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Guitar Power Chords Chart

Although Power Chords in the foundation consist of just 2 tones: the root note and the fifth, in this guitar power chords chart, for more massive sounding, the root note repeats twice: original one and the note located one octave above.

If you wanna get basics of the power chords simply skip playing the 3rd highest note.

Variant I

Variant II

Variant I

Variant II

C5C5C#5 / Db5C#5 / Db5
C power chordC power chord (alternative position)C sharp power chordC sharp power chord (alternative position)

D5		D5D#5 / Eb5D#5 / Eb5
D power chordD power chord (alternative position)D sharp power chordD sharp power chord (alternative position)

E5		E5F5F5
E power chordE power chord (alternative position)F power chordF power chord (alternative position)

F#5 and Gb5		F#5 and Gb5G5G5
F sharp power chordF sharp power chord (alternative position)G power chordG power chord (alternative position)

G#5 and Ab5		G#5 and Ab5A5A5
G sharp power chordG sharp power chord (alternative position)A power chordA power chord (alternative position)

A#5 and Bb5		A#5 and Bb5B5B5
A sharp power chordA sharp power chord (alternative position)B power chordB power chord (alternative position)

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The numbers in the circles illustrate comfortable fingering for the fretting hand, remember that the numbering begins from the index finger (1) to the pinky (4).

x - means the string is not to be played

o - means open string.

 

You can see that each power chord has the same simple structure, what actually changes from one to another is the fret number it begins with. So to easily get chord locations on your mind without the chart, all you need to know is where the root note stays on the fingerboard.

Here are the notes on the A and E lower string:

The root is the lowest note of a chord.

P.S.

The power chords can be a great starting point for composing rock and metal guitar riffs.
Just play different power chord progressions and sooner or later you'll find something interesting sounding.

As an example I took this simple progression:
C5 → → E5 → → C5 → → D5 → E5

After that, experiment with different picking patterns upon the chord progression you created, and stick with something catchy. The riff is done ;)

Here's my example riff:

If you need ideas on picking figures, check out guitar picking pattern examples.

 

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