[Buffaloed in Montana]

Well, that does sound like something, although he bought a new transformer and with trying the 2nd cable....
Anyway, my husband says thank you and will certainly look into all this. But first he says, he's going to mount the antenna on the lumber rack on his truck, put a generator in the back with a small TV. And drive it around the roads to see what happens. (Yes, he's serious)
There is a cellphone tower a mile or two from us that just might possibly be in a direct line and that may have increased it's power and causing interence. So his experiment will eliminate that possibility. I'll let you know how that goes.