New GM Radio

[Turkeytop]

Got my new 2020 Equinox today. It replaces the 2016 Equinox I had. As was the 2016, this one too has a radio equipped to receive SXM. They've made some changes, some of which I'm not sure I like.

First thing I noticed was the antenna. In the old one, the satellite antenna was encased within a plastic enclosure on the roof. Protruding upward from that enclosure was a short, rubber ducky type antenna for AM and FM reception. In this new one, there is no rubber ducky. Everything is integrated within that enclosure. When I first saw that, I thought that MW reception would suffer with that antenna. But it seems to work as well as the other one did.

The display screen in the vehicle is smaller than the last one and cluttered up with a lot of features I'll never use. Things like blue teeth, streaming, gaming etc. (Not sure if I got those names right) Over all. I just find the new one a lot more cumbersome to use.

One new feature I do like is a function that allows direct frequency entry for AM and FM or by channel number for satellite.

It appeared to have had some satellite channels pre-programmed into the favourites list. Maybe just someone at the dealership was fooling around with it. I just over-wrote them. I loaded up all my favourites tonight and still have several blank spaces left over.

I wish things would just stop changing.

[SolarMax]

SXM is on a free promo thru May, so that’s maybe why you’re seeing them. When I got a GM vehicle last year, there was a 90 day or so free trial for SXM, which my sales guy got stretched out to 6 mo. Also a freebie period for OnStar.

[Turkeytop]

I'm already a SXM subscriber, so they just credited my account for an additional 90 days.

[k8jd]

Good news/Bad news
I usually update my vehicle every ten years but I am already 4 years late and the doggon Focus starts up evry time I turn the key (I guesss you don'teven do that on newer cars). The old short trip car only has AM/FM receptions (at least the FM can decode stereo) with no dashboard view screen with all the stuff I have to see while I am driving. For a few time periods I did equip the car with VHF and then UHF Amateur Radio rigs. Wife thought they were too distracting, and I removed them.

My newer vehicle is a 2011 Ford F150 camper hauler and boat hauler. This dashboard is full of displayed info, a GPS with all brand new (2011) maps of Every where in North America, It does have Satellite radio reception (at least when a free sample is activated for our listening pleasure) But I have noticed the audio fidelity is somewhat less than the CD Quality FM HD radio has/.
To spoil the benifit of having HD quality radios to listen to, in the 4 or 5 years I have had this accesory My hearing has declined to where I can not hear the quality the high end of the audio spectrum brings out !!!
What I hear is probably NOT as good as a 1950's AM car radio could reproduce !

[Turkeytop]

I know exactly what you mean about your hearing. I now use hearing aids and everything sounds like tin can. The quality of the tuner is more important to me now than the quality of the audio.

[k8jd]

Kinda like my GE Superradio with the high sensitivity of the Narrow Band selection and the Hi Fi sound of the Wide Band selection.

[Deleted User 24]

Kinda like my GE Superradio with the high sensitivity of the Narrow Band selection and the Hi Fi sound of the Wide Band selection.

You're an amateur. I own two.

[Turkeytop]

Kinda like my GE Superradio with the high sensitivity of the Narrow Band selection and the Hi Fi sound of the Wide Band selection.

You're an amateur. I own two.

Now I'm jealous. I don't even have one.

[WOHO]

Does the Superadio III count, or not?

[Deleted User 24]

Does the Superadio III count

All the way to 1700.

[innate-in-you]

<snip>
First thing I noticed was the antenna. In the old one, the satellite antenna was encased within a plastic enclosure on the roof. Protruding upward from that enclosure was a short, rubber ducky type antenna for AM and FM reception. In this new one, there is no rubber ducky. Everything is integrated within that enclosure. When I first saw that, I thought that MW reception would suffer with that antenna. But it seems to work as well as the other one did.
<snip>

We got a new 1997 Ford Crown Victoria. The FM antenna was a dipole in the rear windshield, consisting of a trace of metal on the interior of the windshield, becoming a jagged line at the ends.

We were completely mystified about the AM antenna, could not find it at all - until the day I was sitting in the car, with the radio on, and my wife opened the trunk, causing a noticeable loss in signal strength. Somehow, it had a good signal when the trunk was closed. Did the fact that the trunk was aligned with the quarter panels produce a skin effect from the trunk?

Performance was excellent. I heard a low power TIS station in the Tampa area while I was in Panacea (yes, of course, it was over salt water).

Just how did the AM antenna work?

[Turkeytop]

<snip>
First thing I noticed was the antenna. In the old one, the satellite antenna was encased within a plastic enclosure on the roof. Protruding upward from that enclosure was a short, rubber ducky type antenna for AM and FM reception. In this new one, there is no rubber ducky. Everything is integrated within that enclosure. When I first saw that, I thought that MW reception would suffer with that antenna. But it seems to work as well as the other one did.
<snip>

We got a new 1997 Ford Crown Victoria. The FM antenna was a dipole in the rear windshield, consisting of a trace of metal on the interior of the windshield, becoming a jagged line at the ends.

We were completely mystified about the AM antenna, could not find it at all - until the day I was sitting in the car, with the radio on, and my wife opened the trunk, causing a noticeable loss in signal strength. Somehow, it had a good signal when the trunk was closed. Did the fact that the trunk was aligned with the quarter panels produce a skin effect from the trunk?

Performance was excellent. I heard a low power TIS station in the Tampa area while I was in Panacea (yes, of course, it was over salt water).

Just how did the AM antenna work?

That was 23 years ago. You must be really old by now. Didn't the customer have to be at least 75 before Ford would even sell them a Crown Vic?

[innate-in-you]

Good news/Bad news
I usually update my vehicle every ten years but I am already 4 years late and the doggon Focus starts up evry time I turn the key (I guesss you don'teven do that on newer cars). The old short trip car only has AM/FM receptions (at least the FM can decode stereo) with no dashboard view screen with all the stuff I have to see while I am driving. For a few time periods I did equip the car with VHF and then UHF Amateur Radio rigs. Wife thought they were too distracting, and I removed them.

My newer vehicle is a 2011 Ford F150 camper hauler and boat hauler. This dashboard is full of displayed info, a GPS with all brand new (2011) maps of Every where in North America, It does have Satellite radio reception (at least when a free sample is activated for our listening pleasure) But I have noticed the audio fidelity is somewhat less than the CD Quality FM HD radio has/.
To spoil the benifit of having HD quality radios to listen to, in the 4 or 5 years I have had this accesory My hearing has declined to where I can not hear the quality the high end of the audio spectrum brings out !!!
What I hear is probably NOT as good as a 1950's AM car radio could reproduce !

And with a 1950's radio, one could tune the knob to 1307 and some change to pass the whole lower sideband of Keener, giving it more brilliance.