so ive been at this morse code thing for about 3 months now and im stuck around 7-8wpm which is better than when i started but honestly feels like im running into a wall. i can copy most letters fine if the guy is sending slow but the moment anything speeds up my brain just locks up and i start missing everything and then i panic and miss more stuff.

been using the lcwo website which is pretty good i think, and ive heard about the koch method but im not sure if i should switch or just keep grinding with what im doing. also someone at my club said to listen to fast code even if you cant copy it yet, like just have it on in the background? does that actually work or is that just something people say

anyway just curious how long it took people to get from 5wpm beginner stuff up to actually being able to have a real qso at like 20wpm. feels like forever away right now

honest answer? it took me almost two years but i wasnt practicing consistently which is really the thing nobody tells you. when i finally buckled down and did even just 15 minutes every single day instead of an hour on weekends the improvement came way faster. the daily repetition thing is real, your brain needs that regular reinforcement.

the background listening advice is kind of half true in my experience. just having code playing while you do dishes or whatever doesnt do much, but actively listening even to stuff thats too fast — like really trying to catch a word here and there — does seem to help over time. the big thing that worked for me was head copy practice, forcing myself to not write anything down and just listen. felt impossible at first but that's where the real speed gains came from once i got past maybe 12wpm. LCWO is solid, stick with it, but also get on the air even if you're slow. the K1USN slow speed net was a lifesaver for me when i was at your stage.

took me about 8 months to get comfortable around 18-20wpm but i was doing the morserunner software a lot which simulates contest pileups and that thing will absolutely force your speed up whether you like it or not lol. also +1 on the head copy thing, writing every letter down is a crutch that slows you down past a certain point