XM radio?

[dbax791]

Anyone have this or try it out?

I'm going to be doing a fair amount of road tripping this summer (imagine that, don't wanna be in the 115 degree heat), and god forbid I cross Nebraska and get the "All Farm Report" station. I think it would be nice to get nationwide full programming. I'm thinking about getting the portable one with the cassette adapter.

Any opinions?

[Windsor]

Originally posted by dbax791
Anyone have this or try it out?

I'm going to be doing a fair amount of road tripping this summer (imagine that, don't wanna be in the 115 degree heat), and god forbid I cross Nebraska and get the "All Farm Report" station. I think it would be nice to get nationwide full programming. I'm thinking about getting the portable one with the cassette adapter.

Any opinions?

Doesn't sound like a bad idea if your wallet can take it all it's not too cheap from what I've heard on advertisements and such.

[JPR]

yeah the equipment isnt cheap but the service for $10 isnt bad. the sound quality is awesome though. I really like how the song info and lyrics are displayed on the player.

[IrishSS]

For quite a while now I've been wanting XM radio... I've done my research, and yes, its a bit spendier than your normal AM/FM setup. But only due to the additional cost of the XM receiver and antenna. For the amount and quality of it, i think its a damn good deal. Especially for someone like you who is going to be using it for a good amount of time.

I would have it now, except I kinda decided to wait till i got a new rig to put it in. No need giving the theives more things to steal outta my truck... :rolleyes:

[Tommy Boomfiger]

i cant see paying for radio. guess i got used to free radio. if you have a good selection of mp3's maybe youd like a mp3 cd player.

[ribitch]

i have played with it a few times. I decided that i really want one, but i tend to listen to CD's more than the radio because the radio seems to play the same crap over and over.

So after thinking about it, I would have to pay 250 for an antenae, then a minimum of 250 for a radio, but that would jump higher for MP3 or multiple CD capabilities.

so you get to well over 500.00 bucks, plus 10 bucks per month. for 500.00 I could make a whole bunch of cd's, or even buy them.

So until prices drop, i dont think i will be getting it

[whitak24]

i prefer listening to cds, although i do here that you can get a very wide variety of music via XM radio.

[dbax791]

Originally posted by ribitch

so you get to well over 500.00 bucks, plus 10 bucks per month. for 500.00 I could make a whole bunch of cd's, or even buy them.

So until prices drop, i dont think i will be getting it

Well the model I'm looking at is the portable one, and it is $300 including the antenna. Plus I like to listen to a lot of sportstalk radio (I'm a sports junkie) in addition to music. And especially out here in the west, you don't have to drive to far before you get out of broadcast range.

Thanks for the tips, I'll probably get one this week.

[Blu]

My main issue is that both options are owned by huge broadcasting companies. I listen to alot of independant music, which I don't think I'll be able to find on XM.

I think people get overwhelmed by the "up to 100 channels" tag line. Think of it this way: First, it's "up to" which means they may only have 50 now. And what happens if you hate 30 of the stations? So you're down to 20. Well, you still can't listen to what you want whenever you want like you can with a changer.

Right now I'm looking for a headunit, and I'll probably get one with the ability to add XM later, but I think I'll skip the early adopter deal this time.

[Sir_Froggy]

Originally posted by ribitch
i have played with it a few times. I decided that i really want one, but i tend to listen to CD's more than the radio because the radio seems to play the same crap over and over.


wait...don't CD's seem to play the same crap over and over?


If I had a car and I was rich I would probably get XM because it'd be cool to listen to a radio station without commercials

[ribitch]

Originally posted by Sir_Froggy


wait...don't CD's seem to play the same crap over and over?


If I had a car and I was rich I would probably get XM because it'd be cool to listen to a radio station without commercials

you did get me on that. What I meant is radio plays the same bands and same 50 or so songs. They dont play the other songs off the CD's which are often better than the released song.

Th only time i listen to radio is between 7 AM and 11 AM mon-fri while at work. I turn on a morning show to help speed up the day.

[JPR]

I was told that I could..listen to my radio at a reasonable volume between the hours of 9 to 11.

[whitak24]

Originally posted by JPR
I was told that I could..listen to my radio at a reasonable volume between the hours of 9 to 11.
lmao.

that is perfect for this thread :heh:

[dbax791]

Originally posted by Blu

I think people get overwhelmed by the "up to 100 channels" tag line. Think of it this way: First, it's "up to" which means they may only have 50 now. And what happens if you hate 30 of the stations? So you're down to 20. Well, you still can't listen to what you want whenever you want like you can with a changer.


True, but radios and CD's are apples and oranges. When I want to listen to specific songs, I'll pop in a CD...but I also like to listen to music I havent heard before as well as news and sports.

Same issue here with broadcast radio...We get prolly 40-60 stations here and I only listen to maybe 8 tops. The main reason is that when I road trip out west here you lose radio signals fairly quickly, and I think it would be nice to have nationwide reception.

[Jihforce]

Their coverage isn't too bad. Aside from cloudy days or driving thru tunnels, you should be able to get pretty good reception.
I've thought about getting it too. But my car is leased. I don't know if I'm keeping it long term or not. So I wouldn't want to make that investment.
My ex-roommate lunched the satellites for XM. She told me I could get a discount if I wanted it. But I opted not to for the same reasons some of you guys mentions. Of all 100 stations, I might only like like 5 of them. I don't want to pay for 95 stations of Country, Farm Report, Howard Stern or any of that crap.
However if you do think about it, 10 bucks a month is much cheaper than buying one CD every month.

[OC]

Cloudy days? That counts me out... 'Sides, I'd rather just use the MP3 capability of my car stereo.

-OC

[Jihforce]

Right now they got 2 satellites up (Rock and Roll, although Roll was launched first) I figure once i launch a few more, reception should be even better.

[dbax791]

OK so I got it this weekend, and all I can say is that it is amazing! The sound quality is awesome since it is a digital signal, and I have had no problem with reception, even when my car is in the garage with the door closed. The sound is very crisp, deep and ballsy (can I say that?)...sounds like a CD, there is NO comparison when I switch back to regular radio. And I like how I can see the artist/song title with whatever is playing. There are probably like 20-30 channels I will listen to regularly.

I spent $299 + tax for the portable unit + antenna. The only downside is that I have to set it up each time I get into the car, but it only takes like 30 secs or so.

Will make this summer's road trips much more enjoyable!

[cruelpupet]

is there a hack for the XM radio so you dont have to subscribe????

[MJordanash]

Originally posted by whitak24
i prefer listening to cds, although i do here that you can get a very wide variety of music via XM radio. :stupid:

[Sir_Froggy]

Originally posted by cruelpupet
is there a hack for the XM radio so you dont have to subscribe????

lol haha :laugh2:

so how many stations do you listen to dbax? worth it? you said amazing but doesn't mean it is actually worth it so is it worth it?