[hbq]

Hi all, we started having OTA reception problems after adding a third tv in December and now that the leaves are out and summer weather is here.

The antenna set up is a very old UHF/VHF/FM antenna shaped like a Channelmaster Crossfire, but only about 5-6 feet long and about the same wide. It is mounted on pole about 10 feet above a story & a half house. We sit in a bit of a valley and the neighbors between us and the towers in Shorewood MN, have a yard full of tall spruce and other trees that block the path. The antenna is intact but the balun looks pretty weathered and the wiring is a bit rusty. The original twin lead was replaced many years ago with what looks like unlabled rg6, which runs about 40 ft to an unlabled 3-way splitter in the basement. The runs are about 10, 15 & 25 ft to two old tv's with converters and one newer HDTV. These runs appear to be made with unlabled rg6 also. There is another, smaller UHF antenna mounted below the main one, but it is not connected anymore. It is a solid bowtie shape with reflectors.

Channels 2.1,2,&4 are the weakest. If the tv's can find them they drop out intermittantly with or without the splitter. 41.1,2,3 are the next weakest. The VFH channels 9.1 and 11.1&2 are the strongest, with the rest of the UHF channels somewhere in between. With the splitter removed we can get45 intermittantly, even though it is at almost 90 degrees to the other towers.

I am considering replacing the balun & main cable to be sure it is quad rg6. But I am also wondering if I should just replace the antenna with a new one, perhaps even a multidirectional antenna to bring in 45 (not critical). Perhaps an amplifier would be useful as well. Here is the tvfool link[URL="http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3d03d9f0e61b8860"] Thanks for any advice!