing later, I'd cancel my XM subscription immediately.

I may anyway, if Opie & Anthony and/or Ron/Fez ever go away or lose even more content.

ledzepplin

I cancelled xm. It is expensive, a pain in the a-- install and poorly programmed.

A crystal set beats xm any day of the week!

fintail

I've had Sirius in my car for about 4 years now. It's not perfect, but compared to local radio 95% of the time, I will deal with it.

michaellno

It's not perfect, but compared to local radio 95% of the time, I will deal with it.

I agree. My wife's new car has a 6-month subscription to Sirius, and I prefer it to regular radio by and large - about the only thing I listen to are Colorado Rockies games.

There is more talk than in the past, but still less than what you get on an FM "drive time" station.

fintail

I've got half a dozen or so stations I switch back and forth between, mostly decent and not too chatty. It's a small expense in the scheme of things, I can justify it. And as I do make a couple all day road trips each year, it's nice then too.

michaellno

I've got half a dozen or so stations I switch back and forth between, mostly decent and not too chatty. It's a small expense in the scheme of things, I can justify it. And as I do make a couple all day road trips each year, it's nice then too.

Exactly. On our recent trip to AZ and NM, we listened to Sirius pretty much the whole trip. We switched between a few channels.

nippononly

Exactly what I do with it - I re-upped recently when they promo'ed it for $20/5 months for returning subscribers. Liked it enough to keep it after the promo period - the price for Sirius Everything is up, I notice, to about $13/month, but that's manageable to get the BBC news and some music without commercials.

I still occasionally listen to broadcast radio, but not very often. I don't have HD radio in the car though - I hear that triples the selections. May have to try that out at some point.

And what about internet radio? I am assuming that depends on some sort of cell network signal, so does it drop out a lot? Does it freeze if it can't stream it fast enough? Or are those issues non-existent with the internet radios currently being installed in new cars?

cdnpinhead

And what about internet radio? I am assuming that depends on some sort of cell network signal, so does it drop out a lot? Does it freeze if it can't stream it fast enough? Or are those issues non-existent with the internet radios currently being installed in new cars?

I'll be watching how this develops closely. Much of what I listen to these days are podcasts or mp3 files I download from radio stations that may be clear across the country (Imus, etc.). If an internet radio in a car allows download capability, I can download many hours of entertainment in a few minutes for trips across the wide-open spaces out here in the west.

As it is, I spend at least half the time in my car listening to my mp3 player running through the aux input.

Mr_Shiftright

I run Pandora through my cell phone and jack it into my cassette deck and it's fine as long as you have any kind of decent signal. Of course, if you are driving in remote areas, it's not going to work. It doesn't drop out any more than my Sirius did when I had that.

stever

"Smart listeners will have every right to challenge January's price increase. Even if Sirius XM positions the move as adding just a nickel a day to someone's tab, it's not as if the increase is justified. Programming and content costs have actually declined 10% over the past year. Kindles and iPhones get cheaper over time. Why is Sirius XM taking a page out of Netflix's ill-advised playbook?

Sirius XM is rolling out SiriusXM 2.0 this week, a new platform that features nearly two dozen more stations. The problem is that folks need to buy new receivers. Two receivers will be available in stores this holiday season, but it will take automakers a year or two before rolling out new cars with factory-installed SiriusXM 2.0 systems."

Sirius Trouble: Is Satellite Radio Headed for a Fall? (dailyfinance.com)

berri

Once again I had a rental with Sirrius XM and once again I'm reminded why I didn't keep it for my car. While there aren't commercials, the channels I was listening to all had way too much DJ blabber. One of them had some guy named Cousin Brucie who seemed to talk more than play music. I think they also use limited playlists because you'd hear some of the same songs each day. I can get that blather and drivel for free on local radio stations. If I'm paying I want no DJ nonsense and to be able to go at least a week without repaeating the songs. Otherwise I might as well save the money and just play CD's or an iPod in the vehicle. It might be useful if you live in the middle of nowhere and have a limited music collection though I suppose.

stever

I just got one of those super cheap (like $5) FM transmitter gizmos that you plug into the power port and the music plays through the radio. Has a slot for a card or USB stick or a MP3 player. Not the best quality but if it works in the boonies, that's fine. Even comes with a remote.

fintail

I've noticed the playlist thing too - sometimes it seems the "1st Wave" station plays Squeeze for a good third of its songs, 80s station can be repetitive too, both can get too chatty. Best stations I listen to are the "Electric Area" and sometimes "Lithium" and "Chill". Problems, but still better than local Seattle radio. Eventually going to have to start streaming internet music.

qbrozen

Our subscription came due last month. As usual, they sent a bill for an unreasonable amount (IMHO). I called to say I'd like to re-up, but not at that rate. Well, after 6 years, they finally told me to take a hike; they would not cut me a deal. Oh well. It was a good run, but its back to MP3s for me and the wife.

stickguy

I am down to only 2. I did not bother to get a new portable unit for the Volvo (my accord was built in). My daughter actually prefers FM (kids!), and there are enough stations on that I can live with it, since I don't drive much. For trips, I can use the ipod in the AUX jack (handy), or the 6 CD changer.

In our van, the adapter I put in also runs the ipod, so if I took it away from the wife, she would live with ipod and FM (and ipod for travel).

My son is the one that bugged to keep it, for his drive back and forth from the wilderness, but the Acura does have a CD player (changer I think, but not sure!). He just doesn't have many CDs (everything on the ipod). Should just get him an adapter and cut the cord!

will likely go back when we get a new car for my wife since most likely it will all be integrated.

michaellno

The wife's CX-7 has a Sirius subscription that expires in September. Not sure if I'm gonna renew.

The car has an AUX port and a 6-CD changer, but I'm thinking about adding iPod compatibility to it so it will charge the iPod and allow the steering wheel controls to be used.

stickguy

most of the new stuff we are considering seems to have ipod integration already accounted for.

One of the things I don't like about the ipod is not being able to see the info on the radio display. not convenient or safe to have to pick up the ipod itself to change things.

in our van, the USAspec unit we installed does charge the ipod, and integrates to the radio buttons, just not the display. So I can skip songs, but not see what is on 9or do any other ipod functions),

michaellno

most of the new stuff we are considering seems to have ipod integration already accounted for.

In our fleet, only the daughter's MINI has full iPod integration with a separate cable. The ION and CX-7 only have an AUX port.

The wife does not use her iPod in the CX-7 - she doesn't like to have to look at the iPod for controls, and it runs the charge down. (She doesn't like the Bose unit in our house either as that doesn't charge the iPod)

OTOH, I do use my iPod in the ION when I'm delivering pizzas. Yes, it's a pain to have to use the iPod to skip songs and I have to pause it every time I turn the car off, otherwise it continues to run and drain the battery.

I've given some thought to investing a few hundred $$$'s to get a new head unit with both full iPod integration and Bluetooth; the ION has a double-DIN factory unit, so an aftermarket unit shouldn't be too tough to find.

stever

Liberty Media is taking over Sirius XM.

Anyone care?

(More at Reuters)

berri

Only if they cut the DJ blabber and lengthen the time between repeats. Personally, we didn't feel it was worth paying for because of those issues.

provlima

I purchased an es350 in August that came with a 90 trial of XM.
Does Sirius notify you at the end of the trial or start billing you???

stickguy

they send you a letter. You have to sign up for something before they can start charging you.

I just got mine from XM for the Acura I bought on 8/31.

ledzepplin

I made the mistake of installing xm in my car. I like classical and jazz. I never understood why they played excerpts from classical music-I thought something
was wrong with the unit.

I cancelled and uninstalled the unit from my car. Every month or so they try to get me back by offering the service for some unbelievably low price. Not to my taste.

Ever since they merged they could care less about customers.

ledzepplin

4cyl w 90,000 mi. Both the brake light and the anti lock lights went on about 3 mos ago. I thought they would evenually disappear-brake fluid level was slightly low-addes fluid.

They have not gone off. I have detected no problems-brakes feel fine. If I take it to have
it looked at I am fearful of a ripoff. Has anyone had this problem? Thanks for any help.

This was the wrong week to give up airplane glue.

ledzepplin

When driving on smooth road-no problem but drive on a road with a few bumps or slight
uneveness and the noise is deafening. Local garage said they couldn't find anything. The noise
sounds like pieces of metal rattling around in the wheel well. Of course there is a tire there and
the tire changing stuff is "nailed" down. Noise only comes from the rear. Other than this annoying problem all seems well. 90,000 mi. Any help would be appreciated.

stever

Try the Camry Brakes discussion.

Liberty is taking over Sirius XM so more changes are likely coming.

I did a 9 hour road trip today and just listened to my $5 MP3 gizmo through my radio for about 6 hours of that. I did miss trying to find some news stations, it being the aftermath of election day and all. But I wouldn't get my monies worth out of a monthly subscription.

stever

"Sirius XM Radio Inc's grip on drivers is under an increasing threat as the availability of Internet connections in more cars is helping Pandora Media Inc counter some of its rival's big selling points.

Sirius XM, which has its satellite radios in 70 percent of new vehicles, generates the vast majority of its revenue through subscriptions and derives only a fraction from advertising dollars. Streaming service Pandora is just the opposite, collecting most of its revenue from advertising and operating only a nascent subscription business.

But the migration of music audiences to mobile devices threatens to upend a market that Sirius current dominates."

In battle for the car, Sirius faces fight from Pandora (Reuters)

nippononly

Data throttling, ever-increasing charges for excess data, spotty coverage and the inability of the mobile network to provide steady streaming of music without freezing and gaps as you move around at car speeds, all will conspire to limit Pandora's "threat" for now.

Plus most sat radio is entirely commercial-free, which is worth a lot to me all by itself. I don't think sat radio can just sit on its hands, and it is certainly borderline too expensive, but I don't thnk Pandora is going to KO Sirius any time soon.

busiris

...but I don't thnk Pandora is going to KO Sirius any time soon.

KO, no, not anytime soon, but faster than one might think.

Right now, Sirius XM is the much bigger company, with almost 24 million subscribers and more than $3 billion in annual revenue. In the third quarter, it generated average revenue of $12.14 per subscriber.

Pandora, by contrast has 60 million users, about 1 million of whom are paid subscribers, and is on track to generate $424 million in revenue this year.

60 million is a lot more exposure than 24 million, and Pandora is aiming at the younger crowd market, a segment that is the future.

"From the consumer standpoint, the reception advantages of satellite radio will be marginalized or go away over time," said a former Sirius XM executive familiar with the business models of the company and its competitors.

stickguy

until they resolve the data usage dilemma, streaming is going to be a problem. It seems strange that there is this huge push toward using the phone to stream, but at the same time, the carriers are doing everything they can to limit your usage of it.

just not enough bandwidth to go around.

busiris

...until they resolve the data usage dilemma, streaming is going to be a problem. It seems strange that there is this huge push toward using the phone to stream, but at the same time, the carriers are doing everything they can to limit your usage of it.

Are the carriers really doing everything they can to limit your usage, or are they doing everything they can to make you pay for using it?

It's a subtle, but very real, difference...

stickguy

yes, a nuance. They are setting up a system to suck as much money as possible out of the customers, which will likely have the result of people cutting back on usage.

they are like drug dealers. Give out some free samples to get you hooked, then ratchet up the price when you are!

busiris

...they are like drug dealers. Give out some free samples to get you hooked, then ratchet up the price when you are!

Good analogy.

IMO, the wireless carriers see themselves as entitled to some of the gold they carry.

In essence, its a sly way to change the business model... Sort of like me sending you $100 each week through the mail and one day the mailman says to himself..."Sure, you paid me to deliver the $100 by purchasing a stamp, but now that I realize I've been delivering something of value to you, in a reliable manner, I'm entitled to a little piece of the action as well".

Carrying data only pays so much...a bit like "Time to increase the size of my piece of pie... Bigger piece of the same size pie, or same % of a bigger pie... ".

Either one works...

greywulfe

Hi All,

I have a 2011 Nissan Quest. It came with the free trial of XM, and I let it run out. A couple of weeks ago, I noticed the GPS was throwing up weather warnings - and sure enough XM is operating. I never re-subscribed - did this happen to anyone before?

Sandman6472

They have this in a lot of the rental cars I drive and it's quite enjoyable to say the least! But if one has a large enough inventory of stored music on cd's or a flash drive, it can be almost as good for a fraction of the cost. That's just what I listen to when a vehicle has no SAT radio like yesterday. I really like the 60's and 70's channels but my flash drive does almost the same thing except they have more of a selection. I've only got about 675 on the drive and I eventually will rehear stuff but SAT radio has the better variety but it just costs so darn much if one can't get the the phone person to get you a lower rate. If my car had it I'd love it but hey, I don't even have a aux plug or a usb port in my '06 Civic, something I deperately miss. My next vehicle will definitely have it!

The Sandman :sick: :shades:

berri

Every once in awhile they will reactivate for a week or two at no cost trying to get you to resubscribe. I think the latest promo around here ends today. A few days ago I was taking a long drive and decided to tune it in. But it was the same thing; constant DJ blabber, listener phone ins, etc. Within 20 minutes I was back to my CD's. I want to listen to music, not DJ's and phone ins. Just reaffirmed for me my decision to let it lapse.

broken_arrow

Hi Steve, after I bought my 2013 Subaru Forester, 5-speed MT, with mix/match add-ons I wanted, I spent the most money of any after-build item on a Sirius sattalite radio install. Not even the version with a blue LED panel sitting over the gear shifter. This one looks like nothing was ever added, but I do pick up maybe 5 channels of not classic rock, try a Spanish station playing music that 1st came out on 78's! The auto-trim shop that activated my free trial period didn't send me anything but a channel line up, no good if proramming it is what I needed. a pro-car-audio installer, my salesman showed up, sat next to me dazed & confused, waste of both our time. Unless it starts doing what every reference on the Sirius models I studied-up on tells me it will do well. It stays only an annoyance and embarrassment to any passenger hearing junk just turned their ride with me something they should hav brough their own MP3 player. When free trial runs out I will call Sirius and cancel their incomplete features. Increasing the volume just distorts the sound bad, and honestly out of 140 commercial free but puntuated by motor-mouthed DJ's singing this radio's praises is worse than commercials. When the freebie 140 channels only have maybe 10 stations playing tinny music on a loop, with just one soft-rock elevator music that comes in then fades out and the Elvis channel takes over offering balanced out against around 100 channels of sports, news, comedy, financial, weather, chat-shows, bible thumpers, and all the junk I don't want to hear like it's coming out of a mono 8-track fossil! Not a so called state of the art music breakthrogh complete with genres, jerks, J-birds and aging has-beens. I will leave it insde the dash LED display, but if Siruis wants to get serious, then I expect crystal clear perfect recetption, complete with eyes-on scrolling artist facts, from the album titile, track, released year and genre. Too picky U say? :mad: Go listen to it in one of your loca auto dealerships for a good feel on just how sub-standard Sirius is no cheap waste of your cash, and tell me U don't slip a CD into the bay to hear what your favorite music is supposed to sound like before you even have one of these junkers put into your honey of a new Subaru Forester, I double-dog-dare-U! I asked the Sirius sales ep why my reception was so horrible, her answer "It depends where you are an certain stations only come through clear close to a wi-fi relay-tower. I'll remember that next trip I take to New Mexico, or Alaska! :sick: Steve, your feedback would be useful. I really wanted the Sirus music-only deal, but if living miles from a relay tower, then I my as well switch and keep it off. :mad:

fintail

Maybe I misunderstood, but you had an aftermarket unit installed? I'd take it back and try a different model, sounds like you got a lemon. Maybe find a better shop as well. I'd be unhappy too. Does Subaru not have the service available in a factory stereo unit?

I just bought a new car, and had an aftermarket unit in my old car. The Sirius trial was already active, and I simply migrated the old subscription over, took about 15 minutes on the phone. Went off without a hitch. Everything works perfectly in the new integrated unit, and some stations even offer year of release info.

stever

I haven't listened to Sirius since we house sat for a few weeks near Taos about 3 years ago. The "coffee house" channel was enjoyable.

Being frugal, I got a $5 FM transmitter gizmo for playing MP3s on a USB stick when I'm in my old Outback and can't pick up anything on the radio. But I'm no audiophile.

It does sound like you got a lousy install or unit. Maybe you can swing by the dealer and listen to an OEM one and compare notes.

busiris

I'll begin by saying it sounds like your equipment installation was improperly done, or you have a defective or poorly designed unit. So, verify its not your problem before proceeding.

Having made that clear, its important to note that for the average listener, most will be satisfied by the quality is Satellite radio music.

However, one with exceptionally good ears, or a true audiophile may not be very pleased with the sound quality of satellite-transmitted music, even when it's at its best. Just as the MP3/4 format deletes part of the audible frequency range (to compact the signal) and will never sound as good as a .wav file, satellite transmission does that even more. Occasionally, you can hear a song over Sirius/XM that sounds like one of the stereophonic tracks got lost, but I don't notice it very often.

If it really bugs you, I suggest you simply listen to CDs. That way, you get the next best thing to a pristine analog album.

stever

"Startup automaker Detroit Electric plans to be the first without a radio when it rolls out its first car in August — audio will be delivered via smartphone.

"AM and FM as a delivering mechanism isn't going to be the most important in cars anymore," said Thilo Koslowski, a vice president at technology research firm Gartner Inc."

Automakers tuning out traditional in-car radios (Detroit News)

stickguy

are they planning to pay the $200/month data bill for all that streaming too?

stever

Even worse, you'll pay for the data and still get swamped with commercials.

Just like cable TV.

Que the Tremeloes :-)

qbrozen

what caught my interest was a carmaker I hadn't heard of. Sooo... what's with this company and why are they building what seems to be exactly what Tesla started with?