MFJ-418 Pocket Morse Code Tutor Instruction Manual
8 © 1996-2006 MFJ Enterprises, Inc.
the menu. Note that setting the overall speed greater than or equal to the
Farnsworth speed will disable Farnsworth spacing.
Speed requirements for U.S. amateur licenses are: 5 wpm for Novice and
Technician-Plus, 13 wpm for General and Advanced, and 20 wpm for Amateur
Extra Class. Many amateur exams are administered using Farnsworth spacing.
For example, many 5- and 13-wpm exams are administered by sending 18-wpm
characters spaced out to provide the slower overall speed. In order to provide
themselves a "buffer" to overcome possible test-day jitters, many amateurs
practice at a slightly higher speed than that at which they will be tested.
Someone trying for the 13-wpm test, then, might practice with 18 or 20 wpm
characters spaced out to an overall speed of 15-16 wpm. That way, when test
day comes, the exam may sound slow and easy, boosting your chances of
success.
Farnsworth Menu
As explained previously, Farnsworth spacing adds more time between
characters to slow down the overall sending speed. The advantage of this is
that, by hearing the characters sent at a faster speed, you learn to recognize each
character by its distinctive rhythm, rather than by trying to "count dits." This
greatly assists you in copying Morse code at higher speeds.
To activate Farnsworth spacing, press Select when
"FARNSWORTH OFF" is
displayed. A blinking block will appear on the right-hand side of the display.
Press Next to increase the Farnsworth speed or Previous to reduce it. The
Farnsworth speed, however, must be higher than the overall speed. To turn
Farnsworth off, reduce the Farnsworth speed to the same speed as the overall
speed.
Tone Menu
The Tone menu allows you to select the audio frequency sent by the unit. You
may select frequencies from 305 to 1006 Hz. While you can choose an audio
frequency that pleases you, you should be aware that most amateur code exams
are given using audio frequencies between 700 and 800 Hz. Also, most CW
transceivers use sidetone frequencies in the 700 to 800 Hz range.
To select your audio frequency, press Select when
"TONE" is displayed. Then,
you can use Next to raise the frequency or Previous to lower it. Press Select
again to exit the Tone menu.
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