XM or Sirius Satellite Radio?

I'm planning on buying a 2005 Nissan Murano soon after the 2005 model is released.

In researching the 2004 Murano, I see that Nissan offers your choice of XM or Sirius satellite radio.

As I have no personal experience with satellite radio, I'd just like some opinions on which is better from people who have either or have listened to both. I'm not trying to start a war here...I'd just really like some opinions from those who know.

Thanks in advance!

Reply to
SgtRich
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I would definitely get one of them. I cannot compare and contrast (I've only listened to one of them), but my next car and boat will both have it.

Reply to
ppointer

They're both pretty good.

Sirius has the NFL, NBA, and NHL. XM has NASCAR.

Sirius' music is more "hit oriented", XM plays a lot of b-sides and music you've never heard (which isn't necessarily a bad thing!).

Go to

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and
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for a sample of their music channels. I personally have Sirius, but the ability to get all the NFL games is important to me so that was the overriding factor.

Reply to
Rich

I've had both. Sirius has better programming. Although I suspect a lot of XM fans will disagree with me.

Reply to
JimV

I have Sirius in my '03 Sentra Spec V. OK, I added it after buying the car as it's not an option in the Sentra.

I liked the channel options better on Sirius, but it was a slight advantage. Sirius has NPR, but they don't plan ME or ATC. I'm not that big of a football fan, but Sirius will have NFL games on this fall. XM has NASCAR, but that seems silly on radio.

The big different is the way the satellite fly. XM has a geostationary satellite that is always there. However, that tends to leave dead spots that require on-ground boosters to cover.

Sirius uses 3 satellites that travel around the Earth. That usually leaves 2 of them in range. They don't seem to need as many boosters. The people I have talked with who use Sirius who used to use XM as that Sirius has MUCH better reception and WAY fewer cutouts.

My experience shows very few cutouts with Sirius. Going slow under underpasses will cut out for a few seconds. At highway speeds it isn't an issue. I have found some small roads in deep forests that will cut out. It does take a pretty heavy tree cover to do it though. I haven't tried it down in Chicago's Loop yet; that's where boosters come in to play most.

I would highly recommend Sirius, but really can't compare with XM.

Clyde

Reply to
Clyde

XM

Reply to
Meat-->Plow

Both are similar. XM sends signal at a tiny bit higher bit rate....

Reply to
Dan J.S.

XM has far better music programming IMO. Certainly, if you're 30 or older. If you like the current garbage, you might prefer Sirius.

Sirius DOES NOT HAVE NBA any longer. Also, XM has added NCAA conference football and basketball for ACC and PAC10. Rumor has it they are considering adding others.

Sirius playlists are much closer to "FM" -- 300-900 songs. XM's are much longer in many cases; for example, Deeptracks (my favorite XM channel) has 4000 songs on their playlist. You don't get the repeition from XM you do at Sirius.

If you want NFL games on the radio, Sirius is the place to go. I have both, but much prefer XM.

Reply to
D Ray

Thanks to all for all of the opinions. I'm going to check further but, right now, those NFL games sound real good over on Sirius!

Reply to
SgtRich

I'm 30, and I still prefer Sirius' music. I stay away from "The Pulse" and "Sirius Hits 1", which do overplay the current junk. My favorites are "The Spectrum", "Buzzsaw", "Big 80s", "Hair Nation, "Octane", "Left of Center", "Classic Rewind", and "Sirius Disorder".

Reply to
Rich

I'm sure that XM will have NFL programming on one of the many sports oriented channels. And XM has terrestrial access. I get XM in Cincinnati OH inside the I

71 tunnel.
Reply to
Meat-->Plow

Being 48, I don't like all your favorites, but that's the advantage of a huge choice. "Big 80s" and "Hair Nation" haven't captured me yet. "Classic Vinyl" is my favorite. Mine and yours all seem to have significant depth.

Clyde

Reply to
Clyde

The NFL games themselves are exclusive to Sirius, I'm not sure how long. Sirius also has channel that is all NFL talk, though there's not much on it now; it's just team previews.

Reply to
Rich

I went with Sirius and I have no regrets. It had some news channels XM did not have, plus I have learned that XM is owned by one of the most evil entities on the planet: Clear Channel. Sirius is public under the ticker SIRI.

I have only lost the signal going into tunnels or under long overpasses, or in the mountains where I am in a valley that is blocking the signal.

Reply to
tkozal

Sirius has dropped NBA. XM has picked up some NCAA conferences, ACC and PAC-10. I've heard they're negotiating for other biggies. NCAA includes basketball.

Reply to
D Ray

I'm curious. Do you do a lot of driving on Sunday afternoon? I'm skeptical about how many people are going to leave their TV sets to get NFL on the radio (you won't be able to listen to the game on Sirius while you watch it on TV because the Sirius signal will be delayed).

Reply to
D Ray

Good point but there is the advantage of receiving games that aren't televised, right? There are a lot of games that I'd really like to be able to listen to but that option isn't available right now.

Reply to
SgtRich

Clear channel does not OWN XM. they at one time had a portion of the stock.(Traded as XMSR) They now own less than a 2-5% if I remember right.

XM uses the terrestial boosters to stop the "cut outs" from bridges and easier recption from indoors. But these are only in major cities.

I've only had 1 cut out and that is though a tunnel and there are no teerestial boosters in my area.

Reply to
Lester Mosley

I've kind of been of the opinion that most people who really want those games badly are going to get the NFL Sunday Ticket so they can watch them rather than listen to them. But I'm no football fan, so I could be wrong.

I really think the NFL deal is going to be a bust for Sirius, not because people don't like it but because they paid so damned much money for them -- $300 million over 7 years. Since the games run in real time, if you're watching games on TV you're not going to be getting the NFL on Sirius.

I think XM made a much more sensible play in getting the NCAA games (well, ACC and PAC10, anyway). Cheaper, and since these games are harder to catch on TV for a lot of the people who are interested in them, I think the radio will be good alternative.

Will be interesting to see how this plays out.

Reply to
D Ray

If I had a dish, that would be true but I have digital cable TV, so the NFL Sunday Ticket isn't an option for me, unfortunately.

Reply to
SgtRich

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