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More than you'll probably ever need to know about capos
Why use a capo?
Use a capo to transpose a song accompaniment to the best range without learning a whole lot more about music. Transposition table
Enhance the tone color of an instrumental part by bringing it to a higher, brighter part of the register.
Play cool licks in otherwise-impossible keys.
Play easily in the keys of F, B-flat, E-flat, A-flat, D-flat, F-sharp and B. (see Transposition table below)
Did you know?
Capos have been in use since the 18th Century when music was composed for higher position playing. A lot of music was written for the "Terz Guitarre" written in the key of A, but played at the third fret in the key of C. (Check out Mauro Giuliani's Concerto, Opus 70 with Pepe Romero, guitarist.)
ALL Spanish Flamenco guitarists use a capo or "cejilla" to accompany singers or to just make the guitar sound brighter. (The cejilla is really cool. It is simply a bar across the strings held in place by a cord tightened with a violin tuning peg.)
Some people call the capo a "cheater" but such reknowned guitar masters as Julian Bream, Christopher Parkening and Paco de Lucia use them without shame. (Article- A Capo Ain't a Crutch by Jake Kelly, Gig magazine June 1998.
| Capo type | Retail price | Pros | Cons |
| Elastic band w metal rod | $1.65-$3.89 | low cost | hard to apply |
| Strap and lever | $5.09-$6.56 | low cost | hard to apply, detunes |
| Yoke and screw | $5.70-$29.95 | price, maybe. | awkward |
| Yoke with spring lever | $2.16 | low cost | bulky, awkward |
| Yoke and stepped cam | $6.56-6.65 | cost | may detune |
| Screw and lever | $4.95-$5.95 | cost | adjust to tune |
| Over-center lock | $18.95 | easy to apply | adjust to tune |
| Clothes pin | $18.95 | $1-hand application | strenuous, detunes |
| Cam- lever action (Bird of Paradise) * | $19.95 | in tune, safe | expensive |
*The Bird of Paradise is: Easy to apply with no strain! · One-hand application. · Doesn't put the guitar out of tune. · Continuously adjustable · Works on all guitars. Narrow or wide finger board. Flat or curved. No problem. · Stores easily by clipping to the head of your guitar when not in use. · Advanced materials don't damage guitar finishes.
How to use the Bird of Paradise for best results.
Pull lever all the way back. Place beak across strings so the tip comes to the edge of the fingerboard close to the fret. Keeping the pad on the strings, push in the cam-lever so that the "jaw" finds its own location behind the neck. Add pressure until the strings buzz, then push in a few more clicks. No retuning!
One hand application
Once you've got the idea using two hands, hold the Bird in your left hand with the logo facing you and the beak parallel to your fingers. Pull the cam-lever back with your thumb. Stick your middle finger in the Bird's mouth and spread out its beak. With your middle finger in its mouth, place it over the fingerboard so that the tip of the beak reaches a little past the first string. Slowly push in the lever until it achieves desired pressure.
Does the Bird wear out?
The Bird of Paradise is a tough old bird. It wears in. It doesn't wear out. As the ridges on the cam wear, the surfaces become increasingly matched. The result is smoother action and better grip. We torture tested the Bird on a machine through 17,000 opening an closing cycles. At 7,000 cycles the ridges on the cam were totally worn in and movement was smooth. By the end of the test, there was significant wear on the axle, but the capo functioned quite well, thank you!
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