I'm thinking about getting XM and I was wondering if anyone had it and if they liked it or hated it. I was also wondering how it plugs up. Right now I have a Pioneer cd-player that is XM ready. Since I have that does it mean that I can just plug the antenna up to the radio and it work or do I still have to install the whole unit? If I can just plug it straight to the radio does it plug in through the IP bus or some other way because I have my Ipod in my IP bus right now and I dont want to lose it. Thanks.
~Wes

 

I have it, and I love it...although out of the hundred plus channels, I listed to 5 or 6 regularly. Some radios have an XM tuner built in, others are just XM Ready. If yours says XM ready you will have to buy an extra unit. The older decks had tuners that were made by the manufacturer, it was one box that the antenna plugged into and that plugged into the deck, and was controlled by your specific manufacturer's data bus channel. I believe that the newer tuners are made by Terk, and you buy an adapter that allows your deck to control a universal tuner, but sill through the data bus on your deck. So I have a Terk XM tuner, universal, and an Alpine-specific adapter that controls it. The Terk ones are cheaper by a long shot than an OEM one, and work just as well. My old Alpine tuner was $300+, and a new Terk setup is right around $100. I am not real familiar with Pioneer, but I would imagine that you can control several accessories on the data bus, which would allow you to keep your iPod and have XM radio.

 

yeah, you will have to have a tuner. A pioneer will run you between $100-160. they also make IP Bus Y cables so you could use both.

 

I have the SkyFI. That way I can pay for one receiver and take it from my truck to the office to home. It is connected to my deck Aux inputs. Ran the antenna under the headliner and out the third brake light hole. Antenna is on top of cab about 4 inches from third brake light.
I love XM,but am looking in to Sirius for the Stern show.

 

I have both XM and SIRIUS and i like XM better mostly because my SIRIUS cuts out every time i go under an overpass but my XM even works in a car wash What ever stereo shop you buy at will be able to hook you up with an adapter.

 

I have XM running through my Kenwood, and it does use the bus to connect, but I have seen splitters for some brands that allow the bus connection to be shared. I installed the tuner and kenwood module under the dash on either side of the steering coloumn. And ran the entenna cable up the A-piller anr an it out the door jamb to the roof. Others have done it out the 3rd brake light, which looks cleaner, but I had trouble running the cable through there.

 

i have had a chance to buy xm and never did i am from a small town so it was great to have if i did get it but now i live in a bigger town that use to and they have better radio stations so i do not really need it . my parents have it and like the dude said above me you listen to the same ones. for you money you spend to listen to 5 stations that play the same ****. if you spend a lot of time in your truck driveing from work to home or andthing like that it is a good idea. so it just depends what you do.

 

Would not listen to anything else. It is great. Direct TV is switching to XM for there music channels so I can get rid of my home unit and subscription. Anyhow you will need a unit from Terk they should have one that is a dirct plugin to the Pioneer and your radio will control all the functions.

Nate