Guitar scale · augmented hexatonic
C# Augmented Scale
Six-note symmetrical scale that alternates a minor 3rd and a half step: 1 ♯2 3 5 ♯5 7. It holds two augmented triads.
Tap any note to hear it.
C# Augmented Scale tab: all 5 positions
Each tab climbs from the low E string to the high e string. Play it up, then back down.
e|-----------------------------------9-12-13-| B|-----------------------------10-13---------| G|---------------------9-10-13---------------| D|---------------10-11-----------------------| A|---------11-12-----------------------------| E|-9-12-13-----------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------12-13-| B|-------------------------------13-14-------| G|-------------------------13-14-------------| D|----------------11-14-15-------------------| A|-------11-12-15----------------------------| E|-12-13-------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------13-16-17-| B|-------------------------------14-17----------| G|----------------------13-14-17----------------| D|----------------14-15-------------------------| A|----------15-16-------------------------------| E|-13-16-17-------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------16-17-20-| B|-------------------------------17-18----------| G|-------------------------17-18----------------| D|-------------------18-19----------------------| A|----------16-19-20----------------------------| E|-16-17-20-------------------------------------|
e|-------------------------------------20-21-| B|-------------------------------21-22-------| G|----------------------18-21-22-------------| D|-------------18-19-22----------------------| A|-------19-20-------------------------------| E|-20-21-------------------------------------|
How to play C# Augmented on guitar
Find the root first: C# is at fret 9 on the low E string and fret 4 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every C# on the neck; the gold ones are the rest of the scale's home chord (3, 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 9–13. 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.
C# Augmented is also written Db Augmented: Db E F Ab A C. The frets are the same; under that name every note keeps its own letter, with no double sharps or flats.
Degrees
| Degree | Note |
|---|---|
| 1 | C# |
| ♯2 | E |
| 3 | E# |
| 5 | G# |
| ♯5 | A |
| 7 | B# |
Fretwise · Free on iPhone & Android
Practise C# Augmented anywhere, even offline.
This page is a small slice of Fretwise. The app adds practice: exercises that play as tab, a new routine every day, and the tools to tune and keep time. On iPhone, iPad and Android, no sign-up.
Free
- 65 scales and 56 chord types in every key, with CAGED shapes
- A tuner with 10 tunings and a metronome from 30 to 260 BPM
- A new Daily 15 routine every day, plus free exercises
- Maqam & makam between the frets, and the Name the Note quiz
One purchase
- 282 exercises that play as tab, and routines with a speed trainer
- Chord & Scale Finder: tap the neck, get the name
- Theory Lab and the Progression Builder with 51 genre loops
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Questions
- What notes are in the C# Augmented Scale?
- The C# Augmented Scale has 6 notes: C#, E, E#, G#, A, B#.
- What is the formula of the augmented scale?
- 1 ♯2 3 5 ♯5 7, which is the step pattern W+H H W+H H W+H H (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play C# Augmented on the guitar?
- The root C# is at fret 9 on the low E string and fret 4 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 9–13, and four more positions connect it up the neck.