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I am trying to learn CW and I bought the ARRL's Your Introduction to Morse Code. I've gone through that and think I've got basic code down at 5 wpm. What else should I do to learn the code? |
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Let me state up front that I'm a no-code general. I'm currently studying for the extra exam and at some point after I would love to try to learn CW. CW was one hurdle I could never overcome in my early teens when I was trying to get my novice ticket. However, a friend of mine gave me a copy of the Chuck Adams, K7QO code course. As it states on the website, http://k7qo.radiotelegraphy.net/ it is a no-frills, no gimick and no short cut method of learning Morse. I've added the .mp3 files to my iPhone and spent about an hour listening and following the instructions exactly as provided. I believe this to be a good method of learning CW and one that when I'm ready, I'll sit down and use. Good luck 73, Jerry kd0bik Host of The Practical Amateur Radio Podcast |
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i am still learning myself everyone has told me once i know the basic code to start coping the ARRL bulletins, their code practice and to go call CQ some where and have a QSO . if you would like to see how well you are doing or to increase your speed check out just learn morse code.com and G4FON koch trainer "it can even add in band conditions" they are both good freeware programs. 73 k8gjp |
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I tried 2 things. One: I took a walk to lunch during my I would tap out the license plates of the parked cars in cw as I walked. The speed of walking influences your sending speed. Other thing is to generate you own CW cd or file and play it on the way to and from work. Also dont forget the W1AW cw sessions on the air I used this technique to get to 5 wpm and then 13 wpm Good luck kg2rp |
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Hello: I am also using K7QO's material and it is no nonsense Morse Code practice. I have started several times but when the going gets tough I get discouraged. I always start at ground zero and work my way back up to get the material down because I am determined to get it down and learn proficiently and I hope you do too. Stick with it! 73 de Thomas, KB7L |
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Whatever method you use, make sure it's based on SOUND. The goal is to hear "letters," not "dots and dashes." When you hear dots and dashes, you have to translate. This takes time, and is the reason folks get stuck at various plateaus (the most common being about 10wpm). When you start hearing "words," you have the cake. Anything else is just frosting. 73, Bill |
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The G4FON Koch trainer has been very helpful for me. So far, I only know 5 letters, but I can copy those 5 letters at 20 wpm with very high accuracy. If I really knuckled down and studied every day, I think I'd have the alphabet mastered in about two more weeks. Digits and prosigns would take a little longer. Update 2009-12-15: I heard about Learn CW Online last night during a net. It's a browser-based Koch trainer, requires Flash. Looks even better than G4FON's trainer! |
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PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE AND MORE PRACTICE-MUST OVERLEARN ALL CHARECTORS W1AW on the air copy is the best and regular qsos going on everyday no matter what everyday 15/30 minutes. |
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Learn CW by hearing the sounds of words. Isn't that the way you learned your first language? Nobody learned their respective language by spelling the words, that is letter by letter. Speed up the CW sound of words so it is blended into one sound. |
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KC0OLQ, my suggestion is like what you have already done, try one method and stick with it. I have watched others move from one method of learning to another and give up because they became confused. In my point of view and from personal experience the best and only way to get better and copy ever increasing speeds is to continously practice receiving morse code at ever increasing speeds. After learning the Continous Wave (CW) morse code individual characters for the each letter of the alphabet, the numbers 0-9 and the prosigns, start copying the code at 5 WPM by writing it down and continue to practice until you can copy it in your head. Once you have successfully mastered 5 WPM, start listening to higher speeds such as 7.5 WPM and continue at that speed again until you no longer have to write it down and can copy it in your head. Repeat this procedure for ever increasing speeds such as 10, 13, 15 etc. but do not try increasing your speed until you have mastered the speed that you are at and continue until you reach your target speed. One of the best sources to practice copying various combinations of letters, numbers, and prosigns is the ARRL Headquarters station W1AW scheduled transmissions. You can find their schedule at the following URL; http://www.arrl.org/w1aw.html. Like Kyle N4NSS stated in his response, morse code is a language of sounds, put together to form the words you already now in english. Try to hear the words versus the individual characters and this only comes with practice! K4RFE Larry |
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I really like the G4FON Koch Trainer. Besides enabling you to learn and practice Morse code at increasingly faster speeds, it also simulates real-world signal and band conditions. Using the program, you can introduce various amounts of noise, interference, signal strength, and quality of the code, to practice copying under various conditions. The program can start you out with learning various characters, random groups, and finally sample QSOs, to help you get ready to be on the air. ---Michael |
