For those who have satellite radio in their R56s, how is your sound quality?

Compared to FM, CDs and my iPhone, the satellite radio sounds like I am streaming a very low quality real player file... In other words, if you're familiar with bit rates of digital music, the audio quality sounds like it's at 56-128kbs bit rate. It's very tinny, it has "musical artifacts" that do not normally exist in the original versions of songs and it seems very low-fidelity.

I know it's not my speakers because all of the rest of the sources sound great. I also know I do not have a reception issue, because I have tested this all over the country and reception is great, but sound quality is poor.

The only explanation I can come to is that I have never subscribed to SiriusXM. I have all of the channels, but it does tell me "to subscribe, please call blah blah blah". I figured that I may have a trial subscription, however... This car was purchased sometime in September of 2009, so the trial must be over already, right? So maybe they make it low-fi until you really subscribe? The reason I ask is because I don't want to be stuck with low-fi satellite radio after I've paid for it.

Is anyone else experiencing this type of sound quality?

Thanks!
Chris

 

I hear the same thing. Other sources sound fine but the OEM Sirius sounds compressed a lot. It varies depending on channel as well. Even Pandora through the Aux input sounds much better. I don't know if it's a quality issue with the OEM interface or the broadcast itself as I don't own any other satellite radios to compare it with.

 

+1 here. HD radio is much better. My trial subscription expired in November but for some reason I also am getting all channels. Its ok for free but no way I'd pay for it

 

Compared to CD you certainly ARE streaming a very low quality, highly compressed signal...compared to BD, Dish or Direct tv suck too...it's just a fact of satellite bandwidth. Compared to FM, YMMV, FM is notoriously compressed, and iPhone/iPod certainly ain't hifi.

I currently have three Sirius subscriptions, two receivers built into cars and one that gets switched from a car to two different home audio systems. they all sound about the same...it's not a MINI issue, it's a Sirius issue.

I LOVE Sirius on road trips (no searching for and failing to find a good FM station once an hour), and in the mountains and on the plains where there simply IS no FM reception. My wife listens to FM sometimes if there's a tunable station to her tastes, I haven't switched off Sirius in years.

I also subscribe to the theory, widely held in the audio snob community, that even MP3 is ok in anything less than a Maybach since the road noise swamps out the details anyhow...

 

Thanks, guys. I am really liking the satellite radio, but the quality kinda sucks. I'm happy that I'm not paying for it and some how it works.... shh! Don't tell anyone!

 

Kind of an old thread, but helpful.

I bought a well-optioned 'gently used' R55 a couple of months ago from a GMC/Buick dealer (they got it off lease). About two weeks ago, and to my surprise, the dealer activated the Sirius radio without telling me about it, with a 90-day trial. Sirius called me to sell me an extension, otherwise I'd have never known. There isn't really much about Sirius I find useful where I live.

So I activated the radio and was shocked to discover how crappy it sounded: like a 3" speaker at the end of a 2' tube. MP3s off a thumb-drive and Apple Lossless files off my iPhone sound fine. But the Sirius... chit.

Asking questions on an audio forum about Sirius sound quality (AudioKarma) brought polarized "Sat radio sux" and "Sat radio is great... you sux" responses. So I listened more closely today, and to varied channels, and Sirius Radio indeed sux in the MINI (except for the "Oldtime Radio Programs" channel, where the sound is 'authentic' to an old Atwater-Kent table radio).

This thread confirms that, I suppose. Seems like it's probably a MINI issue exacerbating the inherent problems with compressed sat-music. Sure wish I had the HD tuner instead!