The Capo

Even while you are just getting to know your guitar and learning the basic chords, you will want to start considering the use of a capo. Some hardcore experienced guitar players may scoff at the use of a capo. I however not being very experienced nor hardcore would highly recommend buying and using one. Especially for the beginner it opens up many more options when it comes to being able to play the songs and music you want to be able to play.

I suppose I should tell you want a capo is for those of you who are not aware. A capo is a basically a clamp that you can clamp on a particular fret of your guitar in order to quickly change the tone of the strings. For example, because each fret is a half step,when you put the capo on the second fret everything you play will be a whole step higher. That is the open C chord shape will produce a D chord sound and a G chord shape will produce and A chord sound and so on. Please keep in mind that most tablature and lessons will still refer to the chords by their shape and not their sound despite the use of a capo or not. So no need to panic, if you have learned your chord shapes you shouldn’t have to calculate any based on where you place the capo.

Why and when to use a capo? When you are first learning, you will likely be reading tablature online or watching a video lesson. In those instances you will likely be told to use or not use a capo for that particular lesson. There are multiple reasons to use a capo. One reason is to simply change the tone of your guitar to suite a particular piece of music. The other reason, which is why many of us newer guitar players use one, is so we can avoid those much more difficult chords such as the F chord or Barre chords. If you have not tried playing a Barre chord yet, when you do you will be reaching for that capo very quickly. I have been learning to play now for about a year and a half and have yet to figure out how to hold a Barre chord correctly so all the strings are pressed down correctly. Fortunately most songs I have wanted to learn I have found variations where I can either skip them all together or cheat my way through it.

What kind of capo to buy? There are several different kinds and many more brands of capos out there. Let’s first look at the type of capos that are available.

1)      The first type of capo is the elastic capo. This is typically the cheapest type of capo and consists of a piece of plastic or other hard material and an elastic band that is used to apply pressure to the plastic piece across the strings.

2)      The second type of capo is the trigger type. If you haven’t actually seen one, I would compare it roughly to an old spring cloths pin. There is a slight difference in shape but the general movement is the same. Basically you squeeze the two handles which opens the clamping side which can then be placed on the correct fret.

3)      The third style is the Screw type capo. Basically this type of capo you place on the appropriate fret and then using a screw mechanism you clamp it down to compress the strings.

My personal preference is the trigger type capo. It is quick to put on or take off and I have had no issues with any of the ones I have used. In terms of brand I don’t have a lot of experience with different brands. I will tell you that Kyser does make good capos and they are one of the preferred brands. I have no reason not to recommend then from a quality stand point. However I will also give you the tip of looking on EBay and perhaps other locations online. Although not Kyser brand, you can get capos relatively cheap there along with other guitar accessories. They probably would be quite a s good as Kyser but if you have less money to spend, you can’t complain. Again Kyser is an excellent capo and if you want to pay the slightly higher price then you can’t go wrong.