I just purchaced a Sirius radio kit for my cars and house

[Smoothaccel]

Has anyone tried the XM or Sirius radio yet on their NSX?

 

[1HOT NSX]

I rented a car that had a Sirius system and it was nice. Great selection of stations and great music overall, however, the signal kept cutting off and it became pretty annoying after a while - I was driving it around the San Francisco Bay Area.

 

[racerX]

I run XM in my Pathfinder. Will be putting it in the NSX this summer.

As a word of advice to other owners, even if you do not drive that much this service is great. Lots of choice not very much commercial or talk. I highly recomend it.

 

[LeftLane]

I don't have either in my NSX, but I do have XM in both mine and my wife's Suburbans...

My unit is the plug and play from Sony that works thru your cassette player and powers thru your cigarette lighter - you have the antenna installed and then you can move it from car to car (or car to home with the home kit). The sound is good, but not as good as it could be with a permanent head unit.

My wife has XM in her OEM unit from the factory and it does sound much better.

After I first got XM in September 03, I was so impressed that I bought the stock at around $3.00. It went down to $1.50 (like everything else I have ), so I bought some more. Well, they just crossed 1 mil subscribers, and now the stock is at $23.

BTW, it costs $9.97 a month, but if you have more than one, the 2nd thru 4th is only $6.97. Believe me, if you do any significant windshield time, it is AWESOME!! I never listen to the radio or CDs anymore...it's all ESPN, Comedy, Top 20, etc...

I have used Sirius in rental cars, and that service is $14.99 a month. In my own experience, the signal was not as strong, and it was lost fairly often as it attempted to reconnect. I never have that problem with XM.

Prediction - within 2 years, XM will be the dominant provider of satellite radio and will swallow Sirius whole.

Enjoy!!

 

[Smoothaccel]

WoW, XM will swallow Sirius whole... LOL I cant wait to install it. I have heard that Sirius has more satellites.

 

[mojo]

I don't have it installed in my NSX yet (I do have it installed my TSX), but I do have the Kenwood Here2Anywhere Sirius radio, which allows moving it from place to place (including car and home). I hate commercials, and can't stand the idea of paying for XM radio with their commercials.

I have a little trouble with the antenna inside my house and the reception- it's only good if I move it by a window. I rarely have trouble in my car with the antenna under the rear glass.

 

[GinaK]

I have the Sirius sytem and I love it. Although... I regularly listen to WLS, which isn't on the Sirius system.. and believe it or not, excluding of the satellite, I can't get any AM stations in my nsx. Argh. I really haven't had any issues with the signal - when I go under a bridge sometimes it cuts out, but other than that, I love it. For long trips, it's the best. I think in hindsight, I would have gotten XM, but I'm not sure that it is offered in my area. I think XM has more/better stations...

 

[LeftLane]

Sirius does have more satellites (3 to 2 for XM), but a big part of the success of a "startup" company is institutional ownership of the stock. GM has a huge stake in XM through Hughes, and a lot of institutional investors favor "first mover advantage", which XM has, since it launched first and has significantly more subscribers (over 1 mil, vs. 250k for Sirius). Also, the future success will hinge in a large part on which automotive brands align with the satellite companies to offer the service as a factory option, and so far XM has more arrangements with the big mass market auto companies, while Sirius has the advantage with high end cars.

At the end of the day, both services are comparable, it's just that XM had a head start, and that is very often critical in a new technology. The reason I say XM will be the winner is because of their backing, and Sirius, at just over $2 a share, could be attractive to them as a takeover.

Yes, XM does have limited commercials on some stations - from which they do make money, which never hurts when you are a fledgling company.

BTW, I believe Acura is offering XM as a factory option now!

To each his own - that's the wonderful thing about having options! I just happen to be a guy who favors the "overdog".

Disclosure - I do own XM stock, albeit a small amount.

 

[wswen]

XM Radio

I have had XM for two years and use it in every vehicle I own.(including NSX) I work in a Diesel Emission Engineering Chassis Dyno facility and even use it when I am testing vehicles on the dyno. I couldn't live without it! (Sony Plug and Play)
Wswen

 

[jlindy]

I
I have used Sirius in rental cars, and that service is $14.99 a month. In my own experience, the signal was not as strong, and it was lost fairly often as it attempted to reconnect. I never have that problem with XM.

Prediction - within 2 years, XM will be the dominant provider of satellite radio and will swallow Sirius whole.

Enjoy!!

Old thread, but an interesting read on how things have changed over the last year. Everywhere I have gone to shop for Sat. Radio raves about the Sirius product over XM. Best Buy and Circuit City both are having trouble keeping them in stock, while not selling much XM. Every sales rep I talked with said hands down that Sirius is much better. I hope their old problems of signal loss is not as prevalent as it used to be.

Does tapping into an unused FM station cause poorer sound quality? I do have an aux/cd option in my Accord, but have no idea how to hook that up.

 

[4AU4LIFE]

I have XM in the NSX. I love it. I like talk radio more so than music and this gives me the ability to listen to ESPN and lots of other things.

 

[wswen]

Re: I just purchased a Sirius radio kit for my cars and house

Yes,Using the FM modulator does have inferior quality than the cassette adapter or plugging straight in but I still think it is ll better than any FM station.

 

[DocL]

Re: I just purchased a Sirius radio kit for my cars and house

Yes,Using the FM modulator does have inferior quality than the cassette adapter or plugging straight in but I still think it is ll better than any FM station.

Actually, I found that in the NSX that the FM modulator sounds much better than the cassette adapter. There was too much hiss coming through the system with the cassette with or without the dolby on.

 

[jlindy]

Re: I just purchased a Sirius radio kit for my cars and house

Actually, I found that in the NSX that the FM modulator sounds much better than the cassette adapter. There was too much hiss coming through the system with the cassette with or without the dolby on.

I would be using it in my 03 Accord. I can use the compartment under the stereo to house the Sirius because I don't like the unprofessional "stuck to the dash" look. I would think that since the radio is much better than the NSX, the FM method would probably sound better than the same set up in the NSX, but could be wrong.

I could always use the CD/aux, but that would be a pain and I am not sure how to do that.

 

[nsxtasy]

There's a nice deal on XM posted here in the off-topic forum.

Monthly charges for XM are less than for Sirius. There are some slight differences in programming, but there are far more similarities (and in any case, it all depends on what particular channels might be of interest to you). There's a great website comparing the two services here.

 

[Doc C]

I've had both Sirius and XM. There are commercials on both, so don't let that sway you. Both of their music channels are commercial free, but the talk areas have commercials like any other radio station. Sirius is same price (per month)as XM if you buy a year subsciption. I had Sirius Fm modulated and it sounded okay. My XM is incorporated into my Mark Levinson in my Lexus and sounds much better. I agree though, that even the FM modulated sounds way better than regular FM stations. Which units of XM fit the best in the NSX??? Roady 2?? I wish people would post more install pics. Take care.

 

[DocL]

... I wish people would post more install pics. Take care.

I move my Roady around between cars and have the antenae's and power supply already hardwired. In my other cars, I cut out part of the sunglass holder on the headliner and place it in there where I have the wires routed under the headliner and down the A-pillar. For the NSX, I put a strip of double sided tape on the back and just put it on the edge of of the ashtray door when it's open.

I don't like the way it looks in the NSX, but it's the best I could do with the limited cubby space that we have.

 

[nsxtasy]

Sirius is same price (per month)as XM if you buy a year subsciption.

Not according to the Sirius website. It says that Sirius is $12.95 per month, or $142.45 per month if you buy a one-year subscription. The one-year deal is $11.87 per month, almost 19 percent more than XM, which is $9.99 per month, with no twelve-month commitment required.

I wish people would post more install pics.

I move my XM Roady around between cars and have the antenae's and power supply already hardwired.

I also move my Roady around between cars, with no hardwiring. I place the "mouse" antenna at the forward edge of the dashboard and it works fine. I use the cigarette lighter for the power supply; on the cars where I also use it for the Valentine 1 that I move around between cars, I have an adaptor to plug two devices into the lighter.

 

[DocL]

... I use the cigarette lighter for the power supply; on the cars where I also use it for the Valentine 1 that I move around between cars, I have an adaptor to plug two devices into the lighter.

Ken, it's very easy to hard wire both the Roady and V-1. With the Roady, I only wired the antenae and I have it placed in the corner of the a-pillar and dashboard. It looks like a large roach sitting there, but the reception is great. I cut to length and spliced the power cord/fm modulator so I don't have a birds nest sitting in the ashtray. The only problem I have is that I cannot see the display while in 3rd or 5th gear while the Roady is taped to the door. I am going to have to figure out a place to moun it like I did with the V-1 remote in the clock.

 

[SNDSOUL]

Not according to the Sirius website. It says that Sirius is $12.95 per month, or $142.45 per month if you buy a one-year subscription. The one-year deal is $11.87 per month, almost 19 percent more than XM, which is $9.99 per month, with no twelve-month commitment required.

But Sirius does not charge extra for internet use or their 2 premium channels and XM does, around $9 per month for all three!! And although xm has commercial free stations, Sirius has way more(120 compared to 68). Sirius also offers a one time $499 lifetime subscription. XM only gives you 5 years for the same price.
Sirus is a MUCH bigger company. The sat providers are positioning themselves now for their demographic--xm wants the 30 and older crowd and is adjusting their programming for such. Sirius is going for the youth market and sports oriented listener. You will see both brands available in most OEM radios and Sirus will catch XM in subscriber #'s quickly. In my stores we sell Sirius units 3 to 1 over XM right now. Both will be around for a while b/c they are not targeting the same customer and both companies are very strong. Right now Sirius is a better investment on the stock market, though.

 

[Doc C]

When I purchased my Sirius, they had a promotion for $9.95 a month if you bought a year's subscription in advance. I was told that was going to be a permanent program. Apparently not. So, I guess your out $24 for the year if you pay for a year in advance. If anyone can't swing that, then I think they've got more problems than which satellite radio service to subscribe to. I've enjoyed my XM very much, but I didn't choose it because it was $2 less a month for a year subscription. If Lexus had Sirius available, I would have that instead.

 

[nsxtasy]

Funny how people argue so strongly for one or the other... but the three-sentence summary I posted above still stands as accurate, good advice:

Monthly charges for XM are less than for Sirius. There are some slight differences in programming, but there are far more similarities (and in any case, it all depends on what particular channels might be of interest to you). There's a great website comparing the two services here.

I don't sell them, and I don't care which one you choose. I don't "advocate" for one over the other; I simply tell people how to find out more comparison information (and I correct misleading or false statements). It shouldn't be necessary to resort to sarcasm in order to have a legitimate discussion of the pluses and minuses of each of the services, and doing so does a disservice to the NSXprime community. The features and costs should speak for themselves. Each individual can decide what best fits his needs and preferences, hopefully after reviewing the most complete and accurate information.

To anyone considering satellite radio, I again encourage you to simply get the facts. Find out the costs, based on your listening pattern (i.e. car and home vs internet). Find out which programming is offered on both services, and which is exclusive to one or the other. You may find that there is something that appeals to you that is only offered on one service - Howard Stern or NFL on Sirius, Opie and Anthony or MLB or Bob Edwards on XM - and that makes that service preferable to you. Or, you may find that the channels you would listen to are available on both services, and with all else equal, cost may be a more important determining factor. Once you find out about programming, and costs, and equipment, you can make the decision that best meets your needs.

EDIT: Revised wording.

 

[DocL]

... In my stores we sell Sirius units 3 to 1 over XM right now. Both will be around for a while b/c they are not targeting the same customer and both companies are very strong. Right now Sirius is a better investment on the stock market, though.

I think that in 5-10 years only satellite radio will be available and that conventional radio frequencies will be thing of the past, except for a few local stations. The same thing that happened with television 15-20 years ago. People couldn't even imagining paying for cable with only HBO and a few novelty stations. I remember when MTV was called Video Jukebox and the big preimer on cable was Michael Jackson's "Thriller" video. Boy have things changed since then.

 

[nsxtasy]

You will see both brands available in most OEM radios

That won't happen for a while. Both services have been signing exclusive agreements with automakers (XM with GM and Honda, Sirius with Ford and Chrysler). They are cooperating on developing radios that can receive both services, but those are still years away from market. (Reference)

While I'm not sure that this is your point, I look forward to their availability. I think it would be great for people buying X brand of automobile to have a choice between either satellite service. They can make the same kind of comparisons that are available in the aftermarket now. If more people choose Sirius because they happen to like Howard Stern, or XM because it costs less or they like Major League Baseball, that's fine; that's what competition is all about.

You will see both brands available in most OEM radios and Sirus will catch XM in subscriber #'s quickly.

That's unlikely. Right now, XM has 2.5 million subscribers, and Sirius has 800,000, and XM is adding customers at a faster rate.

I think that in 5-10 years only satellite radio will be available and that conventional radio frequencies will be thing of the past, except for a few local stations. The same thing that happened with television 15-20 years ago.

Huh? Last time I checked, there are still conventional television broadcasts on as many over-the-air stations as ever. Sure, they've lost some market share to cable networks, but they're still around.

 

[nsxtasy]

Both services have been signing exclusive agreements with automakers (XM with GM and Honda, Sirius with Ford and Chrysler).

I see, in this interesting article that appeared in the Washington Post a couple of weeks ago, that GM and Honda are both equipping many of their cars (over a million this year) with XM as standard equipment, whereas the automakers aligned with Sirius are only doing so as optional equipment.