A couple questions (1 Viewer)

I'm trying to give myself a crash course in satellite radio so I can decide between Sirius and XM for Christmas. I haven't listened to the radio locally in months, live in a fairly small city without any music stations I'm interested in. We had a good rock station for a couple of years but it was replaced for some reason by a pop station that is a copy of the rest of our stations. First question I need to know is for the plug and play option..must I have a tape deck? Right now all I have is a cd player, no tape deck..so what are my options?

Also trying to decide like I said between Sirius and XM. It sounds like on the little reading I've done here so far, XM has commercials which are a big turnoff for me, and Sirius doesn't, but sounds like XM has better playlists and channels. When it comes to music I'm almost exlusively interested in rock with few exceptions. I'm very interested though in talk radio, the comedy channels sound cool, and especially sports radio. Based on all that can anyone point me towards one or the other?

for plug and play you don't need a tape deck
you can hardwire
you can get a wired FM modulator
or you can get a wireless FM modulator

I myself also don't have a tape deck in the car and will be waiting for the Delphi wireless FM mod for the Roady (due out very soon)

As for which service that is based on personal taste.
To address some of your statements
- yes XM has commercials but I think there tends to be some overexageration here about them. They don't promise all commercial free stations as Sirius does
- both services have rock stations, as I understand Sirius is more hit oriented (think FM radio, controlled playlists) and XM is better at exposing people to new music
- I understand Sirius has more talk channels
- both have comedy channels
- and Sirius has new exclusive contracts with the NHL and NBA on the sports tip
- also XM is $9.99 per month, Sirius is $12.99 per month (both offer longer term plans for some savings)

I have had XM for over a year now and am very happy with their service and selection. I considered switching over with the announcement that Sirius entered into a contract with the NHL (as I am a huge hockey fan) but even that did not convince me to switch over to what I believe is the better service (for me).

If you get the Satellite Radio Shuttle, from AudioVox, you have your choice of car kit. One car kit comes with a tape adapter. The other car kit comes with a wireless FM Transmitter, so all you would have to do is set your factory radio to 88.1, 88.3, 88.5, 88.7 or 88.9. Use whichever one of those frequencies that has no local programming.

When it comes to playlists, XM's playlist is only better if you prefer listening to a lot of music that is not very popular. If I could sum up their programming in one word, I would say it is very eclectic. Sirius is more hits based. Do NOT think FM based controlled playlists. Sirius is not even CLOSE to FM when it comes to programming. Why do people find it neccesarry to bash a service just because they prefer something else? Anyways, I can always find a song I know and like playing on Sirius. I can also find a lot of music that I have never heard before, so it is not at all like a Top 40 station, where they play just the Top 40 songs of the week. On their decades channel for instance, they will play any song that was EVER in the top 40 at any time during that particular decade. Their Rock channels are the best channels on Sirius, as they just bought in some very experienced DJ's for those streams, so if you like Rock, you can't go wrong with Sirius. They also have a better variety of Talk channels. Sirius has left, right, and moderate talk channels, as well as two NPR channels, and PRI.

You can sample Sirius music streams online for free, at Sirius.com

This is going to be a very tough decision to decide which service I'd rather have. It sounds like not all and maybe most XM channels don't have have commercials, so which do and which don't? I like the idea of more ecclectic playlists. I don't listen to a lot of unknown bands though so as long as Sirius isn't pure hits that wouldn't be a big deal I don't think. Seeing that Sirius has NHL is cool but I have NHL Center Ice on TV and rarely need to listen to games, of course would be great to have if not home. Someone needs to combine the best of both services because I don't know what I'd rather have..

As far as hardware what factors should I consider when choosing it? I really have never known much of anything when it comes to car audio anyway. I have a pretty old crappy CD player that I wouldn't mind replacing anyway so would there be any reason to go plug n play as opposed to just getting a head unit?

For those looking to get into Satellite Radio this holiday season, take a look at this excellent comparison of Satellite Radio Plug & Play units. The units covered are the Sirius JVC SR1000, AudioVox SRS1, AudioVox SRS2, Brix Streamer, Kenwood Here2Anywhere, XM SKYFi, and XM Roady.

Sirius is not ONLY hits. I have heard some Side B cuts on Sirius, but not all the time like XM. If you are looking to replace your headunit, the Kenwood headunits have very good sound quality, and they look good to boot!

It looks like plug and play is quite a bit cheaper isn't it? That may decide it for me, plus the option to use it at home if I want to.

I'd reccomend you choose a service first and then look into hardware. Otherwise you'll never be able to narrow the field.
I just got XM(I went with a Roady since I have a non XM ready headunit and I wanted something small but that could be used at home too). I got it for a good price(120-20 mail in rebate plus a free home kit by mail) and I'm thrilled with the service so far. Just got my Aux in adapter for my JVC headunit so I'll be throwing it in the car soon. It actually worked great at home using a universal AC adapter and a pair of computer speakers(I must have a repeater near me though because I got full signal even with my window closed and the antenna on the floor).
Sirius is a good service as well. Don't let any of the provder cheerleaders sway you (not anyone specific to this board mind you, just in general). Look at what they offer and how that compares with your musical tastes. For me, XM was a better fit(that and the lower monthly fee was more palatable to my low income) but I think I'd have been pretty happy with sirius too.
good luck whatever way you go, and be prepared to hear alot of great songs you know and even more great songs you've never heard before

What musically made XM a better fit for you?

Ok, I think the only doubts I have now with going with Sirius is that Sirius has less sports talk channels than XM. Other than that I think I like what Sirius has to offer better.

Sirius has ESPN Radio, ESPN News, and Sports Byline USA.

XM has ESPN Radio, ESPN News, Fox Sports Radio, and the Sporting News Radio.

For those here that are sports fans and listen to these stations and me being a sports fan how should this enter into my decision, and do you like Fox Sports Radio and the Sporting News Radio, and Sports Byline USA, and how do they all compare to ESPN Radio, which is the only one of those I've ever heard(and haven't had a lot of opportunity to even listen to that).