Guitar scale · pentatonic & blues
F# Man Gong Scale
Pentatonic scale 1 ♭3 4 ♭6 ♭7. It is the third mode of the major pentatonic, a minor pentatonic with the 5th replaced by a ♭6.
Tap any note to hear it.
F# Man Gong 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|---------------------2-5-| B|-----------------3-5-----| G|-------------2-4---------| D|---------2-4-------------| A|-----2-5-----------------| E|-2-5---------------------|
e|---------------------5-7-| B|-----------------5-7-----| G|-------------4-7---------| D|---------4-7-------------| A|-----5-7-----------------| E|-5-7---------------------|
e|-----------------7-| B|---------------7---| G|-----------7-9-----| D|-------7-9---------| A|---7-9-------------| E|-7-----------------|
e|----------------------------10-12-| B|----------------------10-12-------| G|-----------------9-11-------------| D|------------9-12------------------| A|-------9-12-----------------------| E|-10-12----------------------------|
e|----------------------------12-14-| B|-------------------------12-------| G|-------------------11-14----------| D|-------------12-14----------------| A|-------12-14----------------------| E|-12-14----------------------------|
How to play F# Man Gong on guitar
Find the root first: F# is at fret 2 on the low E string and fret 9 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every F# on the neck; the gold ones are the rest of the scale's home chord (♭3, ♭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 2–5. 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
| Degree | Note |
|---|---|
| 1 | F# |
| ♭3 | A |
| 4 | B |
| ♭6 | D |
| ♭7 | E |
Fretwise · Free on iPhone & Android
Practise F# Man Gong 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.
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One purchase
- 282 exercises that play as tab, and routines with a speed trainer
- Chord & Scale Finder: tap the neck, get the name
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Questions
- What notes are in the F# Man Gong Scale?
- The F# Man Gong Scale has 5 notes: F#, A, B, D, E.
- What is the formula of the man gong scale?
- 1 ♭3 4 ♭6 ♭7, which is the step pattern W+H W W+H W W (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play F# Man Gong on the guitar?
- The root F# is at fret 2 on the low E string and fret 9 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 2–5, and four more positions connect it up the neck.