Technician Class License Prep
Andy Vallenga, KE4GKP, has put together a fantastic series of free video study guides (listed below) for the Technician license exam. Andy goes through the entire question pool covering every possible question you could see on an exam. We highly recommend that anyone studying for the Technician test take the time watch. He’s also published a book called The Ham Whisperer’s Technician Class License Course (currently available for the Amazon Kindle) with practice quizzes, study sheets, and practice examinations.
- Lesson 1 – Amateur Radio services
T1A – Amateur Radio services; purpose of the amateur service, amateur-satellite service, operator/primary station license grant, where FCC rules are codified, basis and purpose of FCC rules, meanings of basic terms used in FCC rules - Lesson 2 – Authorized frequencies
T1B – Authorized frequencies; frequency allocations, ITU regions, emission type, restricted sub-bands, spectrum sharing, transmissions near band edges - Lesson 3 – Operator classes and station call signs
T1C – Operator classes and station call signs; operator classes, sequential, special event, and vanity call sign systems, international communications, reciprocal operation, station license licensee, places where the amateur service is regulated by the FCC, name and address on ULS, license term, renewal, grace period - Lesson 4 – Authorized and prohibited transmissions
T1D – Authorized and prohibited transmissions - Lesson 5 – Control operator and control types
T1E – Control operator and control types; control operator required, eligibility, designation of control operator, privileges and duties, control point, local, automatic and remote control, location of control operator - Lesson 6 – Station identification and operation standards
T1F – Station identification and operation standards; special operations for repeaters and auxiliary stations, third party communications, club stations, station security, FCC inspection - Lesson 7 – Station operation
T2A – Station operation; choosing an operating frequency, calling another station, test transmissions, use of minimum power, frequency use, band plans - Lesson 8 – VHF/UHF operating practices
T2B – VHF/UHF operating practices; SSB phone, FM repeater, simplex, frequency offsets, splits and shifts, CTCSS, DTMF, tone squelch, carrier squelch, phonetics - Lesson 9 – Public service
T2C –Public service; emergency and non-emergency operations, message traffic handling - Lesson 10 – Radio wave characteristics
T3A – Radio wave characteristics; how a radio signal travels; distinctions of HF, VHF and UHF; fading, multipath; wavelength vs. penetration; antenna orientation - Lesson 11 – Radio and electromagnetic wave properties
T3B – Radio and electromagnetic wave properties; the electromagnetic spectrum, wavelength vs. frequency, velocity of electromagnetic waves - Lesson 12 – Propagation modes
T3C – Propagation modes; line of sight, sporadic E, meteor, aurora scatter, tropospheric ducting, F layer skip, radio horizon - Lesson 13 – Station setup
T4A – Station setup; microphone, speaker, headphones, filters, power source, connecting a computer, RF grounding - Lesson 14 – Operating controls
T4B – Operating controls; tuning, use of filters, squelch, AGC, repeater offset, memory channels - Lesson 15 – Electrical principles
T5A – Electrical principles; current and voltage, conductors and insulators, alternating and direct current - Lesson 16 – Math for electronics
T5B – Math for electronics; decibels, electronic units and the metric system - Lesson 17 – Electronic principles
T5C – Electronic principles; capacitance, inductance, current flow in circuits, alternating current, definition of RF, power calculations - Lesson 18 – Ohm’s Law
T5D – Ohm’s Law - Lesson 19 – Electrical components
T6A – Electrical components; fixed and variable resistors, capacitors, and inductors; fuses, switches, batteries - Lesson 20 – Semiconductors
T6B – Semiconductors; basic principles of diodes and transistors - Lesson 21 – Circuit diagrams
T6C – Circuit diagrams; schematic symbols - Lesson 22 – Component functions
T6D – Component functions - Lesson 23 – Station radios
T7A – Station radios; receivers, transmitters, transceivers - Lesson 24 – Common transmitter and receiver problems
T7B – Common transmitter and receiver problems; symptoms of overload and overdrive, distortion, interference, over and under modulation, RF feedback, off frequency signals; fading and noise; problems with digital communications interfaces - Lesson 25 – Antenna measurements and troubleshooting
T7C – Antenna measurements and troubleshooting; measuring SWR, dummy loads, feedline failure modes - Lesson 26 – Basic repair and testing
T7D – Basic repair and testing; soldering, use of a voltmeter, ammeter, and ohmmeter - Lesson 27 – Modulation modes
T8A – Modulation modes; bandwidth of various signals - Lesson 28 – Amateur satellite operation
T8B – Amateur satellite operation; Doppler shift, basic orbits, operating protocols - Lesson 29 – Operating activities
T8C – Operating activities; radio direction finding, radio control, contests, special event stations, basic linking over Internet - Lesson 30 – Non-voice communications
T8D – Non-voice communications; image data, digital modes, CW, packet, PSK31 - Lesson 31 – Antennas
T9A – Antennas; vertical and horizontal, concept of gain, common portable and mobile antennas, relationships between antenna length and frequency - Lesson 32 – Feedlines
T9B – Feedlines; types, losses vs. frequency, SWR concepts, matching, weather protection, connectors - Lesson 33 – AC power circuits
T0A – AC power circuits; hazardous voltages, fuses and circuit breakers, grounding, lightning protection, battery safety, electrical code compliance - Lesson 34 – Antenna installation
T0B – Antenna installation; tower safety, overhead power lines - Lesson 35 – RF hazards
T0C – RF hazards; radiation exposure, proximity to antennas, recognized safe power levels, exposure to others