Satellite radio

[playpenlab]

Hello fellow mando pickers, I am looking for opinions on XM
vs. SIRIUS bluegrass channels.Have neither,cost prohibitive
to just set up with one and wish for the other.Did the merger allow more pick & choose on channels? Does anyone
that lives in the hills have reception woes? Thanks http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/coffee.gif

[TeleMark]

Merger is still a long way off. It's been approved, but not consummated.

Having said that, I like Sirius better all around.

[mdlorenz]

sirius

[Jim MacDaniel]

If the merger happens, you will likely need a new radio to receive both channels on the same radio, since even though there will be some cross-programming between the two networks, it is unlikely that they will have both BG channels on either network.

That said, I have XM and don't listen to the BG channel much -- but when I do, it seems to offer a nice variety of BG tunes, from Big Mon to Sam. Regarding other channels, I especially enjoy X-Country, which features a wide variety of non-Nashville, non-mass marketed, and independent country, alt-country, and Americana artists, including Steve Earle, The Gourds, Ray Wylie Hubbard (plus a lot of other Austin artists), Hank III, #Dwight Yoakam, Honeydogs, Jeff Finlin, The Jayhawks, The Silos, The Avette Bros., The Blue Dogs, etc. -- and features a surprising number of groups that include mandolin in their lineups.

Regarding reception in the hills, it depends upon whether or not you will have hills blocking your line-of-site to either system's satellite. Before making a choice, you might want to research where in the sky each system's satellite sits, and whether or not there are obstructions between you and their satellite. (XM at leasts has terrestrial repeaters situated in certain metropolitan areas, which helps minimize impacts of blocked views to their satellite, but I think they usually reside in more populous areas only.)

[Brady Smith]

You'll have no troubles in the hills...just at the bank drive through. Long as you can see the sky all is good. It's all opinions I suppose but Sirius would be a much better choice for bluegrass listening and sports and probably overall. I've listened to both a great deal and don't like the XM bluegrass channel much. I have sirius for that reason. I imagine when the merger happens they'll eliminate a whole bunch of channels to make one station.

[JeffD]

That is interesting. How would you folks say the bluegrass on XM differs from that on Sirius?

I am thinking of getting XM, because I love their spoken word channel, and their old time radio stuff, but Sirius has a good old time radio channel too.

I am thinking the bluegrass channel and other accoustic and folk music channels might make the difference for me.

[TNFrank]

We have XM on our Direct TV and I LOVE Bluegrass Junction and Boneyard. Took a while to get use to from the older format but now that I know what channels have what I want it's cool.

[mzuch]

I currently have XM and used to have Sirius. Switched for MLB broadcasts. The Bluegrass channel on Sirius is much better than XM's. Sirius seems to have a more diverse mix of newgrass and traditional bluegrass, their DJs are better, and Sirius seems to carry more festivals. Sirius also has a great Jam rock channel, which is missing on XM, but XM's classic rock programming is better than Sirius's, IMO.

[Brady Smith]

The hosts on sirius are very good. Xm continues to cornfuse me. They play alot of stuff I wouldn't play on my show...not to mention play alot of folks I aint never heard of http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif. I do the same when they are good like Carrie Hassler or the Bee-liners but they don't seem to be as picky. I've not been impressed by XM all the way around. Sirius has NFL, and Nascar (There's nothing worse than a great car race though). Not too worried about baseball, gave up on that years ago. I'm now at the point of having XM for only one shot at a time now and that is the week of the IBMA awards. They broadcast it and Sirius doesn't....Shame on Sirius.

[chip]

XM...XM..XM...I like the fact that channel 14 plays varying genres of bluegrass instead of straight ahead hardcore bg. I find it the best channel and format in the industry bar none. There...that's my opinion... http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/coffee.gif

[Brady Smith]

That helps that sirius plays the straight away hardcore stuff. They also have a newgrass show but I can't tell ya much about it. It's the only time I have sirius turned off.

[om21ed]

I've been disappointed in the bluegrass station, its subjective these days but a lot of what I hear doesn't sound like bluegrass to me. I hardly listen to it , unfortunately because that was to be a big part of the draw for me. The folk station is too sensitive songwriter for me. Thr things that keep me subscribing are mostly baseball and channel 2. I like Bill Anderson's "Visiting with the legends", Bob Dylan's show is very entertaining, Tom Petty's show is good, but the best thing on all of XM is Marty Stuart and the Fabulous Superlatives. Highly enertaining, educational, musically superior esp when they gather around the mic--and of course there's the inspirational part with a "word of love from above" with Pastor Evelyn.
Ed McG

[lskit]

I love Sirius' Bluegrass Gospel Train on Sunday morning. I always get to church with a smile on my face.

[Joel Spaulding]

Sirius Bluegrass is AOR (all over the road) with regard to "hardcore" vs newgrass. Great variety. Each show/host has its own unique bent,with plenty of traditional artists in rotation, but to label Sirius as only "straight ahead hardcore bg" (I am inferring that Chip refers to Sirius) is perhaps only part of the story - JMO.

[Mr. Loar]

I have XM. The big three for me are the 150 comedy channel, The Loft, and the Bluegrass channel, I think it's 15.

[Soupy1957]

A while ago now, I became a Sirius Satellite customer. I've got a boom box in the house and a mobile unit in my Wrangler.

I have experienced some frustration over the years, with the reception in the Wrangler, around town, and somewhat on the highway on a long trip on the open freeway.

As far as program content is concerned, since I listen mostly to Bluegrass, (but also some Jazz, Blues, News, Old Country, too) I feel that it's "six of one, half-dozen of the other" when it comes to comparing Sirius with XM.

A couple of points to ponder:

A) If you don't appreciate Howard Stern (I am not a fan of his)
then don't buy Sirius because perhaps some of your payment
supports him and his paycheck.

B) Sirius has 3 geosynchronous Satellites, and XM has only one.
(Meaning of course, that you SHOULD be able to get better
reception coverage from Sirius, but I can't prove that).

C) The talks of a "Merger" will, in my opinion, end as just
"talks," just due to anti-monopoly laws.

D) Go with the cheaper cost

E) Setting up the antenna at home, associated with the boom
box setup, is a breeze, and the reception is very good,
and very constant, with Sirius. (Can't speak about XM).

-Soupy1957

C)

[playpenlab]

Thanks all for info. Not a Stearn nor baseball fan. Really
just after good variety of music. Tired of commercial radio
that offers little or no options. Local radio owned by two
corporations. Only one public owned & have reception issues. Good options are satellite or cd's. Trouble is, what to purchase if you do not get exposed to new stuff. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

[Jim MacDaniel]

B) Sirius has 3 geosynchronous Satellites, and XM has only one. (Meaning of course, that you SHOULD be able to get better reception coverage from Sirius, but I can't prove that)...
That probably answers the OP's question regarding reception in the hills (i.e., likely a non-issue, at least for Sirius), but it also suggests that antenna setup around the house might be easier with Sirius than with XM. e.g., I live in an area where XM has terrestrial signal repeaters, so I don't have a reception issue, but my brother-in-law lives in Ojai, and has to soley rely upon the XM satellite signal there. He only gets decent reception in certain rooms in the house -- IIRC, he gets a good signal in room with a decent SW exposure.

[mzuch]

Sirius has 3 geosynchronous Satellites, and XM has only one.

This is not quite true. It is my understanding that Sirius has 3 geosynchronous satellites and XM has 2 geostationary satellites. The Sirius satellites move in figure eights relative to the ground, so their positions relative to your antenna constantly change. They are designed so that one or another is always above Alberta, Canada. XM's satellites stay in the same place. There was talk a while back about problems with one of XM's satellites, but I believe they either fixed or replaced it. I have better reception with XM than I did with Sirius.

[DryBones]

merger has been approved by the Justice department, just waiting on the FCC to make up their minds. of course with all the politics and lobbying from the commercial radio side it may never get approved before 1 or both go bankrupt. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sad.gif http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mad.gif

[maynard g. krebs]

xm for me, amazing live music shows produced in the studio, xm digs a lot deeper for the playlist, much less repeats then sirrus, which sometimes sounds like a dj with only a milk crate of cd's

[Steve Perry]

There's pros and cons for each system. #You can decide for yourself. #Both Sirius and XM have a free three day trial subscription that you can listen to online. #That's how I chose Sirius.

[good_ol_al_61]

I have both.

Sirius has a better, more traditional lineup.

XM does more live, in studio, unrehearsed stuff.

IMHO, Sirius wins.

[gcmando]

I've had XM for a couple of years. It's great! If you're comparing it with Sirius, I think the music selection is mostly a matter of taste. There are so many channels on both that it probably doesn't matter which one you choose unless you only listen to one channel all the time.

I got XM for the non-music channels (although the music is great too). My favorites are:
*MLB
*News channels (Cable TV sound feeds from CNN and Fox News plus others)
*Old time radio
*Sonic theater (a spoken word channel that has radio plays, audio books, author interviews, etc.)
*The golf channel (I don't even play golf, but I like the channel)

I have one suggestion for anyone who has trouble getting reception in different parts of the house: get an XM repeater and a couple of repeater antennas. I put the main antenna for the repeater in a window facing the right direction with good access to the sky. Then each radio in the house connects to an antenna inside the house. That antenna gets the signal from the repeater, which is picking up good reception. It costs a little money to do that, but if you listen to XM all the time, it's worth it.

[minnedolin]

IMHO, XM offers better bluegrass and bluesville is a great channel too, Sirius' jazz channel can be pretty squanky and consistent with the exception of their obsession with Dinah Shore or Dinah Washington, i dunno which one. Regardless, I'd get XM for the bluegrass. "Turn your radio on (turn your radio on) and listen to the music in the air.." How great is John Hartford?http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[fishdawg40]

How great is John Hartford?http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif
The greatest http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

Well, if you like the Grateful Dead sirius has a channel devoted to them. It's fun to be able to switch the channel and hear them whenever you want. David Gans hosts a show and he talks about Dead related topics which is pretty interesting for me. I've never heard XM before but have sirius and am pleased with the service all around (i don't listen to the BG station that much but I've heard Grisman doing Dawg music on that station a few times).

[Soupy1957]

Right now, I'm frankly looking into HD Radio, which is subscription free, and has terrific sound.

I understand there are a variety of channels on there as well, so I should still get a "Bluegrass" feed from some station or other.

I'm on a quest to find out just what "extras" are really a part of HD Radio. (yea, I know it has commercials, unlike Sirius or XM, but it's FREE)..

Currently I'm paying $20.00 a month between the home Boom Box from Sirius, and the mobile unit in my Wrangler.



-Soupy1957

[Jim MacDaniel]

Well, if you like the Grateful Dead sirius has a channel devoted to them...
That reminds me: for any Parrot Heads out there, Sirius also has an all Jimmy Buffet channel, Margaritaville, while XM has a 24x7 Led Zep channel. (Not sure if the latter has a moratorium on playing Stairway, but I've never heard it to date ;)

[Soupy1957]

Yep, Sirius has a bunch of great stuff, even Elvis and Sinatra channels!! (I haven't stumbled on a "Beatles" channel yet, which kinda surprises me).

-Soupy1957

[El Greco]

I have XM in one vehicle and Sirius in the other...

I like Sirius more, but the merger should make things even when it consummates.

It's a good idea to look into HD radio as well.

[mdlorenz]

Keep in mind too, that when the merger is all approved & such & they are broadcasting the same stuff the radios out now will just need to be software updated to recieve the xm (if you are on sirius) or sirius (if you are on XM). From reports I've hears, no need to buy new hardware...

[Steve Perry]

From what I can see, HD Radio is just the normal commercial radio stations with a clearer signal. #Yeah, besides the equipment costs, it's free... #but then you get what you pay for. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

[Steevarino]

Ideally, I would prefer to have both. #Monetary considerations and programming content swung me to Sirius. #I think their bluegrass channel is much superior to XM's. #Just my opinion, but when I was taking XM, their selection of bluegrass music seemed sort of cornball. #Most of the Sirius djs are active bg musicians, and I think that helps. #Also, I really like Del McCoury's show on Saturday afternoons. #That show seems to go so fast! #Very informative too, as Del goes into some interesting detail about certain songs, band configurations at the time, etc. #Go Del!

However, I find myself listening to the bg channel fairly infrequently. #Current other pre-set channels are: #Outlaw Country, Roadhouse Country, Sirius Disorder, Left of Center, The Vault, Classic Rewind, and The Coffee House. #

They also have channels that are either permanently or non-permanently dedicated to a particular artist. #Jimmy Buffet, Rolling Stones, Grateful Dead, and the one we have on right now, Bruce Springsteen. #Howard Stern can bite the big one, as far as I'm concerned.

If it is quiet in the shop, we all get a kick out of Radio Classics. #They have old radio shows like The Lone Ranger, Dragnet, The Shadow, Superman, etc. #Makes the day go faster, that is for sure!

Steve
www.CumberlandAcoustic.com
www.RedLineResophonics.com

[Sleepy Moon Music]

I have both XM and Sirius and they both are great .Both have Gospel on Sunday mornings and they both play good music .Some songs no matter what you listen to ; you have to wonder "Is that really Bluegrass ?" But then real Bluegrass is Music from the heart and it must have come from someones heart and as long as it isn't that screaming garbage ; i like it .