What If The CAGED System For Guitar Was Simple?

You've heard of the CAGED system for understanding the neck of the guitar.

But it seems complicated.

How do you move guitar chords to different locations on the neck of the guitar?

Here’s the simple version.

CAGED is an acronym for the C, A, G, E, and D chord shapes.

Each one can move up the neck.

For example:

The C chord shape moved up two frets is a D chord.

The A shape moved up two frets is a B chord.

The G shape moved up two frets is an A chord.

The E shape moved up one fret is an F chord.

The D shape moved up two frets is an E chord.

When you move each chord shape up, you have three options for how to treat the open strings:

1. Barre Chords 

Replace every open string in the original chord shape with a barre. This means you change the fingering of the original shape so your index finger is free to barre.

2. Pluck Notes in the Shape 

You can pluck only the strings that are in the chord shape and avoid plucking open strings. If you do this, there is no need for a barre.

3. Include Open Strings

You can find frets where the open strings sound good with the chord shape slid up the neck. For example, an E shape slid up 5 frets and then 7 frets with all other strings open creates a mellow acoustic guitar sound. The E shape slid up 1 fret and then 3 frets with all other strings open creates a flamenco guitar sound.

Have fun moving the chord shapes to different places on the neck.

Keep making music!

If you want a warmup routine that gets your practice session off to a good start, you can get a free PDF of my warmup routine here.