Fretboard frustration

I am seeing all of these magical ways to learn the fretboard in minutes. Does anyone know a simple set of rules to help learn the fretboard?

yeah, almost all those adds that guarantee learning the fretboard in minutes don't really offer anything good, or near worth the cost of them.

here's how you learn the fretboard. you first learn the musical alphabet, then the names of the strings, and you can "count" your way to any note on the fretboard... and with time, patience, and practice you will basically memorize where all the notes are.

so, the names of your strings are:
E (thinnest)
B
G
D
A
E (thickest)

and the musical alphabet goes: A - A#/Bb - B - C - C#/Db - D - D#/Eb - E - F - F#/Gb - G - G#/Ab - A - etc...

so just remember there are no sharps (#) or flats (b) between B and C... and E and F, and you can count your way through the fretboard.

so, for example, if we took the 5th string, which is the second thickest, and the A string, and counted up; the open string is an A, the first fret is an A# (or a Bb, essentially an A# is the exact same as a Bb, just two names for the same note) the second fret is a B, the third fret is a C, the fourth is a C#, etc.

and you can count your way from any string up to any note you want and eventually it just sticks in your head and you "master" the fretboard. but don't be fooled by adds, this is something that takes practice, not something you can learn in minutes.

If this was at all confusing, forgive me, it's midnight and I'm tired... If you have any questions, feel free to ask and I (or someone else) will gladly answer them for you! but I hope this helped some.

maybe this can help

click me

exactly what 6strgs said..u can also try to experiment with the sounds...as u go up the notes on each fret you can sorta tune ur ears to the sounds that sound 'similar'... take 'do-re-mi-fa-so...' and go up the fret board on one string...say for example...use the 6th string (thickest string)... and start from striking it open at first, and then fretting fret 1... strike again then go up to the 2nd fret...you wud find some frets sound weird and out of place...use do-re-mi as a guide...thats how i learnt it..and soon ull be so used to it u just know where to go! hope this helps

what i do is say in my head the name of the note i am playing when im playing stuff like songs.

Whenever you see those ads for learning the fretboard in minutes and what not is only a cheaply made slideshow on clever ways of remembering the note order. If you just keep reading the musical alphabet you'll eventually memorize the notes and save yourself $40. But if you want to "learn the fretboard" as in play better and faster, then that can only be done with daily exercise of at least a good hour or two.

Originally Posted by: purewhat i do is say in my head the name of the note i am playing when im playing stuff like songs.

That's very good advice. I do the same thing. It helps.

another thing is to play a pattern in asmany different places as you can find on your fretboard, so say for instance a pattern starts on the "A"note on the low"e" string, play it here, then again, at the 17th fret of the lowE,and on the7thfret of the d,and starting on an open A,and then the2nd fretof the G string, and so on...this will familiarise you with the waythe notes are arranged on a fretboard