Actual technology used on SiriusXM radios

[TheKrell]

Does anybody know what different car manufacturers use when they ship a SiriusXM radio? I am virtually certain that Chrysler uses Sirius technology. Hyundai reputedly uses XM technology. I can't seem to Google a comprehensive list since nowadays they all just say "SiriusXM" without specifying which one.

 

[harshness]

Are you planning on making your new car purchase based on which facilities the satellite radio tuner uses?

 

[Juan]

Get the $6.95 internet option and bluetooth to the radio in your new car..much less compressed than the crappy satellite service

Sent from my SM-G950U using the SatelliteGuys app!

 

[TheKrell]

Are you planning on making your new car purchase based on which facilities the satellite radio tuner uses?

No I wasn't. I'm just trying to understand reception differences in cars we already own.

Get the $6.95 internet option and bluetooth to the radio in your new car..much less compressed than the crappy satellite service

Good plan except that any streaming option is kind of useless when out of range to a cell phone tower. But I hear you regarding quality. I have also read that XM sounds better. Do you agree? Do you even know what tech your radios use?

 

[harshness]

No I wasn't. I'm just trying to understand reception differences in cars we already own.

Unless the vehicles are very similar in outside size and shape and vintage, I'm not sure you can logically draw any connections. One may have a better reception than the other because it has a higher quality or physically larger antenna or the location of the antenna improves the reception of one to better than the other. To assume that the radio itself is the only factor in good reception is folly.

I have also read that XM sounds better. Do you agree?

While that may have been the case when each had significantly different programming and quantity of channels, I'd imagine they are pretty comparable now given a near mirroring of programming. I don't have an XM radio to compare against and can't think of anyone in my area that does.

 

[N6BY]

Here is a thread that has a debate about which hardware is better: http://www.avsforum.com/forum/101-xm-sirius-satellite-radio/1388846-sirius-xm-sound-quality-future-enhancments-7.html If there is a hardware favorite it seems to lean towards XM over Sirius. But I think the real issue (affecting both) is that they are trying to cram too many channels into too little bandwidth.

I remember when audio CD's first came out and always thought they sounded tinny compared to vinyl records and FM broadcast. But when I'm in a car there's road/wind noise anyway and sound quality is not a big issue for me.

 

[TheKrell]

Unless the vehicles are very similar in outside size and shape and vintage, I'm not sure you can logically draw any connections. One may have a better reception than the other because it has a higher quality or physically larger antenna or the location of the antenna improves the reception of one to better than the other. To assume that the radio itself is the only factor in good reception is folly.

I know this, and you are talking about rather small differences. One BIG difference is that Sirius radios have 3 tuners (one of which is terrestrial), while XM has only one. As I mentioned in another thread, at some point in the last 5 years, my Sirius technology radio went from very frequent dropouts (under every overpass), to almost none. I can now listen to the radio on the upper 5 levels of my parking garage a work, and only lose signal in the deepest part of the bottom level. I claim the radio switches to terrestrial transmitters when it can't see either satellite. There is also fancy syncing technology in my radio to allow it to switch between signal sources without dropouts.

While that may have been the case when each had significantly different programming and quantity of channels, I'd imagine they are pretty comparable now given a near mirroring of programming.

Oh yeah? How would any of us know if we don't know what underlying technology these radios use?

I remember when audio CD's first came out and always thought they sounded tinny compared to vinyl records and FM broadcast.

Yup; I remember that too. Jazz labels were making beautiful early CDs, but pop/rock labels were just ghastly. I gather they had to crank up the highs (e.g. hot microphones) to optimize for vinyl (which actually liquefies at the point of needle contact). Pulling out just one part (vinyl record) and inserting digital CDs without re-optimising end-to-end, left many of these early releases with very harsh highs.

 

[Juan]

No I wasn't. I'm just trying to understand reception differences in cars we already own.


Good plan except that any streaming option is kind of useless when out of range to a cell phone tower. But I hear you regarding quality. I have also read that XM sounds better. Do you agree? Do you even know what tech your radios use?

My car radio uses xm..I have an old Sirius lifetime sub that cant be transferred to a car radio but it gives me the internet for free..XM is way too compressed..internet much better

Sent from my SM-G950U using the SatelliteGuys app!

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

I believe all cars are now coming with XM technology radios.

XM radios have two tuners in them one for satellite and the other for ground based repeaters.

 

[navychop]

I must say that the (Sirius?) radio in our 2016 Outback definitely has lower AQ than the music I feed over BT, and lower than HD radio.

We have it for a late summer road trip. We won’t likely renew. Besides, they repeat way too often, especially the comedy channels. But Pandora is guilty of that too.

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

The compression used on Sirius is the same today as it was when they launched. The codec is built into the chipset and can not be modified, while the codec on XM can be (and has been) updated to newer codecs as they have become available. This have given the XM radios an leg up on sound quality.

 

[TheKrell]

must say that the (Sirius?) radio in our 2016 Outback definitely has lower AQ than the music I feed over BT, and lower than HD radio.

According to the AVS forums link that Juan posted above, Subaru is using XM technology. Scott's comment about all radios coming with XM, and XM radios coming with a terrestrial receiver, that is news to me!

BTW Navychop... Wasn't it you who claimed your Subaru suffered dropouts every time you drove from the outer loop of the Washington Beltway onto the Old Keene Mill/Franconia Rd exit? I had the occasion to drive that way going to my Chrysler dealer, and I got stuck in stop and go traffic right next to the 40' sound wall. I imagine that's where you lose signal. My Sirius radio never missed a beat, and I was just creeping around that enormous sound wall.

 

[navychop]

Those dropouts were with my 2009 Jetta TDI with Sirius. Years ago. 3-4?

The worst was going from Old Keene Mill or outer beltway onto 95S, along that tall curved wall.

 

[TheKrell]

Those dropouts were with my 2009 Jetta TDI with Sirius.

Oh! I thought you made that comment recently. Does your Subaru still suffer from that sound wall?

 

[navychop]

Haven’t driven it there. SWMBO gets to drive it most of the time, to and from work.

If we drive out of town, I drive. But that’s mostly up 270 & 70, or 66 & 81.

Offhand, I can’t imagine why I would take that old route today.

 

[Tampa8]

Does anybody know what different car manufacturers use when they ship a SiriusXM radio? I am virtually certain that Chrysler uses Sirius technology. Hyundai reputedly uses XM technology. I can't seem to Google a comprehensive list since nowadays they all just say "SiriusXM" without specifying which one.

This is probably what you are looking for. However it isn't always correct or perhaps not always complete. My 2014 car is not listed correctly, I have the XM radio with Traffic and other info but this site says it only has audio. In the past on older cars If it has XM it generally is capable of Traffic and other info. If SiriusXm radio it generally didn't however for Chrysler they do have a different traffic system called Traffic Plus I believe and others with Sirius radio now have the traffic option. I wonder if they now only make one type of radio which is really the XM one and will be calling all of them SiriusXM,,,, That would fit with what Scott said about them all being XM.

Vehicle Availability

 

[navychop]

Odd. That site is not letting me select a year. Instead of getting a “spinner” at the bottom with years, it just says, redundantly, select a year.

In my iPhone.

 

[Tampa8]

Odd. That site is not letting me select a year. Instead of getting a “spinner” at the bottom with years, it just says, redundantly, select a year.

In my iPhone.

it is working on my laptop....

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

Scott's comment about all radios coming with XM, and XM radios coming with a terrestrial receiver, that is news me. wall

The company I work for runs a few of the XM repeaters here in Connecticut.

The first ones were huge and heated the entire place. The new ones are much much smaller and run a lot less hot.

I will have to dig and see if I can find pictures of what we called The Beast.

We also ran Sirius repeaters as well.

Depending on you unit you can get into diagnostics mode and see the signal strength of both satellite and terrestrial as shown below.

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

Found this post from a few years ago with me talking about the XM repeaters we run.

I forgot there were two of them up there.

https://xmfan.com/viewtopic.php?t=115075