I've been sensing a lot of pressure to update this blog, so here it is -- an update.
Let's talk about radio. I used to be a pretty big fan of local radio stations.
Rock108 and
Cool 105.7 here in Cedar Falls and
93X in Minneapolis used to satisfy my music needs. But after years of listening to these same stations day in and day out, one begins to realize that they're really not that great. Bland, corporately programmed music selections, hours of commercials everyday and less than stellar DJ's make these stations, well, boring. Furthermore, none of the local stations play the kind of music that I really like.
When satellite radio was introduced a few years ago, I assumed that it would never become successful. Who would want to pay for radio? The satellite companies said that their product would be as appealing as cable television, but I just didn't buy it. I was happy with my mix of local radio, CD's and the songs on my mp3 player.
But after awhile, I get tired of listening to CD's and mp3's. Even though they are all songs and artists that I like, I can only listen to the same songs over and over for so long. And I've already told you how I feel about FM radio.
My new car came with
XM Satellite Radio built in. After a month of driving the car around and listening to CD's and radio, I paid the $10 activation fee and got XM in my car. And I fell in love.
At $12.95 per month, I really feel that paying for XM is a great value. Why?
- 170 channels
- 69 commercial free music channels
- XM Radio online for free
- Sports
- News
- Live concerts
There's so much more, too. Finally, I am able to listen to the exact type of music that I really like. With
69 channels, it's not hard to find something that you like. My favorite station is
Ethel 47, which plays modern alternative rock. I also really like
Lucy 54, which is alternative rock from the '90's through today. Right now, there are also eight holiday stations that are fun. I also love the decade channels (spanning from the 50's through the 90's). It's also nice that I can listen to CNBC or CNN on the radio 24 hours a day. Just last week I listened to the Republican Debates live on XM.
The best part -- it's all music on the music channels. What a concept! No commercials! Just think about how many more songs you hear when there aren't commercials. And the music is so good, especially on Ethel. Most of the music on Ethel is stuff that I would never hear on local radio. I was missing out on so much amazing music while listening to FM.
Now, I am an XM subscriber, so that's what I like. However, I'm sure that Sirius is just as good as XM, although it does have fewer channels than XM. Either way, I am positive that whichever service you subscribe to, you will enjoy it much more than AM or FM radio. Also, XM and Sirius are in the middle of a
merger, so maybe one day soon there will just be one service.
If you're a music lover and spend a lot of time in your car or listening to the radio at work, I urge you to check into satellite radio. It really is affordable, and is worth every penny. Browse the
XM website and you'll see the value in satellite radio. You can
search for your favorite artist to see where you'll hear them on XM, get samples of music you'll find on the different channels, and even
sign up for a 3-day online trial. The radios are pretty inexpensive, and if you sign up now, you'll get three months of programming
free.
Some of my coworkers have XM radio, and we all agree that we will never go back to regular radio. I think that most people would feel the same way -- so try it out.
