Bass Woodshed

Bass scales, modes and arpeggios trainer for 4-, 5- and 6-string bass

Scale · 4-string · Root on E string, 3rd fret

G Major Scale

GABCDEF♯
EADG0123456789101112131415161718192021222324673456712345626712345671252345671234512345671234567112345671

Tab

Up and back down · 14 notes in 8th notes · 2 bars of 4/4
Note
Deg
G
D
A
E
Fing
G
1
3
2
A
2
5
4
B
3
2
1
C
4
3
2
D
5
5
4
E
6
2
1
F♯
7
4
3
G
1
5
4
F♯
7
4
3
E
6
2
1
D
5
5
4
C
4
3
2
B
3
2
1
A
2
5
4
·

How it's built

W = whole step (2 frets) · H = half step (1 fret)
G1Root
W
A2Major 2nd
W
B3Major 3rd
H
C4Perfect 4th
W
D5Perfect 5th
W
E6Major 6th
W
F♯7Major 7th
H
G8Octave

The reference scale. Every other scale and chord here is named by how it differs from this one.

Also called
Ionian mode
Key signature
1 sharp: F♯
Relative minor
E
Use it over
Major and major 7 chords. Lines that resolve to a major key centre.
Practice tip
Say the degree numbers out loud as you play. Knowing where the 3 and 5 sit is what lets you build lines straight from a chord chart.
Your best
Complete a loop to log a tempo for this pattern.

Practice routine

Add BPM every loops, up to BPM
every loops
Cycling 4ths is how jazz players drill a shape in all twelve keys.

Free bass scale, mode and arpeggio trainer

Bass Woodshed shows any scale, mode or arpeggio on a full 24-fret neck and in tab, with the fingering worked out, then plays it back with a plucked-bass sound, a metronome and a root drone so you can play along. It works on 4-, 5- and 6-string basses, needs no account, and runs in your browser.

See it

Fretboard with note names, scale degrees or finger numbers, plus the same notes mapped across the whole neck.

Read it

Tab with fingering and position shifts, step pattern, intervals, key signature and relative key for every pattern.

Play it

Play-along at 40 to 240 BPM in quarters, 8ths, triplets or 16ths, with count-in, speed builder and cycle-of-4ths key changes.

Level up

Earn XP and keep a daily streak, collect bronze, silver and gold medals for all 276 pattern-and-key pairs, and test your neck knowledge in Fretboard Sprint.

Every pattern, in every key

Scales

Modes

Arpeggios

Questions

Is Bass Woodshed free?
Yes. There is no sign-up, and your progress is saved in your own browser.
Does it work for 5-string and 6-string bass?
Yes. Choose 4, 5 or 6 strings above the neck. Five-string adds the low B and shapes rooted on it; six-string adds the high C and a three-octave shape.
How is the fingering chosen?
It uses one finger per fret, keeps your hand in one position where it can, and marks every shift and one-fret stretch. Every fret in the tab is checked to sound the right note.
Can I use it on my phone?
Yes. Turn on “Small speakers” to hear the bass an octave up through a phone speaker.

Your progress