I dont know what note I'm playing.

[LBronson]

So after 20 years of goofing around and playing in bands I'm finding out it may be time to learn the note's. It may sound dumb but outside of EADG I dont know any other note on the neck. I haven't had a problem when I sit in with others but I do get concerned looks when they call out keys and notes and I just nod my head. Any advice of things that have work for other players in a similar situation (ie: old dog new tricks)?

[WHughes]

all notes are 2 frets apart except E/F and B/C. So you will never hear someone say to you E sharp or F flat and B sharp and C flat, they just dont exist. Since you know EADG, using the rule above, the very first fret on the E string is an F. The third fret is a G and so on. On the A string, the second fret will be B, and C is on the third fret etc etc etc.
And, Hello from Washington.

[jsingles]

to be totally correct, E sharp does exist.... its just enharmonically equivilant to F

[WHughes]

Yes, which is why it it called F, and not E sharp.
Smarty pants.

[tranceFusion]

umm.. I may be going out on a limb here, but... learn the notes?

A good teacher will be quite helpful, too (note the use of the word "good"), if you have the money for one. Even if you just go long enough to realize all of the things you don't know so you have something to work on towards, it will be helpful.

Of course, there are a bazillion resource on the net which you could use. While generally helpful, I find they do better as a supplement to an instructor rather than trying to learn from them alone - the teacher will keep you on track, can correct bad habits before they form, show you how to apply what you've learned, etc.

No shame in starting fresh though. It is awful relieving to finally learn after realizing how much time you have spent screwing around on the instrument (and finding out it isn't as hard as you expected). I went through the same thing..

[ric stave]

Originally Posted by WHughes

Yes, which is why it it called F, and not E sharp.
Smarty pants.

If you are playing in the key of C# or F#, then there is an E#.
It could be 'called' F, and you would probably call it F if you were showing someone what note you were playing on your bass, but it would be written in the music as an E#. It would look ridiculous to notate the I chord in the key of C# as C# F G#.

Same goes for B# in the key of C#.

Just sayin'
~ric

[Methodis]

What i'm doing right now is using this to print it out, and trying to do it from memory then just looking

http://www.studybass.com/tools/chord...-note-printer/

[Nagrom]

Nothing wrong with taking 3 months worth of lessons to expand your horizon. You'll learn the notes, basic reading skills, and it will enhance your intuitive playing ability with some theory.

[Rendog92]

Originally Posted by WHughes

Yes, which is why it it called F, and not E sharp.
Smarty pants.

If you are using sharps to refer to notes such as G sharp, then its much easier to say E sharp

[jsingles]

Originally Posted by ric stave

If you are playing in the key of C# or F#, then there is an E#.
It could be 'called' F, and you would probably call it F if you were showing someone what note you were playing on your bass, but it would be written in the music as an E#. It would look ridiculous to notate the I chord in the key of C# as C# F G#.

Same goes for B# in the key of C#.

Just sayin'
~ric

+1... thank you....

[bassbully]

I was in the same boat several years ago and as long as i played with hacks i was ok. When i stepped up my game and entered playing with real players i soon found out i needed to know the fretboard. I used a book and the net. There are alot of sites and charts to use online. Start simple with the E string and go from there. Learn octive patterns and the path opens real quick. Then go to learning scales etc. It is easy but takes time and practice.
You will be amazed how much better you will play knowing the neck and how your confidence will grow. Good luck.

[HEADLE]

Originally Posted by LBronson

So after 20 years of goofing around and playing in bands I'm finding out it may be time to learn the note's. It may sound dumb but outside of EADG I dont know any other note on the neck. I haven't had a problem when I sit in with others but I do get concerned looks when they call out keys and notes and I just nod my head. Any advice of things that have work for other players in a similar situation (ie: old dog new tricks)?

Try this! bass fretboard warrior

This is a demo version but a full version is available. I've been using it for years to keep on top while sitting at my desk at work. Give it a shot!

H

[LBronson]

Thanks for the repy's. I'll try them.
Bill- I'll try to get out to the tractor if possible.

[Bluesbreaker5]

Hi LBronson....you're not alone!

For starters I'd learn the notes for the first 4 frets of each string. You already know the open strings. This can get you going.

G G# A A# B
D Eb E F Gb
A Bb B C C#
E F F# G Ab

0 1 2 3 4


Say each note as you play it.

Later you can learn that an F# = Gb, Ab = G#, etc. So if someone says play a D# just play your D string (3rd string) and then sharpen it (go up one fret). Up one fret to sharpen, down one fret to flatten. Except if you sharpen E you get F and if you sharpen B you get C.

[baddarryl]

Check out PacMans practice method. This is the best way I have found to learn the fretboard.

Pacman's sure-fire scale practice method

BTW, thanks PacMan

There are also some good threads on the Circle of Fifths if you want to understand why sometimes an E# or B# are called that instead of F or C.

[Alaska Bass]

Originally Posted by WHughes

all notes are 2 frets apart except E/F and B/C. So you will never hear someone say to you E sharp or F flat and B sharp and C flat, they just dont exist. Since you know EADG, using the rule above, the very first fret on the E string is an F. The third fret is a G and so on. On the A string, the second fret will be B, and C is on the third fret etc etc etc.
And, Hello from Washington.

Actually you will hear E#, Fb, B#, and Cb. They do exist. They are equivalent to F,E,C and B enharmonically but they do exist and real musicians do call them by those names depending upon the key being played.

I commend your effort to teach, just be sure the material being taught is accurate... something about the blind leading the blind?

[SLaPiNFuNK]

H used to exist too...

[Skywalker83]

all notes are 2 frets apart

WRONG!!!

F and F# are notes and they are right next to each other ( expamle : 1st position, 4th string, frets 1 and 2) not 2 frets apart.

So how about rephrasing that correctly.

If your going to give out info at least make sure it's right before you....write.

[dontcallmeQRACK]

Originally Posted by LBronson

So after 20 years of goofing around and playing in bands I'm finding out it may be time to learn the note's. It may sound dumb but outside of EADG I dont know any other note on the neck. I haven't had a problem when I sit in with others but I do get concerned looks when they call out keys and notes and I just nod my head. Any advice of things that have work for other players in a similar situation (ie: old dog new tricks)?

Since everyone else is arguing over an EXISTANT E# I figured Id get you going.

Now remember that there is a sharp between every note when going higher in range up the neck (towards the bridge), every note except B (to c) and E (to f), this doesn't mean a B# or an E# don't exist, they do, and you may see them while reading music (if you do).

Anyway, if you know your standard E A D G, a five string bass adds a low string making it B E A D G and a 6 string bass adds a high string making it B E A D G C, there are basses that have more strings such as 7+ but chances are you won't encounter them on the norm.

So now taking what I said earlier you just go up the neck adding a sharp or changing to the next note in terms of transitioning from B to C and E to F, so:

A A# B C C# D D# E F F# G G# and repeat.

flats work a little differently, a flat "brings you back" so instead of climbing towards the bridge of the bass, you'll drop to the head of your bass (lemme guess, you play a headless? ) Anyway, what that means is a G# is the same note as an Ab (b is the sign for a flat and # is the sign for a sharp, sorry I don't know how much you know) a fancier term would be G# is the enharmonic equivalent to an Ab, and all that means is they are the same note so the sixth fret on your D string can be referred to as either a G# or an Ab, since the fifth fret is a G and the seventh is an A.

Here's a chart on the notes for a four string bass.

String fret note

E 1 F
2 F#
3 G
4 G#
5 A
6 A#
7 B
8 C
9 C#
10 D
11 D#
12 E

A 1 A#
2 B
3 C
4 C#
5 D
6 D#
7 E
8 F
9 F#
10 G
11 G#
12 A

D 1 D#
2 E
3 F
4 F#
5 G
6 G#
7 A
8 A#
9 B
10 C
11 C#
12 D

G 1 G#
2 A
3 A#
4 B
5 C
6 C#
7 D
8 D#
9 E
10 F
11 F#
12 G

You may have noticed that it stops at the twelfth fret, that is because at the 12th fret, it repeats, yes, they are the same notes, an octave higher, so playing 12th fret is equivalent to playing the string open, 13th is equivalent to fret 1, 14th is equivalent to fret 2 etc.

Another thing to take note of, the fifth fret on a string is the same note as the open name of the string below it (useful for tuning) so the fifth fret on the E string is an A.

And the seventh fret of a string is the same note as the open string above it, so the seventh fret on the A string is the same as an E above it.

Hope I helped, you can send me a private message for more information or questions.

-Mike

[WHughes]

Originally Posted by Alaska Bass

Actually you will hear E#, Fb, B#, and Cb. They do exist. They are equivalent to F,E,C and B enharmonically but they do exist and real musicians do call them by those names depending upon the key being played.

I commend your effort to teach, just be sure the material being taught is accurate... something about the blind leading the blind?

Blind leading the naked.