Sirius is it worth it?

vabusyman · **Posted:** Mon Aug 22, 2005 1:19 pm

I love my KJ, (Limited 2005- Still Stock), I even kept an open mind with the Sirius integration in my KJ when I made the purchase. I thought the fully integrated satellite radio with the in dash six disc changer would be really great.

Since day 1, I have been disappointed. The radio unit does not even give song information, like all other radios out there. To make things worse the channel line up isn’t as good as XM’s. To many times the same station plays the same song at the same time each day. Do they think we are that dumb? Doesn’t anyone else have a problem with the radio not giving song info from Sirius, yet in FM mode it does? I guess you first time satellite users converting over from FM do not know what you are missing!

To be fare to Sirius, it seems to have slightly better coverage or rather reception as you drive around the States. (I have driven from VA to OBX and out to Indiana and most places in between so far.) Which is because their satellites, all those miles up in space something like 22,000 miles up, are at a higher latitude than XM’s and give a better downward signal. But, for a true Jeep driver in the middle of dense foliage of a forest, neither signal will make it down to you! You should be listening for rock scrapes anyways!

I have had XM for over two years and I still have it in my house. Now after three months in my KJ, I am ready to pull the whole stereo unit out and trash it. Okay, I could sell it, any buyers? I will replace it with a new aftermarket XM stereo. Does anyone know of a after market unit that will integrate with the steering wheel radio controls? Those are the only thing done right with the stereo system in the Jeep.

Guest · **Posted:** Tue Aug 23, 2005 1:26 am

hoss75 wrote:

Oh, and another great thing about Sirius (that costs extra for XM) you can listen online free as long as you have an active account.

Not true. Both services offer internet listing since around June 2005 and both cost within pennies a month of each other on subscription price.

hoss75 · **Posted:** Tue Aug 23, 2005 8:47 am

Vabusyman, yeah it bugged me about it not showing the song/artist information but that's not a Sirius thing, that's a MOPAR radio thing.. but we liked the Sirius service so much that we yanked the MOPAR radio and put in a SIrius Compatible Kenwood unit w/tuner that DOES display the information. Luckily I was still able to use the factory installed antenna to keep the nice clean look.

As for the stations playing the same songs at the same time I can't recall ever running into that. Sure some of them play the same songs (not neccesarily at the same time) but that's because there's alot of overlap in genres especially between the various rock stations (there's like 8 of them!) Plus Sirius is going to be getting Howard Stern next year (if anyone likes him) and they allready have the NFL and exclusive NASCAR coverage starting in 2007.
Personally, I'm guessing eventually one of the two big dogs here (Sirius and XM) will clearly win out and buy the other one making the choice much easier.

acbafam · **Posted:** Fri Aug 26, 2005 7:21 pm

so the MOPAR SAT ANT does work if you swap .... :idea:

super, I think the RB1 may not be on the wish list anymore... :twisted:

hoss75 · **Posted:** Sun Aug 28, 2005 2:18 pm

acbafam wrote:

so the MOPAR SAT ANT does work if you swap .... :idea:

super, I think the RB1 may not be on the wish list anymore... :twisted:

One thing to note, you may have to get a little creative to make the MOPAR antenna work as the connection housing on the end of the cable probably won't match up to where you need to plug it in on the aftermarket tuner (I just took all the plastic off and it fit right in).

acbafam · **Posted:** Tue Aug 30, 2005 6:44 pm

thanks for the tip!

SunDvl · **Posted:** Mon Oct 17, 2005 10:27 pm

How/where does everyone have their receivers (not antenna) located/installed?

hoss75 · **Posted:** Mon Oct 17, 2005 10:32 pm

Mine is mounted in the same location as the stock reciever... in the rear compartment behind the right side panel.

CaKJFreedom · **Posted:** Wed Oct 19, 2005 11:45 am

If you pull out the stereo, there is a space the reciever fits into between where the stereo goes and the glove compartment.

AdamIsAdam · **Posted:** Thu Oct 20, 2005 6:08 am

I have an RB1 and am thinking of adding Sirius.

I'd be buying the kit from dealer. Quoted 125 unless I can find it cheaper.

What deals are there on service?

Will there be an additional external antenna or will it use the satellite antenna for my NAV system?

I didn't knwo about www listening! cool!

Any rebates or "refer a friend" type programs?

Guest · **Posted:** Sat Oct 22, 2005 9:12 pm

the girlfriend and my mom both have Sirius. When I drive the ol' lady's car, I may be embarrassed that I'm drivin the Sunfire, but at least i'm rockin out to Hair Nation or Octane

I'm lookin into the Pioneer decks right now that are XM AND Sirius ready, (my KJ came stock with a TAPE DECK!! a TAPE DECK? IN 2002?? oi...at least my boss is giving me the old CD/tape deck out of his Ram temporarily) and subscribing to both. the Pioneer deck in my T-bird is XM ready, but I never got around to doing anything with it, because I hate that butt-ugly antenna on the roof. However, since the Jeep's too tall for most people to see it, why not

AtlanticLiberty · **Posted:** Sat Oct 22, 2005 9:40 pm

AdamIsAdam wrote:

I have an RB1 and am thinking of adding Sirius.

I'd be buying the kit from dealer. Quoted 125 unless I can find it cheaper.

What deals are there on service?

Will there be an additional external antenna or will it use the satellite antenna for my NAV system?

I didn't knwo about www listening! cool!

Any rebates or "refer a friend" type programs?

The back of the RB1 has two connections, one for the GPS antenna, the other for the changer/satellite. You will have to run the second antenna. you can't use the NAV.

Ideally, the setup is RB1, cd changer and sirrius. The changer and satellite reciever are housed next to each other and use the same connecting plug then run to the front to connect to the RB1. Your antenna goes out the back just ahead of your 3rd brake light.

LibertyCRD · **Posted:** Tue Oct 25, 2005 10:59 am

Radio Shack stores around here are selling the COMPLETE Sirius car kits for $20. I got one for me and loved it so much I got one for the wife too. Service is only $13/month for me which is the price of buying one CD each month...but I have a LOT more music now for that $13 bucks!! For her it's just $7/month because I added her onto my plan. We love it!!!

I've been waiting for years to learn more about satellite radio and see how it evolves in the market place. There is no better time to buy than right now!! I probably won't ever buy a CD again!

pixeldzn · **Posted:** Tue Oct 25, 2005 1:39 pm

ThunderbirdJunkie wrote:

I'm lookin into the Pioneer decks right now that are XM AND Sirius ready

Even though it's "ready" for both, you can only hook up on satelitte antenna receiver, so you gotta choose one. No running both on the same head unit, however cool that'd be. :twisted:

AdamIsAdam · **Posted:** Mon Nov 07, 2005 9:15 pm

Hey folks. I just stumbled upon this and ordered it from Crutchfield:

SiRALP1

"Having options is a great thing. And if you have a 2004 or newer Alpine satellite radio-compatible receiver in your dash, you now have the option of using it to listen to SIRIUS .

SIRIUS created the SIR-ALP1 tuner to work with the Ai-Net connection in Alpine receivers. The receiver will display channel information, including channel name, artist name, and song or program title. The tuner also features a built-in pass-through, so you can still connect an Alpine CD changer, if you like.

The SIR-ALP1 tuner includes an antenna, so all you need to do is activate the required SIRIUS subscription.(Satellite radio service only available in the lower 48 states — not available in Alaska, Hawaii, or U.S. Territories.)

Details:

» compatible with 2004 and newer Alpine in-dash receivers
» roof-mount antenna with 20' cable included
» single-cable antenna connection (dual-cable SIRIUS antennas are not compatible)
» select channel name, channel number, artist, song title, or category name to appear on receiver's display
» channel presets and channel scan/search
» pass-through Ai-NET input for adding compatible Ai-Net components
» tuner dimensions: 5"W x 1-3/8"H x 5"D (6-3/4" with cables connected)
» warranty: 1 year "

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-Yi6fUzhycDG/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?g=247350&id=morephotos&pi=3&i=607SIRALP1&display=L#Tab

-------------------------------------------------
I ordered it but now am concerned that it won't be compatible with the RB1. Does anyone know if the input on the back of the RB1 is compatible with this feature:
"SIRIUS created the SIR-ALP1 tuner to work with the Ai-Net connection in Alpine receivers"

It's $99, free shipping, less the 15% discount code that came on my catalog. Beats the $125+175 price from the dealer for the kit and receiver (respectively).

HELP!!!

hoss75 · **Posted:** Mon Nov 07, 2005 11:27 pm

Unfortunately Adam, that will not work. You'll need an Alpine head unit to use that tuner. If you are looking to get one that will work with your stock unit, I can sell you mine (I replaced it and my head unit with a Kenwood set up). However, keep in mind that the RB1 does NOT display title/artist information. You'll also need the cable that runs from the sat. tuner to the RB1.. if you have the CD changer you allready have this cable (it's bundled up pretty tight inside my jeep so I wasn't about to remove it I just ran the new one for my kenwood alongside it).

AdamIsAdam · **Posted:** Mon Nov 07, 2005 11:39 pm

(DELETED ORIGINAL TEXT TO AVOID BEING EMBARRASSED)

Adam,
I see that the RB1 doesn't have Ai-Net according to Alpine. So, I'll have to return that crutchfield item.

Anyway, how much for your Sirius tuner?

And, how/where can I buy that wire I need? Do I need to buy that kit from MOPAR for $125 to get that wire? I hope not!

How much you want (for a fellow KJ Renegade'er ;-)

)

Sirius is it worth it?

Who is online