You can copy sentences and want to practise the real thing: two-operator on-air exchanges, from a relaxed ragchew to a fast contest pileup.
Where to Go
Open Text & QSO Training from the launcher and use QSO Simulations. Four variants are available: Play QSO (standard ragchew or structured training QSO), Play SOTA, Play POTA, and Play Contest.
Settings to Review
All under Settings → QSO Simulations:
- QSO type — start with Training QSO (structured, predictable exchanges) before moving to Realistic QSO (natural ragchew with varying exchanges, closer to what you'll hear on the air).
- Operator B sidetone offset — start at 0% (identical tone to Operator A) while you're learning to follow a two-way exchange, then raise it toward the default 2% to practise picking one operator out by ear, just like tuning across a real QSO.
- Max speed difference — start at 0 WPM, then raise toward the default 3 WPM for a more realistic, less uniform exchange.
- Contest formats — for contest practice, select one or more of WPX, ARRL DX, or CWops CWT; when several are selected the format is chosen randomly each time with no consecutive repeats.
- Abbreviated numbers — controls how often WPX serial digits 0/1/9 are sent as T/A/N (default 60%); raise it toward 100% once you're comfortable decoding abbreviated numbers.
- Continent distribution / callsign settings — adjust if you want to practise copying callsigns from a specific region.
- Text display mode — set to At text end so the transcript isn't revealed as the QSO plays. This forces you to follow the whole exchange by ear, the way you would on the air, instead of reading along with the screen. QSO Training has no TTS or HCB option, so this setting is the only lever here — unlike Character, Word, and Sentence training.
- Don't write down call signs, RST, or names as you copy. Hold the exchange in your head and reply from memory, the way a real QSO demands — jotting things down substitutes a slower skill for the instant recall you're training.
Standard prosigns — AR, SK, KN, BK, AS — are automatically recognised and sent as
fused characters, matching on-air convention.
Ready for a timed quiz? Try the QSO Quiz, SOTA Game, POTA Game, or Contest Game from Quick Games — you listen to a full QSO, then answer multiple-choice questions about what was exchanged.