james2266 Posted February 28, 2010 Report Share Posted February 28, 2010 I have a few questions for anyone that has the Z110BT and the Pioneer HD Radio module hooked up (the GEX-P20HD). First, I was wondering if there was a loss in reception especially while traveling away from major centers? I am in Canada so there are no HD Radio stations. What I am thinking about this unit for are the text functions mainly - ie. RDS info. I have heard rumors that that only works with an actual HD radio station and it does not work for any analogue ones. I have managed to only find one video showing this thing in action but I could not tell if it was working for the analogue stations as well or not. I did notice the display button did not disappear when it was getting only an analogue signal however so I was wondering if that was true or not. I was wondering if anyone with this setup could chime in. Even better would be if someone knows of a video or is willing to make one. I am going to finally buy a Z110BT. I have made up my mind after long last. I want to make it a Z120BT and I am now willing to take the risk especially at the price I think I can get it for Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tombonneau Posted March 1, 2010 Report Share Posted March 1, 2010 There is a video someone posted on this site which is pretty comprehensive. Not sure if that is the one you already saw, but I can't imagine someone making something more complete than that. I have the unit and am happy with HD reception; however, I live in LA and get every HD station perfectly. From online reviews I have read, one of the major complaints is people in fringe or rural areas that are out of range get terrible reception. I don't listen to any non-HD stations, so can't say if the text comes across on those or not, but that should be on a station-by-station basis. Pretty sure standard stations can pass song/artist info, though am not positive. I will say that I was extremely impressed with the sound quality. I listen to sports talk on AM and the sound is much better, esp. when compared to Sirius/XM. There is one music station I listen to, and that is near CD quality as well. So if you have a good sound system in your car, that is definitely a point to consider. Overall, I would hazard that if you are in a rural area, you are better off getting Sirius/XM instead rather than spending $100 on this HD module only to find you get a handful of stations. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
james2266 Posted March 1, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2010 Well, like I said, the is no such thing as HD Radio in Canada. I do live in a major center here and all of the stations I listen to are from my home city so reception probably wouldn't be a huge concern. I do make alot of trips to the mountains however and that lack of reception might really bug me in that instance. I think I am actually not going to go for any extra modules right now (outside of IPod and PAC unit) as the Z110BT will have more than enough things to keep me entertained for the time being I guess. I am especially looking forward to having an IPod interface that works the way it should. Thanks for the response and yes I think that is the video I did see. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dawgbone Posted March 1, 2010 Report Share Posted March 1, 2010 I have the HD tuner... and am more than willing to make a video... But I'm not quite understanding what you're wanting/asking.... We have a couple of HD stations here... and I have several without... What exactly are you wanting to see? If CA doesn't have HD radio stations, then why would you buy the HD Tuner? Or are you wanting to get it in case they start popping up? I kinda believe that the HD tuner actually helps with analog radio reception.... although I can't really prove it... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tombonneau Posted March 1, 2010 Report Share Posted March 1, 2010 Well, like I said, the is no such thing as HD Radio in Canada. I do live in a major center here and all of the stations I listen to are from my home city so reception probably wouldn't be a huge concern. I do make alot of trips to the mountains however and that lack of reception might really bug me in that instance. I think I am actually not going to go for any extra modules right now (outside of IPod and PAC unit) as the Z110BT will have more than enough things to keep me entertained for the time being I guess. I am especially looking forward to having an IPod interface that works the way it should. Thanks for the response and yes I think that is the video I did see. Not sure if you can get Sirius/XM in Canada or not, but I'd look into the XM module. I wasn't sure I'd really use it, but its super convenient when you just jump in the car and don't want to futz with hooking up your iPhone/Pod. The XM only requires one $100 component; Sirius you need to buy two separate pieces. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
james2266 Posted March 1, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2010 I am actually considering grabbing XM as yes both XM and Sirius are available in Canada. My problem you have hinted at already, would I use it enough to make it worth it? I think ultimately I probably would unless of course I can succeed in getting pandora radio to work up in Canada on my iPhone (when I get one...). I have an IPod Touch right now that I am working on. I have gotten the app on the touch but I can't get it to open as it keeps saying the service is not available in my country. I am trying to find a way to hide my Touch's location from them. I have succeeded on my laptop (very happy when I did...) but I think the only way I will be able to on my Touch (eventual iPhone) is by jailbreaking it which I am new to the idea and a little concerned. Anyway, that is another topic entirely that I would love some info on if anyone has some to share. As for my wanting HD Radio, my entire want is to get the song title/artist info (RDS info). There are no HD stations in Canada and I have my doubts there ever will be. I am willing to pay the $100 or so for the module if it gives me the RDS info I want but if it is going to kill my reception and/or not give me this info for analog stations then it would be a waste of $100. The video I am wanting to see is of the thing in action with the reception set to analog only and showing the display info of song name/artist and radio text. If you are willing to do this I would be much appreciative. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tombonneau Posted March 1, 2010 Report Share Posted March 1, 2010 I'd def. get XM if I were you then. You'll listen to it more than you think. As far as getting Pandora to work, have you tried Slacker? Not sure if they are CA-friendly or not, but I find the service far superior to Pandora. I'll try to check out on my HD module if it does the track/artist for analogue only, but I'm not sure that you'd need the HD tuner if a station passes that info. I'd think the native antenna on the unit would decode those analog signals and pass the artist/track info if the analog station is providing it. HD module should have nothing to do with it? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
james2266 Posted March 2, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2010 Oh, but it certainly does. The only way that you get that info on the Z110BT without the HD module is if the station happens to broadcast that name incorrectly on the same line of text as their station name (PS in RDS terms). The HD box adds in the display button and I saw in that video that it does give that info just like a full RDS tuner would. As for slacker radio. Yes, we can use that up here but there is a cost to use it at all after one month. The service seemed competant the short time I was allowed to use it for free. Pandora allows a free account always but with limitations of course. If I have to pay for it then I would probably be more likely to go to XM actually. Another reason I want Pandora over slacker is because of the new Pandora interface in the soon to be released software. With 6th Ave jacking up their price now, I don't really know what I am going to do once again for my next deck. I have a buyer for my current dvd so I am definitely in the market and now too. Not going to jump for the first thing I see this time tho. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stoveken Posted March 2, 2010 Report Share Posted March 2, 2010 the regular reception when not in hd will go in the toilet. the hd unit removes the antenna from the z and takes over thru the data cable. the rds works on the regular fm. boss has one makes his am sound like fm stereo. fm is incredible. still i have no use for it. i have 160 gb ipod and sirius . jim Quote Link to post Share on other sites
james2266 Posted March 2, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2010 I honestly think that I will follow your suit eventually. I have an 8 gig IPod Touch for my music right now and that is enough usually (if I can access my songs properly that is). I am thinking more and more all the time that XM is what I will end up with over HD Radio as I don't like what I keep readin about the reception going out the window. The usable sensitivity is way worse than the Z110BT's if you are just going by the numbers (9 compared to 15 or so) I think the readings are correct. I think that would bug me more than the minimal amount I would have to pay to have XM. I like XM's interface anyday over Sirius too. Only reason for choosing XM over Sirius. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tombonneau Posted March 2, 2010 Report Share Posted March 2, 2010 I honestly think that I will follow your suit eventually. I have an 8 gig IPod Touch for my music right now and that is enough usually (if I can access my songs properly that is). I am thinking more and more all the time that XM is what I will end up with over HD Radio as I don't like what I keep readin about the reception going out the window. The usable sensitivity is way worse than the Z110BT's if you are just going by the numbers (9 compared to 15 or so) I think the readings are correct. I think that would bug me more than the minimal amount I would have to pay to have XM. I like XM's interface anyday over Sirius too. Only reason for choosing XM over Sirius. Another thing in favor of XM is the interface is 10x better than HD. The HD module doesn't even display your presets, which isn't a huge deal for me as I only have a few stations. Also, it's kind of a pain to go from FM to AM as you have to scroll through 3 FM bands to get to AM. And then if there are subchannels on one of the FM bands, you have to toggle through separately to get to those. Not very user friendly. XM is much better in that regard. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
james2266 Posted March 2, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2010 Yes, the interface is another large reason too. I really like the looks of the new XM interface on the upcoming 920/120s coming out in a couple months as well. I think I am just going to get this stuff setup and play with it for a while before I go putting extras on however. You gotta draw the line somewhere money wise. I really think just having a really good IPod interface will keep me more than happy not to mention the nav. I have never had a nav before so I'm sure that will keep me entertained for some time. There is also a small part of me that fears the volume will be way way lower on XM compared to everything else like it was on my stock setup. I have been told that isn't the case here however but it is in the back of my mind. Hell, I might just grab one anyway too when i finally pull the trigger on this system. I was all ready to yesterday and then they jacked the price up by $300 on Amazon. I checked last night late and it was back to it's original price. I figured I would wait until this morning to get everything setup (I had to call and setup my Visa for this). I tried again this morning and it is expensive again. Man, that is insane! Is Amazon always so volatile with its prices? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
VBLUE42 Posted March 2, 2010 Report Share Posted March 2, 2010 Man you just cant win!!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
james2266 Posted March 2, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2010 Tell me about it. Well, I am 100% ready to do this now. Once I find a decent price that is. Amazon has been bouncing around so much lately that I almost know that it will drop again. If not, I will go unauthorized for the best price and screw the rebate. My installer is taking out my 814 on Friday morning and I won't have tunes until I get something to put in there. I could get one from him but his best price is $1600! Me thinks not. I could get something now to tie me over until he gets me an X920BT at $1300. I still think my best bet is the Z110BT through the States somewhere. I WILL get a deal somewhere and soon. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
james2266 Posted March 2, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2010 Well, FINALLY, bit the bullet on the Z110BT. I ordered from cartoys.com. I had to jump through a few hoops to get it done and I also had them do a pricematch. The pricematch didn't work but they still dropped their price by $400+ which was good enough for me. Total price for just the Z110BT was $979.99. Sure beats the $1600+ I was quoted up here. I also get to apply the Pioneer rebate and will bring me in to a cool $779.99 for this. AWESOME! I can't wait until it finds it's way to me in a few weeks. As I said, I had to overcome some hurdles to say the least. I might order up the PAC and IPod cable too and maybe even XM if I feel ambitious. Or I have a feeling I can get a half way decent price on those through my installer. I am getting the 814 removed on Friday tho so no radio until this gets in. Sure hope there are no delays. That is going to be tough but worth it I think. We'll see what his price are on those add-ons on Friday. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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