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The OpenChord
V1 Guitar
Quick Start Guide
When you first plug in the controller, it defaults to Fret Mode. This means that in
order to press buttons, you'll be pressing the strings on the frets – Any string pressed
against the first fret will register as a Green button press, any string pressed between
the first and second frets as a Red button press, and so on.
In order to strum, press the metallic part of the pick against a string. Touching
any of the top 3 strings with the pick will register a down strum, and touching the any
of the bottom 3 strings will register as an up strum. This way, you can navigate through
the game menus like you would with a normal guitar controller.
fig 1. - Button Mapping of the Guitar in Fret Mode
First off, thanks for using an OpenChord guitar.
On this page, we're going to show you the basics
of how to use the V1 guitar to get you started
playing. This part covers how to use your guitar in
If you're using the Wii version of the controller,
you'll be connecting the guitar to the Wiimote, so
the first thing to do is find a good spot on your
guitar to hang the Wiimote from. If you're using
the separate box, hanging the Wiimote strap on a
tuning peg tends to work pretty well. If you've got
a version with the electronics built in, then try the
tone selection switch, one of the strap fasteners, or
string your guitar strap through the controller
strap.
Next, load up your chosen guitar game and plug
the guitar into either the Wiimote or the USB port.
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Summary of Contents for OpenChord V1
- Page 1 First off, thanks for using an OpenChord guitar. On this page, we're going to show you the basics of how to use the V1 guitar to get you started playing. This part covers how to use your guitar in If you're using the Wii version of the controller,...
- Page 2 The Red button on the controller corresponds to the Start button. It is used for pausing. The other button, the White button, is used to activate Star Power, Overdrive, or whatever bonus mode your game supports. The primary manner of activating Star Power/Overdrive is through pressing all the strings down on the first 4 frets.
- Page 3 The OpenChord.org V1 guitar Playing in Fret Mode When plugged in, the guitar always begins in Fret Mode. Fret Mode is the simplest play mode, and the closest approximation of playing Guitar Hero/Rock Band with a real guitar. In this mode, the spaces between the first 5 frets of the guitar act like the standard buttons in the game.
- Page 4 Caution should be taken when pressing multiple strings on the same note, however. While in most cases, you can do so without any trouble, due to the way the V1 records string presses, there are some cases where ▲Green and Red Notes Played two different fingerings are indistinguishable to the guitar.
- Page 5 The OpenChord.org V1 guitar Changing Play Mode In addition to Fret Mode, the V1 also lets you play with actual guitar notes (Note Mode) or chords (Chord Mode). To switch between these modes, you press the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th strings between the 3rd and fig 6.
- Page 6 The OpenChord.org V1 guitar Playing in Note Mode Changing from Fret Mode to Note Mode In Note Mode, instead of simply being mapped to the frets of the guitar, the buttons are mapped to actual guitar notes. This means that in order to play...
- Page 7 In order to press multiple buttons, you need to press multiple notes on the fretboard. You can also take advantage of the open strings for this purpose. fig 10. - Pressing Multiple Buttons in Note Mode In Note Mode, the notes are mapped by default to a B-flat scale, with the open string unmapped to allow for easier navigation.
- Page 8 V1 guitar Programming in Note Mode However, the V1 is not limited to one pre-programmed scale. By accessing the configuration mode, you can re-map the buttons to any number of notes on the guitar. This new programming will be preserved even when you unplug the guitar (to restore the defaults, see the Resetting the Guitar section).
- Page 9 15. – Mapping an Open String to the Red Button After programming the orange button, the V1 will return to the green button. This allows you to program multiple notes on each button. It is also possible to program multiple notes at once by holding down multiple notes when you press "+", but it is not recommended, due to the guitar's inability to determine similar...
- Page 10 Unfortunately, this is the result of how the V1 works - More information about the issue can be found in Appendix A. However, it comes down to the guitar being unable to distinguish...
- Page 11 The OpenChord.org V1 guitar Programming Chord Mode Like in Note Mode, Chord Mode can be reprogrammed. Using the same enter and exit Configuration Mode fingerings, the guitar can be ▲Entering Configuration Mode re-mapped to whatever chords you'd like. Again, upon entering Configuration Mode, the green button will light up, indicating that you are currently programming the green button.
- Page 12 The OpenChord.org V1 guitar Resetting the Guitar Once you remap the buttons in Note Mode or Chord Mode, the default mapping is erased. Should you wish to reset the controller to the default button mappings, you can press a special chord to reset the memory of the guitar. Due to its complexity, you'll probably need to use two hands.
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Page 13: Appendix A - Theory Of Operation
OpenChord.org Appendix A - Theory of Operation ▲Red note played on 6th string - The V1 guitar reads notes by 6th string currently grounded, first 2 frets read "Low” putting an electrical charge on the frets and then setting each string to ground one at a time. - Page 14 Many of the ambiguous fingerings arise ▲We have the same problem here with chord within chord families, so in Chord Mode, differentiation. Here, G Major is electrically the same button will be mapped to a identical to G7. similar group of chords. For example, in the default mapping, the green button is mapped to the G Major chord, but will also interpret G7 as the same chord.