E9 pedal steel chord
A♭add9 on pedal steel
A♭ add 9 (A-flat add 9, Abadd9) · also written G♯add9 · 1,586 voicings on standard E9
Easiest A♭add9 on E9 pedal steel: bar on fret 4, no pedals, pick strings 5, 6, 7 & 8 (E♭–C–B♭–A♭).
- A♭, root
- C, 3rd
- E♭, 5th
- B♭, 9th
Where you’ll hear it: A major chord with a sparkling 9th — modern country and pop use it everywhere.
Start here: 3 grips to learn first
Every move is described by what it does to the strings, so these work on any E9 guitar. If your levers are wired differently, use the one that makes the same change.
Fret 4 · no pedals
Easiest- Bar on fret 4 (or 16)
- No pedals or levers
- Pick strings 5 · 6 · 7 · 8 — E♭ C B♭ A♭
Tab:
string 5fret 4
string 6fret 4
string 7fret 4
string 8fret 4
Fret 6 · B pedal
Pedals- Bar on fret 6 (or 18)
- Press the B pedal (G♯→A)
- Pick strings 6 · 7 · 8 · 9 — E♭ C B♭ A♭
Tab:
string 6fret 6B
string 7fret 6
string 8fret 6
string 9fret 6
Fret 9 · E→E♭ lever + D lever (past the stop)
Knee lever- Bar on fret 9 (or 21)
- Push the E→E♭ lever — left knee, pushing right (LKR) on most guitars
- Push the D lever (past the stop) (D♯→C♯ + D→C♯) — right knee, pushing right (RKR) on most guitars
- Pick strings 7 · 8 · 9 · 10 — E♭ C B♭ A♭
Tab:
string 7fret 9
string 8fret 9E→E♭
string 9fret 9D→C♯
string 10fret 9
More grips up the neck
Low neck · frets 0–7
Fret 6 · no pedals
- Bar on fret 6 (or 18)
- No pedals or levers
- Pick strings 7 · 8 · 9 — C B♭ A♭
Fret 4 · G♯→F♯ lever
- Bar on fret 4 (or 16)
- Push a lever that lowers string 6 (G♯→F♯) — not on every guitar; right knee, pushing left (RKL) on most newer guitars
- Pick strings 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 — C A♭ E♭ B♭
- Needs a lever that lowers string 6 (G♯→F♯) — not on every guitar.
Fret 6 · G♯→F♯ lever
- Bar on fret 6 (or 18)
- Push a lever that lowers string 6 (G♯→F♯) — not on every guitar; right knee, pushing left (RKL) on most newer guitars
- Pick strings 6 · 7 · 8 · 9 — C C B♭ A♭
- Needs a lever that lowers string 6 (G♯→F♯) — not on every guitar.
Mid neck · frets 5–12
Fret 7 · A pedal + E→F lever
- Bar on fret 7 (or 19)
- Press the A pedal (B→C♯)
- Push the E→F lever — left knee, pushing left (LKL) on most guitars
- Pick strings 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 — B♭ E♭ C A♭
Fret 6 · B pedal + D lever (half-stop)
- Bar on fret 6 (or 18)
- Press the B pedal (G♯→A)
- Push the D lever (half-stop) (D♯→D) — right knee, pushing right (RKR) on most guitars
- Pick strings 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 — C A♭ E♭ B♭
Fret 11 · B pedal + D lever (past the stop)
- Bar on fret 11 (or 23)
- Press the B pedal (G♯→A)
- Push the D lever (past the stop) (D♯→C♯ + D→C♯) — right knee, pushing right (RKR) on most guitars
- Pick strings 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 — C A♭ E♭ B♭
High neck · frets 10–17
Fret 16 · no pedals
- Bar on fret 16 (or 4)
- No pedals or levers
- Pick strings 6 · 7 · 8 — C B♭ A♭
Fret 11 · B + C pedals
- Bar on fret 11 (or 23)
- Press the B pedal (G♯→A)
- Press the C pedal (E→F♯ + B→C♯)
- Pick strings 5 · 6 · 8 · 10 — C A♭ E♭ B♭
Fret 16 · G♯→F♯ lever
- Bar on fret 16 (or 4)
- Push a lever that lowers string 6 (G♯→F♯) — not on every guitar; right knee, pushing left (RKL) on most newer guitars
- Pick strings 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 8 — C A♭ E♭ B♭ A♭
- Needs a lever that lowers string 6 (G♯→F♯) — not on every guitar.
Is your guitar set up differently?
Players wire their knee levers in different places, so this page names every change by what it does. Find the pedal or lever on your guitar that makes the same change — the name on yours doesn’t matter.
| Change | What it does · usually found |
|---|---|
| A pedalB→C♯ | Raises your B strings (5 & 10) a whole step to C♯.Usually: the A pedal on almost every E9 guitar |
| B pedalG♯→A | Raises your G♯ strings (3 & 6) a half step to A.Usually: the B pedal on almost every E9 guitar |
| C pedalE→F♯ + B→C♯ | Raises string 4 (E) to F♯ and string 5 (B) to C♯ — a whole step each.Usually: the C pedal on almost every E9 guitar |
| E→F leverE→F | Raises your E strings (4 & 8) a half step to F.Usually: left knee, pushing left (LKL) on most guitars |
| E→E♭ leverE→E♭ | Lowers your E strings (4 & 8) a half step to E♭.Usually: left knee, pushing right (LKR) on most guitars |
| F♯ & D♯ raise leverF♯→G♯ + D♯→E + G♯→F♯ | Raises string 1 (F♯) a whole step to G♯ and string 2 (D♯) a half step to E, and lowers string 6 (G♯) a whole step to F♯.Usually: right knee, pushing left (RKL) on most newer guitarsNot on every guitarOlder and student guitars often raise strings 1 & 7 F♯→G instead, and some players keep the 6th-string lower on another lever. |
| D lever (half-stop)D♯→D | Lowers string 2 (D♯) a half step to D at the half-stop; push on past it for C♯ with string 9.Usually: right knee, pushing right (RKR) on most guitars |
| D lever (past the stop)D♯→C♯ + D→C♯ | The same lever pushed past its half-stop: takes string 2 (D♯) on down to C♯ and brings in string 9 (D), a half step down to C♯.Usually: right knee, pushing right (RKR) on most guitarsA few student and older guitars stop at D, with no C♯ position. |
Pick your setup in Pedal Steel Atlas (it's free) — one of the built-in copedents, or your own exact one — and it re-voices every chord for your pedals and levers — open A♭add9 in the app → or compare common setups.
How to read the diagrams
- Diamond = the root (the note the chord is named after). Other notes are colored by their job in the chord, like the chips above.
- Blue string = a pedal or lever changes it. The label on the left shows the new note (E→F).
- Dashed line = the bar. Lay the steel directly over that fret, not between frets.
- Colored pedal or lever = press it. String 1 is the one farthest from you; string 10 is nearest.
Keep exploring
Pedal Steel Atlas
Every A♭add9 voicing — on your guitar
- Your setup. Pick a built-in copedent — or build your exact one, free — and every chord re-voices for your guitar.
- Real steel tone. Hear every grip and the pedal moves between them.
- Find the one you need. Filter by top note, bass string, or the changes you want to avoid.
- From chord to tab. Drop any grip into a tab and play it back.
Open A♭add9 in the appRuns right in your browser — nothing to install.