Sirius has sent out a notification to subscribers that the radios they have might have FM transmitters that exceed FCC output limits. As a result, Sirius is offering to fix these radios.
The company highlights that there are "no health or safety concerns" with this issue. But Sirius is offering a free "Optimizer Kit" with several options that subscribers can take to prevent interfering with other devices.
Option 1. Wired audio connection
Option 2. Cassette Tape adapter
Option 3. FM Extender kit
Option 4. FM Direct Adapter (professional install)
Sirius said that they will provide the best solution at no charge, including the professional install through a certificate redeemable for installation.
All you need to do is go to sirius.com/optimize and select the solution that works best for you.
Thanks Rich!
If I had one of these radio's... why would I send it in? So they can give me options I don't need, Want or reduce the output power?
This is exactly what needed to be done over a year ago, but, its not going to cost them much of anthing cause why would anyone opt for this?
FYI.. I have the SKYFI2.. it has the FM transmitter and is one in question. The BEST SOUND QUALITY comes from the Cassette adaptor. .. there is no re modulation.. and thus makes the BEST sound quality posable for this unit... the point is that if your using the FM transmitter .. Why? Turn the thing off and hook it up direct or use the Cassette adaptor for Much much better sound.
Then everytime some Butt whipe complains about the FM transmitter... do like I do.. turn it back on and drive in traffic with the most obnoxtious station on that you can find.
The FM transmitter in my S50 is nuts, it's so damn strong. No way in hell I'm sending it back. I use a cassette adapter anyways. But it was great before I had the adapter.
This is to appease the FCC.
They cannot force a recall, but they are doing what is right to abide by the rules.
Jeff, nowhere does it state people will have to send their radios in to be fixed. SIRIUS is not going to fix any radios (nueter), they are just going to send you an alternative method to using the built in wireless transmitter, if you want it.
Sirius is not telling people to send their units in. They are giving away free items to directly connect the audio. That's a big bonus. It's amazing people will complain about free stuff.
Hey AC... read my post again... I am not complaining... I am also not hiding behind the AC name.
GO TO HELL MEL!
Has belkin agreed to fix their's as well?
No. Didn't think so. Thanks for being fair to all manufacturers.
It's not free stuff, it's an attempt to disable the radios with powerful fm transmitters and there are hundreds of thousands of uninformed customers that will think "free stuff" not realizing their radio with the fm transmitter that blasts a quarter mile is something they should really hold onto. And Sirius/XM know exactly what units these are, the radio ID identifies them. At some point I absolutely expect them to ask you to either trade them in for a less powerful transmitter or a unit w/o one at all. They'll dress the offer up as a great deal, a new radio for your old one and if you refuse they'll say you can no longer use that radio. Think it can't happen? As soon as AT&T bought Cingular I had 1 month to upgrade my phone as they were no longer allowing that model phone on their network. This is how the FCC is appeased here and a shitdick stupid enough to think it's "free stuff" is exactly the kind of dummy customer they are hoping you are.
Is Sirius Really the one to blame in this situation???? your radios were working with a strong FM transmitter until the FCC regulation. That's the law , so that what they should follow. The FCC says that a strong FM transmitter doesn't represent "no health or safety concerns" so why that Stupid law in the 1st place??? just take a look on how long the merger took to be approved !!!! They're just bending to everything the FCC says and that's the way it should be. So the real one to Blame is not Siriux/Xm. IT's the FCC
Great. How much more will this cost the bottom line for this borderline BK company? disclaimer- holding long with trepidation.
Truth is nobody cares not Sirius or the FCC because they have not caused any trouble.
We have a Drive in Movie that transmits one heck of a signal and they never caused any problem.
Anybody that sends a radio in is a fool.
How about IB pays to fix all AM radios making them narrow band so that they do not pick up the HD sidebands that jam adjacent stations.
As part of the merger agreement along with the 20ish million dollar fine SiriusXm agreed to take care of the mess these radio's make. HOWEVER these 4 options don't take care of the problem. It's more games. When is SiriusXm going to step up and start to act like a responsible corporation? Blame the FCC for this? Think it's cool to have a radio which has been made improperly outside of spec? That's just lack of knowledge, and it effects those around us, by blocking their access to the radio spectrum. Sirius/XM is covering up their responsibilities and in doing so is spending more than if they would just do what they are going to have to do in the long run and swap out the non-compliant radio's.
The FCC rules:
X. COMPLIANCE PLAN
As part of the consent decree the parties have agreed to a strict compliance plan,
which includes the following:
· Hire FCC Compliance Officer responsible for ensuring future compliance with
Act and Commission rules;
· Adopt Procedural Guide establishing procedures for testing, certifying and
making modifications to satellite radio receivers and Repeater Change Guide
establishing procedures for making any changes to terrestrial repeater network;
· Conduct audits of randomly selected satellite radio receivers to ensure compliance
with FCC requirements;
· Establish an FCC Compliance Training Program for all employees who engage in
activities subject to FCC regulation;
· Provide notices to subscribers offering various technical fixes to non-compliant
radio receivers at no cost to subscriber via its website, subscriber newsletter and
automated telephone response;
· Broadcast on-air notices to subscribers regarding non-compliant radio receivers;
· Turn off or bring into compliance 100 terrestrial repeaters, and send the others to
FCC’s International Bureau for processing;
· Replace non-compliant radio receivers returned by consumers for repair or
warranty claims with compliant devices; and
· Submit periodic compliance reports to FCC.
In addition, the parties will be subject to a combined forfeiture of approximately $20
million. All future violations will be subject to the maximum monetary penalties, and
will be considered in light of these past violations.
There are numerous Ipod and mp3 mobile transmitters that far exceed FCC regulations. A friend of mine has one for his ipod that blows away my old starmate. If you can get the FM adapter, that really is the way to go. Even my starmate has problems around airports.
They will not disable any radios until they come out with one signal, one set of programming, and/or fully interoperable radios installed in all the OEM vehicles. This will take about 5 years to get them all on board. In 5 years my Ski Fi, which I dearly love, will pretty much be worn out and I woujld have bought a new truck with sat rad built in as will most of the listening public, so it will no longer be a huge issue to disable all the old systems, both XM and SIRI.
Ariel
I think Mel and Gary both said the shelf-life of the other radios had to be up to 15 years, not 5.
My Inno 1 will STAY full powered. I'd be crazy to chop the power down!
The problem with the FM transmitters is that they are unlicensed, and the signal they put out is enough to override a relatively strong radio station when you're close enough. I was driving up to LA one day, listening to one of the local "blowtorch" stations (biggest FM station in town) and suddenly I heard classical music. As it turns out, I was closing on a semi-truc in front of me, one lane over. I passed the rig, getting a good quality feed of Cinemagic. After the truck was about 50' behind me, the signal had faded and the local station kicked back in.
Under FCC rules, that is illegal. The operator of that vehicle was interfering with a licensed radio broadcast. THAT is what the FCC is upset about.
The drive-in theater also has to follow the rules: their transmitter should use an open frequency that isn't allocated to any local radio stations. Second, they are only supposed to put out enough power to cover the theater. They can do this by running wires under the parking lot, keeping the actual transmit power very low, since the signal only has to travel about 10' to your car antenna. There are two separate legal issues here: the fact that the theater can't allow the audio to leave its property (so people who haven't bought a ticket don't get a free movie) and the fact that the FCC regulates all radio transmitters. If your drive-in broadcasts loud enough to be heard outside of the fence surrounding the lot, then it's also breaking the law. I'm not clear on weather a drive-in needs to get a license to operate a low-power transmitter, but it might.
Regardless, the drive-in sits in one location, and its signal doesn't reach far enough to interfere with any broadcast station on the same frequency. That makes it a lot more tolerable than someone driving down the road with his radio blasting out some XL station, pumping profanity in to every radio within a 100' radius.
Guys,
Just because xm and sirius put out a list of non-compliant radio's does not make it right to continue interfering with others. That goes double for SiriusXM since they have corporate responsibilities to ensure their service and products do not interfere with others and go against their FCC license. SiriusXM needs to do the right thing and get itself and it's customers into FCC compliance, which means swapping out the non-compliant gear.
Here is when the shoe is on the other foot:
April 8, 2002 Two start-up satellite radio operators are asking the Federal Communications Commission to sharply limit emissions from wireless LANs, Bluetooth short-range wireless devices and fixed wireless systems that operate in an unlicensed band adjacent to the spectrum they have licensed.
The rival radio ventures - New York-based Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. and Washington-based XM Satellite Radio Inc. - argue that the FCC's rules are designed to prevent unlicensed systems from interfering with licensed ones.
And we all know bandaid's were not added to wifi and bluetooth gear.
Sorry forgot to type in my name on the last one.
I agree with Tom Wilson on this one. Non-compliance with FCC rules is not acceptable. SiriusXM must be be responsible.
Oh great. Now the troll is agreeing with me.
Talk about a bad day. :(
Yeah OK.... I will send in My Audiovox PNP3 unit that works all over my 3000 square foot house AND 1.3 acre yard, to satisfy the FCC or NAB? I don't need the extra parts they are giving away...GO SCREW! NEVER!
you are confused Joe you dont have to sent your receiver in. the sirius optimizer kit its so that you dont use the fm transmitter on your receiver. if you dont want to get the FMDA or the other options available for you car then its your choice. i dont think that the receiver that you have at home its the target of the optimizer kit its the vehicles and for my experience with cust service at sirius you get better sound quality with the other options.
Oh great. Now the troll is agreeing with me.
Talk about a bad day. :(
Posted by: Tom Wilson | August 11, 2008 4:21 PM
Tom, every now and then you are right. Also you proved your the troll.
We all learned "merge" = MONOPOLY scheme,
Now we are learning "optimize kits" = band-aid scheme.
Both only fool the uneducated, SiriusXm why not save money and solve the problem? Most of these non-compliant radio"s are portable or plug n play using in multiple locations. It's the radio's that are not made to proper FCC spec, due to one or multiple problems. Adding choice 1,2,3,4 doesn't magically fix the radio making it compliant. SiriusXM contracted the devices, sold the devices and the devices are used on their service making SiriusXM is responsible 100% for taking care of the problem. The band-aid scheme is not at all living up to responsibilities, neither is Sirius/XM customer service rep's telling subscribers "compliance is optional".
What are the radios , that are affected ?
I don't see why the FM mod power can't be controlled by the dock it's in. If it's in the car. The transmitter power is lower in the home, full power. I use my Inno 1 same as most in my home and just flip on an FM radio and XM comes through.
the receivers that are not in compliance are ST1, ST2R., SIRSTRC1, SIR-STRPNP1, SIR-PNP2, SIRPNP3, SPR1, SPR2 , SIR-SL1, SIR-GTRC1, KPA-H2EC, H2EV, SR4000 , CRSR-10 older SV1 models and some more.
No way in hell am I sending my radio back in. Screw those guys. I *love* having the radio across the room from the FM stereo and it still works. I hope that my neighbors love my choice of Sirius channels as much as I do.
"Oh great. Now the troll is agreeing with me"
Watch out for that libel tort!
It's really up to the FCC to rule on compliance.
It sounds like they've told Sirius what to do and they are taking steps.
Apparently, the FCC can't force a recall since it's not threatening the safety of anybody, nor is it a major interference, and it would be a hardship both for the consumers (who could be without a radio) and the company.
The full decrees can be found here:
XM http://www.fcc.gov/eb/Orders/2008/FCC-08-177A1.html
Sirius http://www.fcc.gov/eb/Orders/2008/FCC-08-176A1.html
So, all they can do is ask the customers to update their radios. Now, I wonder if a customer can get in trouble if they know a radio is non-compliant and do not upgrade it or follow the rules. Once informed, I think the responsibility transfers from the manufacturer to the consumer.
Wow, this is funny. The memos show the draft of the commericals.
XM's draft is this
But Sirius makes it sound like you're having a party!
What is more important the chance of a car radio passing a sat radio on the road or millions of people that will loose of air TV when Analog TV is turned off.
So many people i know that never had trouble with off air TV cannot get Digital TV.
It is not that they did not put up or have the best antennas it is because the Digital signal is not as forgiving as the Analog. I get calls from people all the time that cannot get digital that does not cut out all the time. They want to know why because they never had trouble with Analog.
There's this old saying. What is it again? Oh, yes.
If it ain't broke...
Ryan for the love of gawd, make people register... I'm dying to know the email address of the ANONYMOUS NAB hack in the box.... so I can mail him instructions on how to HACK a Belkin Tunecast II FM transmitter. Mine works...(No Kidding) one half mile. I can override 30 car lengths, a 50,000 watt FM radio station. I put a sign in my window, tune to 88.7 for free Howard Stern. I get beeps, waves, and the finger!
Tom Wilson is a DOUCHE!
That wasn't posted by me.
Yeah, Ryan, we really need authentication. Maybe if you can't focus it now, at least you can make the IP addresses part of the post, so people will be able to tell frauds or not.
You arent sending your radio's in at all...essentially your getting free parts for your old radio, or in my case, free FM direct adapters and free pro installs :)
I agree there's a problem with the transmitters being too strong, In rush hour traffic if you pick one of the common preset channels (87.7 for example) and drive along you'll pick up a few different channels along the way.
However, I appreciate the fact that the damn thing actually works with the transmitter. So I'm not going to mess with that. Besides while my radio's not as modern as all you cassette tape people (I just have a CD slot and can play MP3s off of the disc), I don't have the aux input needed for this junk.
Besides, I use the transmitter out in my shop where it's noisy, so I let it transmit to a small battery powered radio I wear with headphones. That way I don't have to blast a radio over the noise.
That last post was not posted by me and it needs to stop!! There is one and only one JRT and thats me
So, if you have the unit hooked up with an Aux jack in the front of your radio you can still contact sirius and get a free part and a card for a free install? I wonder how much those go for on ebay? It's like sirius is giving me $60 cash.
Got the free direct install kit today. Awesome. Will be using that on my lower powered starmate 4 to get a free hardwire into my car fm audio and keeping my ST2R in its home dock with all house radios tunned into Sirius.
Win - Win.
I still have the original spostster,theres NO WAY IN HELL I would turn it in to be "fixed".
The FM transmitter in that thing is sweet.I can turn it on in my backyard and my neighbor across the the street can clearly pick it up in his backyard.Just a wild guess here but I would say that is a distance of about 150 feet.
If you check the siriusbackstage forums there are reports of distances of 1/4 mile.
Who cares. Certainly not me. I bought my Sirius radio before the FCC said the signal's too strong. Too bad, FCC. Too bad, testicular radio. I'm not very sorry if my mega-radio interferes with anyone else's reception. I'm keeping what I have. I recognize that the FCC told Sirius they had to send out the ridiculous compliance letter. The FCC sucks anyway, so screw them.
Who cares? Certainly not me. I bought my Sirius radio before the FCC said the signal's too strong. Too bad, FCC. Too bad, testicular radio. I'm not very sorry if my mega-radio interferes with anyone else's reception. I'm keeping what I have. I recognize that the FCC told Sirius they had to send out the ridiculous compliance letter. The FCC sucks anyway, so screw them.
The FCC might have the power to go after individuals if your neighbor complains. I think this has happened in the past. Once the consumer is reasonably notified of these problems, I wonder if continuing to operate such a radio, assuming a neighbor complained, would subject the individual to fines.
After Sirius XM does all they reasonably can, I think it then becomes the user's responsibility. After all, some of the statement here seem to show selfishness and a disregard for the law on the consumer side.
Tom, does the FCC have this power. I assume it would be the same as shutting down a pirate radio.
"The FCC monitors pirates, and how a close in direction finding vehicle works. After you have been the victim of this process, you are likely to be served with something called a "NOTICE OF APPARENT LIABILITY". This is the way the FCC tells you that they believe that you have violated the Commissions Rules, and they are holding you responsible. This is usually accompanied by a forfieture which is set by the FCC. If you ignore this notice, the FCC lawyers may take you to court.
In the past, the FCC has sent pirate stations a letter through their mail drop. This letter usually quotes the Commissions Rules, tells you that you are breaking the law and orders you to immediately cease operation and respond to their letter in writing within a certain period of time
the FCC seems less forgiving now than in the past, the location of the pirate, and the personality of the field operator.We do know that a Pirate may be fined $1,000 to $100,000 and receive up to one year in jail.
Many people will say that the FCC has no right to enforce their regulations. They say that the whole idea of the FCC is unconstitutional and unfair. They argue that the FCC can't bust them because they have no right to tell them they can't use the airwaves, after all they belong to the people, and what about free speech!? Well, all of that may be true and it is nice for speeches, but if you think the FCC cannot bust you and fine you for being a pirate, think again. Although it may not be fair, the world is not a fair place and they WILL bust you and they WILL fine you. It is not what we want to believe but it is fact, and we have to live with it (or around it)."
REHR TO FCC: SATCASTER DECEPTION MUST BE ADDRESSED AS PART OF MERGER REVIEW
Written by Editors_Choice
Thursday, 14 August 2008
WASHINGTON, DC -- NAB President and CEO David K. Rehr sent a letter yesterday to FCC General Counsel Matthew Berry urging the Commission to address XM and Sirius’s "lack of candor" as part of the agency’s review of the merger.
Citing reports that FCC’s General Counsel’s office believes that the merger parties’ lack of candor can be addressed separately without further investigation and without transparency, Rehr told Berry, "This position could not be more inaccurate"
"The simple fact that the applicant is willing to deceive the Commission raises qualification concerns" Rehr wrote. "Under the Communications Act, the Commission must address as part of the merger proceeding the allegations in the record regarding lack of candor. If it determines that the allegations raise substantial and material questions of fact, it is required by law to designate the applications for a hearing. Either way, the candor issue may not legally be deferred to a subsequent enforcement proceeding"
Last month, Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) sent a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee related to XM and Sirius’s failed promise to the FCC to develop an interoperable radio receiver.
Additionally, Sirius has admitted requesting manufacturers to produce Sirius radios that operate beyond the interference regulations set by the FCC. In Sirius’s annual report (Form 10-K) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission last year, the company disclosed on page 26 that "certain SIRIUS personnel requested manufacturers to produce SIRIUS radios that were not consistent with the FCC’s rules" In April 2007, Bloomberg reported that at least one-third of the 800 antennas used by XM were "placed in unapproved locations or emitted signals that were too strong"
A 2006 study of 17 wireless devices commonly used to transmit audio signals from satellite radio devices and MP3 players to in-dash car radios showed that 13 of the 17 devices exceeded field strength limits set by the FCC. Six of the noncompliant devices exceeded strength limits by 2,000 percent, and one surpassed strength limits by 20,000 percent. The Associated Press reported in 2006 that such interference resulted in some Christian radio listeners being inundated by Howard Stern programming.
I used to have a Starmate replay, it broke and i purchased a new sportster a few months ago.
The Starmates account was cancelled and they still sent me an email for the fcc fix. Would they know if i used the fix on my new sportster radio?
You will not have to send anything in. They will disable the transmitter with an update. So unless you keep yours turned on 24/7 it will stop working until you get one of the 4 options.
I had to replace my old model when it broke to a newer one and it's useless outside of the car, I won't renew the subscription. I didn't know about this until now.
I can't stand the thought of buying a Sirius accessory to make it work for me.
I have an old radio and when traveling the I have to switch stations all the time to get it to come in clearly. Why would I not want it to be hooked in directly to my current radio? The FM mod makes for static and I have a CD changer in the car so a cassette plug in is not available.
Not to mention if I want to unplug the direct connect to the stereo and use the FM modulator again, wouldn't I still be able to?
Ignore everything Fact Checker #1 says. He's probably a paid NAB shill.