Originally Posted by: SFDonovanI read that the root of a chord is it's base note, and base notes are on the E and A (5th and 6th) string. If a chord doesn't use those strings, does it still have a base note?

The bass note is simply the lowest sounding note in a chord.

The root note is the tonic note of the chord, meaning it's the 1st note of the scale upon which the chord is built. If, you are playing some kind of A chord, then the root note is A. For a B chord, the root note is B.

The root note and the bass note are not necessarily the same thing. They can be the same note. And they often are the same note for a lot of basic open & barre chords.

But, (as Slipin already mentioned :) ) the lowest sounding note of a chord could also be a note other than the root. For example, it could be the 3rd, 5th or 7th. When a chord has a bass note other than it's root note, it is called an inversion.

This is all covered in GF2 Chapter 3.

http://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=824

Hope this helps!