AUX on a factory stereo

[Jon]

Newest ride, 2018 Chevy Equinox, has AUX on the factory stereo that is currently not occupied. Since I'm going to be on the road a lot in the new position, and mostly in B.F.E. middle of nowhere, I figure adding satellite radio is an option.

Question is, can I receive service through the radio itself? Or will a separate radio be needed?

T.I.A.

 

[scotchandcigar]

Newest ride, 2018 Chevy Equinox, has AUX on the factory stereo that is currently not occupied. Since I'm going to be on the road a lot in the new position, and mostly in B.F.E. middle of nowhere, I figure adding satellite radio is an option.

Question is, can I receive service through the radio itself? Or will a separate radio be needed?

T.I.A.

For about 12 years, I've been streaming SXM from my phone, through the aux input. If you get a bluetooth stereo receiver (a little disk that gets Bluetooth from your phone), it's wireless on an old car like mine.

On newer cars, you can use Android Auto or Apple carplay directly. Your 2018 should certainly have that. So you get into your car, and it automatically starts up Sirius.

To add a satellite receiver to your car's head unit, that's big bucks, requires a permanent mount, and needs a hardwired antenna. Big PITA. Plus satellites drop out, and don't allow on-demand or buffering. And there are many more streaming channels.

 

[Jon]

For about 12 years, I've been streaming SXM from my phone, through the aux input. If you get a bluetooth stereo receiver (a little disk that gets Bluetooth from your phone), it's wireless on an old car like mine.

On newer cars, you can use Android Auto or Apple carplay directly. Your 2018 should certainly have that. So you get into your car, and it automatically starts up Sirius.

To add a satellite receiver to your car's head unit, that's big bucks, requires a permanent mount, and needs a hardwired antenna. Big PITA. Plus satellites drop out, and don't allow on-demand or buffering. And there are many more streaming channels.

I do have CarPlay and was thinking of streaming, but not quite sure what signal would be like out in the sticks, although cell service is greatly improved.

 

[scotchandcigar]

I do have CarPlay and was thinking of streaming, but not quite sure what signal would be like out in the sticks, although cell service is greatly improved.

I'm in a rural/suburban area, and the only issue I have is that sometimes it goes into "survival mode" if it has no signal for a while; it still continues the current stream, but doesn't update the display or show other channels. The bandwidth for audio only is pretty minimal.

While I've been streaming for a dozen years, Mrs. Scotch has always had satellite built-in. And her car drops-out more than mine.

 

[Jon]

I'm in a rural/suburban area, and the only issue I have is that sometimes it goes into "survival mode" if it has no signal for a while; it still continues the current stream, but doesn't update the display or show other channels. The bandwidth for audio only is pretty minimal.

While I've been streaming for a dozen years, Mrs. Scotch has always had satellite built-in. And her car drops-out more than mine.

Good enough for me, I'll probably re-up for streaming once I turn in the rental car (once they pry the keys from my cold, dead hands, this thing is NICE!)

 

[Jon]

Good enough for me, I'll probably re-up for streaming once I turn in the rental car (once they pry the keys from my cold, dead hands, this thing is NICE!)

Nice bonus, they give you a month free. Won't get charged until August.

 

[Kryptonite]

You could always get yourself some sort of "portable" radio with the separate antenna. Use a 1/8" audio cable to connect the two.

Obviously, it'd drop out under tunnels and all, but you wouldn't have to worry about lack of internet. Plus, it may be easier to change channels while driving vs on a phone.

 

[Jon]

You could always get yourself some sort of "portable" radio with the separate antenna. Use a 1/8" audio cable to connect the two.

Then it would mean wires and an extra radio to deal with.

Obviously, it'd drop out under tunnels and all, but you wouldn't have to worry about lack of internet. Plus, it may be easier to change channels while driving vs on a phone.

CarPlay lets you change channels on the head unit itself, Sirius is compatible with CarPlay (and Android auto as I recall). I'm also on Verizon and there aren't a lot of places they don't have at least 4G if not 5G available.

 

[scotchandcigar]

CarPlay lets you change channels on the head unit itself, Sirius is compatible with CarPlay (and Android auto as I recall).

With my older car, Android Auto runs directly from my phone, and I can either control Sirius with big menu buttons, or use OK Google to tell it to play Classic Vinyl etc.

But on newer cars, Android Auto displays right on the console, and it also has voice control.

 

[goreds2]

You could download any SXM talk shows you are a fan of and not have to use your phone data.

 

[Jon]

and it also has voice control.

That's the only thing missing, I can't say 'Hey Siri, play lithium on Sirius' and have it do it, TuneIn radio does it, iHateRadio does it, and with shortcuts it could very easily be created, just the developers haven't gotten around to it yet apparently.

 

[HecticArt]

That's the only thing missing, I can't say 'Hey Siri, play lithium on Sirius' and have it do it, TuneIn radio does it, iHateRadio does it, and with shortcuts it could very easily be created, just the developers haven't gotten around to it yet apparently.

You're giving them a lot of credit there......

 

[IdRatherBeSkiing]

Steaming is good if you don't have data caps on your cellphone plan. Mine is capped (not really a cap -- a point where they company charges you an arm and a leg for additional bytes) @ 3Gb / month. Streaming is not an option. Fortunately I have a built in with my car.

 

[scotchandcigar]

Steaming is good if you don't have data caps on your cellphone plan. Mine is capped (not really a cap -- a point where they company charges you an arm and a leg for additional bytes) @ 3Gb / month. Streaming is not an option. Fortunately I have a built in with my car.

We've got 3 phones on our plan. I'm the only one who streams, as the other 2 on the plan have satellite units in the car. And streaming audio isn't really a big deal, but I do have an unlimited plan anyway.

 

[Jon]

I have caps, but they are at levels I would never dream of reaching. Like 25 GB or something like that.

 

[Jon]

And canceled. Tried playing it in the car on the way home and all my favorite channels became a blank list, shortly before the app froze. Not easy to fix while doing 60 miles an hour. That and no voice control with Siri or any Apple devices means Back to Apple Music and TuneIn Pro.

 

[Jon]

Aaaaaaaaand the day before cancellation it magically starts working again. Keep it around see if it stays that way.

 

[HecticArt]

Funny how things know how to start working on their own like that.

 

[Jon]

I don't know! With my commute now being all of 15-20 minutes one way, and with iOS 15 meaning that CarPlay works MUCH better with Apple Music and TuneIn, there really hasn't been a reason to turn Sirius on. No real compelling content like there was when XM was still solo. And the app is still garbage! And there doesn't seem to be any incentive for Sirius to make it work with HomePod. May just hit the cancel button in the subscriptions tab in Apple. Nice I can do that without having to deal with 'customer service.'