Hi,
I see JustinGuitar Tabs provides chord and sheet music diagrams whereas the App is simpler and provides just the chords (enough for me). Are they worth paying for? Are there any other sources where I could find similar info? TIA
Pete
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Sorry, I didnāt mean that. I meant chords of songs . TIA
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@petek782 Hello Pete,
I cant give you personal experience with JG paid TABs, because I did not use itā¦
But globally if I have materials (any source) that has great TABs with chords and riffsā¦ it motivates me much more to work on that, because I can look into something. Maybe it will work for you too.
So if you are thinking about that I would give it a goā¦ I think there is some 7 day trial, is not it?
I am sure you can always cancel if you dont like it, but I am pretty sure Justin and his team did big job on this and it is worth much more. 
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It is handy to have access to the tabs, particularly for songs that are not available in the app. There are alternative apps and sites of course, which might include more (but not necessarily better) material.
One thing I have noticed is that the tabs provided on the site often donāt match what Justin teaches in the video. They can be more complex than what is shown on the video, sometimes contradicting it even, especially for some of the beginner songs where he might be teaching a simplified version to get us up and running.
Having looked around a bit over the last few months, it seems there is usually no such things as a ācorrectā tab. Youāll find many with subtle or not so subtle differences, so I have come to the conclusion they are best used as a guide to get you sounding āabout rightā, and from there you just play what sounds good to you!
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I prefer paying for the tabs rather than the app. big thing with the app, as far as I could tell, is access to beginner lessons through the app as well as the song playalongs. I didnāt really care for the playalongs so much, since Iām plenty happy playing along with a youtube video of the original or to a recording I have saved. and for the lessons, I prefer accessing those via the web interface.
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If the app gives you what you need, you might not find the extra detail from JustinGuitar Tabs worth paying for. That said, if you want full chord charts and sheet music, it could be useful. Other solid alternatives include Ultimate Guitar (lots of user-submitted tabs), Songsterr (interactive tabs), and even free chord sites like E-Chords. Depends on how much detail youāre after, but there are definitely options out there!
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Hi
This thread makes me remember that I have a subscription to the Songs/Tabsā¦and, sadly, that I never use it 
Looking, again, briefly at it I am sure that I am missing out on extra tools and information that would be helpful for learning some songs.
Upsides
- Of course, it includes the video/learn more for the instructional section from Justin
- The chords I am, assuming, are correct and the changes placed where they should be unlike so many other instructors/tabs/UG
- The Tabs are also very useful and necessary
The downsides to the Songs/Tabs
- No backing/original track to play along to (I suppose the Justin App solves this problem for the songs that are on both platforms - but only for the chords; not the tab)
1a) If you want to listen to the song while using the chords or tab, then you have to cue up to start the song and be ready to play simultaneously which is inconvenient and itās also impractical to adjust speeds for both the song (from whatever source youāre using to listen from and also on the Songs/Tab) - Cannot print the PDFs for the chords/tabs - yes, I know itās a legal copyright issue
(I guess capturing screenshots is a workaround) - I REALLY wish the Tabs (and chords for that matter) were in Guitar Pro also, but I guess that is asking a lot and I donāt know how many JG users have GP. I would use GP files much more for learning songs.
I think that the Songs/Tabs and the App kind of serve different purposes and goals. The App you just play/strum along to while the Songs/Tab get you āintoā the song in more depth.
So, I donāt know if any of my comments are helpful. But, I certainly should use the Songs/Tabs more, especially since I pay for it every year 
Andrew
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I think the app and chord for karaoke style play along is amazing early in your learning. Perhaps through grade 2, even 3 depending on what works for you.
The tabs subscription for the website is different and very helpful once you start playing songs from Justinās direct song lessons. Since this is how you eventually want to learn and play songs, from real tab or notation and possibly video lessons, it is a natural progression.
I started with the app, transitioned to (overlapping) video song lessons and the tabs with the subscription. Then I eventually cancelled the app working exclusively with The tab and video.
Now I get my video lessons from several sources including Justin and same with tabs. When learning a song, I like to have a main video lesson and associated tab, but also explore other similar versions, compare and contrast and figure out the song for me from all that.
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I paid for both the app and the tabs. I eventually unsubscribed from the app as I found my laptop more user friendly for the lessons, practice assistant and the tabs. Nothing wrong with the app, I just didnāt like working off a phone. If it ever became web-based I would resubscribe.
I mostly use the lessons and the tabs as a start point for me to set up a songās strumming pattern in Guitar Pro where I use that to practice the tempo, chord changes etc. Then I move on to playing along with the actual song.
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Thanks for all your input, much appreciated 
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I bought GP back when Justin had a discount code. I had another discount code and was able to double up. So I got it for cheap.
I find it more beneficial to me to take what Justin provides and write it up in GP myself. If I just read whatās in GP, I donāt pick it up as well. Itās that writing it down that helps me. I did hand write the tabs out when I first started, but I could not keep it nearly as neat as I can with GP.
Once Iāve learned the song that way, I move from there to songsheets with just the chords and lyrics. Iām using Songbook Pro to keep a library of songs. I have it save that library to my Google Drive and it syncs between 4 different devices (a desktop computer, a laptop, an Android tablet, and an iPad). I take the tablets with me when I go to jam with other people and I have a huge library of songs because I downloaded a bunch from other resources (mostly a website called www.ozbcoz.com ) where I bulk downloaded. I have well over 4,000 songs. Many are duplicates (sometimes I have the song in multiple keys, even though the app can change key easily enough, sometimes itās simpler or more complex versions, and sometimes itās the original vs. different cover versions). Iāve been using this app more than most others lately.
I just wish it had a bigger library of chord grips to show on the page (or that I could use the ChordPro syntax to define chords). Iāve been playing a song that uses a D5 chord, but the app has no idea what that is and wonāt show any chord grip for it. I had to fuss around (using GP) and figured out that Dsus2 is close enough and that the app DOES know that one, so I had to write it up āwrongā and just remember that Iām actually playing D5 and not Dsus2.
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I think that each has some pros, cons, and ultimately serve different purposes.
The App is simple strumming designed to get you playing songs and build some repertoire and confidence quickly. The App also includes the Beginner Lessons Course which is a plus.
The Songs/Tabs and Justinās accompanying lessons give you more in-depth knowledge to add embellishments, etc., to be able to play the songs more āfully.ā
For example, youād need to watch Justinās lessons and use the Songs/Tabs for playing something like the intro to Wish You Were Here or the walkups/downs in Johnny Cash-type songs.
I think someone mentioned that Justinās video lessons donāt always match the Songs/Tabs, which I think I am seeing now that I am looking at a few songs.
Mustela mentions writing up Justinās tabs or creating GP files if you know how (I know how to create in GP a little bit).
I never remember the songs using the App. I can play them, but once I turn off the App the chords, lyrics and structure are gone from my brain.
I think printing out or even better writing the songs, lyrics, chords, structure is the way to go, especially for an ageing brain like mine. To get over my laziness
I also pay for the My Songbook on Guitar Pro, which is another resource I pay for and donāt use
It does get overwhelming with all the resources (and all the bad tabs out there!) and lessons available from Justin and a few good other teachers and multiple ways to play songs.
Andrew
Far behind you in ability, Iāve been coming across the same thing about chord diagrams.
I found this cool website that identifies possible chord names if you enter the chord shape.
Itās been helping me begin to develop an understanding of how chords are formed.
(and verify chords from āvolunteerā songsheets)
To store/display my electronic sheets I use the app āSongbook Chordproā
(the website is a bit weak, but I find the app strong:
great functionality, no crashes, pretty intuitive, in business since 1997).
I havenāt used other apps (such as GuitarPro), so cannot compare.
It fits my current needs in that it allows me to
. Pay once, not a subscription
. Display a song in many formats: chordpro/PDF/PNG/plain text (or mix) (It can generate chordpro format from text files)
. Display tabs, chords, chord shapes, lyrics, images, text
. Link to music in my library so I can play along
. Slow down the music playback and the scrolling simultaneously (in beta)
. Define chords not in its library
. Choose which shape of a chord to present with a song
. Have a library on a shared drive (Dropbox, iCloud, Google Drive, for example)
. Tag songs with words of your choice so you can find them more easily
. Metronome (visual and/or audio)
And stuff Iāve not used
. Have different sheets for the same song (e.g. voice, guitar, uke, mandolin, etc)
. Able to create playlists
. Use foot pedal controls (for the performers out there).
. Synchronize the display across multiple people in a room using the App (so everyone is āsinging off of the same sheetā in a jam session)
. Supports all platforms (Windows, MacOS, iOS, Android, Windows Tablet)
. ???
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Seems like not too many people around here are much behind me if at all. Even though I say Iāve been trying to learn for over 20yrs, I can really only say Iāve been at it for less than a year and a half at this point. There are LOTS of chords I donāt know and right now, Iām really only learning new ones as they come up in songs Iām learning to play. D5 as Iām playing it is a dead easy variation on the standard D chord.
Aside from that, though, thanks for the resources. Iāve been running across that particular songbook app for awhile. But havenāt heard a ton about it. The Songbook Pro app was actually recommended to me and itās nice and elegant, but its limitations annoy me. In addition to its limits on its chord library (and the inability to add user defined chords), there are quite a few other chordpro commands it doesnāt support. One that has bugged me is that it only sorta supports the use of the Capo tag. It only will read it or allow you to make on-the-fly adjustments if itās there when the song is imported (from elsewhere). But if youāre adding a song to your library yourself within the app, it does nothing with the tag.
I like that it has a clear revision history. SBP doesnāt really share that info, so I have no idea how often it gets updated or how the developer takes suggestions or anything like that.
Itās very interesting that you can have different songsheets for different instruments there. My wife and I use the same song library, though Iām on guitar and sheās on uke. We just have our copies of SB Pro display chords for the relevant instrument, but we essentially play the same thing. Having slightly different ones for each of us could make for more interesting music (we have kinda played with the idea in theory).
Good that it works with foot pedals. I use one from time to time. Not necessarily for live performances, but itās handy when Iām playing to not need to reach for the screen.
Iāll be checking out the app.
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When a chord is noted as a 5 chord all that means is it is a Root and 5th. no 3rd. So you can play it as a power chord or a regular D chord with out the 3rd (muted.)
Iām playing it as a regular D with the high E string muted.
The Songbook Pro app just doesnāt know what to make of it and doesnāt show any options for it.