The Fishman Fluence Thread

[HeHasTheJazzHands]

So people here that keep talking about the Adler's; what are the closest things both voicings are voiced similar to? I saw someone bring up that the passive voice is similar to the Duncan Custom?

 

[soldierkahn]

So people here that keep talking about the Adler's; what are the closest things both voicings are voiced similar to? I saw someone bring up that the passive voice is similar to the Duncan Custom?

to my ears, voice one gives me every frequency and the level of cut i want from a JB, while leaving behind the icepick qualities. Marry that with the picking response of an EMG 81 without the massive compression.

i rarely ever touch voice two, and usually only when i wanna tickle the treble strings but want a warmer tone without switching to the neck pickup.

 

[phillybhatesme]

Had some neck time with a couple of guitars with Fishmans in them recently. My friend's Jackson has a set that sound great tuned down to C#. The pups in the 7-string Ibanez Axion also sound great.
I've never replaced pickups and realize it's a pretty easy job, so I'm considering getting a set, but not sure which ones.

 

[slavboi_delight]

Has anybody a direct comparison from the classics to the jb/'59 set?
I have the jb/59 in my M2 and need new pickups for my eclipse and found both sets in gold.

Maybe someone has any experience?

 

[S4M4R1N]

Just noticed that Dino has a set of Open Core Moderns in his Ormsby signature. I wonder if he's just checking them out live or that's a departure from Seymour Duncan for good?

 

[juka]

For what you're wanting try the 57TW, its the bridge pickup i used in the most recent build i did for a friend of mine here on the forum @Legion . im gonna tag him so he can attest that it can chug and do cleans. My personal active preference for chug and clean bridge was the 60X as a bridge pup, its brighter but i still absolutely loved it in the bridge. its been a while since i've tried the 60x but the 57/66 combo is pretty great all rounder for my tastes. The build i was referring to is in the lutherie section in the top pinned thread for Builds by SSO members.

Although I'm not Legion I can fully support that recommendation.
The 57/66 set is my all time EMG fav. Had it for years in all my guitars.
The only thing that finally drove me away from them, was their extreme inconsistency. Had like 6 or 7 sets in total and each one sounded noticeably different. Having way too many guitars at that time and too much free time I spent hours matching the right set to the right guitar for best results (thanks to Quick Connect).

 

[juka]

Has anybody a direct comparison from the classics to the jb/'59 set?
I have the jb/59 in my M2 and need new pickups for my eclipse and found both sets in gold.

Maybe someone has any experience?

The OpenCore Classics are my favs for years now, extremely versatile. Voice 2 is modeled after Frank Falco's own vintage JB, but look at how many threads you might find at that forum alone about which JB is the right sounding one...
Even if V2 sounded like your imagination of what a "proper JB" should sound like, there is still the differences in output, impedance and so on between the passive original and its active/powered counterpart.

 

[juka]

Drives me nuts that they'll rehash the Modern a million times, but not actually tell you what's different. I still have no idea what sets the RZK and the Townsends apart outside of one being available in red. The tech has so much potential and it's being really underutilized. Their most compelling products are the Classics (mmm bridge voice 2), the Devin Townsends for their versatility, and the Willie Adlers for their ch0nk. I dig the Tosins too but they still have that Modern quack and brightness, just less obnoxious thanks to actually having bass and low mids.

That aside, I just wish they had more colors available. If I could get the Devins in, like... white or at least nickel, they'd have more of my money.

+1 on the Classics
RZK: Getting the color right obviously took some time
DT: When they came out years ago I immediately bought them. Back then they sounded better than the Moderns to me although I could never point out why. What finally drove me away from them was the fact that although I liked how they sounded I always kept checking my tone pot if I not accidentally had turned it down while playing.

 

[HeHasTheJazzHands]

Just noticed that Dino has a set of Open Core Moderns in his Ormsby signature. I wonder if he's just checking them out live or that's a departure from Seymour Duncan for good?View attachment 145504

First they took all the EMG guys, now they're aiming at all the Duncan guys.

+1 on the Classics
RZK: Getting the color right obviously took some time
DT: When they came out years ago I immediately bought them. Back then they sounded better than the Moderns to me although I could never point out why. What finally drove me away from them was the fact that although I liked how they sounded I always kept checking my tone pot if I not accidentally had turned it down while playing.

I always found it weird how dark the Dev set was. Dude never came off having a really dark sound like that, yet the Devs sound like they have a blanket over them at times.

And yeah, Fishman's biggest failing is describing the differences between pickups. "X Artist's Ideal Tone" isn't the selling point you think it is.

 

[slavboi_delight]

The OpenCore Classics are my favs for years now, extremely versatile. Voice 2 is modeled after Frank Falco's own vintage JB, but look at how many threads you might find at that forum alone about which JB is the right sounding one...
Even if V2 sounded like your imagination of what a "proper JB" should sound like, there is still the differences in output, impedance and so on between the passive original and its active/powered counterpart.

God dang it i just bought another jb/jazz set
I am still intrigued about the classics

Dino's new Signature duncan never hit the streets right?
I tried it here in austria in one of his orsmby signatures.

 

[juka]

First they took all the EMG guys, now they're aiming at all the Duncan guys.


I always found it weird how dark the Dev set was. Dude never came off having a really dark sound like that, yet the Devs sound like they have a blanket over them at times.

And yeah, Fishman's biggest failing is describing the differences between pickups. "X Artist's Ideal Tone" isn't the selling point you think it is.

Considering that his Framus signature guitar is an all-maple construction, which are usually uber-bright sounding, pickups that are a little bit on the darker side might help to balance that out.

 

[HeHasTheJazzHands]

God dang it i just bought another jb/jazz set
I am still intrigued about the classics

Dino's new Signature duncan never hit the streets right?
I tried it here in austria in one of his orsmby signatures.

The Retributions yes. The Machete no. I think the reason there was because the Machete was a hybrid of the Retribution and Duality pickups and Duncan was having issues getting the parts for the Duality pickups. That or the Retribution pickups didn't sell enough to warrant a new set. They kinda screwed themselves by making it an exclusively ERG set of pickups.

 

[slavboi_delight]

The Retributions yes. The Machete no. I think the reason there was because the Machete was a hybrid of the Retribution and Duality pickups and Duncan was having issues getting the parts for the Duality pickups. That or the Retribution pickups didn't sell enough to warrant a new set. They kinda screwed themselves by making it an exclusively ERG set of pickups.

Oh yeah the Duality pickups.
Went down the drain quietly.

 

[gunch]

What would you guys say between fishman, blackouts and emg are the 5ish best chugmonster bridge pups? Which ones have the most sauce?

Fishman: Abasi 6, Adler
EMG: 57
Duncan: Retribution

 

[slavboi_delight]

What would you guys say between fishman, blackouts and emg are the 5ish best chugmonster bridge pups? Which ones have the most sauce?

Fishman: Abasi 6, Adler
EMG: 57
Duncan: Retribution

57 hands down

 

[lattjeful]

What would you guys say between fishman, blackouts and emg are the 5ish best chugmonster bridge pups? Which ones have the most sauce?

Fishman: Abasi 6, Adler
EMG: 57
Duncan: Retribution

Interesting about the Abasi 6. What makes it so chuggy? I've always heard that it's not as good for metal as the Modern is, but I don't have the experience to back that up.

 

[gunch]

Interesting about the Abasi 6. What makes it so chuggy? I've always heard that it's not as good for metal as the Modern is, but I don't have the experience to back that up.

The mids are shifted lower.

 

[HeHasTheJazzHands]

Found a few comparisons between some fishman sig sets and their previously used pickups

EMG 81 vs Fluence RZK Voice 1



Duncan EMTY vs Fishman Mick sigs



I'm actually digging both Fishmans here tbh.

 

[Sparky8691]

Found a few comparisons between some fishman sig sets and their previously used pickups

EMG 81 vs Fluence RZK Voice 1



Duncan EMTY vs Fishman Mick sigs



I'm actually digging both Fishmans here tbh.

I prefer the Blackouts in the second video. The Fishmans are smoother but don't have that satisfying low end grunt. I like that characteristic of a high gain metal tone, but for some reason a number of Fishman's active mount options seem to be focussed on less low end and tighter highs. Like these Mick Thomson sigs and the KSE. Then you have some of the other artist models that are literally just the Moderns with a single coil voice and a different aesthetic. I wonder if the single coil voice of the new '3 voice Moderns' is the same as those or unique.

To be fair I guess some artists are choosing that tighter, mid & high forward tone to cut through in a live mix where you should have sufficient low end from the bigger cabs or PA system anyway. Whereas if you're doing more solo riffing (you know...the bedroom guitarist posting shorts of modern metal riffs) that's when a healthy dose of low end chunk is appreciated.

I would still choose the Fishmans though as you have more options with them - voice 2 that tends to have more low end, the coil split or single coil voice, and all the other things you can do with them. Those demos were most likely recorded with voice 1 which apparently even has a bass boost option on the Mick Thomson set due to the mid/high focus. Still, I'd like to see a model that has a big chunky growly voice and a djenty single coil voice in the bridge. Like a Fishman take on a Bare Knuckle. Perhaps the Abasi set will get me close to that (my current Fishman guitar is a multiscale hence it would need to be one of their active mount pickups).