F Locrian Pentatonic Guitar Scale — Drop B

Guitar scale in Drop B tuning — fretboard diagram

F Locrian Pentatonic in Drop B — Notes and Intervals

The F Locrian Pentatonic scale is an unstable and mysterious scale used to evoke tension and ambiguity. On Guitar, its notes are F, Ab, Bb, B, Eb. It is often found in experimental music and certain Indian Ragas, providing a dissonant, outside sound that is perfect for dark, avant-garde, or high-tension compositions. Commonly used in Jazz, Fusion, Experimental, Progressive. Notable players include John Scofield, Kurt Rosenwinkel. Use over m7b5 (half-diminished) chords. Essential for jazz solos over ii chords in minor ii-V-i progressions.

Notes: F, Ab, Bb, B, Eb

Intervals: 1P, 3m, 4P, 5d, 7m

Degrees: 1 b2 3 4 b5

Formula: WH-W-H-4-W

Number of notes: 5

Tuning: Drop B (B-F#-B-E-G#-C#)

Also known as: minor seven flat five pentatonic

About Drop B Tuning

Drop B tuning (B-F#-B-E-G#-C#) takes the guitar into territory traditionally reserved for 7-string instruments, delivering a subsonic heaviness that you can feel in your chest. This tuning has become essential in modern extreme metal, deathcore, and djent, where low-end clarity and rhythmic precision are paramount.

Drop B represents the practical limit of what a standard 6-string guitar can handle before tone quality degrades. With the right string gauge (12-60 or heavier) and proper setup, it delivers the crushing lows of a 7-string while keeping the familiar 6-string layout. Bands like Architects, Periphery (on some tracks), and Parkway Drive have used Drop B to create some of the heaviest riffs in modern metal.

DeathcoreDjentProgressive MetalExtreme MetalMetalcore

Notable artists: Architects, Parkway Drive, Whitechapel, Born of Osiris, Emmure

Best for: Extreme metal riffs, deathcore breakdowns, djent chugs, and any style demanding the lowest possible 6-string tuning

Explore This Scale in Other Tunings

← All Guitar scales in Drop B tuning