B7sus4

B7sus4 is B, E, F# and A, a dominant seventh suspended fourth. The shape this page opens on is written x22200, lowest string first.

Also written B7sus or B dominant 7 sus 4. The same chord either way; which spelling you meet depends on who wrote the chart.

There are 7 common shapes for B7sus4 on the guitar, and 36 derived voicings in 4 families.

In which keys. Every note of B7sus4 belongs to C# minor (the ♭VII), D major (the vi), E major (the V), E minor (the v), F# minor (the iv), G major (the iii), A major (the ii) and B minor (the i).

The common shapes, written lowest string first: x22200, x24252, xxx455, xx4455, 797977, x-x-9-11-10-12, x-14-14-14-12-12.

Shell. Root, third and seventh: the guide tones fix the quality, so the fifth is dropped. That is what leaves a string free, so pick a tension to put on top. B7sus4 has x222xx, 777xxx, x-14-14-14-x-x, x2x25x, 7x79xx, 7x22xx, x-14-x-9-10-x.

Drop 2. A close-position chord with the second voice from the top lowered an octave. Sits on four adjacent strings. B7sus4 has 2222xx, xx2202, xx4455, xx7977, 7979xx, x-9-9-9-10-x, x-x-14-14-12-14, 14-14-14-14-x-x.

Drop 3. The third voice from the top lowered an octave. The dropped voice becomes the bass, which is why a string is skipped. B7sus4 has 2x220x, x2x252, x7x475, 5x445x, x-9-x-9-10-7, 7x797x, 12-x-9-11-10-x, x-12-x-11-12-12.

Open string. An open string left ringing against a fretted grip. Because it costs no finger, it sounds a note the closed shape has none left for -- a tension on top, or a pedal root underneath. Either a familiar grip with open strings added, or a shape so sparse the open strings carry the chord. These belong to their key rather than to a shape, so D, A, G and E have many and Eb a handful. B7sus4 has 00660x, x06600, 004600, 0044xx, xx4200, 0x760x.

Tensions. A shell of B7sus4, root, third and seventh, leaves a string free, and the tones that belong over it are the 9 (C#) and the 13 (G#).

The common shapes and the derived voicings come from different places, and both are explained in where the chords and the theory come from.