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 In June 2005, the CRTC approved two satellite radio services in Canada - Sirius Satellite Canada and XM Radio Canada - and just before Christmas both Canadian services went on air.
Sirius Satellite Canada is a partnership of CBC/Radio-Canada, Standard Radio Inc. and Sirius Satellite from the U.S. which began offering satellite radio service at the beginning of December.
XM Radio Canada is a publicly traded company which is controlled by John I. Bitove in partnership with XM Satellite Radio Holdings that began offering service in late November.
The Digital Home Advisor compared the two services based on five criteria: station selection, reception, sound quality, hardware and subscription pricing.
Station SelectionSirius offers Canadians a 100 channel line-up including 10 Canadian satellite radio stations (five English and five French) while XM Radio Canada offers 80 satellite radio stations including 8 Canadian satellite radio stations.
For more details about specific stations in the lineup see Sirius Canada announces satellite radio line-up and XM Canada unveils programming lineup.
Station Selection Winner: Slight edge to Sirius
We’re giving the edge to Sirius simply because it has twenty more stations to listen to including two more Canadian stations.
On the music front, both services offer lots of commercial free radio stations. For example, Sirius offers 60 commercial free music stations featuring rock, pop, country, Christian, jazz, hip hop, electronic, dance, R&B, Classical and show tunes. Both services also add in various news, information and entertainment channels including stations like CNN News and BBC World. The reality is most people will never listen to eighty stations, let alone one hundred radio stations, so the preferred service will really be a personal decision. Digital Home recommends you review the station lineups for both services and look for stations of particular interest to you.
If you are a CBC radio devotee or an NHL hockey fan then your decision may be already made for you. Sirius Canada offers CBC Radio One, which is Canada's top-rated radio news and information source ,and CBC Radio 3 which is dedicated to Canada's indie music and culture scene. For hockey fans, XM Radio offers NHL play-by-play game coverage of more than 40 games per week and 1,000 games per season. In addition, XM will become the exclusive satellite radio home of the National Hockey League (NHL) beginning with the 2007/2008 season. If hockey is critical then you must get XM.
ReceptionDespite both services having their signals broadcast from satellites in space, the location of XM’s two geo-stationary satellites versus Sirius’ three geo-synchronous satellites will affect the quality of reception you receive. As a general rule of thumb:
- Sirius works better in Canada’s more northern latitudes;
- XM, with its heavy use of repeaters, typically works better in the downtown core of major urban centres;
- XM often outperforms inside a home, however, a well placed antenna should fix the problem.
These rules of thumb are not absolute. Some people may get superior Sirius reception in their city and some folks in Northern Canada may have no problems with XM Radio. Because our country is so large and conditions vary, the best we can do is give your general advice.
Reception Winner: Slight edge XM Canada
Once again, it’s difficult to pick a winner because so much depends on where you are located. We gave XM the edge because more people live in cities than in the far north.
Sound QualityPerhaps the biggest disappointment from Digital Home readers regarding satellite radio is the quality of sound.
Despite what you may have read or heard, neither Sirius nor XM Radio offer true CD quality sound. The sound quality is probably better described as near-FM quality for the music channels and AM quality for the news and talk stations.
In an automobile traveling at 65 miles per hour, this probably won’t be an issue for most subscribers however; if you are an audiophile looking for an add-on to your home system, then we think you are going to be disappointed with the sound quality with either service, especially Sirius.
Sound Quality Winner: XM Radio
Although neither service delivers CD quality sound, Digital Home and an overwhelming number of its readers concur that XM is a clear winner in terms of overall sound quality.
HardwareBoth companies offer a range of hardware from portables to car stereos to home receivers. Prices begin at $99 for the Delphi SA1075 RoadyXT (XM Radio) and the Sirius Starmate satellite receiver and move upto the $600 range if you are looking at a home receiver.
The most important point to remember when selecting hardware is that you cannot use an XM radio on the Sirius satellite network or a Sirius radio on the XM Radio Network. This means you need to pick your satellite radio service before you pick your hardware. If price is an issue when buying hardware, be aware that it is possible to buy XM and Sirius satellite receivers in the U.S., where the selection is greater and prices cheaper, and activate them in Canada.
Hardware Winner: Tie
We found receivers from both companies worked well. Since we believe that programming is the most important criteria for picking a satellite radio provider, we don’t think that hardware should really be a deciding factor when picking a satellite radio service. Digital Home’s advice is to pick your service first and then choose the best receiver for that service.
Subscription PricingXM Radio Canada is charging Canadians $12.99 a month for its service. In addition, you’ll pay a $19.99 activation fee ($14.99 if done online) plus the cost of your digital receiver. Additional receivers (up to 3) are an additional $9.99 per month.
Sirius Satellite Canada is charging Canadians $14.99 a month for its service. Sirius is currently waiving any activation fee for new subscribers and additional receivers (up to 3) are an additional $7.99 per month. Sirius Satellite Canada also offers long terms such as one month free if you pay for one year in advance.
Taxes are extra on both services.
Pricing Winner: Slight edge to Sirius
If you plan on having only one receiver and your confident you’ll have your service for one year or longer then XM Radio programming at $12.99 a month is less expensive than Sirius.
If you intend on having more than one receiver then Sirius is a better bargain from a program subscripton standpoint. With Sirius, additional receivers are $7.99 per month vs. $9.99 per month for XM. This means that a Sirius subscription with two receivers would be the same price as XM with 2 receivers (and no activation fee), and Sirius would be cheaper than XM if you sign up with three or four receivers.
Overall, the difference in monthly subscription costs is small and is unlikely to influence most consumers either way.
Conclusion:Digital Home compared the two satellite radio services based on the five following criteria: station selection, reception, sound quality, hardware and subscription pricing. We found Sirius had a slight edge in station selection and pricing while XM had the edge in urban reception and sound quality. We said hardware was a draw because we think good quality hardware can be found for both services.
The choice was not clear so we are unable to declare a winner so here are our recommendations when choosing a satellite radio service in Canada:
- Consider XM Radio - if you want the best sound quality, you spend a lot of time in downtown urban centres or you must have NHL hockey.
- Consider Sirius - if you want more stations, you need three or four receivers or live well north of the 49th parallel.
Discuss and Learn More
You can compare the two services in our Satellite Radio forum or find out more about each service in the Sirius forum or the XM Radio Forum in the Digital Forums. Membership is free and with over 75 forums and 15,000 members, there is always something new and interesting to discuss.
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