SiriusXM Megathread

[mallig]

 

[AZLucidGuy]

So are they adding an actual satellite or what? I just bought myself RoadyBT yesterday and have a limited return window

No satellite antenna. It’s an app on the Pilot panel line Tidal and will stream over the internet.

 

[Tesla2.0]

Would be nice to hear about a timeline for hardware implementation in the future. Same thing w/ re: to carplay and android etc.

Please read the disclaimers on Lucid site.

 

[victoryroad]

When I sold my Audi before the AGT delivery I canceled my Sirius subscription, which cost around $260 a year. I switched to a mobile subscription for $72 for the first year then $130 a year. The mobile signal works well enough in NH and VT and the mountain shadows here often blocked the GPS reception for Sirius. Seemed like a good arbitrage to me.

 

[phemmert]

No satellite antenna. It’s an app on the Pilot panel line Tidal and will stream over the internet.

This is lame IMO. Relying on cellular signal availability for a satellite based service is just papering over what should have been hardware based in the first place. Even my antique 2013 Toyota Prius had SiriusXM radio capability. My Lucid workaround is to bluetooth from my SiriusXM iPhone app, not ideal, but works fine. At least the Lucid update will make it easier to navigate around the SiriusXM UI, but I still believe this was an oversight for this level of a vehicle.

 

[hydbob]

This is lame IMO. Relying on cellular signal availability for a satellite based service is just papering over what should have been hardware based in the first place. Even my antique 2013 Toyota Prius had SiriusXM radio capability. My Lucid workaround is to bluetooth from my SiriusXM iPhone app, not ideal, but works fine. At least the Lucid update will make it easier to navigate around the SiriusXM UI, but I still believe this was an oversight for this level of a vehicle.

It's entirely possible that they couldn't reach an agreement in time of production. Given that even after a whole year in production they just came to an agreement to provide the in car app for it. There's a lot more that goes into 3rd party features of a car than just, "It should have it."

 

[PaulM]

This is lame IMO. Relying on cellular signal availability for a satellite based service is just papering over what should have been hardware based in the first place.

Don’t get me wrong, the content on SiriusXM is good, but the sound quality has always been horrible. What is already a fairly low bit rate stream is further compressed to send via satellite. On a high-quality sound system like that found in the Lucid, you would be constantly complaining of the quality. Yes, you do lose the ability to listen to satellite radio while driving through the desert, but the sound quality is gonna be a lot better when you’re connected through the app.

Also, in my opinion, SiriusXM is entirely obsolete… At least for me, it has been for a decade.

Either way, we should applaud Lucid for already adding a new feature… I hope radio Paradise is next.

 

[phemmert]

Don’t get me wrong, the content on SiriusXM is good, but the sound quality has always been horrible. What is already a fairly low bit rate stream is further compressed to send via satellite. On a high-quality sound system like that found in the Lucid, you would be constantly complaining of the quality. Yes, you do lose the ability to listen to satellite radio while driving through the desert, but the sound quality it’s gonna be a lot better when you’re connected through the app.

There's trade-offs in everything for sure. I just finished a 5,000 mile RV road trip across the western USA, and it was nice to have access to Sirius XM programming everywhere we were, many times in remote locations. (especially news/sports broadcasts.) I totally get the quality versus availability equation, but I still think this was an oversight on Lucid's part. One can make the same argument about FM/AM radio reception quality, but at least we have the hardware on board to receive these OTA broadcasts, despite the the poorer audio.

 

[victoryroad]

Don’t get me wrong, the content on SiriusXM is good, but the sound quality has always been horrible. What is already a fairly low bit rate stream is further compressed to send via satellite. On a high-quality sound system like that found in the Lucid, you would be constantly complaining of the quality. Yes, you do lose the ability to listen to satellite radio while driving through the desert, but the sound quality is gonna be a lot better when you’re connected through the app.

Also, in my opinion, SiriusXM is entirely obsolete… At least for me, it has been for a decade.

Either way, we should applaud Lucid for already adding a new feature… I hope radio Paradise is next.

I could not agree more that SiriusXM is obsolete, especially given my experience with having to switch to its mobile app to listen to a few news stations. Music quality on Sirius has fallen short for me, so that is no loss. I wonder why they have not figured out that their subscriber base could make the same change as I did. Inertia keeps most people just accepting auto-renewal without exploring alternatives I suppose. Yes, Lucid should have installed a GPS antenna because it is a problem for navigation in more remote areas with no mobile signal. I would not even know where to get a current detailed road map these days for old-fashioned map reading and dead reconning in the country. It should not be difficult for Lucid to retrofit a GPS antenna, but I am not complaining.

 

[phemmert]

I could not agree more that SiriusXM is obsolete, especially given my experience with having to switch to its mobile app to listen to a few news stations. Music quality on Sirius has fallen short for me, so that is no loss. I wonder why they have not figured out that their subscriber base could make the same change as I did. Inertia keeps most people just accepting auto-renewal without exploring alternatives I suppose. Yes, Lucid should have installed a GPS antenna because it is a problem for navigation in more remote areas with no mobile signal. I would not even know where to get a current detailed road map these days for old-fashioned map reading and dead reconning in the country. It should not be difficult for Lucid to retrofit a GPS antenna, but I am not complaining.

Being a noob, I wasn't aware that Lucid GPS navigation requires a cell signal to function? I downloaded all the offline maps for the western USA, so a bit confused as to actual GPS navigation capability?

 

[PaulM]

There is certainly a gps antenna in the Lucid. Just not a sirius antenna.

 

[Tim-in-CA]

I could not agree more that SiriusXM is obsolete, especially given my experience with having to switch to its mobile app to listen to a few news stations. Music quality on Sirius has fallen short for me, so that is no loss. I wonder why they have not figured out that their subscriber base could make the same change as I did. Inertia keeps most people just accepting auto-renewal without exploring alternatives I suppose. Yes, Lucid should have installed a GPS antenna because it is a problem for navigation in more remote areas with no mobile signal. I would not even know where to get a current detailed road map these days for old-fashioned map reading and dead reconning in the country. It should not be difficult for Lucid to retrofit a GPS antenna, but I am not complaining.

GPS (Global Positioning System) antenna is for navigation, SXM uses a different antenna that is specific for SXM‘s geosynchronous satellites.

 

[Tesla2.0]

At their best, music channels on a satellite radio system offer about half the bandwidth of a local FM radio station signal. There just isn't enough room for numerous higher fidelity feeds. That means, at its best, satellite radio barely approaches terrestrial radio sound quality.

HD vs. satellite radio: Readers sound off

When MSNBC's Gary Krakow suggested that digital radio might prove a challenge to satellite services, many readers took exception.

www.nbcnews.com

Good extra option for country roads, overkill for Lucid Surreal Sound Pro.

 

[Tesla2.0]

Being a noob, I wasn't aware that Lucid GPS navigation requires a cell signal to function? I downloaded all the offline maps for the western USA, so a bit confused as to actual GPS navigation capability?

There is GPS in Lucid, you won’t get lost in Yosemite National Park in its offline mode.

 

[Fischman]

When I sold my Audi before the AGT delivery I canceled my Sirius subscription, which cost around $260 a year. I switched to a mobile subscription for $72 for the first year then $130 a year. The mobile signal works well enough in NH and VT and the mountain shadows here often blocked the GPS reception for Sirius. Seemed like a good arbitrage to me.

Call them back the day before the expiry and tell them to stop the service and it will be $72 for another year until you get to play the game again!

 

[Drendino]

Don’t get me wrong, the content on SiriusXM is good, but the sound quality has always been horrible. What is already a fairly low bit rate stream is further compressed to send via satellite. On a high-quality sound system like that found in the Lucid, you would be constantly complaining of the quality. Yes, you do lose the ability to listen to satellite radio while driving through the desert, but the sound quality is gonna be a lot better when you’re connected through the app.

Also, in my opinion, SiriusXM is entirely obsolete… At least for me, it has been for a decade.

Either way, we should applaud Lucid for already adding a new feature… I hope radio Paradise is next.

That’s interesting, I didn’t realize that the sound is degraded more through satellite.

 

[dawktah LucidGT]

That’s interesting, I didn’t realize that the sound is degraded more through satellite.

Agreed, however I'd be more likely to be zipping along at 80-85 mph on a remote highway where quality won't matter vs. stuck in traffic where cell is good.

I drove from Yosemite to Death Valley (StovePipe Wells) to Grand Canyon. Satellite is perfect for that.

 

[PaulM]

Yes… the bitrate is very low… approximately 64 to 128kb/s for any given channel. 256 or 320 is a good target for decent sound and is much higher for tidal hifi. They have a fixed max bandwidth due to satellite tech and the 151 channels have to be spread across that bandwidth. And any increase in that technology costs around $1 billion on the low end. Given the actual demand, the tech is obsolete imo.

 

[HC_79]

Sirius will eventually fall into what happened to Cable TV. It’s just a slow death! They have 300 channels of crap and only 5 to 10 that people probably listen to but you pay a premium to get those 5 to 10 you want.

I guess its only real advantage is the coverage because TuneIn can easily replace Sirius and is cheaper. I find the “variety” of music is each station choosing 20 songs, adding to a playlist and then repeat it all day.

Maybe it’s better for sports etc. which I don’t listen to but from a music standpoint I don’t miss Sirius as much as I thought. TuneIn has filled that gap for me.

 

[Ned]

Sirius will eventually fall into what happened to Cable TV. It’s just a slow death! They have 300 channels of crap and only 5 to 10 that people probably listen to but you pay a premium to get those 5 to 10 you want.

I guess its only real advantage is the coverage because TuneIn can easily replace Sirius and is cheaper. I find the “variety” of music is each station choosing 20 songs, adding to a playlist and then repeat it all day.

Maybe it’s better for sports etc. which I don’t listen to but from a music standpoint I don’t miss Sirius as much as I thought. TuneIn has filled that gap for me.

"They have 300 channels of crap and only 5 to 10 that people probably listen to but you pay a premium to get those 5 to 10 you want."

Absolutely my experience.