XM Versus Sirius: Which Satellite Radio Should You Subscribe To?

Are you tired of flipping through the radio trying to find tunes to jam to, but all you find are boring channels with a lot of chit-chat or ads? That was me a few months ago, until I subscribed to satellite radio. With hundreds of commercial-free music stations and specialty channels like live football coverage and talk shows, you will definitely want satellite radio in your car too! 

You can even buy devices that will allow you to have satellite radio almost anywhere - in your boat, house, even on capable cell phones! So if you decide you want the satellite entertainment experience, you can choose between two services: either XM or Sirius.

I subscribed to XM awhile back for my car simply because I was more familiar with it. Then when we got Dish Network in our home, Sirius came along with it. I have to say, Sirius has won me over.

Out of its 170+ stations, I find myself only listening to 4 or 5 channels on XM. Sirius has many stations I switch between. XM has a bad habit of repeating songs. I may end up hearing one song five times in one day within a few hours period. With Sirius, that isn’t the case. Furthermore, I do not like the way XM names its stations. 

For example, some XM station names are “Fred” and “KISS” and “Watercolor.” I have to guess what types of music they play. If I mention a radio station called “The Joint,” how long would it take you to figure out that I'm talking about a reggae station? Sirius clearly names it’s stations, such as “Reggae Nation” and “Rolling Stones Radio,” for instance.

Sirius satellite radio broadcasts a lot clearer than XM, especially in relation to the talk channels. People’s voices come across a lot smoother and can be easier understood than XM, which tends to be fuzzy. XM has another sound problem. It sometimes will fade out of my front left speakers and only play through on the passenger side speakers. You’d think something was wrong with my audio system, but when I switch off XM and local stations come in, the sound immediately comes back to my left speakers.