Sirius Radio Mounting

2K2SLP · Oct 20, 2011

I'm looking for pictures of where y'all mount your Sirius Radios at. I would really like to pick one up, just have no idea where to mount it.

Any pictures or suggestions would help.

Thanks

PDR1878 · Oct 20, 2011

Kenwood Radio -$130 shipped (discontinued, I bought mine at BUY.COM)
Kenwood adaptor $50
Sirius SC-C1 Tuner $30

Reason I went this route.. I don't want a bunch of crap all around. I just want one device to handle my audio needs. I don't need to worry about theft issues (I detach my radio faceplate by habit), don't need to tie up a 12v source. No cables everywhere. And I was giong to buy a new radio anyways. I went with this kenwood because it's got a dot-matrix display and is very settle. i hate at night time having a bright, flashy head unit. I like the dark blue, and the white display is clean and clear. Figure I'm buying a new head unit anyway, and a good Sirius radio is roughly $100 so might as well put that $100 to a tuner for that radio. And actually I saved I think $40 by tying it all in together, vs buying a seperate unit. Also better audio quality as my stock unit (premium infinity) didn't have an AUX input, and I can swap out for XM for $30 and try their programing, vs buying a whole new radio that's XM compatible.

Showtime · Oct 20, 2011

I like the headunit not too flashy but has the usb and aux input all i really use.

Berger · Oct 21, 2011

if you get the portable radio this is where I have mine mounted.

Showtime · Oct 21, 2011

Berger said:
if you get the portable radio this is where I have mine mounted.

that looks pretty nice

TazRango · Oct 21, 2011

Here's mine..

IMO it's a tossup to go portable or integrated. On one hand the portable unit isn't locked down to the car, I can plug it in basically anywhere and only have to pay one sub. This particular radio also has a record buffer, so if I hear something I like, I hit record and it saves it (even if I hit it in the middle of the song). It's not a pristine MP3 copy, but it works. On the other hand, it's nice to have it integrated, no extra stuff hanging off the dash, only one remote, song/artist display right on the head unit.. I had that on my old HU, but its a second sub to pay for as well... So for me now, the pros of the portable unit (namely only paying for one sub) edged out.

Oh, and FYI, the Sirius branded radios will no longer work in roughly 3 years when they shut down those satellites. They are transitioning over to the XM technology, so best to buy an XM branded radio.

PDR1878 · Oct 21, 2011

Taz, how does the portable unit work?

I had a couple units in the past and while service great and sounds great (if you have AUX) I always remember havin to run the sat antenna. And unless you want cable everywhere it was just stuck to that vehicle. Unless they have a built in sat antenna nowa days? :huh:

TazRango · Oct 21, 2011

Mine is a Pioneer Inno. I got it like 6 years ago when it came out (it cost $250). Honestly since I got it I haven't kept up on the XM radio innovation (no pun) because it's such a great little device. I absolutely got my money's worth out of it. I doubt its still available outside ebay but I don't know what replaced it.

(This picture is actual size)

It has a built in antenna and battery for full live reception while portable (ie: it works anywhere like an ipod), plus it has dock connectors for car/home use. The docks have power/audio/antenna jacks on them. There is even an (optional) pair of headphones with a built in antenna for better portable reception.

Like I said though, I know this particular device was a real thorn in the RIAA's ass because it can record the live stream, and it has a buffer to catch the entire song (which is where the monthly royalty fee on your bill came from), so I really don't know if there's anything like it still being sold.

When I referred to 'portable' in the last post, I meant a tuner that isn't integrated into the truck, and it can be used via docks in your home stereo, or at work, or in a boombox (yes they made those last I knew) as well as in the truck with only one subscription. But yes, mine is just as portable as an ipod.

PDR1878 · Oct 21, 2011

Ahh okay.

So for the OP sake, if you plan on upgrading your stereo, might as well go all tied in (I think) and if you want something external, just buy new sat cable for each vehicle/home location. And if still avail, go for a portable ipod like device if you plan to travel multiple vehicles with it, and out an about out of a vehicle.

SmoovC · Oct 21, 2011

Another possible solution for you is to get a Parrot Mki9200 bluetooth interface, and use it to stream the XM or Sirius app from a smartphone through the Factory radio, via bluetooth. That way, you are only paying for one subscription that you can use in car, home, office, with headphones, etc. Or, you could use Pandora, Slacker, iHeart, or many other options available to not pay for satellite radio service. It will give you handsfree phone functions also.

Just throwing it out there as another option....

PDR1878 · Oct 21, 2011

SmoovC said:
Another possible solution for you is to get a Parrot Mki9200 bluetooth interface, and use it to stream the XM or Sirius app from a smartphone through the Factory radio. Or, you could use Pandora, Slacker, iHeart, or many other options available to not pay for satellite radio service. It will give you handsfree phone functions also.

Just throwing it out there as another option....

That's good, and I agree.

I often used Pandora for my radio as I have unlimited data with Verizon on my iPhone.

Problem for me, I used my phone too much and having it connected via aux made it a pain to hold (cable short).

But either way, Pandora/Slacker are great options and recomended.

SmoovC · Oct 21, 2011

Oh, I forgot: as far as mounting, there are custom vehicle specific mounts available; I used this one from Panavise:

http://panavise.com/pdf_indash/75105-299.pdf

This post contains pics of the install in my Dakota with the mount listed above, along with a Bracketron holder:

http://www.dakota-durango.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2675074&postcount=49

Hope this information is helpful to you.

TazRango · Oct 21, 2011

I looked at that mount years ago for my GPS, and it's nice, but it's absurdly expensive for what it is - a bent strip of metal.

SmoovC · Oct 21, 2011

TazRango said:
I looked at that mount years ago for my GPS, and it's nice, but it's absurdly expensive for what it is - a bent strip of metal.

I think I found it on eBay for under $20 landed.

EDIT: just looked it up in my history; it was $19.01 shipped.

jmaack727 · Oct 21, 2011

I had mine mounted beside the ashtray. I ran the antenna up and out the third brake light hole

2K2SLP · Oct 22, 2011

Thanks for all of the advice and pictures.

A buddy has the separate unit in his F-250 and it looks really clean. He also said something about with it being tied into the HU, you won't be able to rewind and have as many presets. I also like the idea of being able to take it anywhere I want to go instead of it only being available in my truck.

I just picked up a new Pioneer HU and should be installing it tomorrow. I'll see how much I want the Sirius Radio after I start using iHeart radio on my iPhone through the Aux Connectors.

If anyone has any other pictures or suggestions, please feel free to keep them coming.

PDR1878 · Oct 22, 2011

2K2SLP said:
Thanks for all of the advice and pictures.

A buddy has the separate unit in his F-250 and it looks really clean. He also said something about with it being tied into the HU, you won't be able to rewind and have as many presets. I also like the idea of being able to take it anywhere I want to go instead of it only being available in my truck.

I just picked up a new Pioneer HU and should be installing it tomorrow. I'll see how much I want the Sirius Radio after I start using iHeart radio on my iPhone through the Aux Connectors.

If anyone has any other pictures or suggestions, please feel free to keep them coming.

Not enough presets? I have 15 lol

But honestly I only listen to 3. The Highway (hit country), shady 45 (eminem radio) and Hip hop nation (rap). Road trips maybe more.

Berger · Oct 22, 2011

If youre going to start using your phone as the radio make sure you plug it into a car charger everytime you use it like that or you will have a dead battery when you need to make a call.

PDR1878 · Oct 23, 2011

Berger said:
If youre going to start using your phone as the radio make sure you plug it into a car charger everytime you use it like that or you will have a dead battery when you need to make a call.

What kind of phone you have??

TazRango · Oct 23, 2011

2K2SLP said:
Thanks for all of the advice and pictures.

A buddy has the separate unit in his F-250 and it looks really clean. He also said something about with it being tied into the HU, you won't be able to rewind and have as many presets. I also like the idea of being able to take it anywhere I want to go instead of it only being available in my truck.

I just picked up a new Pioneer HU and should be installing it tomorrow. I'll see how much I want the Sirius Radio after I start using iHeart radio on my iPhone through the Aux Connectors.

If anyone has any other pictures or suggestions, please feel free to keep them coming.

That's correct, a HU integrated tuner will not have the advanced features that some of the portables have, such as recording and rewind buffers. You are also limited by the capabilities of the face display - a one line LCD face will only show 8 characters of the title or artist or channel (one at a time). A 2 line dot matrix display like PDR has will show 16 characters, and will allow title/artist, channel/title, and channel/artist. A full graphic OLED like I have, or a flip up/large screen doubleDIN will allow full simultaneous display of all data (channel number/channel name/artist/title).

To be honest I'm going to drop XM once the price hike happens in January, unless they give me a sweet retention deal. When good FM stations are few and far between (and barely reach from one town to the next) like they are here, you do need something else.. But it ain't worth $16 a month.

Another thing to consider is unless you have Sprint, you're going to hit your data cap in no time using streaming music. Keep an eye on what you use, don't want to see you get nailed with a huge overage bill.

Sirius Radio Mounting

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