i just got the 3pm spread spectrum version and for $200 you can not beat it, the range is far, i mean far. i use it on my notro truck and i go farther then i can see,
i used to use the regular fm 3pm (not spread spectrun version) and it was a far distance, but not nearly as far as the new 3pm 2.4ghz, plus the 3pm 2.4ghz has a built in fail safe on it, plus the response time fromt he time you pull the throllte (or wheel) is just as fast as if you had HRS servo's, so you will can alot of range, faster servo response, more precise servo operation, not to mention the easy factor of just turning on your reciever and not having to worry about what frequence you are on, that is so nice not to have to waste time making sure no one else is on the same frequency.
plus the 3pm has all the features that the more expensive radios have..
think about it this way, i originally bought this week another reciever so i can use the same TX with my boat as i do with my truck, but the reciever was $60 plus another $15 for crystal set and another $20 for a fail safe, so i was at $100, and i still had to use the same reciever, i returned it after i thought about it and spen $200 and upgraded, well worht it.
to get the smae performance out of the regualar 3pm i wuld have to have upgaded the servo's to HRS servo's which are not cheap servo's.
$200 is a bargain for what you get, so easy to use and more options then you will know what to do with, plus it can remember all your different settings for 10 models, the antanna is only a=6 inches at most, the spread spectrum actually has 2 antennas, one inside the RX and the other that sticks out, it has 2 because it selects which antenna has the best reception and uses that one, you have to remember that spread spectrum RX transmit signals tot he transmiter also so the only down fall to using spread spectrum is a little less battery time as the RX will use more power then a regular RX. and the 3pm is a 3 channel radio also, just incase you want to add another option to your boat, maybe a adjustable fuel mixture
get spread spectrum it s real nice, and the 3pm one is a great remote, and the best for the price, by far the best deal