CHORD REFERENCE

E Power Chord

E – B1 5

The E Power Chord chord and everything around it — the notes and how they are built, the shape on piano and guitar, the sound, and the keys it belongs to.

Notes
E1B5

E5 is E, B — the 1 and 5 above the root E.

Piano
EB
Guitar

Guitar — every position (frets 0–12)

357912eEBEBBEBGBEDEBABEEEBE

Root notes are red. There is no standard open shape for this chord — any group of these notes on the neck sounds the chord.

Ukulele (standard G–C–E–A)

357912ABEEEBECEBGBE

Every position of the chord tones on the ukulele neck — any group that sounds only E, B plays the chord.

In which keys

A power chord has no 3rd, so it fits both the major and the minor key on E — that ambiguity is exactly why it works under a distorted guitar.

Other E chords

Triads

EMajorEmMinorEdimDiminishedEaugAugmentedEsus2Suspended 2ndEsus4Suspended 4th

Sixths & sevenths

E6Major 6thEm6Minor 6thE7Dominant 7thEmaj7Major 7thEm7Minor 7thEm(maj7)Minor–Major 7thEdim7Diminished 7thEm7♭5Half-Diminished (m7♭5)E7sus47sus4

Altered dominants

E7♭57♭5E7♯57♯5 (Augmented 7th)E7♭97♭9E7♯97♯9 (Hendrix Chord)

Extended & added

Eadd9Added 9thE6/96/9E9Dominant 9thEmaj9Major 9thEm9Minor 9thE11Dominant 11thE13Dominant 13th
Power Chord on another root
CC♯D♭DE♭D♯EFF♯G♭GA♭G♯AB♭A♯B
Keep exploring

Work out the chords of a whole key with the Scale & Chord Finder, name a chord from its notes with the Chord Identifier, or browse every chord tool. The theory behind how chords are built is in the free Cloud Atelier music guides.