# XM installed; good and bad news



## JST (Dec 19, 2001)

TD and I installed XM radios in our M3s today. I have pics, which I will post when I have a chance to upload them.

We used the Blitz Safe adapter (available from http://www.cdadapter.com/sat1.htm) to wire the Pioneer GEX-FM903XM to the head unit using the factory CD changer controls. Both our installations turned out very well; my antenna mounts on the plastic trim piece between my two rear head rests, and is very inconspicuous. My control unit is mounted in the sunglasses tray under my OBC, and leaves about a 2 spuare inch gap on one side that I may eventually plug if I get around to it. The unit itself is mounted to the rear bulkhead, next to the subwoofer and on the other side of the trunk from the CD changer.

TD's install was even cleaner. The E36 sedan has an odd plastic vent right in front of the third brake light; this pops out, revealing a void that accepts the XM antenna perfectly. His receiver is mounted directly underneath his CD changer, and he modifed his ashtray to accept the control unit.

Good news? The XM works perfectly, coming through the stock head unit as "CD 1-99" and giving excellent sound. Both antenna positions seemed to provide excellent reception. And the music available on XM kicks ass.

Bad news? The Blitz Safe adapter does NOT work with the OEM BMW changer. It is set up to work with M-bus Alpine units, which use a standard 8-pin DIN connector. This is something we should have known, had we done sufficient research, but we didn't, so there you go. The only solution, AFAIK, is to buy a new or used Alpine M-bus changer to replace the OEM unit. For now, my CD changer is just dead weight.

Lame. But the variety on XM is sufficient to go without CDs for a while.


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## Guest (Oct 7, 2002)

Yup. I ran out to fetch some carry-out for dinner and am just blown away by the sound quality and quality of programming I've heard so far. 

The CD changer issue sucks but, being impatient AND cheap, I already bid on (and won) a used Alpine changer on eBay for $50. So by next weekend, I'll be all set.

BTW, JST and I will likely be selling our OEM changers. I believe they work with ALL 3-series from '96 through current models.


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## JPinTO (Dec 20, 2001)

Very cool adapter. With XM... is there truly a need for CD's at all? Probably not.


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## hts (Dec 19, 2001)

Congrats JST. XM (and Sirus) should be in business for what, another 3 weeks or so?

(As you can prolly tell, I haven't been following their financial all that closely. Fact is, as cheap as Tom likes to *think* he is, I'm 10 times cheaper. Case in point--why would I pay ten bucks per month, or whatever it is, when I can listen to music on the radio for free?).

 

And more importantly, I find the dulcet sounds of my E46 to be so intoxicating, I usually drive around with the stereo off and the windows down, just to hear that baby purrr....


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## JST (Dec 19, 2001)

hts said:


> *Congrats JST. XM (and Sirus) should be in business for what, another 3 weeks or so?
> 
> (As you can prolly tell, I haven't been following their financial all that closely. Fact is, as cheap as Tom likes to *think* he is, I'm 10 times cheaper. Case in point--why would I pay ten bucks per month, or whatever it is, when I can listen to music on the radio for free?).
> 
> *


My wife's response on reading your message was "...because it sucks." Which commercial radio does. Hard. (In the DC market, anyway). If there were any actual music on for free, I'd listen to it. But there isn't. So I'm happy to pay $10/mo for real musical variety. Hell, some people (not me) pay $10/mo just so they can watch the Sopranos.

Here are some pictures.

This is my antenna mount:



















This is my receiver and control unit:


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## JST (Dec 19, 2001)

And here is TD's antenna mount (notice the complete invisibility of the antenna; it's under the plastic cover):










And the receiver, mounted underneath the CD changer:










And the control unit, where the ashtray used to be:


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## Guest (Oct 7, 2002)

As JST was pointing out, though, both installs are very clean. I'm honestly impressed with how good the installs look.

And I didn't put my controller where JST put his as my Passport SR-1 is already there.


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## ·clyde· (Dec 26, 2001)

JPinTO said:


> *Very cool adapter. With XM... is there truly a need for CD's at all? Probably not. *


Unless you ever have a hankering for a specific song, album, etc. Of course, I'm putting together 1,000+ song playlists for my phatbox with the intent of playing them randomly, so... 



THe installs look good, guys. Did TD get to drill more holes? :bigpimp:


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## Guest (Oct 7, 2002)

[email protected] said:


> *
> Did TD get to drill more holes? :bigpimp: *


Not exactly. But I did get to completely destroy my ashtray to cut a hole to accomodate the display unit.


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## JST (Dec 19, 2001)

TD said:


> *Yup. I ran out to fetch some carry-out for dinner and am just blown away by the sound quality and quality of programming I've heard so far.
> 
> The CD changer issue sucks but, being impatient AND cheap, I already bid on (and won) a used Alpine changer on eBay for $50. So by next weekend, I'll be all set.
> 
> BTW, JST and I will likely be selling our OEM changers. I believe they work with ALL 3-series from '96 through current models. *


I just won an auction for a used Alpine changer too, though mine was $60. I think I'm going to keep the OEM unit, though, in case I ever want to return the car to stock (mine came from the factory with the changer).

As far as specific songs go, the CD changer is adequate for my purposes, especially since I can burn new compilation discs fairly easily. My problem with the Phatbox (or even my CD/MP3 collection) is that its inherently limited. I have c. 200 discs and 500 MP3 tracks, and I've heard every single one of them more times than I can count. It's nice to have a bit of variety, and to be able to hear artists that you like without hearing the same songs over and over again.


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## ·clyde· (Dec 26, 2001)

TD said:


> *
> 
> Not exactly. But I did get to completely destroy my ashtray to cut a hole to accomodate the display unit. *


Cool :thumbup:

Is the unit permanently exposed, or is there a cover that can cover it? Based on past experiences, what concerns me is that console mounts like that, aft fo the shifter seem to be magnets for drink spills as well as water runoff from the sleeve/arm in bad weather.


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## JPinTO (Dec 20, 2001)

hts said:


> * Case in point--why would I pay ten bucks per month, or whatever it is, when I can listen to music on the radio for free?).
> *


Since I've been listening to commercial free, talk free music via Digital cable at home... I'm hooked on the format.

I'm not interested in burning MP3's or buying CD's anymore... just feed me good music without the yakking and crap. Particularly since all-talk no-music is becoming the norm in morning radio. Yuk!

Is XM going down?


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## Guest (Oct 7, 2002)

JPinTO said:


> *
> Is XM going down? *


Both XM and Sirius had HUGE start-up costs so both are still buring VC funds as subscribers are still not numerous enough to fund operations.

But if I had to bet (and I did by selecting the system I did), XM has much better odds of survival right now over Sirius. Subscriber numbers are much higher, it's debt is higher rated, and it's stock is doing okay.

You have to figure that at least ONE of these services will survive. Even if XM goes bankrupt, they have two satellites in orbit, huge facilites here in DC and MANY subscribers, someone else would buy up the assets and restore the service.

I'd be a bit more reluctant to sign up for Sirius service, though.


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## JPinTO (Dec 20, 2001)

I guess it can't help that the car manufacturers have not yet built OEM XM/Sirius radios yet. Once that happens, critical mass should be reached.


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## Guest (Oct 7, 2002)

BTW, if you look at the page specifically for the adapter JST and I used, it lists the compatible CD changers - http://www.cdadapter.com/bmwxmalp.htm

The last unit listed is a combination CD changer/MP3 player.

As many of you have been researching wiring up MP3 players, this looks like a best of both worlds option, especially for those of you that do not have the OEM changer yet.


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## Guest (Oct 7, 2002)

Two new observations after a mornging commute and a lunch run with it-

1. I could see how people who are not really big music people might not like the system as it is not something where you hear songs you know nearly as often as most people are used to. The music channels all seem to take somewhat of a "deep cuts" approach playing the less played (if ever played) tracks off of albums. Personally, I love it. But I could see how some people might not.

2. I can see myself sitting in the garage listening to music. Not good.


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## Shades (Sep 24, 2002)

JPinTO said:


> *I guess it can't help that the car manufacturers have not yet built OEM XM/Sirius radios yet. Once that happens, critical mass should be reached. *


 XM satellite radio is optional on many General Motors Cars for 2003.Its about a $300 option.


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## JST (Dec 19, 2001)

TD said:


> *Two new observations after a mornging commute and a lunch run with it-
> 
> 1. I could see how people who are not really big music people might not like the system as it is not something where you hear songs you know nearly as often as most people are used to. The music channels all seem to take somewhat of a "deep cuts" approach playing the less played (if ever played) tracks off of albums. Personally, I love it. But I could see how some people might not.
> 
> 2. I can see myself sitting in the garage listening to music. Not good. *


I noticed that this morning. On my way in, Channel 44 played the Cult, the Smiths, Kate Bush, Oingo Boingo and New Order, among others. But it wasn't Ciao Edie, How Soon is Now, Running Up That Hill, Weird Science and Blue Monday, as you might expect on commercial stations (if there are any such stations left that would actually play these artists). They were deeper tracks, some of which I hadn't heard in years.


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## CD-55 (Dec 19, 2001)

Cool, I cannot wait!

My XM arrived Friday, but I have to wait until Saturday to get the car for it to go in!


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## Nick325xiT 5spd (Dec 24, 2001)

Hmmm... I am getting SERIOUSLY tempted to do this...


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## Jetfire (Jun 20, 2002)

Dammit, you guys all suck. Now I'm starting to think more seriously about XM. If any of you are going to be at Bowie, I'd like to sit and channel surf for awhile.


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## JST (Dec 19, 2001)

Jetfire said:


> *Dammit, you guys all suck. Now I'm starting to think more seriously about XM. If any of you are going to be at Bowie, I'd like to sit and channel surf for awhile. *


I think both TD and I will be there; IIRC, we're all in the 120s.

XM inspired trivia of the day: Did you know Soft Cell had a "hit" *other* than Tainted Love, and that it was called "Sex Dwarf?"

Neither did I.


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## Guest (Oct 8, 2002)

JST said:


> *
> 
> I think both TD and I will be there; IIRC, we're all in the 120s.
> 
> ...


I almost feel I've already received my money's worth of enjoyment out of this system. Fred (Channel 44) is awesome (although I am enjoying a number of other channels as well).

On this morning's commute I heard Bjork, English Beat, Clash, Pixies, Trio ("Da Da Da") and Sugar. With the exception of the English Beat song being the well-known "I Confess" (and the Trio song being that band's ONLY known song), the others were obscure tracks. I had this huge grin on my face listening to all of this great music.

And I briefly air-guitared during the Pixies. I'm sure it was a sight. A young-ish white guy in a dark suit and tie in a BMW M3 sedan really getting in to the music while making his way around the Beltway in morning rush-hour traffic.


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## ·clyde· (Dec 26, 2001)

TD said:


> *
> 
> I almost feel I've already received my money's worth of enjoyment out of this system. Fred (Channel 44) is awesome (although I am enjoying a number of other channels as well).
> 
> ...


Sounds like anytime that I'm out with the phatbox. I wouldn't have heard Bjork, becuase I don't really care for her very much, but The Sugarcubes is a different story. Oh and Sugar could have just as well been any Hüsker Dü


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## Guest (Oct 8, 2002)

[email protected] said:


> *
> 
> Sounds like anytime that I'm out with the phatbox. I wouldn't have heard Bjork, becuase I don't really care for her very much, but The Sugarcubes is a different story. Oh and Sugar could have just as well been any Hüsker Dü  *


You're picking nits again. Point was, 40 minute commute, nothing but really good music that you'd never hear on regular radio.

I'm very pleased.


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## Jetfire (Jun 20, 2002)

I'd be more inclined to go with XM than a Phatbox. The 'box is prety cool, sure, but you can only play what you've got. I like all kinds of music but my actual music collection is small, outdated, and not completely in synch with what I listen to these days. Voila XM, where the music is coming from the station's collection and not my own paltry one.

Someone with a very large music collection would certainly love the Phatbox....but even then, I like being surprised by stuff I've never heard before.


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## ·clyde· (Dec 26, 2001)

TD said:


> *
> 
> You're picking nits again. Point was, 40 minute commute, nothing but really good music that you'd never hear on regular radio.
> 
> I'm very pleased. *





JST said:


> My problem with the Phatbox (or even my CD/MP3 collection) is that its inherently limited. . . It's nice to have a bit of variety, and to be able to hear artists that you like without hearing the same songs over and over again.


In that context, I don't see what I said as nitpicking. Besides, for what you paid for your XM equipment and the monthly fees, we've got a number of trips around the sun before I "break even" and even then, the PB still won't give me news/weather/talk.


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## ·clyde· (Dec 26, 2001)

Jetfire said:


> *I'd be more inclined to go with XM than a Phatbox. The 'box is prety cool, sure, but you can only play what you've got. I like all kinds of music but my actual music collection is small, outdated, and not completely in synch with what I listen to these days. Voila XM, where the music is coming from the station's collection and not my own paltry one.
> 
> Someone with a very large music collection would certainly love the Phatbox....but even then, I like being surprised by stuff I've never heard before. *


Part of my problem is that my musical growth stopped progressing about 10 years ago. Radiowise, I started listneing to talk (and it didn't really matter who was talking...just background chatter).

I'm not ragging on sat radio at all...I do think it is very cool and if I spent enough time in my car every day, I'd probably have it.


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## JST (Dec 19, 2001)

[email protected] said:


> *
> 
> In that context, I don't see what I said as nitpicking. Besides, for what you paid for your XM equipment and the monthly fees, we've got a number of trips around the sun before I "break even" and even then, the PB still won't give me news/weather/talk. *


I want both, ideally. When, oh when, will someone release a PC compatible MP3 player with iPod capacity that I can plug into an adapter and listen to in my car?


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## ·clyde· (Dec 26, 2001)

JST said:


> *
> 
> I want both, ideally. When, oh when, will someone release a PC compatible MP3 player with iPod capacity that I can plug into an adapter and listen to in my car? *


A head unit with a FW port would be cool.


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## jsp98m3 (Oct 8, 2002)

Can I assume that XM ready radio headunits don't need the little control box in the ashtray? For instance I have an XM ready Alpine CVA-1003. I'm guessing I need the XM brainbox/antennae and the XM is controlled right off the radio controls?


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## Guest (Oct 8, 2002)

jsp98m3 said:


> *Can I assume that XM ready radio headunits don't need the little control box in the ashtray? For instance I have an XM ready Alpine CVA-1003. I'm guessing I need the XM brainbox/antennae and the XM is controlled right off the radio controls? *


Yes.


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## jsp98m3 (Oct 8, 2002)

Cool. I have the ashtray area stuffed with things already!


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## ZBB 325Ci (Dec 19, 2001)

JST said:


> *
> 
> I want both, ideally. When, oh when, will someone release a PC compatible MP3 player with iPod capacity that I can plug into an adapter and listen to in my car? *


Its available and called an iPod... Apple's added PC compatibility now (and Best Buy now carries both Mac and Win versions)... There's also a few web pages with iPod hookups for the e46 using adapters...


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## JST (Dec 19, 2001)

ZBB 325Ci said:


> *
> 
> Its available and called an iPod... Apple's added PC compatibility now (and Best Buy now carries both Mac and Win versions)... There's also a few web pages with iPod hookups for the e46 using adapters... *


But I have an E36; I assume they'd work the same way?


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## ·clyde· (Dec 26, 2001)

JST said:


> *
> 
> But I have an E36; I assume they'd work the same way? *


http://jeff.quartzcomm.com/bmw/e46mp3/

Is a page where a guy installed a (non iPod) MP3 player using the CD Changer prewiring in an E46. The BMWPILA adapter he links to is supposed to work with 1996+ 3 series. I don't know how/where it could fit in with your existing XM and CD changer though. You could always use a cassete adapter though.

I misread your comment before. ZBB is correct. Apple has been selling a Windows compatible iPod for a couple months now. The hardware is identical to the Mac compatible version but the firmware is different. Also, MediaFour has a product called XPlay ($30) which allows the Mac version to work with Windows. I haven't used it since the last open beta they had, but I liked it better than the version with Mac/iTunes compatibility. Not sure how Apple's Windows version works compartively.


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## ZBB 325Ci (Dec 19, 2001)

JST said:


> *
> 
> But I have an E36; I assume they'd work the same way? *


More likely than not since the CD changer input is the same... I don't have a link offhand to the install that someone did, but do a search on ipod install and it should come up (I think someone posted it here...)

If I remember right, essentially the guy bought one of the adapters for a CD changer that had RCA inputs and then ran a RCA cable from the trunk up to the front armrest area (he did a pretty good job of hiding the cable). He kept the ipod in the cup holder...

I'm thinking of doing something like that if/when I finally pick up an iPod (just remembered, the PC version of the iPod still requires firewire -- you'd have to buy a firewire card if you don't have it. Most PCs don't have it, but most Sony's do...


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