A♭ 7sus4 (A♭7sus4) chord on banjo

Looking for the A♭7sus4 chord on banjo? It is a 7sus4 chord (a sus4 chord plus a minor seventh), made of four notes: A♭ – D♭ – E♭ – G♭. The same chord with a different spelling: G♯ 7sus4 (G♯7sus4).

Dots show:

Basic shapemedium

Position 4easy

Position 6medium

Position 9medium

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Chord finder Transposer Tuner

What the A♭7sus4 chord sounds like

A 7sus4 is a suspended dominant seventh: a fourth replaces the third. It is less tense than a plain 7 chord and popular in funk, jazz and modern pop.

Notes of the A♭7sus4 chord

Degree	Note	Interval from the root
1	A♭	root
4	D♭	perfect fourth (5 semitones)
5	E♭	perfect fifth (7 semitones) – often omitted on fretted instruments
7	G♭	minor seventh (10 semitones)

How to play it – with fingering

Basic shape, barre at fret 1

String 1 (D): fret 4, little finger (G♭4)
String 2 (B): fret 2, middle finger (D♭4)
String 3 (G): fret 1, index finger (A♭3)
String 4 (D): fret 1, index finger (E♭3)

For the barre, lay your index finger flat across all the marked strings at fret 1; your other fingers press the higher frets.

Position 4, barre at fret 4

String 1 (D): fret 4, index finger (G♭4)
String 2 (B): fret 4, index finger (E♭4)
String 3 (G): fret 6, little finger (D♭4)
String 4 (D): fret 6, ring finger (A♭3)

For the barre, lay your index finger flat across all the marked strings at fret 4; your other fingers press the higher frets.

Position 6

String 1 (D): fret 6, ring finger (A♭4)
String 2 (B): fret 7, little finger (G♭4)
String 3 (G): fret 6, middle finger (D♭4)
String 4 (D): fret 6, index finger (A♭3)

Five-string banjo in open G tuning (g D G B D). The diagram shows the four long strings; the short 5th string (g) rings open – avoid it when G is not in the chord. In the diagram, × means the string is not played, and a circle means an open string.

Which keys is it in?

The A♭7sus4 chord is built from the notes of these keys (for minor keys, both the natural and the harmonic minor are considered):

D♭ major: V7sus4 (dominant)
E♭ minor: IV7sus4 (subdominant)
G♭ major: II7sus4
B♭ minor: VII7sus4

Similar chords and substitutes

If A♭7sus4 is too hard, or you want a different colour in the same spot, these chords are worth a try.

Substitutes (by function)

D7 – tritone substitute: the same third and seventh, swapped – a jazz favourite
Cdim7 – diminished seventh on the third: a common stand-in for the dominant
A♭7 – a simpler dominant
C♯ – where it resolves (V → I)

Simpler versions

A♭sus4 – all 3 of its notes are in this chord

Richer versions

A♭11 – the same chord plus 2 colour notes

Frequently asked questions

What notes are in the A♭7sus4 chord?

A♭, D♭, E♭, G♭. The root is A♭; the intervals of the other notes from the root: perfect fourth, perfect fifth, minor seventh.

What is the easiest way to play A♭7sus4 on banjo?

The easiest shape above is “Position 4”, rated easy. We show 4 shapes, from open and easy versions to movable barre shapes higher up the neck.

How do I read the chord diagram?

Strings run from the lowest (left) to the highest (right) – tick “Left-handed” to mirror it. Rows are frets; a number at the side shows the starting fret. Dots are fingers (1 index, 2 middle, 3 ring, 4 little), a long bar is a barre, × means don't play that string and ○ means play it open.

Why is a note missing from some A♭7sus4 shapes?

On a fretted instrument you can't always play every note of a 4-note chord. The fifth (E♭) may be dropped – the chord keeps its character without it.

How is the A♭7sus4 chord written?

The chord symbol is A♭7sus4 (also written Ab7sus4), and its full name is A♭ 7sus4.