5-String Bass Note Chart
5-string bass · tuning B–E–A–D–G (low→high) · every note, frets 0–15 · naturals filter and a fretboard quiz
How to play
- Naturals only fades out every sharp and flat. This is how most players learn a fretboard — get the twelve natural notes solid first, then the accidentals are just one fret either side.
- Start quiz names a note and a string and asks you to find it. Miss one and the right fret lights up yellow. The quiz only asks about notes that are currently showing, so switch to Naturals only for an easier round.
- Tap any note to hear it and see its name, string and fret. The board reads like bass tab: the top row is the thin G string, the bottom is the thick low B.
- Use Highlight to pick a note letter — every place it appears lights up, so you can see how each note repeats (an octave is always 2 frets up and 2 strings across).
- Dots under the fret numbers are the position markers (3, 5, 7, 9, and a double at 12).
- Open strings plays B–E–A–D–G. The low B string reaches down to B0 (30.87 Hz), five semitones below the E. Vol sets volume. Keyboard: Tab to any note or control, Enter/Space to activate.
A great way to get familiarised with how a five-string bass guitar is laid out is with this interactive chart. Either use your computer’s keyboard or simply click on the notes with your mouse to see what lies beneath. There are options for audio feedback, as well as for playing in quiz mode that test your memory of what has been played.
All of the notes is displayed from the open strings through to the fifteenth fret. There are five row across the fretboard that represent the strings, from the high G string (top row), to the low B string (bottom row). This is in line with how you read bass tablature. Each of these columns correspond to the fret number, so you’ll see dots underneath the third, fifth, seventh, ninth, and twelfth frets as these would correspond to the fret position markers on an actual instrument. Numbers above the frets shows which fret number you’re playing.
How to Use the Interactive Bass Chart
To play a note, simply tap on one of the note buttons and listen to its pitch and view its name. Below the fretboard is readout. It contains the note letter, the fret number, the string, and the frequency in hertz for accurate reference. This immediate feedback let you establish the link between what you are seeing and hearing. It’s great for identifying pitch patterns on various strings.
The Highlight section allow you to highlight all occurrences of particular note letters throughout the board. Just click one of the letter buttons and it highlights where that note occur on each string. It shows the underlying geometric pattern of the fretboard. You’ll be able to see that octaves is represented in a two-up-two-over diagonal pattern, two frets up and two strings over. Turning Off removes the highlighting so you can see everything on the board again. It is a realy cool way to get an idea about where the notes recur.
Using the Show controls, you can select what notes appear. If you click Sharps and flats, then it will hide the naturals. In this way, you’re able to just work with the chromatic notes. Clicking Naturals only is a popular starting point for learning the fretboard. If you’d prefer to hide the sharps and flats, then simply click Naturals only. Here, you will see just the twelve natural notes.
To try this out, take the quiz below to test yourself with either finding notes by sight or by ear. When you are prompted with a note and a string, locate the note on the fretboard by clicking the correct position. If you click the incorrect note, the correct note lights up in yellow. As you progress through the quiz, your score is updated. To pause the quiz at any time, simply click the same button again. For this mode, it’s best if you have the note filters set to your current skill level.
If you press on the Open strings button, it will play through the standard tuning sequence. In this instance you can hear B, then E, then A, followed by D and finally G. This shows you the pitch of the open strings. You can control the volume of the sound with the volume slider. That way it’s comfortabley to listen to in your space. The slider controls the master sound of any note played.
The Fullscreen button will enlarge the chart so it take up the whole screen. (Click on the button to exit fullscreen, or hit the escape key.) Useful if you’re working on a big monitor and/or don’t want any distractions when focused.
Clicking on the Help button give you a quick refresher on everything covered in this article. Click again, or press the escape key, to exit fullscreen.
The chart is interactive from your computer keyboard. To navigate through the notes and controls, use the Tab key. When a control has focus, press Space or Enter to activate it. With this, the widget becomes accessible for keyboard-only navigation. This makes the widget accessible for keyboard navigation so you can practice without needing a mouse. The selection will be outlined in color to show where focus is located.
Put it all together for a complete understanding of your fretboard. Use the natural only setting to get used to the main positions first. Next, activate the note highlighting to visually map out where the notes join up. Take the quiz and see how well you retain what you have learnt. The sound feedback fix the location and pitch in your mind. Keep practicing to help make the notes flow faster under your fingertips.
Now you know how to use this bass note chart. Try out all of the different views, as well as the quizzing modes. The way you practice it doesn’t matter. Discover what works best for you based off learning. Listen and click until you get familiar with them.