Ham Exam Study Guides
General Class License Study Guide
The General license opens HF privileges on most amateur bands allowing worldwide communication. Click any subelement to expand.
35
Questions on Exam
26
Correct to Pass (74%)
432
Questions in Pool
G1-G9
Subelements
G1 - FCC Rules and Regulations +
Key Topics
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>General HF privileges: Voice/CW/digital on 160m 80m 40m 30m 20m 17m 15m 12m 10m. Some segments Extra only.
>Power limits: 1500W PEP on most HF bands. 200W limit on 30m.
>60m band: Five specific channels only; USB voice; 100W PEP EIRP max.
>Volunteer Examiner: General administers Technician exams; Extra administers all.
>Remote operation: Control operator responsible even when operating remotely.
>Beacon stations: Automatically transmit for propagation studies; limited power.
>Spread spectrum: Allowed above 222 MHz; must not cause interference.
>Auxiliary stations: Relay communications in a linked system.
>Frequency coordinator: Recommends repeater frequencies to minimize interference.
>One-way transmissions: Allowed for beacon, remote control, and space telemetry.
Tip: G1 = 5 exam questions. Know General HF privileges and power limits cold.
G2 - Operating Procedures +
Key Topics
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>HF calling frequencies: 14.225 MHz (20m SSB), 7.200 MHz (40m SSB), 3.900 MHz (75m SSB), 21.300 MHz (15m SSB).
>DX operating: Listen before transmitting; use split if DX works split; send callsign once and wait.
>Pileups: Many stations call simultaneously; follow DX instructions carefully.
>Contest operating: Log callsign, date, time UTC, frequency, mode, exchange.
>NTS traffic handling: Radiogram format: preamble, address, text, signature.
>ARES: Amateur Radio Emergency Service; volunteers for public service emergencies.
>RACES: Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service; activated by civil authorities only.
>Directed net: NCS controls all transmissions. Round-table is informal.
>IOTA: Islands on the Air award program.
>SOTA: Summits on the Air; portable operation from mountain summits.
Tip: Know HF calling frequencies and the difference between ARES and RACES.
G3 - Radio Wave Propagation +
Key Topics
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>Ionospheric layers: D absorbs HF daytime and disappears at night. E sporadic. F2 dominant for long-distance.
>Skip distance: Minimum distance for ionospheric refraction at a given frequency.
>MUF: Maximum Usable Frequency; highest frequency refracted back on a given path.
>LUF: Lowest Usable Frequency; lowest that overcomes D-layer absorption.
>Solar flux index SFI: Higher SFI = better HF propagation on higher bands.
>K-index: Measures geomagnetic disturbance. High K = poor HF especially polar paths.
>Gray line: Enhanced propagation along dawn/dusk boundary where D layer is absent.
>Long path vs. short path: Signals travel two ways around Earth; sometimes long path is stronger.
>TEP: Transequatorial propagation; common on 6m and 10m.
>NVIS: Near Vertical Incidence Skywave; regional 160m-40m coverage.
Tip: G3 = 3 questions. Understand MUF, LUF, solar flux, and ionospheric layers by time of day.
G4 - Amateur Radio Practices +
Key Topics
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>USB vs. LSB: USB above 10 MHz; LSB below 10 MHz. 60m always USB.
>ALC: Automatic Level Control prevents overdrive and splatter. Keep meter barely moving.
>Speech processing: Increases average power for readability; do not overdrive.
>Noise blanker: Reduces impulse noise from ignition and power lines on HF.
>AGC: Automatic Gain Control keeps receiver output level consistent.
>RIT: Receiver Incremental Tuning; shifts receive without changing transmit.
>CAT control: Computer controls radio frequency and mode.
>Digital modes setup: Connect radio audio to soundcard; use VOX or CAT for PTT.
>UTC logging: Always log in Coordinated Universal Time never local time.
>Antenna tuner: Reduces SWR at radio but does not fix a bad antenna.
Tip: Know USB vs. LSB conventions and ALC operation well.
G5 - Electrical Principles +
Key Topics
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>Impedance Z: Total opposition to AC; Z = sqrt(R squared + X squared).
>Capacitive reactance Xc: Xc = 1 divided by (2 x pi x f x C). Decreases as frequency rises.
>Inductive reactance XL: XL = 2 x pi x f x L. Increases as frequency rises.
>Resonance: When XL equals Xc; purely resistive. Series = low Z; parallel = high Z.
>Power factor: Ratio of real power to apparent power. Unity = purely resistive.
>Transformer: Steps voltage up or down; turns ratio equals voltage ratio.
>Q factor: Reactance divided by resistance. Higher Q = narrower bandwidth.
>dB power: dB = 10 x log(P2 divided by P1).
>dB voltage: dB = 20 x log(V2 divided by V1).
>RMS voltage: Vrms = Vpeak divided by sqrt(2).
Tip: Master impedance, reactance formulas, and transformer ratios for G5.
G6 - Circuit Components +
Key Topics
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>Rectifier circuits: Half-wave uses one diode; bridge full-wave uses four. Bridge most common.
>Filter capacitor: Smooths pulsating DC after rectification; larger = smoother.
>Voltage regulator: Maintains constant output; linear LM78xx or switching types.
>Zener diode: Regulates voltage by operating in reverse breakdown region.
>BJT transistor: NPN or PNP; current controlled; base drives collector-emitter.
>FET transistor: Voltage controlled; gate drives drain-source; high input impedance.
>Op-amp: High gain differential amplifier; used in audio and signal processing.
>Crystal oscillator: Piezoelectric crystal for very stable frequency reference.
>PLL: Phase Locked Loop synthesizes precise frequencies; used in modern transceivers.
>Toroid core: Ferrite or powdered iron; low radiation; used for inductors and transformers.
Tip: Know rectifier types, transistor types, and PLL operation.
G7 - Practical Circuits +
Key Topics
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>Power supply ripple: AC component remaining after filtering; lower is better.
>Switching power supply: High efficiency; can cause RFI; common in modern rigs.
>Linear power supply: Uses transformer, rectifier, filter, regulator; low noise.
>SSB transmitter stages: Balanced modulator suppresses carrier; bandpass filter selects sideband; linear amp boosts power.
>FM transmitter stages: Reactance modulator or VCO modulation; limiter; power amplifier.
>Superheterodyne receiver: Converts incoming signal to fixed IF for filtering and amplification.
>IF Intermediate Frequency: Common IFs are 455 kHz and 10.7 MHz; where most selectivity occurs.
>Squelch circuit: Silences audio when no signal present; threshold set just above noise.
>AGC circuit: Reduces gain for strong signals; keeps audio level constant.
>DSP Digital Signal Processing: Filters and processes signals digitally; used for noise reduction and IF filtering.
Tip: G7 = 2 questions. Understand superheterodyne receiver stages and power supply types.
G8 - Signals and Emissions +
Key Topics
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>Emission designators: First symbol = modulation type; second = signal type; third = information type.
>J3E: Single sideband suppressed carrier telephony; standard SSB voice designator.
>A3E: Double sideband full carrier AM telephony.
>F3E: FM telephony; used on VHF/UHF repeaters.
>Bandwidth order: CW narrowest; then SSB; then AM; FM widest for voice modes.
>FM deviation: Standard deviation is plus or minus 5 kHz for wide FM voice.
>Overdeviation: Excessive FM deviation causes splatter onto adjacent channels.
>IMD Intermodulation Distortion: Unwanted mixing products from nonlinear amplification.
>Harmonics: Integer multiples of fundamental frequency; must be suppressed to legal limits.
>Spurious emissions: Any emission outside necessary bandwidth; must be minimized.
Tip: Know emission designators especially J3E for SSB and F3E for FM.
G9 - Antennas and Feedlines +
Key Topics
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>Dipole variations: Inverted-V, fan dipole, trap dipole for multiband operation.
>Vertical antenna: Quarter-wave needs ground plane; 5/8-wave has gain over quarter-wave.
>Yagi antenna: Directional; driven element plus reflector and directors. More elements = more gain.
>Quad antenna: Full-wave loop elements; slightly more gain than equivalent Yagi.
>Delta loop: Full-wave triangular loop; low angle radiation good for DX.
>Feedline impedance: Most amateur coax is 50 ohms. Ladder line is 300 or 450 ohms.
>Balun: Balanced to unbalanced transformer; use at dipole feedpoint to reduce feedline radiation.
>Antenna tuner with ladder line: Allows one antenna to cover many bands with low loss.
>N-type connector: Lower loss than PL-259; preferred at UHF and microwave frequencies.
>Feedline loss and SWR: High SWR multiplies feedline loss; use lowest loss coax available.
Tip: G9 = 4 exam questions. Know antenna types, feedline impedance, and balun usage.