X Lever Chord Scales

Bobby Lee · Post by **Bobby Lee** » 14 Feb 2001 11:35 am

I recently added the 5th string lower "X Lever" to my guitar, and set it to give me a tunable split with the A pedal. In other words, A+X is tunable to a C note on the open string.

This is real useful for minor chords with pedals down. Here is the chord scale in the key of C using the X lever split. <big> <pre>
F#___________________________________________________________
D#___________________________________________________________
G#___3B___5B___7B___8B___10B__12B__ 14B___15B________________
E ___3____5____7____8____10___12___ 14E___15_________________
B ___3A___5AX__7AX__8A___10A__12AX__14AX__15A________________
G#___3B___5B___7B___8B___10B__12B___14B___15B________________
F#___________________________________________________________
E ___________________________________________________________
D ___________________________________________________________
B ___________________________________________________________
C Dm Em F G Am B° C </pre> </big>[This message was edited by Bobby Lee on 14 February 2001 at 11:38 AM.]

Jeff Lampert · Post by **Jeff Lampert** » 14 Feb 2001 11:56 am

I have the same lever, and I have played around with it for a while, and I know there are a bunch of chords that can voiced with it. What I would like to know from anyone is, can you name a single song with a single lick anywhere where someone has used this change? A friend of mine swears by this pedal, but after all the intros and breaks I've listened to and tabbed in the past 8 months or so, I haven't heard one which uses this change! I've heard solos where the change could have been used, but the player instead dropped back a fret and used the F pedal. What recorded licks use this pedal, where there are no commonplace alternatives available? Surely there must be some examples, when you consider that many players have this change. [This message was edited by Jeff Lampert on 14 February 2001 at 11:58 AM.]

Ricky Davis · Post by **Ricky Davis** » 14 Feb 2001 12:59 pm

Hey my Brother Jeff; I used it all over the "Truckin' Sessions" and "People I've Known and Places I've seen" Dale Watson CD's.
Only thing is; I don't use that change because it's not avaliable to play a pass any other way; is really out of ease and not a neccesity. Take for instance:
<pre>
3._8~~~~~~~~~
4._8~~~~~~~~~
5._8a~8L~8~8L
</pre>
That is much easier with the lever; because to play the same lick without the lever, you would have more stuff to enguage like so>
<pre>
3._8~~7b~8~7b
4._8~~7R~8~7R
5._8a~7a~8~7
</pre>
So I guess out of ease is what I believe that lever is; and cuts down on movement of the Bar.
Actually; I've now taken off that change on my extra knee lever(only have 4); and I do play all the licks and passes that I used to use that lever for; by moving the bar and using other changes>"Go figure".
Ricky[This message was edited by Ricky Davis on 14 February 2001 at 01:02 PM.]

Bobby Lee · Post by **Bobby Lee** » 14 Feb 2001 2:23 pm

The X lever with pedals down is very similar to P6 on the C6th neck. Here is how you play the same chord scale on C6th: <pre>D ___________________________________________________________
E ___________________________________________________________
C ___0____2____4____5____7____9_____11____12_________________
A ___________________________________________________________
G ___0____2____4____5____7____9_____11B___12_________________
E ___0____2C___4C___5____7____9C____11C___12_________________
C ___0____2____4____5____7____9_____11____12_________________
A ___________________________________________________________
F ___________________________________________________________
C ___________________________________________________________
C Dm Em F G Am B° C </pre>(B is p5 and C is p6)

With pedals down the E9th becomes an A6th, and the X lever serves the same function as pedal 6 on the back neck. It flats the third of the chord.

I don't really think in terms of licks. Paul Franklin doesn't have an X lever, so that would explain why you don't hear the X lever much on pop country songs.

Bengt Erlandsen · Post by **Bengt Erlandsen** » 14 Feb 2001 3:47 pm

Having the x-lever will not only make certain licks easier, it will also open up a new world of things to play since it can be used together with almost any pedal-combination. If I could use the 4th string E-Eb split with E-F# (C-pedal) at the same time it would start to get seriously fun.
If I was to only play two notes at a time I probably could do without it, but for chords with 3 or 4 notes at the same time. Plenty of things to do with that X-lever.

Bengt

Don Townsend · Post by **Don Townsend** » 14 Feb 2001 5:37 pm

Jeff; Here's 2 spots I can think of readily.
I think Buddy used that X lever split lick in "The Other Woman", and I believe I hear it in "Husbands & Wives"---if we're talking about the same lick here?