The G shape is the open G chord — roots on BOTH E strings plus the 5th-string B — made movable. In its full form it is the widest stretch of the five shapes, and most players use a trimmed version: drop the low-string root, keep the top four strings, and the stretch relaxes into something playable at speed.
Where it starts, for every root
Recomputed from the voicing library: the G shape's major form for each of the twelve roots, with its starting fret and exact frets (x = muted). The geometry is identical in every row — only the address changes.
| Root | Starts at | Frets (6th → 1st) |
|---|---|---|
| A | fret 2 | 5–4–2–2–2–5 |
| A# | fret 3 | 6–5–3–3–3–6 |
| B | fret 4 | 7–6–4–4–4–7 |
| C | fret 5 | 8–7–5–5–5–8 |
| C# | fret 6 | 9–8–6–6–6–9 |
| D | fret 7 | 10–9–7–7–7–10 |
| D# | fret 8 | 11–10–8–8–8–11 |
| E | fret 9 | 12–11–9–9–9–12 |
| F | fret 10 | 13–12–10–10–10–13 |
| F# | fret 11 | 14–13–11–11–11–14 |
| G | fret 1 | 3–2–0–0–0–3 |
| G# | fret 1 | 4–3–1–1–1–4 |
Using it
The G shape is position 3, bridging the A shape below it and the E shape above. Its special gift is the doubled root — one on the 6th string, one on the 1st — which makes it the loudest, most root-saturated of the five forms and a favorite for big open-air strumming when played near the nut.
Meet it first as open G, then find A major at fret 2 in the same geometry. If the full stretch fights back, treat the top-four-string trim as the real chord and the low root as an optional bass note — the shape's identity survives the trim, and the table above still names its address for every root.