Holding a powerchord?

[suicidalmoose]

Ok before you get angry at me, I know what a powerchord is and i've used them heaps.

My question is when you're holding a powerchord like

3
3
1

which fingers do you find best? I used to use my index for the root note and my pinky and ring finger to hit the complementary notes underneat, however recently i've looked into it and somebody suggested barring the notes with my index and pinky finger (kinda like the metal sign! !..!).

what works best? I find the index and pinky finger technique seems to be more accurate however it's hurting my wrist a bit because barring strings puts stress on my wrist a bit.

[ren]

I've always used my index and third fingers for this sort of stuff. I don't barre with my Pinky - It hurts like hell across the joint... I can do it quickly, but I couldn't hold it for chords for long....

I do the same thing for full major chords rooted on the A string.... I can flat out across the 3 strings, but till leave the E open.

There's more strength in your third finger than your pinky, so if you want a recommendation, that's mine... :D

[jeffhx]

thats why i hate the B chord...

[rockonn91]

im a slacker when it comes to powerchords, I barre everything.

like, index for the lowest one, bar with the middle for the others.

its how I learned power chords... its how Ive always done them.

[DAMAGED ONE]

Just pretend you flipping the bird to everyone. :D

[6strngs_2hmbkrs]

ew. I don't bar anything unless I have to. I play them with my index, ring, and pinky. it's alot more comfortable, and when you play the kind of music I do where power chords make up a majority of everything you play, being comfortable is important otherwise after two songs you're ready to quit. plus, if you're writing music with power chords in it, that position makes it easier to do variations of power chords to keep your music interesting. for example

D|-3--3--3--3----3--3p1-1---
A|-3--3--3--1h3--1--1---1---
E|-1--1--1--1----1--1---1---

I dunno, that was just an example I just made up... but you get the idea. if anything, the first finger is to be barred for me, then my other fingers can move around and create variation

[suicidalmoose]

well i found barring much more useful for DADGBE tunings when i'm alternating between a barred powerchord with the root on the top string and a powerchord on the 2nd from the top.

But i guess i'll try all the ways again, and maybe go back to the pinkie and ring finger combo. Depends on what my wrist thinks.

[Jolly McJollyson]

Well, in drop D of course you're gonna bar those chords.

[jimmy_kwtx]

I play them both and sometimes I'll just use the Octave way to play the power chord....

Ex

e--X
B--X
G--X
D--3
A--X
E--1

Or just the root 5

Ex

e--X
B--X
G--X
D--X
A--3 (4)
E--1 (1)


What I found is that they can all work but the deciding factor on which "one" to play will depend more on what the rhythm is doing.

If you are only playing "short" intervals of the chord and it is up-tempo thenthe 1 ,3,4 (fingering) works, or the 2nd example for root5.

The barred way I tend to use more for "sliding" up to the chord and for songs that need the chord to hold longer. It is more of a matter of personal choice. I beleive in learning to play chord all ways and shapes and let the "song" dictate the way you play the chord.

In a nut shell-- Learn each different way accordingly.

2 cents

[suicidalmoose]

good advice.

just remembered why i started barring power chords ... metalica fade to black ...

2
5
5

[Mark Pav]

The way I play almost any chord depends a fair bit on the context--what I'm playing next, what I played before it, whether or not I'm gonna play a bit of lead stuff and then return to the chord, whether or not I will embellish the chord.

So sometimes I'd play that Bb power chord with my first and third fingers, sometimes with the first and pinky, sometimes with my first, third and pinky.

[6strngs_2hmbkrs]

Well, in drop D of course you're gonna bar those chords.
no he means that when in drop-D he bars chords that have roots on the 6th string, and he also bars chords with roots on the 5th string.

personally, in drop D I just bar anything on the 6th string, and go back to my normal 1, 3, 4 combo when I move down a string, I mean, you only have to add two fingers.

[jiujitsu_jesus]

I always play power chords with my index, ring finger and pinky - makes it much easier to throw in a Tony Iommi-style pull-off fill.

[suicidalmoose]

kk awesome so basically there's no right or wrong , or good or bad technique, it realyl depends on the context of the song and how the powerchords are being used.

So if it's a riff consisting only of powerchords then i'd prolly bar with my first and pinky (or my first and ring for higher riffs) but if its a powerchord that's a part of a more complex riff then i might use my ring and pinky so i can improvise with it, I just find it less accurate when i'm sliding powerchords around.

[jiujitsu_jesus]

Exactly! :)

[jeffhx]

i find it almost impossible to bar with my pinky or ring finger..maybe it takes time

[suicidalmoose]

i find it almost impossible to bar with my pinky or ring finger..maybe it takes time

i made myself learn it buy playing loads of system of a down songs.

[kennyp46]

I read somewhere, either on here, or some other forum, that powerchords aren't exactly chords. Something about a note missing to make it a triad. My question is do all powerchords have their root on the E, A and D string or can a powerchord be formed on G, B and e strings as well.

[6strngs_2hmbkrs]

I read somewhere, either on here, or some other forum, that powerchords aren't exactly chords. Something about a note missing to make it a triad. My question is do all powerchords have their root on the E, A and D string or can a powerchord be formed on G, B and e strings as well.
technically speaking, a chord is three or more notes. a power chord only uses two notes (a root and a 5th). Power chords are mainly used when you're playing with plenty of distortion due to the fact that with alot of distortion, playing three or more notes can be kinda jumbled sounding, so power chords only play two and it sounds good. most modern rock uses powerchords almost exclusively in their music. And yes, you can technically play a power chord on any string(s) you want to, but I don't think most would call it a powerchord if it were on, say, the e and B strings. At that point it'd just be two notes that sound good together :cool: maybe jolly can give a better description.

[kennyp46]

So, i guess you can play powerchords anywher you can get a root and a fifth or two roots and a fifth or a root and two fifths :rolleyes: I might need those two fifths...lol The reason this question came up in my mind is i was watching some of Stevie Rays videos and he uses alot of "chords" up in the upper frets and i imagine some of them are 9ths but some of them look like powerchord configurations too. but to my still untrained eye a multitude of things i guess :(

[jiujitsu_jesus]

Basically, when you're playing rhythm, you call them power chords. When you're playing lead, you call 'em diads or double-stops. ;)

[suicidalmoose]

technically speaking, a chord is three or more notes. a power chord only uses two notes (a root and a 5th). Power chords are mainly used when you're playing with plenty of distortion due to the fact that with alot of distortion, playing three or more notes can be kinda jumbled sounding, so power chords only play two and it sounds good. most modern rock uses powerchords almost exclusively in their music. And yes, you can technically play a power chord on any string(s) you want to, but I don't think most would call it a powerchord if it were on, say, the e and B strings. At that point it'd just be two notes that sound good together :cool: maybe jolly can give a better description.


Only 2 notes? most powerchords i come by are structured like so

7 9
7 or 9
5 7

so these aren't powerchords?

sure there are metallica riffs like in for whom the bell tolls that use powerchords like so

2 4
0 and 2


Or have i totally confused myself.

[jiujitsu_jesus]

Only 2 notes? most powerchords i come by are structured like so

7 9
7 or 9
5 7

so these aren't powerchords?

sure there are metallica riffs like in for whom the bell tolls that use powerchords like so

2 4
0 and 2


Or have i totally confused myself.

No, you're right - triads can be power chords as well. In fact, the first "power chord song" my teacher taught me was "Anthem for the Year 2000" by Silverchair, which uses three-note power chords.

[6strngs_2hmbkrs]

well, technically a power chord only has two different notes. such as:

---
---
---
---
-2-
-0-

but you can play it with three notes like so:

---
---
---
-2-
-2-
-0-

because that second "2" on the 4th string is an E, which is the same exact note as the "0" on the 6th string, so you are playing a root, a fifth, and then another root. so technically it's only two different notes because you're playing the same note in two different places.

now, if you add a third different note, it's not really a power chord anymore, it's a triad. which is what most chords are.

[suicidalmoose]

well, technically a power chord only has two different notes. such as:

---
---
---
---
-2-
-0-

but you can play it with three notes like so:

---
---
---
-2-
-2-
-0-

because that second "2" on the 4th string is an E, which is the same exact note as the "0" on the 6th string, so you are playing a root, a fifth, and then another root. so technically it's only two different notes because you're playing the same note in two different places.

now, if you add a third different note, it's not really a power chord anymore, it's a triad. which is what most chords are.

cheers man

[6strngs_2hmbkrs]

cheers man
anytime! :cool: