Sat Radio Update
Senior Member
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 369
Likes: 22
From: USA
S550
Just got my car back after having Sirius radio module installed on my CL..All I can say is WOW!! The audio is incredible, and integration into Command is really cool...plus no ugly black antenna on my CL !! Its a must have option, IMO...
Member
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 131
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From: Los Angeles
2004 SL 500
Originally posted by TestnDoc
Just got my car back after having Sirius radio module installed on my CL..All I can say is WOW!! The audio is incredible, and integration into Command is really cool...plus no ugly black antenna on my CL !! Its a must have option, IMO...
Just got my car back after having Sirius radio module installed on my CL..All I can say is WOW!! The audio is incredible, and integration into Command is really cool...plus no ugly black antenna on my CL !! Its a must have option, IMO...
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 5,017
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From: Ft. Lauderdale Area, USA
2015 ML 350
Sirius In '04 E-500
Had it dealer installed last week. Antenna is flat black & 1.5 inches shorter in length & lower in profile than a PC mouse. Its slightly taller than .5 inches tall (thick). It is mounted in the center of the trunk lid. It is not ugly. The installation was professional & can not be observed not to have been a factory install. The integration with the comand is beautiful & complete. This is the prefered way to go if you want your car to look stock/factory. $ 1200 installed including 14 months subscription. Expensive but worth it. Amazing sound /music & programming selection. No one will be noticing these satellite antennas in 3 more years when everyone has them. They're just new so people "see" them.
Last edited by Barry45RPM; Apr 13, 2004 at 12:34 AM.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Mar 2004
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From: Ft. Lauderdale Area, USA
2015 ML 350
Sirius Failure
Going back to the dealer tomorrow. We got 5 inches of rain on Long Island yesterday & the satellite radio quit. The trunk mounted antenna has an allen wrench screw in the top...anyone think the antenna is filled with water? The rest of the radio bands/cds are working. Display just says "Acquiring Signal". Sirius shot an activation signal to the car to no avail. Pics to be posted tomorrow of antenna.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 5,017
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From: Ft. Lauderdale Area, USA
2015 ML 350
Failure
Dlr has to order new Sirius receiver. The one installed is defective.
Would like to post pic of trunk antenna but I cant figure out how to make sure its is small enough & how to put it inside my post. The pic is on my hard drive. Help?
Would like to post pic of trunk antenna but I cant figure out how to make sure its is small enough & how to put it inside my post. The pic is on my hard drive. Help?
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Joined: Sep 2003
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From: Bay Area
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Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 47
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From: Dallas, Texas USA
I guess I am a moron since I never caught on that 'center' of the trunk meant the center. I imagined it centered from the sides of the car but at the absolute tail of the car. I am a major addict to sat radio but not sure that I can swallow that antenna. Maybe it is just the picture but it looks big to me.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 1,393
Likes: 11
From: Pasadena
2004 E55
I like my satellite installation better.
I do give Barry45RPM credit for being one of the first to do it on the trunk. He is probably right about people getting used to seeing it there. There were probably similar complaints about the GPS antenna too.
However, I am not used to it and decided to have it installed my way.
It is hidden underneath where the red circle is:
You can see the antenna from inside the trunk.
I do give Barry45RPM credit for being one of the first to do it on the trunk. He is probably right about people getting used to seeing it there. There were probably similar complaints about the GPS antenna too.
However, I am not used to it and decided to have it installed my way.
It is hidden underneath where the red circle is:
You can see the antenna from inside the trunk.
Last edited by t-bone; Apr 15, 2004 at 04:18 PM.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Mar 2004
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From: Ft. Lauderdale Area, USA
2015 ML 350
Antenna
Will post exact dimensions of the antenna tomorrow. It definitely looks smaller in person than in the pics... I guess people in the '50s thought that TV antennas on their beautifull homes looked god awful too. (Cell phones and their ring tones are STILL not beautifull, but they're clipped to everyones belt... ever see a guy in nice clothes with the damn cell phone sticking out? If you don't its because they are so commonplace you don't see them any more) We'll all get used to seing them soon. They're never gonna be tiny. The transmitters are too far away in space. So the choice is limitless music entertainment, comedy, and news VS AM/FM w/ commercials or the same old CD's or listening to the satellite feed, same station no matter where you drive, fade-out free.
There is no option... satellite radio is here to stay. Ask the guy with direct TV if the programming is worth the "small" dish on his roof.
Ya want ugly? How about a sliding glass sunroof factory installed in a car that has nowhere to slide, but up and out on the exterior of the vehicle's roof? What is with that? They can call it whatever they want but its no spoiler and it IS UGLY...but when you are inside the car enjoying the fresh air it looks fine from the inside.
There is no option... satellite radio is here to stay. Ask the guy with direct TV if the programming is worth the "small" dish on his roof.
Ya want ugly? How about a sliding glass sunroof factory installed in a car that has nowhere to slide, but up and out on the exterior of the vehicle's roof? What is with that? They can call it whatever they want but its no spoiler and it IS UGLY...but when you are inside the car enjoying the fresh air it looks fine from the inside.
Last edited by Barry45RPM; Apr 15, 2004 at 04:29 PM.
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 297
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From: Bay Area
I definitely like t-bone's installation better, but I'm not sure my local dealer could figure out how to do that, and even if he could, it would probably be twice as many hours to install as the recommended MB method.
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 297
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From: Bay Area
Initially I thought that there's no way I'd consider mounting a black antenna on the top of my car's trunk. However, after seeing Barry's setup, I am considering it. I do want sat radio, and it's either do it the MB reccomended way, or take a chance on having an installer copy the method t-bone's dealer did.
As for being ugly - well, it's not as bad as I though it'd be, although it does stick out. I could see them becoming more commonplace after awhile, though. I do wish they would at least make them color matched to the car's exterior.
As for being ugly - well, it's not as bad as I though it'd be, although it does stick out. I could see them becoming more commonplace after awhile, though. I do wish they would at least make them color matched to the car's exterior.
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Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 47
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From: Dallas, Texas USA
I don't have any confidence that my dealership can do T-bone's installation. But I am going to push them and see. Of course, they first have to get my kit in.
Currently, I have a temporary XM roady in my car. The antenna is just sitting on the back deck. No problems with reception unless I get trapped in stop and go under a large overpass. Even then the problem is generally only a fraction of a second.
Currently, I have a temporary XM roady in my car. The antenna is just sitting on the back deck. No problems with reception unless I get trapped in stop and go under a large overpass. Even then the problem is generally only a fraction of a second.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 5,017
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From: Ft. Lauderdale Area, USA
2015 ML 350
Satellite Radio Ant Measurements
The antenna measures as follows: Front to back 3 1/4 inches. Side to side 2 1/4 inches at its widest part. Top (tallest part) to trunk lid 1 1/4 inches. To put it into perspective, the circle of the Mercedes logo on the trunk lid is bigger than the front to back measurement of the antenna, and a third larger than the antenna’s width. At 1 1/4 inches tall at the highest point, (and the antenna does slope) it is barely visible in the rear view mirror. It is a small price to pay for a fully integrated satellite radio installation with nothing else visible in the car.
To those whose head units and cars are not pre-wired for this “factory” kit, there is no other option than a glass mount or rear shelf mount. Intermittent reception will drive you mad, and satellite radio must be “line of sight” transmission from the satellite to the antenna. There is a 6 second buffer of the stream to mask slight “overpass” interruptions, but if you pull into a Mobil station with a full canopy, 6 seconds later there will be silence.
BTW why would anybody assume that a large hole has to be drilled through the trunk lid to pass a wire thru it? Its a wire for an electronic signal, not a hot water pipe.
To those whose head units and cars are not pre-wired for this “factory” kit, there is no other option than a glass mount or rear shelf mount. Intermittent reception will drive you mad, and satellite radio must be “line of sight” transmission from the satellite to the antenna. There is a 6 second buffer of the stream to mask slight “overpass” interruptions, but if you pull into a Mobil station with a full canopy, 6 seconds later there will be silence.
BTW why would anybody assume that a large hole has to be drilled through the trunk lid to pass a wire thru it? Its a wire for an electronic signal, not a hot water pipe.
Last edited by Barry45RPM; Apr 16, 2004 at 04:49 PM.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 5,017
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From: Ft. Lauderdale Area, USA
2015 ML 350
Satellite Radio Repaired
Just as I thought... a bad satellite antenna. I has been pouring for 2 days here on Long Island. The antenna has an allen wrench screw on the top of it. I am willing to bet the antenna isn’t as waterproof as they would like. I bet it was filled with water & shorted out. They had to order a whole satellite kit in order to replace the antenna. Great to have it back, but I bet they will come out with a revised (water tight) antenna within a year.
Almost a Member!
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 55
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From: New York
Mercedes E500
So now that i've seen a sat antenna (trunk mounted), i don't think ita tht bad. When I first saw it, it seemed odd. But I'm getting used to it. It seems that in order to get a good signal, these need to be mounted above (outside). BMW does the same thing, I think. What is everyone's opinion on this?
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Mar 2004
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From: Ft. Lauderdale Area, USA
2015 ML 350
I'll tell you how critical it is... If someone opens the trunk to remove something while the radio is playing, the antenna is no longer "line of sight" to the xmitter, so the signal is lost.
Almost a Member!
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 55
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From: New York
Mercedes E500
So what do you think off the satellite service overall? Was it worth the trunk mounted antenna? Personally, the more I see it, the better it looks. Seems just a matter of getting used to it. I've heard nothing but good things about the Sirius and the programming. Do you find yourself listening to sat readio more than regular radio? I'm getting mine installed as soon as my car comes in (end of May).. The price is said to include 1 year of service.
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 297
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From: Bay Area
I had XM radio in a retail store for awhile, but just recently cancelled it. I got tired of all the billing problems I had with them. While I had it, the programming choices were pretty diverse, but I lost interest after awhile. I've heard that Sirius has pretty repetetive playlists, can anyone comment on that?
Also, how is the sound quality? I'd also heard that Sirius used a higher compression than XM, and the sound difference was very noticeable. Is that still the case? Barry45RPM - can you notice a big difference in quality between Sirius and a regular CD?
Also, how is the sound quality? I'd also heard that Sirius used a higher compression than XM, and the sound difference was very noticeable. Is that still the case? Barry45RPM - can you notice a big difference in quality between Sirius and a regular CD?
