Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Technical Questions Sirius and Xm radio

How's the sound on these satelite radio stations? Is it CD quaility, near it? Is it the full frequency range or is it cut off somewhere. I think if its good this might have to be my next improvement to my system.

Recommendations and experiences much appreciated.

I've had XM satellite radio for a long time and really like it, especially the portability on the Roadie and SkiFi units. CD sound qaulity? I use the FM modulator for the pick'emup truck so I don't think the sound qaulity is anywhere near that of a CD and the present home adapter kit isn't any better *but* PolkAudio has a componet tuner out specifically for the home and from I am understanding the sound quality is excellent.
The only problem I have with it is that the unit takes a dedicated subsricption so therefore you'll be spending $9.99 a month for it on top of the $299.00 price tag of the tuner, unless it's a second subscription in your name then it is like $6.99 a month....the prices are increasing soon if they have not already. I pay a year in advance so my current $9.99 price will stay in effect for the duration of the subsciption.

Here is the PolkAduioXRt12X tuner.

Hi Ssutherland,

A couple of my reviewer friends gave me the lowdown on both services (one is a car reviewer who drove across the country with both XM and Sirius installed).

XM has much better coverage and fewer dropouts of service than Sirius, which can be very iffy in quite a few areas of the US.

Both services use audio compression algorithms, assigning bits according to the frequency demands of the music. No, it isn't CD quality, but it can come close if the data rate is high enough, just like MP3 or Windows Media can sound remarkably good if the data rate isn't too low.

For talk channels, they use very few bits, and according to my friend, the audio quality on the talk channels at times can be "worse than AM radio".

I have not tested either service yet, so all my comments are second-hand, from reviewer cronies I meet for lunch every week. However, I respect their listening acuities, which agree with my own most of the time.

Regards,

I listen to Sirius and the CD channels off my DishNet. They don't sound half bad. Not CD quality, but pretty good considering it's painless and neverending. Definately good enough for parties and puttering around the house.

In reply to:

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XM has much better coverage and fewer dropouts of service than Sirius, which can be very iffy in quite a few areas of the US.

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Interesting, not being familiar with Sirius, I didn't know this.
Also on this note, we are under a canopy of huge oak trees and the signal with the antenna on the XM home adapter kit seems to be somewhat difficult to keep at times, especially if the wind is whipping the trees around.