2k5C230

Not sure which I want to get in my car. Any recommendations from people who have either. I listen to mostly trance/dance and hip-hop. I tried to search and didn't find much. Thanks.

inFiniTE LooP

i personally prefer XM because it's cheaper and has more channels, Sirius is more expensive but it has NFL broadcasting as well as famous DJs (or something to that extent, i think some of the channels have former MTV VJs, which doesn't seem like much of a plus to me) a friend of mine told me though, that Sirius has more trance/techno music, although i can't confirm this because my time with Sirius was very limited

pa28pilot

On XM, you'll want Channels 80,81 and 82 for the trance/dance, and perhaps UPOP on 29. There are a number of hip-hop channels, including some Christian hip-hop. There's a new age-ish channel that sometimes plays trance-like cuts as well.

Both services now demo live streams of their music programming over the Internet. XM used to only have loops, but you can now get a 3 day trial of their online service (if you run Windows) and listen to the actual content online.

I'm a diehard XM listener, but I'm going to spring for the integrated Sirius install for my new E320CDI, because traffic where I am is quite treacherous. I like the idea of being able to do everything from the steering wheel. What I don't know is how many presets it provides.

deuce zer0

sirius - no question, hands down...no contest!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

this is just my opinion.. but xm blows compaired to serius.

saturnstyl

Lesee..... having a ghetto aftermarket FM modulated XM setup with a separate display, and controls; or an OEM fully integrated sirius setup?

ElDiabloJoe

Besides, only Sirius will have Howard Stern.

inFiniTE LooP

i'll agree, if this is going into your benz and it will integrate into it, then by all means go with the Sirius, if however it will not integrate with it (i.e.- you have Audio 10 or something that doesn't offer satellite radio integration) then i would consider the points made here before making your final decision, getting the integrated solution if possible is something i'm sure you wont regret. good luck and let us know~!

davis449

I have more experience with XM than I do with Sirius. I listen to hard rock and some metal. I don't like XM becuase you're either worshiping Satan (totally an expression, so no one get your panties in a knot), or your listening to pu$$y rock. There really is no in between. BoneYard XL is pretty cool though. I've listened to Sirius and for MY taste in music, I think it's better cause it has better rock stations. I wasn't impressed with the Hip Hop on XM either.

BlueMonk

I have Sirius in my E and 3 subs to XM for the house, office and my wife's car. Frankly the only reason I got Sirius was because I did not want an aftermarket setup in my E. And I am not disappointed with the system. It is integrated into the car very nicely.

But the music channels on Sirius are frustrating due to narrow playlists and the many repeats. I listen to alternative rock channels for a max of 40 minutes a day and hear the same songs over and over again. I can't tell you how many times I hear the same song during my morning and evening commutes. And this is a very common complaint on the Sirius message boards.

That being said, Sirius is much better than XM in sports. But I rarely listen since I am not in my car for any length of time during the weekend sports broadcasts.

gbahri

Sirius OWNS XM. First, the quality of the sound is better. Also, It OWNS xm in the sports area. Sirius plays ALL NFL, NHL, just did a contract to play NCAA Basketball, NCAA Football, Soccer ( Premier league and some spanish teams) Also has Howard Stern, and with that comes more people, more people is mor emoney and more money is better quality of radio they will put out.

Sirius OWNS all

DELCLK430

I have both and I prefer to have XM since they talk less Sirius. I do not like the idea of paying for a service and getting a DJ to talk every third record. It is anoying.

paulhu

I got Sirius, and first year subscription is FREE for all MB owners. Sirius is also intergrated into existing COMMAND system.

digitalelegance

I've had Sirius for about a year. Their biggest selling point back then was commercial-free music, but then XM went commercial free...Now the biggest difference between the two is sports programming. Being able to listen to either teams announcers for NFL games is really cool, along with NBA, NHL, football and basketball for 26 college teams (including my Jayhawks). And they just announced that they'll be carrying the NCAA tourney, and even some English soccer. Pretty Cool!

IAmJimBanville.

XM OWMS Sirius! I had Sirius for about a month or two. I switched to XM when they went commercial-free for 2 reasons: 1- Sirius has a 'serious' problem with repeats! They play the same songs and artists over and over and over and over and... well, you get the picture 2- Sirius has WAY too much DJ chatter. They even talk over the music, right up to the point where the singing starts! Just like suckass FM! The ONLY thing Sirius has over XM is sports, but I'd much rather watch sports than listen to them, so in my case, Sirius' sports broadcasts mean zilch to me. And as far as Howard Stern, IMO he's a one-trick-pony ("Are those ***** real?") who isn't even funny. You can fit the tiny XM Roady in your ashtray, so I don't think there are really any issues at all with it intergrating in with your car. If you have an '05, just use the AUX capability of your stereo. If you have an older car w/ factory radio, just use the Roady2 w/ built in FM modulator. It sounds fine! And as far as sound quality between the 2 formats, they sounds IDENTICAL! They sound like MP3 quality. But after all is said and done, it comes down to one thing: CONTENT. Sound quality doesn't matter if you can't stand to listen because you're hearing the same songs/artists over and over! Might as well stick with a CD changer then!

DWP

Another reason to go with XM instead of Sirius - an opinion piece in today's (12/8) WSJ (page C1) seriously questions the viability of Sirius' financial model - as in, they paid too much for Stern and the NFL and it's gonna come back to bite 'em. The article doesn't let XM off free, but it really seems to question the medium-term viability of Sirius. Somebody must be paying attention - at the moment Sirius stock is off 22% today, compared to only about 1.5% for XMSR.

scorchie

Although the statement about the financial model is valid, whether that should be a valid point when choosing a provider is questionable. If anything should happen to SIRIUS financially, there will always be someone waiting in the wings to take over and "do it right". Even XM would probably be interested in such a purchase, not to mention other media giants.

Heck, even Iridium satellite mobile phone service is still alive.

When it comes to content, I have to admit that the playlists on SIRIUS are pretty slim. But I think as more "personalities" are brought in to do more diverse programming, this will change. I've heard some real gems on some of the shows hosted by "experts". Of course, this will really vary depending on the type of music you listen to. If you like Howard Stern, you might even like Alex Bennett better, and he's on now. So for now, XM has the nod with mainstream stuff, SIRIUS with sports/talk and niche programming (except for dance... I think XM is better for dance/trance).

When it comes to sound quality, SIRIUS' variable encoding rate really bugs me. Since I don't listen to Top 40, the channels I hear are mostly encoded at low bit rates (I had the same complaint about DirecTV... they encode the channels I watched at lower rate because they were more "niche programming" than mainstream). So again, this will depend on the type of programming you want to listen to.

When it comes to integration with the car, obviously SIRIUS wins here.

When it comes to cost, I guess XM now wins with a lot of commercial free programming at a lower price.

When it comes to reception, depending where you are ... it could make a big difference. In most cases, SIRIUS will provide superior reception. In the case of a satellite failure, SIRIUS would also be able to continue broadcasting to most users.

So what is important to you? For me, integration was the first and last requirement, so there was really no choice.

-s-

paulhu

Ditto Scorchie Integration is really important to me, so I had Sirius installed, and loved every minute of it.

Jim Banville

Enjoy the song repetition and dj chatter

gbahri

http://www.edmunds.com/ownership/aud...s.features.1.*


Here is an article. Sirius owns xm

Paxfobiscum

The stock was off 20% that day because a Citibank stock research analyst put a SELL recommendation for Sirius since at the closing price the day before of $9.50 effectively placed Sirius' market capitalization bigger than XM 's market capitalization. That would have been logical if one does not consider the time value of money and at the way Sirius is predicting its growth and that of Satellite radio in general. The $9.50 per share was just right on. The next day the stock rose again 3% and as of 9:35 this morning the stock is up 5%.

If anyone bought 10,000 shares of Sirius only three months ago at $2.18, and sold it last Tuesday at $9.10, he would have had enough money to buy himself a new MB W211.

Now if only I made that much money trading Sirius stock, I would gladly listen to the Sirius DJ anytime in my new W211.

paulhu

I surf the channels a lot, so have not heard any song repetitions yet. Just very few DJ chatter does not bother me.

Barry45RPM

You need SOME DJ interaction or its just like listening to a stack of CDs. A little color, a little comment, something to break it up a little so you don't feel like you're on the road alone.

Jim Banville

Listening to someone talking OVER THE MUSIC up until the singing starts isn't annoying to you?! I don't know about all the channels, but they do this on the alternative rock channels. As far as repeats, just give it some time . There aren't an infinite number of channels of music of every genre. Therefore, you'll be switching back to the same channels and hearing the same songs/artists. Just go to one of the Sirius websites and read all the complaints! Sirius's business model is BASED on playing the hits. If you don't want to be exposed to anything new or different, avoid XM

BlueMonk

It is disappointing that MB does not offer its customers a choice in sat radio. BMW and Audio both offer XM and Sirius.

vitaman

I have XM at work and Sirius in the car. They are both fabulous entertainment but if I had to coose just one.....it's a easy decision. Sirius.