Books, blogs, YouTube, podcasts and live shows

A curated starting list rather than an exhaustive one. Nothing here is an endorsement or a commercial relationship; the amateur radio media scene is large and this is where most people begin.

Books

Licensing

• ARRL Ham Radio License Manual, General Class and Extra Class manuals — the standard study

path, matched to the current question pools.

• The Fast Track series (Michael Burnette, AF7KB) — explains why each answer is right, which

works better than rote memorisation for some people.

• The free HamStudy.org pools cover the exam without buying anything;

see studying.

Once licensed

• ARRL Handbook — the reference. One volume, everything from Ohm's law to microwave.
• ARRL Antenna Book and ON4UN's Low-Band DXing — the deep antenna references.
• Understanding Basic Electronics (ARRL) or Practical Electronics for Inventors — if the

theory did not stick.

• The Complete DX'er (Bob Locher, W9KNI) — still the best book on how to actually work rare

stations.

• Emergency Power for Radio Communications and the ARES field resources for

emergency work.

• Experimental Methods in RF Design (Hayward, Campbell, Larkin) — the homebrewer's bible; see

kits and homebrewing.

• Morse Code: Breaking the Barrier (Dave Finley, N1IRZ) — for

CW.

Magazines and journals

• QST (ARRL) — the US monthly; membership includes it and the full digital archive.
• QEX — technical/experimental companion to QST.
• CQ Amateur Radio, The Spectrum Monitor (digital), RadCom (RSGB), **Practical

Wireless** — worth a look, particularly for construction articles.

• QRP Quarterly and the SPRAT journal of the G-QRP Club for low-power work.

YouTube channels

• Ham Radio Crash Course (Josh, KI6NAZ) — beginner-friendly reviews and projects.
• DX Commander (Callum, M0MCX) — antennas, and antenna theory made practical.
• Temporarily Offline / Ham Radio 2.0 (Jason, KC5HWB) — digital voice, DMR, hotspots.
• W2AEW (Alan Wolke) — genuinely excellent test-equipment and RF measurement tutorials.
• K6UDA Radio, KB9VBR Antennas, OH8STN (off-grid and portable power),

Red Summit RF (SOTA), HB9BLA Wireless (Andreas Spiess) for electronics.

• ARRL and AMSAT channels for official material and satellite operating.

Blogs and websites

• QRPer.com (Thomas, K4SWL) — field reports and portable gear, prolific and readable.
• Hackaday and RTL-SDR.com — SDR and homebrew news.
• G4NSJ, AA5TB, N4UJW's Hamuniverse, VK1NAM — long-running antenna and project

archives.

• Ham Radio History (W2PA) and Early Radio History

for the history.

• PA3FWM's technical notes and Rudy Severns N6LF's papers for people who like the maths.

Podcasts

• Ham Radio Workbench — projects and construction, long-form.
• ICQ Podcast — UK-based, broad news and features.
• Foundations of Amateur Radio (Onno, VK6FLAB) — short weekly essays, excellent for beginners.
• 100 Watts and a Wire, Ham Radio Crash Course Podcast, QSO Today (interviews),

Linux in the Ham Shack (open-source angle).

• ARRL Audio News — weekly news bulletin.

Live shows and streams

• Ham Nation — the long-running weekly video show.
• Ham Radio Live, AmateurLogic.TV — regular video magazines.
• Club and organisation streams: ARRL events, AMSAT symposia, QSO Today Virtual Ham Expo, and the

Hamvention and Pacificon presentation recordings — most end up free on YouTube.

On the air

The best learning is still on-air: local nets, an Elmer in your club, and hamfests. NARA's National Presenters Panel can supply a speaker for your club meeting on most of these topics.

Suggestions for this list are welcome — sign in and edit the page, or contact NARA.