It seems like I am always talking to people who have XM radio in the car. Most bought receivers because they are fed up with the free over the air stations.
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Amazed at the number of XM subscribers
- Thread starter Mike Sheridan
- Start date
Mike, I am amazed that more people Don't have Sat radio. My friends who have Sat want music and not talk, they can't hear the kind of music they want on local radio, (the Cincinnati area in my case), and like the larger play lists on Sat. I spend more and more of my time listening to my Ipod, but have no desire to listen to local radio, especially in the morning when even the shows that play music just talk talk and talk. To be honest, the only folks that I know that listen to local radio are being honest when they tell me they don't care what is on the station as long as it's noise......Remember when local radio was good, and there were great choices in programming and format?
I used to get backlash from people not wanting to pay for satellite radio whenever I talked about it. That's why I'm surprised. Many of these people are in the 50+ age group and now realize free commercial radio has nothing for them.
Satellite is also great to have when you get tired of all the format flips that commercial radio goes though as it tries to become McRadio.
Satellite is also great to have when you get tired of all the format flips that commercial radio goes though as it tries to become McRadio.
Mike Sheridan said:
I was an XM subscriber for about 4 years. Being in the 50+ age group, commercial music radio has nothing for me. I enjoyed the XM '50s channel. After the merger some of the specialty shows that I enjoyed on XM 5 disappeared. I discovered internet radio and cancelled my XM subscription. Internet radio has something for everybody, and I mean EVERYBODY. So this is how desperate I am to hear radio I really like: I record hours of my favorite internet stations in the mp3 format. I transfer these mp3 files to a CD, which gives me about 12 hours of music per disc. I play the discs in my car, which has an mp3 compatible CD player. A lot of work and hassle, to be sure. But the end result is well worth it. And I donate some of the money I save on the XM subscription to my favorite internet stations.
YEKIMI said:
I was a subscriber before the merger so I understand what you are saying. Even with all the Harm Mel has done it still beats what I hear on the commercial stations.
A good example is "Love". Listening yesterday I heard so many great songs that A/C radio used to play but doesn't anymore. Songs that were big in the 80's and 90's. There were so many it was unbelievable! Instead of playing these songs the A/C stations where I live play the same worn out '70's songs by Elton John, Billy Joel and a few others.
Recording internet streams is an interesting idea but with XM I have the advantage of being able to select another channel without fumbling with CD's. At one time I was one of the few people who had a Sony MiniDisc player in the dash. Although it didn't use the mp3 format the MiniDisc is a lot easier to handle in the car. Too bad it never caught on.
Mike Sheridan said:
Well, you wouldn't actually have to "fumble" with CDs. With 12 hours of mp3 files on one CD, you could record 1 hour (or any length of time you choose) of each radio format that you like and create a track for each time period. Then just move from track to track without removing the CD from the player. A program available at http://www.dak.com/Reviews/2050story.cfm is one program that would help you do that.
TheBigA said:
Jockless radio isn't really a "current move" for those of us who love '50s/early '60s music. Commercial radio in my market pretty much dropped that format 10 years ago. XM 5 was the answer for me until the merger. Then they dropped Daddy Dave, Matt The Cat, and the Harlem show. They program Cool Bobby B., Pink & Black Days, and Rockabilly Road Trip late on Saturday nights (???) with no repeats. Sure, XM 5 has Cousin Brucie. But for me, that's just not enough to justify a subscription
TheBigA said:
Put me down as a fan of Phlash Phelps and Terry Young on 6. Both are good at what they do. I like the people on Watercolors too, they fit the mood of the music. I wouldn't mind if Love and The Bridge had jocks. Norm N Nite is interesting too. Even though I used to listen to Cousin Brucie back in the WABC days I'm not a big fan of his now. He rambles a lot.
Why record streams if you have an android or iPhone (or like-minded smart phone)? I listen to Internet radio all the time in my car w/my Motorola Backflip (the irony of using motorola is not lost on me). It's actually made me happy that my carrier requires an unlimited data plan w/a smart phone.
Since I have an older Honda (02) with a cassette, I simply bought one of those cassette devices with a miniplug adapter which attaches to my Backflip. iTunes which has a radio section works great for the iPhone, but I use AOR (Android Online Radio) as my client (free) and it will play any mp3 ar AAC based stream. Theoretically, I could drive across country listening to the same I-station. I have driven from my home in Chapel Hill, NC to my mom's home 120 miles away while listening to my own internet streamer, http://deeperintomusic.net - and Radio Paradise, my other online fave http://radioparadise.com
There are also a few decent (and a few not-so decent) FM micro-transmitters with mini plugs that will work too (that's the solution I use in my girlfriend's car that does not have a cassette).
Options abound these days with a little know-how.
K
Since I have an older Honda (02) with a cassette, I simply bought one of those cassette devices with a miniplug adapter which attaches to my Backflip. iTunes which has a radio section works great for the iPhone, but I use AOR (Android Online Radio) as my client (free) and it will play any mp3 ar AAC based stream. Theoretically, I could drive across country listening to the same I-station. I have driven from my home in Chapel Hill, NC to my mom's home 120 miles away while listening to my own internet streamer, http://deeperintomusic.net - and Radio Paradise, my other online fave http://radioparadise.com
There are also a few decent (and a few not-so decent) FM micro-transmitters with mini plugs that will work too (that's the solution I use in my girlfriend's car that does not have a cassette).
Options abound these days with a little know-how.
K
TheFonz said:
For me, the smartphone (Motorola Backflip was $49.00). The AT&T service plan I'm under is $30/month unlimited data. Since streaming stations are "data", there's no additional cost. The cassette plug was about $12.00 at Walmart. The FM microtransmitter was $9.99 at a local computer store (Intrex).
K
K
TheFonz said:
TheFonz said:
Now if that DAK software program could index each song, that would be even better! What if one doesn't like a certain song within the format they have recorded? Fast Forward for CD is not usually available in the car, at least not on a stock Radio/CD. BTW, I listen to internet streams on my Moto Droid...Drooooooooooooooid...
stormy01 said:
The software does let you create as may tracks as you want to. So, for example, if you want to create 6 ten minute tracks in a one hour file, you can just skip to the next track when you hear a song you don't like. It's a lot of work, but if you really hate that 3 minute "stiff", you might want to do it.
G
got2bfunky
Guest
I was close to getting rid of my Sirius subscription after I got my Motorola Droid on Verizon. I too have enjoyed streaming Internet radio on my phone but streams are inconsistent if you are not in 3G coverage and impossible as I found out this weekend traveling through rural WV on a roaming network. My satellite coverage was uninterrupted the entire trip. I still cannot stand the horrible audio quality of Sirius programming compared to the 128K streams and higher available on my phone.
I find the audio quality on XM varies. Sometimes it's okay and other times it's horrible. I keep hearing this annoying ringing distortion on the highs. It drive me crazy.
I have said goodbye to my XM.
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