Howdy -

My wife just gave me a Sirius Sat radio for the MINI as a Father's Day gift and I have a couple of questions, but first some background....

I wanted Sirius with the original purchase but with OEM NAV and iPod installation, I was nervous about the installation. The dealer said that there was a port conflict preventing Sirius with my setup - and since I occasionally see references to the "CD" on the H/U when using iPod, I am guessing that the iPod connector is hijacking the CD input port, which is what Sirius would use. The dealer also said that the AUX input was taken away with the OEM iPod. Anyway, I dedided not to experiment and to go without. The only time I miss it is during long trips across PA when all I can get is bad Country and too-prevelant preachers flooding the airwaves.

NOW, my wife bought me a unit with brand name XACT and it employs an FM transmitter and uses the cigarette lighter as a power tap. Two questions -

1. I have hooked up my Valentine One radar detector to the cigarette lighter and - with its remote radar display unit mounted on top of the cigarette lighter connector - that setup is really cool and I don't want to disturb it (mute switch is now handy and the readout is nicely clustered with gauges down there). I always heard that there was a second power tap in the CABRIO MINI but I haven't been able to find it. Not in the back seat - maybe the boot? My intention is that the Sirius unit be very portable - because we may use it in the other car more then MINI - so I am not that interested in permanent wiring (I would permanently wire the Valentine but really like how the remote unit looks using the cigarette lighter option). Only one power tap in Cabrio?

2. Realistically, how IS the sound quality with the FM transmitter???? I have never used anything that does this but have heard that direct wiring gives better results. My listening would be mainly NPR talk, Howard Stern, and maybe some exotic music - but my iPod has 8200 songs on it and covers just about all the music I regularly listen to so that will remain my high quality music choice. Is the sound quality with FM transmitter that much worse? How many people use an FM transmitter and what is your experieince with it??

3. (Okay, I lied - another question) Has anyone heard of this Sirius unit before (Xact)? It seems like a reasonably solid unit (China make) but I have never heard of it.

Thanks for your insights.....

Bill

 

I used a Roady XT for awhile (XM), and I thought the quality was good although not great. The quality is very dependent on your location (i.e. how crowded is your FM band).

The one annoyance, although rare, is when you pull up next to someone ELSE doing the same thing and you hear the mix of what they're listening to (if they are broadcasting on the same frequency).

Satellite radio is great. I hope you enjoy the Sirius setup. If XM had NFL I'd be totally happy.

 

There shouldn't be a conflict with the Aux-In port if the dealer is using the iPod connectivity solution that is MINI-branded.

Don't know about a second power tap in the Cabrio, but - you could also use a power splitter adapter for your present cigarette lighter source. The splitter looks like two (or three) plugs instead of one. I doubt that the current draw between the Valentine One and your satellite radio would exceed the draw of the cigarette lighter.

I have recently been freed from the purgatory of FM transmitter for my XM satellite radio. I have an Alpine IVA-W200 that just got installed in my Volvo XC90 and while I was waiting for the IVA-W200, I had purchased a Pioneer XM2Go unit to tide me over until the Alpine was shipped (great product availability from Alpine, but that is another matter). The net of my FM transmitter experience is that it was pure torture - the FM signal in no way is close to what is available from a hard-wired integration.

What you might want to consider is using the Aux-In port for both iPod and satellite radio. That way, you get the benefits of the hard-wired sound quality and complete flexibility over source of your audio. You would lose the charging of the iPod that is provided by the iPod adapter, but the iPod battery should last until you can hook it up to a charger (or, you could use the cigarette lighter adapter (they also make a three source adapter as well)); but, you would get a better sound quality from your satellite radio reception.

 

Thanks all -

I finally found the second power tap in the Cabrio and hooked it up, getting the Sirius unit working. Wonderful potential - I scanned through all the channels and was very impressed with what's available.

I found the quality to be as described by someone - "AM radio without the pops and clicks" - to pretty well sum it up. I would check quality by flipping back and forth on the H/U presets to contrast it with a high-quality FM signal. Interestingly, one or two of the Sirius channels seemed to be almost comparable quality but most others were decidedly more AM-like. The high-end brilliance was generally missing in all channels, though. This has me wondering whether the quality differences are more the FM transmitter or Sirius in general. I had heard at least one person's complaints that Sirius is somewht lower quality than XM in terms of broadcast quality.

Still, most of my listening there will be talk radio - NPR, news or Howard - so the additional quality will be nice but not absolutely critical.

I may try setting the FM point to some other position on the band and see if that helps with quality of the signal.

Generally, I am "margnially satisfied" but certainly not overwhelmed with the quality - it is mainly just great to get access to radio in some of the rural places I travel.

Bill

 

Where is that 2nd power tap? I smell XBOX360 in my cabrio is it plug n play ready or will I have to have an adaptor installed?

 

I think the XACT units are less expensive versions of Sirius-branded units. My co-worker bought an XACT version of my Sirius Starmate Replay at Costco in a kit that included both home and car kits for the price I paid at a stereo store for just the car kit. My Sirius seemed more user-friendly and a little better made, but I imagine the electronic guts are the same.

If adding the aux input is an option for you, I would do it (I can't keep track of what accessories work with what other accessories). I think the sound quality from the Sirius unit through the direct aux connection is comparable to a CD - much better than FM radio.

I use the FM transmitter around my apartment, and it works fine. I use it to listen to Howard so sound quality isn't a big deal, though. Enjoy Howard - and know that it is finally available streaming on Sirius's website and howardstern.com starting this week.

 

2. Like others mentioned it depends on your area and how crowded the FM band is. I had live in South Florida (palm beach county) and used Sirius for quite a while and only have issues once in a while with the FM Transmitter. My area is very crowded as anyone from that area will admit and most days were fine, once in a while I would get horrible static, but that was the odd or rare day. I have also used it driving up and down the east coast along I-95 but will get some interference in certain areas.

3. The unit that you gotten is fine. There is nothing wrong with it, I had an older model of the xact that I used for years, only to have recently "upgraded" to a new unit, the Starmate. Now I say "upgraded" in quotes because there really was nothing wrong with the old unit except the preset's. There is only 3 per band. Granted I think you get A-F, but I wanted more on the A band because I hate to go thru all the bands just to get presets. Pretty much just personal reason for my use.

Overall I think you will be very happy. Satellite Radio is great, just be prepared to not want to listen to regular radio anymore. Hope this helps, enjoy!

 

Just did the $40 OEM AUX cable install last weekend. (no problems with OEM iPOd adapter). It made a huge difference for my Sirius.

The FM transmitter works well enough, but doesn't hold a candle to sound quality and volume. The FM xmitter is frustrating too, interference from other cars, Trucks, etc.