# XM vs Sirius **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 28, 2005, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021 "2005-11-28T06:04:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![brianjedi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@brianjedi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianjedi)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/21 "2005-11-28T20:17:44Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > XM and Sirius are moving into Canada. I am seriously thinking of getting one of the portable receivers, because terrestrial radio sucks, even in Canada. (And IMHO, the launch of DAB in Canada has been totally screwed up.) > > [http://www.xmradio.ca/](http://www.xmradio.ca/) > [http://www.sirius-canada.ca/](http://www.sirius-canada.ca/) > > It looks like Sirius will have CBC Radio One and CBC Radio Three, as well as Bandeapart, the CBC French alternative/world music program (which is great, by the way). > > My question: will these be available to US listeners of XM as well? I can listen to XM’s Canada channels right now in the US. The Canadian comedy channel is pretty good, but that’s all I’ve really heard. Something I forgot to mention earlier: XM has the only true portable receiver (the MyFi/AirWare.) The only “portable” Sirius receiver, the S50, won’t get live broadcasts, and the RIAA made them neuter most of the recording capabilities. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2005, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/22 "2005-11-28T21:43:25Z")
> [@brianjedi](#): > > Something I forgot to mention earlier: XM has the only true portable receiver (the MyFi/AirWare.) The only “portable” Sirius receiver, the S50, won’t get live broadcasts, and **the RIAA made them neuter most of the recording capabilities**. Interesting. Can you provide details/cites? This is the kind of thing that would sway me against buying one… expecially if the prohibitions are applied to the enitre receiver and affect the Canadian channels. ---
**Author:** ![AnnaLucretia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e95f7d/32.png) [@AnnaLucretia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AnnaLucretia)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2005, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/23 "2005-11-29T15:50:43Z")
**SaintCad** , shoot me an email - **Jonathan Chance** and others here can vouch for me. You didn’t have an email on file, and unfortunately, I can’t post publically on this topic. AL ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2005, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/24 "2005-11-29T17:07:06Z")
> [@brianjedi](#): > > Sirius’s playlists aren’t quite as deep as XM’s (more repeats.) I may be wrong, but it seems like playlists on Sirius channels have been getting deeper lately. A Siruis channel tends to play a broader range of music than an XM equivalent; it’s hard to describe, except that their definition of a style or genre of music seems more encompassing. Putting it visually, an XM pond will be small but very deep, while a Sirius pond covers a wider area but it’s shallower. Nonetheless, the playlists on both Sirius and XM channels are both much deeper than most terrestrial radio stations. Sirius also has clean and dirty comedy channels. They’re so-so. I’m also somewhat disappointed at the single-artist channels Sirius seems fond of lately, like the all-Elvis, all-Rolling Stones and all-Bruce Springsteen schanels. Still, I like Sirius. Huge variety of talk, including three public radio channels, BBC and World Radio Network, and a wide selection of rock genres keep me happy. Howard Stern is icing on the cake. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2005, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/25 "2005-11-29T20:27:51Z")
> [@AnnaLucretia](#): > > **SaintCad** , shoot me an email - **Jonathan Chance** and others here can vouch for me. You didn’t have an email on file, and unfortunately, I can’t post publically on this topic. > > AL Yep, she’s the person you should be speaking with. Drop her a line and tell her I sent you. ---
**Author:** ![brianjedi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@brianjedi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianjedi)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2005, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/26 "2005-11-29T20:30:26Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > Interesting. Can you provide details/cites? This is the kind of thing that would sway me against buying one… expecially if the prohibitions are applied to the enitre receiver and affect the Canadian channels. The S50 won’t allow you to schedule a recording on a music channel, and it only records two hours of programming at a time. Basically, the RIAA was so worried people would be using the Sirius recordings to pirate music that they made them cripple the recording capabilities. ---
**Author:** ![sleeepy2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@sleeepy2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleeepy2)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2005, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/27 "2005-11-29T22:28:20Z")
Just hooked up my _Eh eh eh_\* this weekend. \*If you know what that means, then you’re probably going with Sirius. ---
**Author:** ![Nightsong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nightsong/32/3083_2.png) [@Nightsong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nightsong)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2005, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/28 "2005-11-29T23:22:19Z")
If you want a taste of XM: download the latest version of Winamp. When you open up the Media Libray, take a look under ‘Online Media’: you should see a link saying ‘AOL Radio with XM’. Click that, and scroll the ‘genre’ down to the very last item and click on ‘XM Satellite Radio’. It doesn’t have all of the stations available, but it’ll give you an idea of what the offerings are and how they sound. Enjoy! 😃 * * * \<\< I want a cat with a snooze button. \>\> ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2005, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/29 "2005-11-30T00:48:37Z")
> [@Nightsong](#): > > If you want a taste of XM: download the latest version of Winamp. When you open up the Media Libray, take a look under ‘Online Media’: you should see a link saying ‘AOL Radio with XM’. Click that, and scroll the ‘genre’ down to the very last item and click on ‘XM Satellite Radio’. It doesn’t have all of the stations available, but it’ll give you an idea of what the offerings are and how they sound. > > Enjoy! 😃 > > * * * > > \<\< I want a cat with a snooze button. \>\> You can go to the Sirius website and sign up for a three free day trial of their service online, which is basically their music stations. I have Sirius because I wanted the NFL. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2005, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/30 "2005-11-30T02:40:37Z")
What are my options if I want to listen to XM or Sirius outside of my car? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2005, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/31 "2005-11-30T02:47:15Z")
> [@SaintCad](#): > > What are my options if I want to listen to XM or Sirius outside of my car? Roll down the windows? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![brianjedi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@brianjedi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianjedi)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2005, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/32 "2005-11-30T03:01:15Z")
> [@SaintCad](#): > > What are my options if I want to listen to XM or Sirius outside of my car? Depends. If you just want to listen in the house, you would need a plug-and-play receiver like a SkyFi2 (XM) or a Sportster (Sirius.) If you want to walk around and listen, you’d need a MyFi (XM.) ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2005, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/33 "2005-11-30T03:51:43Z")
I got Sirius last week because I’m a Stern fan and I wanted to go ahead and get it out of the way before the holiday shopping rush. I am immensely dissapointed for several reasons, a few of which I’ll outline here: -I don’t get reception AT ALL in my apartment, which is where I planned on doing 80% of my listening. -The reception in my car, when I get it, is terrible. The sound quality is significantly worse than AM radio. -The unit is ugly as hell and has an unintuitive user interface. It also has a minimum of 2 wires I have to string all over my car, which annoys me. -Several of the entertainment channels that I was looking forward to (most notably The Discovery Channel) seem to play sports 24 hours a day. Not only does that not even make sense, I hate sports. -They charged me $27 for one month of service. Is there an activation fee or something I wasn’t made aware of? -NONE of their customer service or tech support staff seems to speak English. I’m all for the hiring of immigrants, but at least wait until they have a passing comprehension of our language before putting them in a position that requires it! Even as hardcore Howard Stern fan for going on 9 years now, he is going to have to _reeeeeally_ impress me to get me to continue putting up with this crap. ---
**Author:** ![brianjedi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@brianjedi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianjedi)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2005, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/34 "2005-11-30T03:55:15Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > I got Sirius last week because I’m a Stern fan and I wanted to go ahead and get it out of the way before the holiday shopping rush. I am immensely dissapointed for several reasons, a few of which I’ll outline here: > > -I don’t get reception AT ALL in my apartment, which is where I planned on doing 80% of my listening. > -The reception in my car, when I get it, is terrible. The sound quality is significantly worse than AM radio. > -The unit is ugly as hell and has an unintuitive user interface. It also has a minimum of 2 wires I have to string all over my car, which annoys me. > -Several of the entertainment channels that I was looking forward to (most notably The Discovery Channel) seem to play sports 24 hours a day. Not only does that not even make sense, I hate sports. > -They charged me $27 for one month of service. Is there an activation fee or something I wasn’t made aware of? > -NONE of their customer service or tech support staff seems to speak English. I’m all for the hiring of immigrants, but at least wait until they have a passing comprehension of our language before putting them in a position that requires it! > > Even as hardcore Howard Stern fan for going on 9 years now, he is going to have to _reeeeeally_ impress me to get me to continue putting up with this crap. If you’re using the FM modulator in the car, that’s part of the problem. In anywhere other than a deserted area, you’ll have a hard time finding an open FM frequency. XM charges a $10 activation fee, and I’d imagine Sirius does as well. As far as indoor reception, the only advice I have is get the antenna as close to a south-facing window as possible. And pretty much all the Sirius units are big, hot and ugly. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2005, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/35 "2005-11-30T04:17:39Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > -I don’t get reception AT ALL in my apartment, which is where I planned on doing 80% of my listening. I’m afraid that’s to be expected, and true for any satellite radio system. Satellite communications of any kind use higher frequencies than ground-based radio, and higher frequency waves don’t penetrate well into buildings. > [@](#): > > -The reception in my car, when I get it, is terrible. The sound quality is significantly worse than AM radio. This shouldn’t be. How are you connecting the receiver to the stereo? > [@](#): > > The unit is ugly as hell and has an unintuitive user interface. It also has a minimum of 2 wires I have to string all over my car, which annoys me. Of course it needs an antenna cable, power cable and connection to the stereo (unless you use an FM modulator, which would sound terrible). It shouldn’t be hard to conceal the cables in unobtrusive places though. Or you can replace the car stereo head unit with one with a built-in Sirius receiver. > [@](#): > > Several of the entertainment channels that I was looking forward to (most notably The Discovery Channel) seem to play sports 24 hours a day. Not only does that not even make sense, I hate sports. Some channels do change into sports channels on occasion, but usually that only happens on Sunday. > [@](#): > > They charged me $27 for one month of service. Is there an activation fee or something I wasn’t made aware of? I believe there _is_ an activation fee. Same with XM. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2005, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/36 "2005-11-30T04:25:39Z")
Hmm, satellite radio. My other field of expertise. You might want to browse the numerous threads on the three major satellite radio boards. [XM411](http://www.xm411.com) ,[XMFan](http://www.xmfan.com) , and [Siriusbackstage](http://www.siriusbackstage.com) I’ve worked for Sirius in the past, part time customer service supervisor. I prefer XM. Still, the best way to test out the music is to get the free online trial for 3 days and see which you like better. However, it is Christmas. XM has had 5 channels change format this month for Chirstmas music. Sirius has 2 Christmas channels, but has set aside stations for all Rolling Stones, all Elvis, and all Bruce Springsteen. Sirius seems to want to nail that male demographic. They’ve got Stern, Maxim, Playboy, the NFL, NASCAR (2007) and are heavy on the Rock and Roll XM is a bit more eclectic. Many of their channels are niche channels. You won’t hear XM playing the Beatles on a jazz channel. It really depends on what you want. Sirius will have more DJs. They also tend to follow that DJ chat about whatever’s on their mind type format. XM’s DJs are more name, rank and serial number. The Sirius DJ will say…"My dog Joe Cool really digs that Miles Davis tune. He was humping my leg the past 5 minutes. The XM DJ will say, “That was the Miles Davis quintet from 1955 featuring…” Anyway, sign up for the online trials, visit the various Sat. radio bulletin boards, and feel free to send me an email. I’ve spent thousands of hours listening to both services. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2005, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/37 "2005-11-30T04:30:04Z")
> [@SaintCad](#): > > What are my options if I want to listen to XM or Sirius outside of my car? With both channels, you can listen to the music online free of charge. However, for sports and talk, you’ll need a home unit. XM, with geostationary satellites work best with a view of the Southern sky. Visit [Sirius Antenna Placement](http://www.sirius.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Sirius/Page&c=FlexContent&cid=1069362249780) to see where you’d place a home antenna for Sirius. No word yet if Stern will stream online and if it will be free to subscribers. XM’s Opie and Anthony stream on the XM feed and there is no additional charge. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2005, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/38 "2005-11-30T04:34:51Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > Interesting. Can you provide details/cites? This is the kind of thing that would sway me against buying one… expecially if the prohibitions are applied to the enitre receiver and affect the Canadian channels. [Here](http://www.siriusbackstage.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=30639) and [here](http://www.siriusbackstage.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=30913) is probably more information than you’d ever want to know about the record of the Sirius S50 and recording. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2005, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/39 "2005-11-30T04:39:44Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > XM and Sirius are moving into Canada. I am seriously thinking of getting one of the portable receivers, because terrestrial radio sucks, even in Canada. (And IMHO, the launch of DAB in Canada has been totally screwed up.) > > [http://www.xmradio.ca/](http://www.xmradio.ca/) > [http://www.sirius-canada.ca/](http://www.sirius-canada.ca/) > > It looks like Sirius will have CBC Radio One and CBC Radio Three, as well as Bandeapart, the CBC French alternative/world music program (which is great, by the way). > > My question: will these be available to US listeners of XM as well? Sirius Canadian channels AS OF RIGHT NOW are not going to be available in the US. XM Canadian channels AS OF RIGHT NOW are availalable in the US. This is all very subject to change. If you register with a Canadian address, you will receive the Canadian package from the service you select. Both services have been in a frenzy to get into Canada and obey the Canadian content laws. Thus XM eliminated channels/changed formats to comply. Sirius, with claims to bandwith in reserve will broadcast their Canadian channels only to receivers registered in Canada. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2005, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021/40 "2005-11-30T04:50:00Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > I got Sirius last week because I’m a Stern fan and I wanted to go ahead and get it out of the way before the holiday shopping rush. I am immensely dissapointed for several reasons, a few of which I’ll outline here: > > -I don’t get reception AT ALL in my apartment, which is where I planned on doing 80% of my listening. > -The reception in my car, when I get it, is terrible. The sound quality is significantly worse than AM radio. > -The unit is ugly as hell and has an unintuitive user interface. It also has a minimum of 2 wires I have to string all over my car, which annoys me. > -Several of the entertainment channels that I was looking forward to (most notably The Discovery Channel) seem to play sports 24 hours a day. Not only does that not even make sense, I hate sports. > -They charged me $27 for one month of service. Is there an activation fee or something I wasn’t made aware of? > -NONE of their customer service or tech support staff seems to speak English. I’m all for the hiring of immigrants, but at least wait until they have a passing comprehension of our language before putting them in a position that requires it! > > Even as hardcore Howard Stern fan for going on 9 years now, he is going to have to _reeeeeally_ impress me to get me to continue putting up with this crap. Most of the Customer Service is in the US. It is handled by an outside company, [Stream](http://www.stream.com) They have an office in Nova Scotia as well as the Dominican Republic which handles Sirius calls. The US offices are in Beaverton, OR, Watertown NY, and Dallas TX. Activation fee is $15.00 unless you activate online for a 2 year plan or higher. NFL and other sports channels will preempt other talk stations during live events. You may want to move the antenna closer to your FM antenna. That will help you FM modulation. What kind of antenna are you using at home? Check the Sirius website for information on antenna placement. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/xm-vs-sirius/333021.md?page=3)