How good is my SONY XDR-F1HD ?

absolutely do the mods if you can do yourself...

I need he directionality of the Terk, 3 of the channels are low power college stations so i move the antenna around sometimes to find the sweet spot. Its funny you mention  the RCA cables. I have a few Cardas cables a friend gave me and I use them. I am seriously thinking about doing the circuit mods myself after hearing how much the Tuner guy charges. I am a Physicist/EE .

If you're 10 miles from the City, you really shouldn't need a powered antenna.

I have the modded unit by the XDR guy. It is my 4th best tuner. The reason it is last is because it is a little mechanically noisy. You won't notice it unless you have it close by, as on a desk.

Saying that, my unit benefitted greatly by using a higher end RCA cable. In my case, it was an Audience Au23 SE RCA. The reception is the best of all my tuners, including one that cost $8K (that has the worst reception). However, there are ways to improve reception.

When considering sound quality, it is close to my 3rd best tuner, a Sansui TU-9900. I got the Sansui for $750 so it is compared able to the modded XDR which cost me $500. I like the Sansui a bit more because it is more detailed though my warmest tuner.