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A♭ minor 7th flat 5th chord on guitar (A♭m7♭5)
Also called or written A♭m7♭5, A♭ or A♭ Half Diminished Minor 7
A♭ minor 7th flat 5th contains A♭, C♭, E♭♭, and G♭. The 4th fret voicing uses four fingers on four adjacent strings, demanding precise placement.
How it is built
Formula 1, ♭3, ♭5, ♭7
- Root positionA♭–C♭–E♭♭–G♭A♭m7♭54-5-4-4-×-×
- First inversionC♭–E♭♭–G♭–A♭A♭m7♭5/C♭×-2-0-1-0-2
- Second inversionE♭♭–G♭–A♭–C♭A♭m7♭5/E♭♭×-×-0-1-0-2
- Third inversionG♭–A♭–C♭–E♭♭A♭m7♭5/G♭2-2-0-1-0-2
How do you play an A♭ minor 7th flat 5th chord on guitar?
A♭ minor 7th flat 5th is played at the 4th fret as 4 5 4 4 × ×: index finger on the low E string at fret 4, pinky finger on the A string at fret 5, middle finger on the D string at fret 4 and ring finger on the G string at fret 4. The B and high e strings stay muted.
Full note and interval breakdown
| String | Fret | Finger | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | 4 | 1 | A♭ (1) |
| 5 (A) | 5 | 4 | E♭♭ (♭5) |
| 4 (D) | 4 | 2 | G♭ (♭7) |
| 3 (G) | 4 | 3 | C♭ (♭3) |
| 2 (B) | muted | — | — |
| 1 (e) | muted | — | — |
AdvancedThe 4th fret voicing requires four fingers on four adjacent strings within two frets.
6th fret
A♭ minor 7th flat 5th is played at the 6th fret as × × 6 7 7 7: index finger on the D string at fret 6, middle finger on the G string at fret 7, ring finger on the B string at fret 7 and pinky finger on the high e string at fret 7. The low E and A strings stay muted.
Full note and interval breakdown
| String | Fret | Finger | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | muted | — | — |
| 5 (A) | muted | — | — |
| 4 (D) | 6 | 1 | A♭ (1) |
| 3 (G) | 7 | 2 | E♭♭ (♭5) |
| 2 (B) | 7 | 3 | G♭ (♭7) |
| 1 (e) | 7 | 4 | C♭ (♭3) |
9th fret
A♭ minor 7th flat 5th is played at the 9th fret as × 11 9 11 9 10: barre your index finger across fret 9, ring finger on the A string at fret 11, pinky finger on the G string at fret 11 and middle finger on the high e string at fret 10. The low E string stays muted.
Full note and interval breakdown
| String | Fret | Finger | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | muted | — | — |
| 5 (A) | 11 | 3 | A♭ (1) |
| 4 (D) | 9 | 1 (barre) | C♭ (♭3) |
| 3 (G) | 11 | 4 | G♭ (♭7) |
| 2 (B) | 9 | 1 (barre) | A♭ (1) |
| 1 (e) | 10 | 2 | E♭♭ (♭5) |
11th fret
A♭ minor 7th flat 5th is played at the 11th fret as × 11 12 11 12 ×: index finger on the A string at fret 11, ring finger on the D string at fret 12, middle finger on the G string at fret 11 and pinky finger on the B string at fret 12. The low E and high e strings stay muted.
Full note and interval breakdown
| String | Fret | Finger | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | muted | — | — |
| 5 (A) | 11 | 1 | A♭ (1) |
| 4 (D) | 12 | 3 | E♭♭ (♭5) |
| 3 (G) | 11 | 2 | G♭ (♭7) |
| 2 (B) | 12 | 4 | C♭ (♭3) |
| 1 (e) | muted | — | — |
A♭m7♭5/C♭ inversion
A♭ minor 7th flat 5th is played in open position as × 2 0 1 0 2: middle finger on the A string at fret 2, index finger on the G string at fret 1 and ring finger on the high e string at fret 2. The D and B strings ring open. The low E string stays muted.
Full note and interval breakdown
| String | Fret | Finger | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 (E) | muted | — | — |
| 5 (A) | 2 | 2 | C♭ (♭3) |
| 4 (D) | open | — | E♭♭ (♭5) |
| 3 (G) | 1 | 1 | A♭ (1) |
| 2 (B) | open | — | C♭ (♭3) |
| 1 (e) | 2 | 3 | G♭ (♭7) |
Why it sounds like that
A♭ minor 7th flat 5th is built from the formula 1, ♭3, ♭5, ♭7. The diminished 5th between A♭ and E♭♭ gives the chord its unstable character. Compare it to A♭ minor 7th, which has an E♭ instead of E♭♭.
What goes wrong with A♭ minor 7th flat 5th?
- Letting the 1st string ring out, which adds an E that is not part of the chord.
- Muting the 2nd string incompletely, causing it to sound and muddy the voicing.
When to use it
A♭ minor 7th flat 5th acts as the ii chord in F♯ natural minor, leading to C♯7 and then F♯ minor. Its brooding quality fits modal jazz and slow blues.
Changing to and from A♭ minor 7th flat 5th
- Move to A♭ minor 7th by lifting the pinky from the 5th string, 5th fret, and placing it on the 4th string, 6th fret.
Which voicing to use
The 4th fret voicing has the root A♭ in the bass, while the 6th fret position offers a movable shape without open strings. The 9th fret position provides a higher, more piercing sound.
Other A♭ chords
Common questions
How is A♭ minor 7th flat 5th written?
A♭ minor 7th flat 5th is written as A♭m7♭5 or A♭ half-diminished. The ASCII root is Ab. It is also spelled G♯ in enharmonic notation for the same sounding root.
What is the difference between A♭ minor 7th flat 5th and A♭ diminished?
A♭ minor 7th flat 5th has a minor 7th (G♭), while A♭ diminished has a diminished 7th (G♭♭). The half-diminished chord is less tense.
Why is the 2nd string muted in the 4th fret voicing?
The 2nd string open is B, which is a chord tone, but muting it preserves the intended bass note A♭ and keeps the voicing clear.