countdown Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 I have a GEX-P10XMT hooked up to an AVIC-D2 and the quality of my XM sound is far worse than FM. I thought it was digital? Shouldn't it sound better than FM? The sound is very flat and sounds like its coming out of a tin can. Also, I find that I have to turn the volume much higher to be at the same level as any FM station. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tillithz Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 well i believe you can adjust the source volume to match each other. but sat radio is flat and unimpressive. The best description I have heard is it sounds like a low quality mp3. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
countdown Posted January 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Right. Why isn't it at least on par with FM? I have no complaints about the FM quality. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tillithz Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 I would guess, bandwidth issues Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Itchy Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 It should sound better than FM, but not as good as CD. You might have a bad tuner and/or antenna. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
countdown Posted January 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Not even close to FM. It doubt it's a bad tuner/antenna - it sounds this way to me in every car. I've listened to XM in the TSX and Passat and FM in those cars sounds way better than XM. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jmoney715 Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 yeah i second that, XM sound is not impressive at all... the source level helps a bit but it still doesnt compare to FM. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Rodge Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 I have a simple explaination for this.. Â It's called compression... Â In order to send/recieve Digital Data, it must be compressed, during the "send/recieve" part of it. When your unit "unzip's" or "decpomresses" your data many of the high's and lows will be left out, OR they get simplified(in 0's and 1's) to where the sound is inaudible... This sounds exactly like a "tin can" or a "really bad mp3"... A really bad mp3 has undergone the same compression scheme following the same principle I just explained... It's digital Audio, It's kinda how it works.. Looking ahead, these things should be figured out within the next year or so.. It's not a matter of "upping" the technology, it's just bandwidth issue.. The data you can send from the Satellite can only be so big, so they compress it to shrink it down.... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
countdown Posted January 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Great explanation. Thank you for that. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
action Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Also, it it's like Sirius, I'm sure different stations use different bandwidth. For example talk radio doesn't need the high-quality, so it uses less bandwidth. The quality is probably somewhere between AM and FM. Music, on the other had, needs high quality and therefore uses more bandwidth. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Rodge Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 It actually is completely different and uncomparable to AM or FM radio.. that is an analog signal being sent out at a certain frequncy, there is no bandwidth involved... Frequency Modulation (FM) and Amplitude Modulation(AM) is sending out a signal with a certain wavelength which corresponds to the Hertz (93.3, 89.9, 102.7) Again, the digital signal is completely different and should be compared more to an internet connection than radio stations.... Compression to make the data smaller, so it can move faster and load quicker... There are different types of compression schemes that can be used, but, obviously Xm or Sirius, have not enough bandwidth to send larger "less" compressed data... they will with time though... remember 5-10 years ago when we were all on "Napster" downloading songs that would take a half an hour? kinda the same thing... Similiar principle Quote Link to post Share on other sites
apax Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 i can't tell......mine seems to be working good in my area.... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
countdown Posted January 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 i can't tell......i'm seems to be working good in my area.... Â It has nothing to do with reception. You either get it or you don't. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
action Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Again, the digital signal is completely different and should be compared more to an internet connection than radio stations.... At the end of the day, the singal reaching your ear is analog, so I don't think that comparing quality of standard radio vs satellite is that far fetched! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dwhitley0381 Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 I have a buddy I work with and he has Xm I have Sirus and he agrees mine sounds much better.. XM sounds do AM if you know what I mean.. but it could be your speakers too.... my 2 cents... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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