Shape characteristics
Closed voicing
Every sounding string is fretted, with no open strings. Tight, controllable tone that responds well to palm muting and dynamic picking.
Mid-neck · fret 7-9
Balanced tone, with neither the ringing openness of first position nor the bright snap of the upper register. Common choice for rhythm work when you want a fuller, more compact sound.
Full six-string voicing
All six strings ring, giving you the biggest, most resonant version of this chord, ideal for strumming and solo acoustic contexts.
Bass: C♭ · Top: C♭
An extended chord tone is in the bass, giving the voicing a distinctive colour beyond the standard inversions.
Compared to Shape 78879a , this voicing uses a partial barre.
How to play this shape
- 1 Place the 1st finger on the 7th fret of the 1st string, 3rd string, and 6th string in barre position
- 2 Place the 2nd finger on the 8th fret of the 5th string
- 3 Place the 3rd finger on the 8th fret of the 4th string
- 4 Place the 4th finger on the 9th fret of the 2nd string
Frequently Asked Questions
What does "788797" mean?
The sequence 788797 is a highly compact guitar chord notation. It represents the fret played on each of the 6 strings, reading left-to-right from the thickest (lowest pitch) string to the thinnest (highest pitch) string: E, A, D, G, B, e.
- x means the string is muted or skipped entirely.
- 0 means the string is played "open" (without pressing over a fret).
- 1-9 represent standard fret numbers 1 to 9.
- a, b, c... represent frets 10, 11, 12, and higher (where a=10, b=11, c=12).
Can I play this B♭7♭9/C♭ shape anywhere else?
Yes! This specific layout is just one way to voice a B♭7♭9/C♭ chord. You can find all other variations in our chord shape library for B♭7♭9/C♭. Most guitarists choose different shapes based on whether they want a "brighter" or "deeper" sound, or which chord they are transitioning from.
Other shapes
Showing 5 of 5 playable shapes