Music on the road and while boondocking

[LookinUp]

My 2012 Chevy Express has a basic radio, no aux, cd. While I was on a roadtrip up north I was able to get great radio reception on the road and picked up many NPR stations (probably won't experience this out west) and then rely on my Mp3 player at night to listen to books, music, podcasts. The Mp3 only works with earplugs and I get tired of those after a while and I have to load it from other sources online. I don't want to debate the merits of radio vs enjoying nature; I backpack, canoe, bike and enjoy photography and consequently outside a lot. There are just times when, especially when driving from point A to B that I enjoy the listening to NPR or music.  I'd love to hear how others deal with this issue. Satellite radio?....seems a pain to install without replacing the radio or an installation beyond my abilities. Other options?  Thanks!

 

[jimindenver]

I have multiple MP3 players with loads of music, even more files on the computer and can stream music with a pretty weak signal as low as 128k. Add in CD's and local radio for music whenever. I have self powered speakers that can plug into a jack and a bluetooth speaker for those devices. I also have a adapter for the cassette player in the truck. music is not a problem.

 

[Every Road Leads Home]

Bluetooth speakers are the way to go in my opinion. Play music from my phone to the speakers. I have satellite radio that came with my truck. It's cheap enough where I keep it and I do like listening to it on road trips. I have a Sirrius subscription and it's about $20/month regular price. I learned that if you let it cancel, they keep calling and calling trying to get you to sign back up, doesn't take long before you get a 6 month offer for $20 bucks. So that's what I do. Let it cancel after the six months until I get the good offer and then renew. I don't think it's worth their full price, but it is worth $3 to $4 bucks a month for sure.

 

[Reno]

Smartphone + Pandora + MP3collection + NPR app + Bluetooth earbuds

 

[MrNoodly]

...and picked up many NPR stations (probably won't experience this out west)

NPR is everywhere, amigo.

 

[ccbreder]

I like most NPR. That can easly be found on line. I gave up my Sirrius radio as I did not find it worth the money. But I have a premium Pandora and that is the way to go. I use my Verizon account to stream music, and could not be happier. For those few blank spots, MP3 from amazon, stored on a hard drive thingy, is satisfactory. I guess those that don't respect artists can find plenty free down loads. But, I have blue tooth speaker, and ear buds, that takes a lot of the hassle out of digital stuff.

 

[LookinUp]

NPR is everywhere, amigo.

Thanks MrNoodly, I actually have the NPR locator app on my smartphone showing me the nearest stations and I do recall going through areas out west where I couldn't pick up a station.
And, BTW, that's amiga, not amigo

 

[rvpopeye]

I have tons of music on the laptop , tablet , flash drives , SD cards , 8 mp3 players , an ipod , a solar powered radio , the radio built into the 8 track in the moho and then there's all the songs permanently running in my head . A couple of JBL speakers with bluetooth and a wired input that are rechargable . I got the music in me ! No doubt................

 

[StarEcho]

I have Sirius, but the portable one that sits on a dock and uses my aux in cable to use the vehicle's speakers.  It can also use an FM station for sound.  My suburban had/has sirius, but I wanted to be able to take it from my car to my trailer (without 2 subscriptions) so my suburban's sirius is inactive BUT I use it's antenna, so in my trailer I use the antenna that came with the portable radio.  I got a hardwired adapter for my car so I can use the 12volt plug in my trailer and another dock.  So now, I can take the radio from my car to my trailer all with one subscription.

So anyway, look into the portable sirius radio if you are interested in satellite.

 

[bigsallysmom]

I'm not an audiophile. Cheap mp3 player with a portable Sharkk speaker. Can recharge both using solar.

 

[SternWake]

A portable speaker is a solution. Most BT speakers also have 3.5 stereo mini plug standard connections for older MP3 players or older phones without bluetooth capability. Most recharge Via USB. Mine uses about 8 watts when the battery is totally depleted.

While I have BT speaker, I primarily use my Sony upgraded head Unit. I plug my old MP3 player into it or my Newer Phone. When the Sony fails I will get on which can pair up with a phone via bluetooth.

My phone and Turcom BT speaker sometimes do not play well together. I screwed up the 3.5mm plug on the turcom speaker and it only works via BT now, and sometimes phone and speaker collaborate to drive me insane and try and make me start swinging a sledge hammer to rectify the issue. So far I've managed to keep both away from the sledgehammer, and threatening them with a sledgehammer does seem to work, sometimes.

Better antennas can help AM and FM radio reception. If parked, try using a wire from external antenna base into dirt next to vehicle. This allowed me to triple the AM radio reception in Baja, but later on an improved antenna made the wire into dirt much less effective and unneeded.

 

[highdesertranger]

yes NPR is everywhere, I find that if you don't get a NPR station you are getting no stations. a marine am/fm antenna greatly improves reception. there are easy options for satellite radio. highdesertranger

 

[muddy]

I am looking into retrofitting an aux input if I buy an older vehicle. Pre-downloaded audiobooks/podcasts are most of my listening so I am not too concerned about audio quality, just being able to hear it while driving. Not sure how feasible this is but I will give it a serious attempt if I end up purchasing a vehicle without one.