A couple days ago a loyal reader noticed that all Sirius plug-and-play units were being listed as "out of stock" on Sirius' online store. Not sure if this was a glitch or a restocking issue, I held back from jumping to any conclusions. Yesterday, GSI had gotten word that Sirius units were actually pulled because the radios are getting a retool over FCC transmitter issues. Following a possible FCC inquiry, Sirius will most likely be shipping receivers with weaker FM transmitters in the near future.The timing behind this is impecible.
Sirius appears to have pulled the units almost immediately after the NAB's FM modulator report was submitted to the FCC. In the NAB report (which you can view here - PDF), only two satellite radios were included in the tests - the Sirius S50 and the Sirius Sportster Replay. Looks like the NAB is done with XM and has now set their sites on Sirius.
In the report, the Sirius S50 and Sportster Replay were found to have two "violations" - one being that the FM antenna did not comply with FCC antenna requirements and the second being that they exceeded transmission levels.
Here's the breakdown (because the report is a snooze-fest):
- The FCC limit for FM transmitter emissions is something like 48dBuV/m.
- The Sirius S50 came in at an average of 74.7dBuV/m.
- The Sirius Sportster 4 came in at an average of 74.8dBuV/m.
(Interestingly enough, the NAB results contradict reports that the Sportster 4 has a weak FM transmitter.)
UPDATE: The NAB tested the previous generation Sportster Replay SPTK2, not the Sportster 4 as previously stated.
Even with a vehicle's insultating properties, the Sirius S50 still came in at an average of 56.7dBuV/m.
So what about the antennas? Apparently the supplied antenna is only a #20 guage wire (which is a no-no for some reason). Also the Sirius antenna connectors consist of a standard 2.5mm audio connector, and that violates the FCC requirement that the connector be a unique connector. The whole intent of this requirement is to prevent the use of an antenna that can be used to boost the signal beyond required emission levels.
[GSI]
[View the NAB Report] (PDF)
Thanks tim!
Does anybody know what the transmission level for the old sportsters was? From personal experience I still can't believe that they were lower than the XM receivers.
Stupid NAB...
Fuck the NAB. Fuck the FCC.
That is all.
Like I said, it's a good thing the NAB is not worried about XM or Sirius. Losers. While I'm an XM guy, I'm glad Sirius is addressing the issue as well, so we can now put FM modulation behind us...what's next for the NAB to complain about?
How come you didn't include this link Ryan? Comments by David Frear less than a month ago.
http://www.orbitcast.com/archives/sirius-radios-in-full-fcc-compliance.html
One of the many reasons I don't trust the higher ups at Sirius. And XM is the company getting sued by shareholders?
This makes me want to make my own FM modulator that would broadcast my XM and Sirius receivers for miles.
Well of course Sirius had to make it sound all rosy... they're just trying to salvage their stock price... after all their bad investments in programming fell short...
They tested the old sportster not the new one.
"SIRIUS' EVP/CFO, David Frear, today at the Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference confirmed that all SIRIUS Satellite Radio receivers are in full FCC compliance."
ALL receivers. Which implicitly includes the S50 which has been out since last year. Key word being "ALL".
randy: Thanks for catching that, I've updated the article to reflect that the Sportster Replay SPTK2 was tested, not the Sportster 4.
Chipper: I wanted to focus more on the NAB report and the results, but you're correct - David Frear did state that the FCC issues were corrected a month or so ago.
Whether or not the NAB tested with newer units is unknown. The NAB study may have uncovered things that were previously unknown by Sirius' internal testing as well - i.e., not just the emissions levels, but the antenna configuration and connection.
How convenient.
While XM did the right thing and solved the problem, Sirius lied and claimed their problem had 'already' been solved.
Now, after the Fathers Day selling season is over, Sirius says, "Oh, we have to pull some receivers".
The bottom line is that Sirius intentionally skirted the issue to avoid compliance with FCC.
Those who are blaming the NAB should get over it. The FCC has requirements that were not met by either company.
wrong some sirius suppliers like xact pulled their products weeks ago if you checked their site nothing was available except the visor
same thing for directed electronics
With Sirius (and XM) under the gun by the FCC to lower the power level of thier built in FM Transmitters there are a lot of Satellite Radio users who are ticked off that they can only send a signal to a small area (about 10 feet max) when in the old models they could reach several feet allowing them to listen in another room or even outside.
This is why several Satellite Radio users are using Whole House FM Transmitter as a solution. Since it goes about 150 feet in all directions it will easily (and clearly) send a signal to a car's FM radio or around their homes.
For those who are interested in the FM Transmitter the website URL is http://www.wholehousefmtransmitter.com
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