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Guitar scale · pentatonic & blues

B In Sen Scale

Japanese five-note scale 1 ♭2 4 5 ♭7. It holds a 7sus4 chord.

Notes BCEF#A
Formula 1 ♭2 4 5 ♭7
Steps H 4 W W+H W
Mood Dark, Spare, Mysterious
Heard in Japanese Traditional Music, Modern Rock

Interactive scale diagram

B In Sen Scale · Standard tuning

STR OP 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 E A D G B E

Tap any note to hear it.

B In Sen Scale tab: all 5 positions

Each tab climbs from the low E string to the high e string. Play it up, then back down.

Position 1 · E shape frets 7–10
e|-----------------------7-8-|
B|------------------7-10-----|
G|----------------9----------|
D|---------7-9-10------------|
A|-----7-9-------------------|
E|-7-8-----------------------|
Position 2 · D shape frets 9–12
e|-------------------------12-|
B|-------------------10-12----|
G|--------------9-11----------|
D|---------9-10---------------|
A|----9-12--------------------|
E|-12-------------------------|
Position 3 · C shape frets 11–14
e|----------------------------12-14-|
B|----------------------12-13-------|
G|----------------11-14-------------|
D|-------------14-------------------|
A|-------12-14----------------------|
E|-12-14----------------------------|
Position 4 · A shape frets 14–17
e|-------------------------------14-17-|
B|----------------------------17-------|
G|-------------------14-16-17----------|
D|-------------14-16-------------------|
A|-------14-15-------------------------|
E|-14-17-------------------------------|
Position 5 · G shape frets 16–19
e|----------------------------17-19-|
B|----------------------17-19-------|
G|----------------16-17-------------|
D|----------16-19-------------------|
A|-------19-------------------------|
E|-17-19----------------------------|

How to play B In Sen on guitar

Find the root first: B is at fret 7 on the low E string and fret 2 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every B on the neck; the gold ones are the rest of the scale's home chord (4, 5, ♭7), the safest notes to land on at the end of a phrase.

Learn it one box at a time. Position 1, the E shape, sits at frets 7–10. Once it's under your fingers, move to position 2 (the D shape) and play the notes the two boxes share, then keep going up the neck. After all five, the scale joins up into one pattern across the whole fretboard.

Degrees

DegreeNote
1 B
♭2 C
4 E
5 F#
♭7 A

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Practise B In Sen anywhere, even offline.

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Questions

What notes are in the B In Sen Scale?
The B In Sen Scale has 5 notes: B, C, E, F#, A.
What is the formula of the in sen scale?
1 ♭2 4 5 ♭7, which is the step pattern H 4 W W+H W (W = whole step, H = half step).
Where do I play B In Sen on the guitar?
The root B is at fret 7 on the low E string and fret 2 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 7–10, and four more positions connect it up the neck.

In Sen Scale in every key

More scales in B