Guitar Online: A Virtual Fretboard and Chords with Sound in Your Browser

How to play guitar online

The virtual fretboard is the same as in the Notes section: six strings, 23 frets and coloured dots for the notes of the chosen scale.

• Pick a key, a scale and a position above the fretboard: the dots show the notes of that position. Tap a dot to hear the note of that string and fret. The Play the scale button plays the position up and down.
• The top string on the screen is the thinnest (the high E) and the bottom one is the thickest (the low E). Tabs lay the strings out the same way.

Notes on the fretboard: what sounds where

The open strings from bottom to top sound E, A, D, G, B, E. Each fret raises the sound by a half step: the twelfth fret gives the same note as the open string, one octave higher.

To memorize the notes on the fretboard read how to learn the notes on the fretboard and guitar string names. You can tune your own guitar in the online tuner.

Chords online: the first five

Below is a chord trainer. Pick a combination and press Play: the chords change on the count, and tapping a diagram plays a single chord. Em and Am are enough to start, then add C, G and D: these chords are enough for hundreds of songs.

How to place your fingers and change chords without stopping is in which chords to learn first and how to practice chords.

From playing online to your own music

When tapping gets old, build a riff out of notes: in the riff builder you pick notes with the mouse and they turn into a tab at once. Ready simple riffs with tabs are in riffs for beginners.

The full Riffonic studio lets you place notes on any string and fret, add chords, bass and drums and save your music.

Guitar online on a phone

On a phone you can swipe the fretboard sideways, and a tap on a fret plays the note. Turn the sound on and use headphones: you hear better and do not disturb others. For a wider fretboard turn the phone to landscape.