XM Radio Ping list! FR-mail me to get added to or removed from this ping list.
Posted on 02/22/2005 10:32:00 AM PST by LittleMoe
By SCOTT LAUCK
It’s the nature of technology these days to change from analog to digital and to move from the earth to the sky. So perhaps it should come as no surprise that satellite radio is becoming increasingly popular. Satellite radio has been around for years but has only recently begun to make a big dent in the market. In December, the United States’ two satellite radio companies, XM Radio and Sirius, reported record numbers of subscribers.
While mainstream FM radio continues to dominate, there are clearly a number of listeners who are trying something different.
Fred Dimmel, a student at Missouri Western State College, is among them. He first heard about satellite radio from an uncle who owned a car with the service factory-installed.
Mr. Dimmel says he forgot about satellite radio until he began looking for a space-efficient way to listen to music in his Ford Ranger.
“All I had in my truck was the tape player,” he says. “Rather than try to fit CDs into a small truck or finding a place to put a CD changer, the satellite deal was kind of the cheap, easy option to put in there and still get digital music and a pretty good selection, so I didn’t feel limited like with normal radio.”
Unlike normal FM or AM radio, which only broadcasts on a limited number of frequencies, satellite radio includes hundreds of channels, exposing listeners to a much wider variety of music, as well as talk radio, sports and other features.
Because users pay a subscription fee, most programs contain no commercials. In addition, the receivers can usually be plugged into a home stereo or computer, allowing for in-home use.
Like the majority of satellite radio listeners, Mr. Dimmel subscribes to XM Radio, the nation’s largest such provider. The Washington, D.C.-based company was founded 12 years ago, and as of December had 3.1 million subscribers.
XM’s competitor, New York, N.Y.-based Sirius, reported at the same time that it had surpassed its goal of 1 million subscribers. Company CEO Mel Karmazin called 2004 a “watershed year.” “We believe that this enthusiasm will continue, and we expect to double our subscribers during 2005,” he says.
Although younger and smaller than XM, Sirius got a boost this year when radio shock jock Howard Stern said he would begin broadcasting with the company in 2006.
Mr. Stern’s decision highlights another difference between satellite and conventional radio: looser regulations. While the U.S. Federal Communications Commission enforces decency rules on publicly broadcast material, subscription-based systems are left alone.
Both XM and Sirius have taken a number of other approaches to get their systems in people’s hands.
Among the most effective has been through deals with car manufacturers. These days, the systems come installed in a number of new vehicles.
While satellite radio offers a number of advantages, it has a few drawbacks as well. Unlike cell phones, service for satellite radio is available in far-flung locations. However, it is often blocked by tall buildings, parking garage roofs and other impediments. In larger cities, repeaters allow the signals to get through. However, Mr. Dimmel says he sometimes has trouble getting reception in downtown St. Joseph.
And occasionally, he said, he misses the ability to play his own CDs, noting that “you have more options but you can’t control what’s on there.”
Nonetheless, he’s found that loss hasn’t been much of a burden.
“It doesn’t happen as much as I thought it would,” he says.
DITTO!
Perhaps
Arthur Godfrey. , Rudy Vallee, Edgar Bergan, Jack Benny?
Sirius has a three satellite constellation.
I highly recommend Sirius (not that I dislike XMSR; it's just that I have little experience with it).
I'm sure you don't need a recitation of the channels available; you can find all you need to know on each company's web site. Suffice it to say that both offer 60+ advertising-free music streams (there is some self-promotion and cross-promotion, such as reminding listeners what's on other Sirius streams, but we're talking maybe 30-60 seconds per hour, not 20 minutes of ads per hour like on FM. News/talk does have advertising, especially those channels not originated by Sirius, such as CNBC and Fox News.
My built-in unit is "slicker" -- fully integrated into the stock stereo system, including 18 pre-sets, and steering-wheel volume and channel-changing controls. Other than the small roof mounted antenna, you'd never know it was there until you turned it on. It acts as a 4th band on the stereo -- AM, FM, CD, and Sirius.
Even so, I like the one I use in my Jeep better. Not as pretty -- it slips into a bracket mounted on top of the dash -- but more information is provided on the display. Both systems tell you the song title and artist, but you have to hit a couple of buttons on the dash on the built-in model, whereas that information stays displayed on the face of the plug-and-play at all times.
Title and artist ID is a terrific feature, especially when I venture over to one of the classical streams. Being a Carolina redneck, I don't usually know Bach from Beethoven, and on typical FM, I'd have to wait for the end of the piece for the announcer to tell me what I just heard -- provided, of course, that I hadn't driven out of the station's range by then. Which, of course, isn't a problem with sat radio.
I'm a most enthusiastic and satisfied customer. I also did well with the stock, and am looking for a re-entry point, now that it's well below where it was when I sold. I firmly believe sat radio will be standard equipment on all high-end cars within 3 years, and available as an option on less expensive models.
XM Radio Ping list! FR-mail me to get added to or removed from this ping list.
So if you have the receiver model that is built-in to your car, you need another subscription if you want to listen in your house.
I was relating my research. I wanted a clean installation, not some Rube Goldberg contraption.
Not so. I got the home kit in the deal
with XM. Simply move the the little unit from
car to my home office. Works great.
Don't know, but it would be fine with me if one took out Dan Blather and a few other "TV stars".
The smaller unit is in my wife's car most of the time and we use that unit in our motor home when we travel. Both units perform as advertised and we could not be happier.
I love being able to listen to FOX while on the road and also to a lot of great talk radio programs such as Hannity, Laura Ingraham, John Batchelor, Tony Snow, Reagan, Glenn Beck, Dr. Laura all on the satellite these days.
Sirius did a contract with the NFL which would be nice on XM although XM does cover my favorite college conference, the ACC. Good luck!
MoodyBlu
Hey Yo!!
What? You gotta problem with Rube?
Don't go badmoutin ol Rube!!
LOL
Yes I did read your post, and yes it is true what you say.
I think xm has an add on feature. I think its a bit pricey right now, but if Serius gives them some heat, look for that to turn into a better package.
quite so. See my post #46. Or re-read my post 25 where I state that I am writing about the built-in model receiver.
There are times and places where the Rube Goldberg approach is appropriate (I am a software engineer, after all ;) ). But in this case I wanted a clean install.
Satellite seems to carry a lot of leftist junk now.
There is something to be said for clean installs. Like, not getting tangled up in antenna wire when driving. :-)
When cable first started, it was advertised as "commercial free TV". The monthly bill was about $7 bucks about 1985.
Now, we watch more commercials than ever, and the bill starts at $40-50 bucks, without the digital box rental and other "movie channels".
Satellite radio has a monthly fee which will increase as usual. You will also note more advertising in the future. The isn't crystal ball stuff, just following the money pattern.
OOOHHH I dunno, I can get a lot of the lesser known right talk.
Of course for news, there is only Fox, the rest are the usual MSM suspects.
Yep. I got enough crud strewn around the car already!
I suspect that Rush don't really give a rat's ass if you listen or not.....as for me, I listen every day and have since 1988. I can't see what is self serving about him....he has been a major factor in the conservative revolution over the last 15 years. He is a fierce advocate for freedom and if you are conservative or libertarian conservative, you have benefited from his work.....he does not deserve disparaging comments coming from Freepers.
Laura Ingrahm is also on XM at 9AM PT on 166 "America Right" channel
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