Building a solid foundation of conceptual knowledge is critical for students in electrical engineering. This mixed-method case study explores the use of simulation videos to illustrate complicated conceptual knowledge in foundational communications and signal processing courses. Students found these videos to be very useful for establishing concepts, understanding course content and increasing general knowledge in electrical engineering. We hope that the findings can help inform best practices for producing engaging and effective instructional videos for engineering courses; inspire instructors of electrical engineering to transform their teaching practice; and eventually benefit students by building a solid conceptual understanding that fosters the development of further engineering competencies.