Diminished (whole–half) · F · Piano
The F Dim. W–H scale is F G A♭ B♭ B D♭ D E — formula 1 2 ♭3 4 ♭5 ♭6 6 7, step pattern W–H–W–H–W–H–W–H. Use it over Fdim7: it is the scale for fully diminished seventh chords (dim7). Below, every note is marked on the two-octave keyboard; press play to hear it on a synthesized piano while each note lights up, or tap any key to sound that note.
Visualizer
Piano
Guitar · standard tuning
Tap any note on the diagram to hear it. Play loops the scale up and down one octave in eighth notes (switch Loop off for a single pass). “Show” switches or combines the fretboard and keyboard; “Sound” picks the instrument you hear. Audio is synthesized in the browser.
Reference
| Degree | Note | Interval from F | Step to next |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | F | unison (0 semitones) | W |
| 2 | G | major 2nd (2 semitones) | H |
| ♭3 | A♭ | minor 3rd (3 semitones) | W |
| 4 | B♭ | perfect 4th (5 semitones) | H |
| ♭5 | B | tritone (6 semitones) | W |
| ♭6 | D♭ | minor 6th (8 semitones) | H |
| 6 | D | major 6th (9 semitones) | W |
| 7 | E | major 7th (11 semitones) | H |
Chord it implies: Fdim7 (F – A♭ – B – D). Use it for: fully diminished seventh chords (dim7).
Common questions
F G A♭ B♭ B D♭ D E. As scale degrees: 1 2 ♭3 4 ♭5 ♭6 6 7. It has 8 notes.
F Dim. W–H fits Fdim7 and, more generally, fully diminished seventh chords (dim7).
1 2 ♭3 4 ♭5 ♭6 6 7 — the step pattern from the root is W H W H W H W H (W = whole step, H = half step).
Play F G A♭ B♭ B D♭ D E F ascending from the root, then descend. The keyboard above shows every root in gold, chord tones outlined in amber and the remaining scale tones in teal; use the Play button to hear the fingering tempo.
Keep going
Same scale on guitar · all Dim. W–H pages: Diminished (whole–half) hub · theory: chord-scale theory.
Other scales from F