3NPS Patterns Made Easy: Mixolydian vs Major (as Note Names)

Do you feel like there's no end to the number of guitar scale patterns and every other one you find seems to be different and unrelated, even though they have similar titles?

In this reference chart we're focusing on the concept of learning something new by comparing it with a similar alternative you already know. In our case, we are comparing Mixolydian with the Major scale, side-by-side, note-by-note, highlighting the changes. You'll see how a "new" pattern is derived from an existing pattern, and from that point onwards you'll not think of the new pattern as "unrelated" anymore.

The biggest advantage of this approach is that you don't have to memorize a whole new scale pattern. Instead, you only need to learn the changes. Plus, we're using a 3NPS system which is consistent and predictable by design. What that means for you is that even with these changes all patterns still remain strictly 3-notes-per-string.

Our ultimate goal is for you to think in terms of "this new scale is like this other one I know except for one small change". Once you make this connection, you'll have nailed the concept!

Chart features

Side-by-side. 2 patterns that are being compared are placed visually side-by-side, so you can easily hop back and forth between the two to see the changes which are emphasized with bold arrows and highlighted tones.

Relevant highlighting only. To help you stay focused on the relevant changes, I've deliberately avoided highlighting anything that could be distracting, such as the roots. The roots are still indicated by square shapes, but they are not color-coded differently to avoid drawing too much attention to them.

7 patterns. The changes are shown for each of the available seven 3NPS patterns, so you had the complete set to analyze and experiment with.

From 7 patterns to 3. The good news is you don't have to learn all 7 patterns. There are only 3 main patterns you should learn which cover 95% of the fretboard. Even though minimizing the number of 3NPS patterns is a topic which deserves separate consideration, I've still decided to mention it here and mark 4 redundant patterns with an asterisk to let you save time and learn even more effectively early on. Or at least to raise awareness about it.

Movable patterns. You can shift any pattern so that its root note aligns with the root note of your choice.

Characteristic note. In this chart we compare Mixolydian with the Major scale. The interesting fact about this is that the resulting difference not only shows you the change you need to make to get the Mixolydian scale, but also these same changed tones happen to be the characteristic notes of Mixolydian. So you learn 2 things at once: a new scale pattern and its characteristic tone.

Scale formulas. Both Mixolydian and Major numeric scale formulas are included so that you don't need to look up another reference. The difference that is being highlighted in guitar diagrams is also visually reflected in the formulas by highlighting scale degrees that are different.

Note names. All diagrams have beginner-friendly note names instead of generic intervals and other types of presentation you might not yet be comfortable with. Take your time and choose whatever variation helps you most at any given moment.

Tips and insights

One scale family. Mixolydian scale is the 5th mode of the Major scale and the Major scale is the 1st (Ionian) mode of itself. Notice how in both cases they are modes of one and the same Major scale—in this instance we say that these modes are "relative one to another".

What this practically means in the context of guitar patterns is that, if you really want to, you can use any of the 14 patterns given in this reference to produce both of the scales that we are comparing here just by changing the note you start playing the pattern from. That's a useful feature of relative modes. Make no mistake though, that doesn't make them any "better" ;).

I'll omit any further details because this is not the focus of this particular reference chart, but I just wanted to mention it here as well. The reason I give such additional bits of information where I feel it's relevant is with the intention that it helps complete the puzzle you might be "solving" in your mind, create an "aha" moment, and if it did, then that's all that matters. And even if not, then you'll start asking the right questions and eventually get the whole picture :)