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LCWO Discussion Forum [Atom LCWO Forum Feed]

This is a simple discussion forum for LCWO users. Feel free to use it for any kind of discussion related to this website.

Thread: Newbe

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AuthorText


Posted: 2022-07-03 22:41
I have tried Morse code a few years ago and did not do well. I am blaming it on not being able to hear well enough. I now have hearing aids and I am trying again. I am on level 5 doing only one min exercises at a time. My question is am I approaching it correctly. I listen to it at 20 wpm charter speed about 13 words a min effective speed. which is to fast for me. I then switch down to 20/7 wpm and i then can hear it and copy it. I then go to 20/8 then 20/9 and finally 20/10. I hope this makes sense. any and all opinions welcome. ps i can copy with pencil and paper at 20/7 but not 20/10. I can copy 20/10 on the pc every time. any hints for that would be greatly appreciated. Thank you Tommy N5NTW


Posted: 2022-07-04 09:50
Hi Tommy
I tried several combinations, and settled (from about lesson 5) on 25/15. That might be too much of a spread, but it worked OK for me. I would struggle at that, but found things improved with repetition. When I got above 90% five times in a row, I would go on to the next lesson. It took a while! Then, at lesson 40, I started closing the numbers up to get the right (non-Farnsworth) spacing. I'm now at 19/19, and getting reasonably comfortable with that, so will try to increase again. Stick with it. I think the key thing is not to learn the characters below a speed of 20-ish. Best, Richard


Posted: 2022-07-04 20:06
Thank you Richard, I will try and bump up my speed. I like your advice on getting at least five 90 % in a row before moving on. before i read this i tried 20/15 and i could hear everything it was to fast for me copy down, so i stopped and went 20/11 and got a 94 on lesson #6. i am going to try lesson 6 at 20/12 until I get 5 in a row. Thanks Tommy N5NTW


Posted: 2022-07-05 07:16
Nathan,
you say you have problem with the speed and therefore you want to bump it up?
Consider decreasing. CW is not a formula 1 race.

Remember when you learned to drive a car? Did start right away at motor way speeds?

73

Gerd.


Posted: 2022-07-05 11:27
Hi Tommy

What do you mean by:-

N5NTW:

I can copy 20/10 on the pc every time.


?

Do you mean you can touch type ? If so what's wrong with that?

Note - if you can't touch type, you probably shouldn't learn both morse and typing atonce - else you risk needing a typewriter all the time . . .

cb


Posted: 2022-07-05 20:03
Thank you Gerd, and Thank you Chris. Gerd I agree with you, I started from Lesson again one and bump up to 20/15 and then by lesson three i moved back down to 20/12. i think this was my problem the first time i tried CW was i could not hear very well with out hearing aids and I was trying to go to fast. Chris I am not great with the pc but i can type ok, what I was trying to say was at a point of about ten words a min i can not hear the sound and tell myself what letter that was and then write it down bevfor the next letter popped up. but on the pc i can type the letter out faster. I do see it as a crutch and i hope i can learn all of the letters numbers and pro signs with ease and then try head copy, that is a long way down the line though. I am trying to figure out what speed i want to go at, with me having hearing aids now i can hear the dits now instead of only some of the them. as of today I think i can learn at around 10 to 12 wpm and bump things up later after going though the program and plenty of repetition. Thanks again everyone . an added question , I understand that there are a bunch of people out there sending and receiving at all speeds, but is there such thing as an average speed/ not standard like 20 wpm. I dont have a HF rig yet so I have not been on the air to see what really is out there.


Posted: 2022-07-05 20:54

N5NTW:

Chris I am not great with the pc but i can type ok, what I was trying to say was at a point of about ten words a min i can not hear the sound and tell myself what letter that was and then write it down bevfor the next letter popped up. but on the pc i can type the letter out faster.



As you get better two things will happen ( takes time ).

1/ morse will somehow seem to be going slower - you seem to have more time anyway . .

2/ you will suddenly start to hear the code, but then decode it whilst you are hearing the next code arriving at the same time.
To do this you have to avoid becoming typewriter bound - else you will start automatically typing out morse->key
and you will have to read back what you typed to get the meaning . .



Aptitude is the main factor in learning morse - probably made up of a combination of factors starting with hearing.

If you don't have high aptitude and get to 25/25 in a month or so, then you MAY have to watch out for a few gotchas - in addition to typewriter bonding.

eg.
- you have to make continuous progress - else you get bored and give up.

- you have to avoid going too quickly - else it won't sink in and you may get just past lesson 10 and find you stalled
i.e. suddenly you somehow forgot those lessons you just passed at 90%
If you go too slowly you certainly waste a bit of time - but if it didn't sink in properly you will probably give up . . .


Try to get through the 40 "lessons" with char speed 15 min and gap however long it takes to keep making progress.

Maybe wait until you get a few in a row at 90% rather than just the one, as a truer indicator . . .

You will learn by repeating decoding



N5NTW:

Thanks again everyone . an added question , I understand that there are a bunch of people out there sending and receiving at all speeds, but is there such thing as an average speed/ not standard like 20 wpm. I dont have a HF rig yet so I have not been on the air to see what really is out there.


20/20 is fine for chit-chat.

(con)tests are often very fast but very formulaic.


Lots of QSOs are a little bit the same TNX fer call = ur RST 5nn = QTH london = op name dave = WX raining so maybe a bit faster than chit-chat . . .

Anyway, forget speed. Go for accuracy and finishing the 40 "lessons"



You can listen to cw on the bands with a cheap rig.

QRPguys are back now I think :- https://qrpguys.com/ also see https://www.qrpkits.com/ maybe http://shop.qrp-labs.com/qcxp

Switch it on, find some activity, sit back and just listen . . .

Good luck with it all.

Let us know how you get on . . .


YMMV as ever

cb


Posted: 2022-07-05 21:07
Thank you, for me this is great advice.


Posted: 2022-07-06 02:47
Nathan:
Take notice of what Gerd wrote:
"Nathan,
you say you have problem with the speed and therefore you want to bump it up?
Consider decreasing. CW is not a formula 1 race."---Gerd

Remember when you learned to drive
a car? Did start right away at motor way speeds?"
Work with the speed that permits you to copy at about a 90% accuracy rate.
Consider that "correct" is what you can do, but is probably not best defined as what you cannot do. I have built up my speed over time and by practicing in a way consistent with that Gerd is proposing. Many people will simply abandon practice because other persons Set--The--Correctness--Bar High.


Posted: 2022-07-06 19:48
Thank you Bruce and Gerd

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