[redneckromeo]

I have been with XM since satalite radio started. Never liked sirus. But thought hey for free I will use them. Well 5 months in to my trial period and I cant stand them any more, the one channel I liked Xm 11 nashville is not on sirius. ANd the signal is sooooooooooooooo much worse than XM, any tall trees or buildings or a cloudy day for that matter knocks out signal. Where my vehicle with stock XM gets great signal 99% of the time, and has the better channels.

My question is, is it possible to swap them out, IE the modules so it can still be built in the radio. Or am I stuck getting one of those Ugly external units?

 

[MoparOhio]

Odd.. mine only breaks up under an overpass and in my garage. I think you have to get an add on module. I think the guts of the radio are one or the other.

 

[redneckromeo]

Odd.. mine only breaks up under an overpass and in my garage. I think you have to get an add on module. I think the guts of the radio are one or the other.

I wonder how much the stock head unit is worth. As I could sell that and go aftermarket with built in XM. Its just I really like the stock HU and dont want to loose the steering wheel controls.

 

[runner2go]

You do realize that they are the same company now and in the process of combining the 2 platforms.

 

[NewMuscle]

i thought they were the same company also

 

[redneckromeo]

You do realize that they are the same company now and in the process of combining the 2 platforms.

They have been the same company for a good 3 years now. But All we will ever be able to hear on our current equipment is the "best of xm" which is 5 channels of talk crap. But the two companies still have differences. XM uses 4 satellites, Sirius uses two much closer to earth sending large packets of bandwith at a time. XMs are all out orbiting sending smaller packets from different satellites to the receivers at all times. Much more reliable signal is found this way. ONe company, yes, the equipment each name uses. Still completely different and they aren't going to change it any time soon as that would cost a fortune to do, and like I said, our current equipment wont work with both xm and sirius. You need a special module for that. But you can buy xm and sirius modules to hook up to satilite ready radios. This can work with factory equipped Head units as well. But it looks like I have to go the ghetto route and get a big flashy aftermarket navi.

 

[nolimits76]

I agree the signal with Sirius is different. Not sure if it's the antenna/HU that Dodge uses or just Sirius. I know my wife's Equinox has a factory XM unit and we've only lost signal a few times. It's a daily occurrence in the Challenger.

Strangely enough, I prefer Sirius programming though. Of course, take that with a grain of salt, because I don't find much value in satellite radio anyhow. Not sure I will renew. I prefer my iPod -- the only true "my music all the time w/o commercials" solution.

In regards to a solution, sounds like you know a bunch already. Seems logical you could swap the Sirius brain for the XM brain. Assuming they make an XM brain to plug into the factory Challenger HU. I'm not sure they do. Perhaps look at other models/HU's that Dodge might have produced with XM? Or have they all been Sirius?

I have a feeling a HU swap is the better solution. There are some nice ones out there, although I have heard mixed reviews on the more complex ones that offer things like satellite, bluetooth, etc. Also I've seen kits that help keep your steering wheel controls functional.

Lastly, in regards to value of your HU, I guess it depends on which one you have. Some of the nav/touch screen models go for $500+ on eBay. The more simplistic versions like I have I think you'd be lucky to get $100.

 

[SmokingClutch]

Yes, they still use different technology. The tradeoff is this:

XM - more reliable signal, more noticeable compression in the sound quality
Sirius - less reliable signal, better sound quality

 

[redneckromeo]

I actually think the sound quality has more to do with the equipment than the company. I notice really no difference in preformance between the two. Other than the stock system in my yukon doesnt go as loud. But it only has 8 speakers and a 220 watt amp, and a CD or FM is the same volume. Sirius really doesnt have that much better of quality. Im still going to eventually change it out. but for right now I found an app on my iphone that lets me play some of the XM channels im missing through the radio, and that sounds awesome, and sinces its unlimited verizon. I dont loose signal in the city or in tunnels where cell service is top notch .

 

[roscoe]

Hate to say this but.....As of tomorrow they are combining there channels so they are the same on either platform. I have both XM in my work trucks(GM) and sirius in my jobsite radio and my SRT. As a example.... #10 on XM is Country, #10 on Sirius is Springsteen...... Tonight at midnight the channel numbers will match on either, I also understand they will also share the exact same transmitting equipment. I guess we will find out in the morning.

 

[redneckromeo]

even after the channel switch I still dont get nasville xm 11 on sirius. Have to use the iphone app. Which works great now that I went to verizon and got unlimited data back.

 

[runner2go]

even after the channel switch I still dont get nasville xm 11 on sirius. Have to use the iphone app. Which works great now that I went to verizon and got unlimited data back.

Country XM Ch 10 is now 56 and XM ch 11 is now 57

XM & sirius lineup old & new
New Channel Lineup - SiriusXM Radio < < < Scroll down for new channel lineup.

Just change the black tab at the top from Sirius to XM ... then scroll down again.

 

[Shaggy SRT]

Years ago I had XM and swore by it but when I bought an 07 Mega Cab with a free Sirius trial I realized I was wrong BUT thats because of the rock stations Sirius offered (not into country). I now have had Sirius in 3 trucks (2 factory 1 dash mount) and my Challenger and I find the signal in the Challenger is much worse then in my 2010 Ram. Driving the same roads the signal in the Challenger goes in and out but the Ram hardly ever loses signal. Looking at the new line up there are still a handful of stations that are exclusive to one or the other which I think is ridiculus at this point but is probably that way so they can make more $$$ of us poor suckers that prefer satellite radio.

 

[BayouTiger]

It's a matter of how much is buffered in the head unit. I have XM in my Nissan truck and Sirius in the Challenger and the wife's MB. I don't see much difference, but I listen mostly to the ipod. Just use the Sat for talk stuff and sports as I find the music quality is not very good.

I think they are trying to keep them as separate as possible purely to prevent multiple radio's on the same account. They are finally starting to show some profitability so maybe they'll be getting better. I have always been disappointed by Satellite radio. I like it, but it could be soooo much better. My main complaint is navigating the content, it just sucks!

 

[redneckromeo]

As I say, the only real reason I pay for xm on my truck is xm nashville which was 11 and is now 57, there is no 57 on sirius. So its useless in my car other than for traffic, which is a crap shoot of it actually showing a delay where I currently am. After my 1 year is up im not renewing, The app on my iphone gives me like 60 different country stations through out the US nashville xm included.

 

[skialfs]

satellite radio sucks, breaks up constantly and is way over priced. The DJ's are starting to yap just like FM. I hope they go bankrupt. Technology should improve...not get worse.
Ipod works everywhere, that's good technology and portable-vehicle to vehicle, house to ski slopes. F em

 

[vichammer]

I've had satellite radio from the beginning and always preferred sirius but realize that it is personal preference (loved Sirius Hair Nation most of all). In 2005 XM had a huge lead on Sirius with 2.1 million subscribers vs 587,000 for Sirius. Then Sirius banked their entire future on signing Howard Stern. I dont want to turn this thread into who loves or hates Stern, but that move turned out to be good for them as they soon overtook XM and became the lead in the merger between Sirius and XM. The problem though was they each had their own equipment and satellites and there truly is no easy way to integrate the two systems. They offered subscribers the "best of XM" and "best of Sirius" packages. although I never bit on that because it was just another way for them to get in your pocket. I applaud their efforts this past couple weeks to further integrate but hope they figure out how to get it all together as one and the same in the future.

 

[redneckromeo]

The only real reason I like the Xm nashville channel is it plays new artists, new songs, etc. All the small town guys who are only playing in texas, alabama, etc. Not big national pop stars, So I hear new "Real" country, not main stream, to big for the britches country. The new guys are really good, and I dont hear the same stuff 5 times in one day. Because of this station my ipod is full of artists most people have probably never heard of, but have much better music, and arent to full of them selves.