Re: "hills - I'm sure. You can't receive your $10/mo. $200 radio when you're around hills."
Maybe you can't, but I did:
I drove on the Blue Ridge Parkway for three-plus hours, from Fancy Gap (I-77) to Spruce Pine, NC. The hills there are much steeper in relation to the road than any Interstate I've ever driven. To my pleasant surprise, I lost XM reception almost never. My best guess is that this is due to XM's signal buffer, and being relatively near the XM sattelite that (I think) is over Atlanta Ga.
Re: "I want ZERO talking."
Just within the last week or so, Channel 6 on XM has gone to no-DJ hours ("Rock Jock Lock Out.") They are one hour at a time, and you don't know when they will occur.
"Popular with truck drivers, taxi drivers, long distance (1+ hour each way) commuters"
I don't know how many XM/Sirius listeners there are like me. I live inside the beltway in metro DC, seldom listen in my car for more than 15 minutes at a time, and virtually always am within range of some type of FM signal.
To my understanding, as a customer of XM, satellite broadcasting is better for me as a customer, especially supplemented as it is with repeaters. If I am missing something, please let me know.
Interesting view. However, my view of Clear Channel is different. Here's where I'm coming from:
I used to listen to WBIG Washington DC on the AM and PM drives. On the AM drive, do you know how obnoxious it is to hear three or four people ALL who sound like they are from New York City. I've heard those DJs reminisce about the good old days in New York and Pennsylvania, but not DC. And, based on my memory, several of the DJs identified themselves as Jewish, yet not a single WBIG DJ has ever identified himself/herself as another religion/culture.
My conclusion: WBIG's attitude is, when you've got the only Oldies station in town, top priority is to keep costs to an absolute minimum.
My response: I literally counted the days until I could get XM, and then did so.
(1) Re: "I'm looking for more strengths and weaknesses from people who have used one (or better yet, both!) of the services."
I've subscribed to XM since late November, now have five subscriptions, and no longer listen to FM, despite the fact that where I live (metro DC ) has all available FM frequencies occupied.
My reaction to the XM website before I subscribed was, what's the catch? What are they not telling me? For example, will trees and bad weather block the signal?
Now, over six months later, my experience is, there is no catch: XM delivers what www.xmradio.com promises.
At first my wife wondered why I was "wasting" money on XM. Then one day after listening to it she said to me, "Let's install XM in ALL our cars!"
I listen to 50s and 60 music primarily. XM has one channel for each decade. In contrast, www.siriusradio.com treats that era with just one station. From this I conclude as you do that XM has better music selection.
One interesting tidbit. Go to Yahoo's used car ads and keyword search on first XM and then Sirius. The former will bring up several cars; the latter, none. The possible relevance of this is that if only one satellite radio broadcaster survives, it probably will be XM.
(2) Re: "with the Clear Channel issue being my main fright."
The DC oldies station (WBIG) is a Clear Channel station; fortunately XM's Channel 5 through 9 sound nothing like it. I even occasionally listen to XM's 80s station (Channel 8, a.k.a. Decades > 80s on 8).
(3) Back in January (2002) an XM DJ with whom I was exchanging emails invited me to tour their studios (which are within a half hour of where I live), so from him I got a one-on-one tour. "What's Sirius up to?" I asked him. His reply, "We don't know. We do keep talking about us having to watch out from them. From what we know, they're going to do more canned programming."
(4) I have cars with both XM direct and via FM modulator. The direct sounds MUCH better; get it if at all possible.
(5) I run XM through wireless speakers distributed throughout my house (for convenience). Thus, to me to program content, not just the sound quality, is XM's appeal.
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Re:
"hills - I'm sure. You can't receive your $10/mo. $200 radio when you're around hills."
Maybe you can't, but I did:
I drove on the Blue Ridge Parkway for three-plus hours, from Fancy Gap (I-77) to Spruce Pine, NC. The hills there are much steeper in relation to the road than any Interstate I've ever driven. To my pleasant surprise, I lost XM reception almost never. My best guess is that this is due to XM's signal buffer, and being relatively near the XM sattelite that (I think) is over Atlanta Ga.
Re: "I want ZERO talking." Just within the last week or so, Channel 6 on XM has gone to no-DJ hours ("Rock Jock Lock Out.") They are one hour at a time, and you don't know when they will occur.
"Popular with truck drivers, taxi drivers, long distance (1+ hour each way) commuters" I don't know how many XM/Sirius listeners there are like me. I live inside the beltway in metro DC, seldom listen in my car for more than 15 minutes at a time, and virtually always am within range of some type of FM signal.
To my understanding, as a customer of XM, satellite broadcasting is better for me as a customer, especially supplemented as it is with repeaters. If I am missing something, please let me know.
Interesting view. However, my view of Clear Channel is different. Here's where I'm coming from:
I used to listen to WBIG Washington DC on the AM and PM drives. On the AM drive, do you know how obnoxious it is to hear three or four people ALL who sound like they are from New York City. I've heard those DJs reminisce about the good old days in New York and Pennsylvania, but not DC. And, based on my memory, several of the DJs identified themselves as Jewish, yet not a single WBIG DJ has ever identified himself/herself as another religion/culture.
My conclusion: WBIG's attitude is, when you've got the only Oldies station in town, top priority is to keep costs to an absolute minimum.
My response: I literally counted the days until I could get XM, and then did so.
Other views are welcome.
(1) Re:
"I'm looking for more strengths and weaknesses from people who have used one (or better yet, both!) of the services."
I've subscribed to XM since late November, now have five subscriptions, and no longer listen to FM, despite the fact that where I live (metro DC ) has all available FM frequencies occupied.
My reaction to the XM website before I subscribed was, what's the catch? What are they not telling me? For example, will trees and bad weather block the signal?
Now, over six months later, my experience is, there is no catch: XM delivers what www.xmradio.com promises.
At first my wife wondered why I was "wasting" money on XM. Then one day after listening to it she said to me, "Let's install XM in ALL our cars!"
I listen to 50s and 60 music primarily. XM has one channel for each decade. In contrast, www.siriusradio.com treats that era with just one station. From this I conclude as you do that XM has better music selection.
One interesting tidbit. Go to Yahoo's used car ads and keyword search on first XM and then Sirius. The former will bring up several cars; the latter, none. The possible relevance of this is that if only one satellite radio broadcaster survives, it probably will be XM.
(2) Re:
"with the Clear Channel issue being my main fright."
The DC oldies station (WBIG) is a Clear Channel station; fortunately XM's Channel 5 through 9 sound nothing like it. I even occasionally listen to XM's 80s station (Channel 8, a.k.a. Decades > 80s on 8).
(3)
Back in January (2002) an XM DJ with whom I was exchanging emails invited me to tour their studios (which are within a half hour of where I live), so from him I got a one-on-one tour. "What's Sirius up to?" I asked him. His reply, "We don't know. We do keep talking about us having to watch out from them. From what we know, they're going to do more canned programming."
(4)
I have cars with both XM direct and via FM modulator. The direct sounds MUCH better; get it if at all possible.
(5)
I run XM through wireless speakers distributed throughout my house (for convenience). Thus, to me to program content, not just the sound quality, is XM's appeal.