SHOP PRODUCTS
Houzz Logo Print
scottybarron

What do you listen to in your car?

Pawprint
7 years ago

My car came with a 6 month free subscription to XM radio. It was nice but I'm not paying for it.

My car has a CD player (newer cars are getting rid of them) but my CD's are so old. I haven't bought a CD since I can listen to anything free on YouTube.

I tried streaming Pandora, but the free version gives you 2 songs then a commercial.

I hate the regular radio stations. All commercials.

Recently what I've done is subscribe to YouTube Red. It allows to save videos offline so I can stream songs in the car and not need a wifi connection.

Now that I'm on disability I'm only in the car for doctor visits & groceries so I'll be lettting YouTube Red go soon.

Back in the day I did books on tape. But that's useless for a 5 minute trip, can't get into the book or remember what was said by the time I'm at my doctor.

My kindle will read to me, in a robot voice, and it streams thru the car stereo.

Sometimes I just drive in silence & listen to my own thoughts....

Comments (55)

  • bossyvossy
    7 years ago

    Nothing. I need to devote 100% of my attention to the gazillion cars, construction signs in Houston.

    Pawprint thanked bossyvossy
  • OklaMoni
    7 years ago

    I listen to the radio. I even know the stations for the drive to Albuquerque. Sometimes when I think of it I take some CD's along.

    Pawprint thanked OklaMoni
  • Related Discussions

    Do you name your cars?

    Q

    Comments (20)
    YES! my first was an 88 mercedes - named "sadie" Next came the yellow ford escape - "sunny" Then was a mini van that I called - "Big and Bold" I drove the van in place of my P.O.S. red volvo that didnt have ac and was an awful unattractive faded red color. So naturally I called her - "Red Hot" And finally I have a nice car, and 08 Corolla S - Yet to be named! Everyone keeps giving me suggestions but they havent been the right fit - Ill know it when I hear it! lol
    ...See More

    Do you listen to your muffins?

    Q

    Comments (10)
    I will have to listen more carefully next time. When my son was six, his class made a cookbook. They wrote out their favorite recipes. One little boy wrote that you know when to flip the pancakes when they start saying "puh, puh, puh," and you know what? He was right.
    ...See More

    Do you name your car?

    Q

    Comments (28)
    We have always named every one of our vehicles, even before we were married. They become part of the family, so why not name them. Hubby's car is a brown volvo wagon, so Brownie is its name. My car is a bright yellow Ford Scion named Tweety. He's my "Tweety Mobile" and has Tweety decals on the doors, Tweety floormats and license plate frame, and Tweety things inside.
    ...See More

    Do certain songs remind you of the past?

    Q

    Comments (13)
    Ah, yes! they were bittersweet times during World War 2. You wouldn't remember the songs, but we had Perry Como, Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, and great orchestras. The ballrooms were beautiful, the orchestra members wore suits, the girl singers wore pretty dresses. We girls dressed in our best, most of the men were in uniform. I remember lots of the songs-have some on cd''s but the quality doesn't match the reality.
    ...See More
  • User
    7 years ago

    Audio books


    Pawprint thanked User
  • hooked123
    7 years ago

    Talk radio

    Pawprint thanked hooked123
  • morz8 - Washington Coast
    7 years ago

    My car came with a years subscription to Sirius and I've keep it up (2008). Like Lily, I have the auto options set to 6, 7, 8. That, and the heated electric adjustable seats are going to be requirements in my next car too. I rarely play music when home alone, may do some soft background music when having guests, but enjoy my oldies in my car. And yes, I sing along.

    Pawprint thanked morz8 - Washington Coast
  • blfenton
    7 years ago

    News highlights/traffic report. These days the most important news is the traffic report.

    Pawprint thanked blfenton
  • angelaid_gw
    7 years ago

    K102 Country

    Pawprint thanked angelaid_gw
  • rob333 (zone 7b)
    7 years ago

    Local stations. A LOT of oldies.

    Pawprint thanked rob333 (zone 7b)
  • FlamingO in AR
    7 years ago

    Audio books on my iPad.

    Pawprint thanked FlamingO in AR
  • joyfulguy
    7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    Same as at home, my being an addict of our national broadcaster: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (try www.cbcradio.ca - no commercials [but there are on CBCTV]).

    Or for news commentary, cbc.ca/thecurrent

    for interesting scientific material, cbc.ca/quirks

    for other topics of intellectual stimulation, cbc.ca/ideas

    for interviews with people pretty well worldwide related to current news in their area, cbc.ca/aih, i.e. "As It Happens".

    Overnight they play programs from broadcasters in several parts of the world, Britain, Ireland, Australia, Germany (they have some of various topics related to African issues).

    ole joyful

    Pawprint thanked joyfulguy
  • moonie_57 (8 NC)
    7 years ago

    My 1 year free Sirius was just up last month. I didn't like it enough to pay for it. If I were going long distances I would listen to audio books but I rarely do that anymore. Plain ole radio is good enough for me and I'm a station surfer. :)

    Pawprint thanked moonie_57 (8 NC)
  • sushipup1
    7 years ago

    NPR.

    Pawprint thanked sushipup1
  • caseynfld
    7 years ago

    XM Sirius radio.....mostly 80's on 8, 70's on 7, The Blend, The Bridge and the Love channel (which becomes the Christmas channel in December).

    Pawprint thanked caseynfld
  • glenda_al
    7 years ago

    That's my thinking time. :o)

    Pawprint thanked glenda_al
  • eld6161
    7 years ago

    Mine also cam with free Sirius for 6 months. When it was over, we cancelled. They then got in touch with a really good deal for us to sign on again.

    Pawprint thanked eld6161
  • sweet_betsy No AL Z7
    7 years ago

    Just peace and quiet for me--I like the silence.

    Pawprint thanked sweet_betsy No AL Z7
  • susanwv
    7 years ago

    Old Country, don't like the new stuff. !!

    Pawprint thanked susanwv
  • golfergrrl
    7 years ago

    I've got about 15 channels programmed on my Sirius. I have some CDs copied to the hard drive. I have some more music on a flash drive. I have a really great sound system so I really enjoy listening to music in my car. I do a lot of driving.

    Pawprint thanked golfergrrl
  • Pawprint
    Original Author
    7 years ago

    Lindsey, I drove round trip from Ohio to Phoenix in 2010 & XM radio was a life saver. Loved the comedy channels.

    Also my last car had the DVD player built in the dash. But it would only show the movie while in park or neutral. BUT it would still play while driving so I listened to many movies without picture for years.

    Casey, I do miss the Christmas channels on XM during the holidays.

  • Michael
    7 years ago

    My grandkids. They never stop talking.

    Pawprint thanked Michael
  • Fun2BHere
    7 years ago

    I downloaded my favorite songs to an iPod Nano which I hooked up to the input jack in my car. I could also use Bluetooth, but it uses the Nano battery up faster. I don't like Sirius because they keep telling you that you are listening to Sirius which annoys me. I don't want anyone that's not physically in the car with me talking while I'm driving.

    Pawprint thanked Fun2BHere
  • blubird
    7 years ago

    Sirius xm radio...mainly set to REAL oldies....40s or ’50s. Every 6 months I play the phone game with them, just like cable, to get a really good deal. Otherwise I prefer silence.

    Pawprint thanked blubird
  • cooper8828
    7 years ago

    I drive a lot for work and listen to audiobooks while on the long stretches of highway. In towns, I channel surf and sometimes end up listening to things I wouldn't have thought I would have enjoyed.

    Pawprint thanked cooper8828
  • mamapinky0
    7 years ago

    Since I have a 7&9 year old (grandsons I'm raising) I've learned every word to every Disney song written. LOL

    Pawprint thanked mamapinky0
  • stacey_mb
    7 years ago

    Like OJ, I listen to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) when I'm alone in the car. If DH is with me on short trips, we turn sound off. On longish trips, we really like music that we can sing along with, or comedy albums. One of our favorite sing-alongs is Harry Chapin's Greatest Stories Live.

    Pawprint thanked stacey_mb
  • Elmer J Fudd
    7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    I'm a life-long music hobbyist and very part-time musician. Sirius/XM Radio broadcasts at an unacceptably low bit rate- something under 100 kbs- and I can't listen to it. The music is over-compressed because of limited bandwidth. The swirling, as if through a tunnel sound typical of their stuff is what I'm describing. I tend to choose sound system upgrades on my cars. The three we have now all have upgraded systems and came with a Sat subscription. The first Sirius usage in each car was the last. I'm very picky about sound, I know that, and I'm sure their variety and sound quality are acceptable to many people.

    As others have described, I have very high quality audio files on thumb drives in each car. I make the files myself and use only high bit rates. My listening habit seems to be for drives under 15 minutes, it's music only. Over 15, I'll connect my sound player to the car's Aux input and listen to whatever audio book I have in progress. Over about 30 minutes, I'll alternate between the two.

    Pawprint thanked Elmer J Fudd
  • maxmom96
    7 years ago

    I have an old car with a CD player, but prefer to just play the FM radio. Always NPR and classical music.

    Pawprint thanked maxmom96
  • socks
    7 years ago

    Like sushipup, NPR

    Pawprint thanked socks
  • sheilajoyce_gw
    7 years ago

    Talk radio, AM and FM.

    Pawprint thanked sheilajoyce_gw
  • Rusty
    7 years ago

    A number of years ago, when I would drive cross country by myself, I would occasionally turn the radio on if I found myself getting tired. Mostly I prefer quiet. I've never listened to an audio book, I may have to try that one of these days. I do read, a LOT! But I want and like the feel of a real book in my hands. Not a good idea when driving... . .. .. ;^)

    Rusty

    Pawprint thanked Rusty
  • marilyn_c
    7 years ago

    Talk radio Monday thru Friday and on weekends mostly a station that plays classic country music. I listen to the radio all day long....carry a pocket radio with me when I am working outside.


    Pawprint thanked marilyn_c
  • joaniepoanie
    7 years ago

    Playlist on my iPhone, Amazon Music and Pandora. Pandora does have commercials periodically but they are very short, like 10 seconds.

    Pawprint thanked joaniepoanie
  • jemdandy
    7 years ago

    I don't listen to radio when I'm driving in traffic - too much other stuff going on.

    I do like to listen to music when driving long stretches of boring highway, however, with my hearing failing, i don't enjoy music as much as I once did. Also, over the years of driving, I have adopted a habit of noticing a change in the background drone of my car's noises. In the past, this has alerted me changes happening which lead me to investigate. On several occasions, it has saved me from getting stranded.

    The problem is currently, there is a lack of radio stations playing decent, easy listening, music. I discount hollering in a whiskey voice with poor enunciation as music; That's an insult to real music.

    The other item I search for is news.

    The end result: My car radio is off most of the time.

    Pawprint thanked jemdandy
  • JoanMN
    7 years ago

    No decent free music here (IMO). We have XM and have had it for years. We listen to classic country, sometimes 50's and 60's. When we travel back and forth between MN and FL., it's wonderful. And we can listen to news if we want.

    Pawprint thanked JoanMN
  • OutsidePlaying
    7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    Sirius/XM for years about 70% of the time (Spectrum, The Blend, Bridge, 60's, 70's, 80's, sometimes a football game, sometimes country, sometimes a relaxing music station, whatever I'm in the mood for). The remainder I'm listening to songs on my playlist on my iphone. I have about 600+ songs collected or downloaded from my CDs for about the last 8 years or so. And I have 1 favorite talk show on a local radio station I sometimes listen to in the mornings. I also use my CD once a year when we have practice CDs for our Christmas choral performance. I'm singing along in the car on occasion for practice.

    Pawprint thanked OutsidePlaying
  • sjerin
    7 years ago

    NPR and our local news station, (we lost the SJ one--boo,) KCBS.

    Pawprint thanked sjerin
  • kittiemom
    7 years ago

    Mine came with Sirius for six months. I let it drop after and they offered me one of those super-cheap deals to sign back up. I did but dropped it again after realizing that I pretty much always listened to the 80's channel and I have plenty of 80's music on my phone. Now I just listen to the music on my phone or sometimes I get an audiobook for my phone since I commute.

    Pawprint thanked kittiemom
  • raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio
    7 years ago

    I have pre-set on my radio the local NPR station, which has interesting world music before late afternoon magazine/interview/news; a local Hispanic music station; a classical music station; a station that plays mostly 1980s, another that plays mostly 1940-50-60s; the conservative talk radio; the liberal talk radio (I listen to one until I weary of the half truths and exaggerations, then switch to the other until I tire of their half truths and exaggerations and never listen to the call-in shows); and the last is the headbanging Christian rocknroll station. All depends on the mood I'm in at the moment -- except it is classical on my way to work.

    Pawprint thanked raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio
  • littlebug zone 5 Missouri
    7 years ago
    last modified: 7 years ago

    Sirius radio, like most everyone else - 60's, 70's and 80's. (I have no music on my new iphone 6 and don't intend to load any.) Or nothing at all.

    Has anybody else noticed more and more talking on Sirius? Like for instance, Nina Blackwood nattering about a song or a musician or whatnot. I canNOT stand it. If I wanted to listen to talking, I wouldn't buy Sirius! So I switch back and forth between 60's, 70's and 80's as soon as Nina or Casey Casem or whoever says more than one sentence.

    DH likes to listen to a local radio station that does a "Drive at 5" call-in program. Auuuggghhh! "Hey this is John at station XYZ! Who's this?" "Hi, this is Susie Jones from Podunkville. Can you play Yellow Submarine for me?" "Sure, Susie! Are you on your way home from work?" "Yeah, I've had a hard day and when I get home I have to tend to the laundry and fix supper and see to the kids' homework. So I'd really like to hear Yellow Submarine." "Sure, I can pull it out of the Oldies file! I sure hope you enjoy it!"

    *littlebug5 pounds her head on the steering wheel*

    Pawprint thanked littlebug zone 5 Missouri
  • Pawprint
    Original Author
    7 years ago

    YES!!!!! Littlebug, I noticed a lot more talking & advertising on Sirius XM & was very disappointed.

    Pay radio should be commercial free, but then again, pay cable TV is FULL of commercials too.

  • ghoghunter
    7 years ago

    I listen to XM station 5 or 6 and sometimes I play one of my CD's. I always have some kind of music playing and I love to sing along!

    Pawprint thanked ghoghunter
  • fran1523
    7 years ago

    I don't have sirius so I listen to NPR. Mostly talk.

    Pawprint thanked fran1523
  • sprtphntc7a
    7 years ago

    Sirius/XM, talk radio, local channels., but mostly sports talk especially during football season !! GO EAGLES!!!! "Fly Eagles Fly" :)

    Pawprint thanked sprtphntc7a
  • jim_1 (Zone 5B)
    7 years ago

    The engine in the car makes the wheels go round. I listen to the wheels. Real simple.

    Pawprint thanked jim_1 (Zone 5B)
  • cacocobird
    7 years ago

    Mostly old rock -- KRTH has been around forever. If I'm feeling anxious, or get sick of commercials, I listen to a classical station for a while.

    Pawprint thanked cacocobird
  • phoggie
    7 years ago

    On the highway, I listen to talk radio or the oldies 109.6.

    Pawprint thanked phoggie
  • User
    7 years ago

    XL103. It plays music from the 60s, 70s and 80s. I also have a USB stick with some music on it, but the radio is what gets turned on the most.


    Pawprint thanked User
  • cynic
    7 years ago

    Usually I switch between the public radio station and a local mostly "news" station which is unfortunately becoming more talk than news and info. But lately it's just too much political rhetoric that I wind up changing stations and when they're both polluted it goes off. There's a CD player in there but I don't use it. I usually have things on my mind and wind up making notes (on my digital recorder) so I don't forget. Only about a month until the election is over but then it's going to be too much holiday stuff on there. So, probably not listening to much. Have to rely on conversation when someone is with me. That can sometimes be tricky... :)

    Pawprint thanked cynic
  • Bluebell66
    7 years ago

    For running errands around town, I listen to NPR. For trips of maybe 30 minutes or more, I download audio books from my library onto a Kindle Fire that was purchased for exactly this purpose.

    Pawprint thanked Bluebell66