Ham Radio is a form of two-way radio communication that uses a wide range of frequencies.
It’s a popular hobby among amateur radio enthusiasts, and while you need a licence to transmit you don’t need one to tune in and listen to ham radio.
It’s perfectly legal to listen to ham radio transmissions without a licence and there are a variety of ways that you can do this that range from buying equipment to listening online, for free.
Tune in with a radio
This is usually the best way to listen in on ham radio, but it isn’t always easy.
Analogue shortwave radios are cheap, widely available, and can tune into most bands used by ham operators.
However, analogue radios have some downsides. The tuning dial has no markings so you need to tune by ear, and they can be hard to use for beginners.
An alternative is a dedicated software-defined radio (SDR). These usually cost more but come with full digital tuning and no complicated controls.
SDRs are widely used for listening in on aircraft transmissions as well as ham radio.
Radio scanners
You can also tune into ham radio using a scanner.
More advanced models will allow you to select individual bands, but even basic ones are useful if you’re just starting out.
While scanners are good for monitoring shortwave frequencies, signals will often be weak and sometimes inaudible through the speaker. You might need to connect your scanner to your PC to work around this, but your software will need to support decoding signals.
Listen to ham radio online
If you don’t have any equipment at all there are still ways to listen into ham radio online.
The most popular way is by listening to live transmissions through web based software defined radios.
These are simply radios that are connected to the internet that allow multiple users to tune in and listen via their website.
You can find a good list of web based sdrs here
Use a general purpose shortwave radio
Even if you own an SDR or analogue shortwave radio, listening in with a general purpose shortwave radio can be useful.
General purpose radios tend to tune higher and lower than dedicated ham band sets (such as the one here: ), and because they’re designed for listening to music and talk programs they’re easier to use than software defined radios.
The downside is that they won’t pick up ham transmissions as well as dedicated equipment, and may even find it hard to tune into some of the more common frequency bands (such as 10m).
A really good shortwave radio is this one on Amazon that provides a wide range of reception modes including SSB which is a common mode with ham radio operators.
Get a ham radio transceiver and study for your licence
A great way to listen to ham radio is via a ham radio transceiver while you study for your ham radio licence.
You won’t be able to transmit lawfully but you will be able to listen to other operators from around the world.
You’ll also learn how to tune and get the best reception from your equipment which will help you when you finally pass your exam and are allowed to transmit.
Final Words
Ham radio makes a great hobby that’s both educational and fun.
The best way to get started is to buy an analogue transceiver, but you can also tune in using any other ham band radio or even online software defined radios.
For many amateur radio operators listening to other ham users was the beginning of their journey into ham radio.
So whether you’re looking for a new hobby or already have your licence, why not give listening in a try?
Read Next
- Will a CB antenna work for a ham radio?
- Why do you need a ham radio license?
- What’s better ham radio or CB radio?
- What’s an affordable ham radio for beginners?
- What kind of range can I get with a 10W ham radio?
- What kind of antenna do you need for ham radio?
