STRINGSCALES

B♭ ultralocrian Scale — Guitar Fretboard Visualization

Low E string: Fb, Gb, Abb, Bb, Cb, Dbb, Ebb, Fb at frets 0, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12

A string: Bb, Cb, Dbb, Ebb, Fb, Gb, Abb at frets 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10

D string: Ebb, Fb, Gb, Abb, Bb, Cb, Dbb, Ebb at frets 0, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 12

G string: Abb, Bb, Cb, Dbb, Ebb, Fb, Gb, Abb at frets 0, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12

B string: Cb, Dbb, Ebb, Fb, Gb, Abb, Bb, Cb at frets 0, 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 11, 12

High E string: Fb, Gb, Abb, Bb, Cb, Dbb, Ebb, Fb at frets 0, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12

Pick a root note

Pick a scale

Bb ultralocrian

The ultralocrian scale is the seventh mode of the harmonic minor scale: locrian with its 4th and 7th squeezed down further, leaving a diminished 7th chord spelled straight up the scale. Everything in it wants to collapse inward, which makes it a natural over diminished 7th chords and the darkest corners of metal and jazz vocabulary.

it consists of these notes and degrees:

B♭

I

D𝄫7no5/Bb
C♭

bii

C♭m
D𝄫

bbIII

D𝄫maj
E𝄫

bIV+

E𝄫aug
F♭

bv

F♭m
G♭

bVI

G♭majb5
A𝄫

bbVII

A𝄫maj

Characteristic note: G (bb7), the double-flat seventh that makes this the darkest mode of harmonic minor.

Same notes, different mode

Bb ultralocrian uses the same notes as the scales below. Start from a different note and you get a new mode built on the very same note set.

Cb neapolitan minorC lydian #6D mixolydian augmentedFb romani minorGb locrian dominantG ionian major #2

ultralocrian in all 12 keys, with chords and related scales

tip
  • Use Bb ultralocrian over a diminished 7th chord: the double-flat 7th (G) is the chord's own diminished 7th, spelled into the scale.
  • It is harmonic minor's seventh mode: play Bb a half step up in harmonic minor fingering and you are already here.
  • Everything wants to fall; resolve the whole line down a half step into the major or minor chord below.
  • For extreme metal color, pedal the open root against b2 (B), b4 (D) and b5 (E); there is no darker mode in the harmonic minor family.

How to play B♭ ultralocrian on guitar

A-shape barre at fret 1 reaches the root immediately. With 7 flats and spellings like Dbb and Abb on the page, a fret 1 capo into A fingering saves real effort, which means reading stops being the obstacle. Five open strings still fall inside the scale, both E strings included as Fb. Chords run Cbm, Fbm, Ebbaug and onward with no functional dominant, so cadences take the scenic route.

homeall scalesaboutfaqpricingmicrotonalterms & conditionsprivacy policycookie policy© 2026 StringScales. All rights reserved.