NPUD - Fishman Fluence Will Adler!

[Rex_Rocker]

So I pulled the trigger at last, and I ordered a set of Fishman Will Adler that I have been wanting for a while.

First impressions: Mixed emotions. I guess I was expecting the bridge pickup to be a raging high-output monster. It's not.

Voice 1 on the bridge pickup is kinda like a mid-output ceramic pickup with lots of attack and clarity. Don't get me wrong, I do like the overall voicing and EQ. A lot, actually. I was just expecting it to be HOT considering it's ceramic and whatnot. It's quite a bit lower output than Voice 2 on the Classic it replaced. Not gonna lie, that was kinda disappointing. Just a simple matter of adjusting the gain knob on my amp, though, so there's that.

Voice 2 on the bridge pickup is very active-like. I don't have the Moderns anymore to directly compare them, but it's definitely close, IIRC. It's both smoother and tighter than Voice 1. Hotter too, though not overly so. My guess is it's kinda around the same level as Voice 2 on the Classic.

The neck pickup... well...

Never been a fan of PAF-types mixed with high-output bridge pickups, but since this bridge pickup is not really all that hot, it actually balances quite well. The voicing (clear and broad with lots of detailed highs thrown in) matches the bridge pickup quite well too! So I'm definitely liking how this neck pickup matches the bridge pickup better than it did with the Classics. AFAIK, the neck pickup is actually just a standard Classic neck pickup with a distressed cover.

Voice 2 on the Classic neck I've never really liked, so I just went ahead and wired it to switch between V1 and V3. V3 is a cool single coil sound. It sounds nice, though I would prefer it if was the coil further away from the bridge by default. I'm probably going to change that next time I change strings.

So all in all... mixed emotions. I was expecting the bridge pickup to be a fierce high-output monster. It's not. It's tamer in a lot of ways compared to the Classic it replaced. Don't get me wrong, it is very nice. It just caught me off-guard.

[Rex_Rocker]

Here they are in my LTD EX-401

[JB_From_Hell]

I need to try out the Classics and Moderns sometime. The Abasis that were in my 8 string have a lot of tonal options on tap, but ended up being too specialized for what Tosin does for me. Switching voices ultimately made me have to redo amp settings, which kinda defeated the purpose.

Incidentally, I’ve had better luck with the seemingly more bland EMG 808X set. Also tried the Sentient/Nazgul, which I liked, but the Nazgul has a little too much of that mid spike the Abasi bridge has.

Those pickups look great against that black hardware. Makes me rethink my dislike of gold pickups.

[Rex_Rocker]

Thanks, man!

If you dig the JB and PAFs, I thin you'd dig the Classics.

The Moderns are great too. I think the Moderns actually beat EMG's at their own game. They do the 81/85 thing as well, but they are clearer, tighter, and not as compressed.

I really like Fluences overall. I hate to sound like a cork-sniffer, but they have a certain subtle 3D quality to the sound that no other pickup I've tried has.

[JB_From_Hell]

I liked the Javier bridge I tried in my 7 string, but the multi voice stuff just turned out to be overkill.

[Rex_Rocker]

Yeah, the Multi-Voice thing can be a bit too much at times. Honestly, I just pick the voice that I like best and roll with it. With the Classics, it's all about V2 on the bridge and V1 in the neck. With the Moderns, I'm all about V1 on both pickups. With the Adlers, I like V1 on both pickups.

I don't think the second "unused" voice takes away from the pickups at all, though. It's a nice option to have for those days when you're feeling like getting a different sound and tweaking some settings. Even if the Fishmans only had one voice, I think the sound quality is enough to justify having them around.

Right now, I only have two guitars. One has the Adlers, and the other has EMG Jim Roots. I like the JR's, but I'm thinking about moving the set of Classics that I took out of my EX to it. The Jim Roots are cool, but the Fishmans I suspect are more my thing.

[JB_From_Hell]

I’m judging them way too much based on an 8 string. The first one I had got sold because I couldn’t get the low F# to sound good with the rest of the strings.

[Rex_Rocker]

Just an update: After spending some time with these pickups, they are my favorite Fishmans I've tried. Voice 2 in the bridge pickup sounds like a slightly warmer Modern, and Voice 1 is for me the star of the show. It's tight, bright, and supper immediate. It's not as hot as a Duncan Distortion that I think it's based on, but it's tighter and clearer. I love the tone that I'm getting out of these pickups once I've adjusted some settings.

Recommended. They are my favorite Fishmans, and I like them even better than the Classics and Moderns I've tried.

[Bogner]

I have always been curious about them but not sure which ones I would go for and I also don't know what guitar I would throw them into.

[Rex_Rocker]

I have always been curious about them but not sure which ones I would go for and I also don't know what guitar I would throw them into.

Depends on what kind of tone you like. I have tried the Moderns, Classics, and now the Adlers.

The Modern Ceramic in V1 is kinda like a tighter, faster, clearer EMG 81 that's less compressed. I love it. To me, it does what the 81 does, just better. Only downside is it's slightly thinner. But the clarity and tightness that you gain from that outweighs that, IMO. If you're using an 81, you're probably not using it for its fatness, anyway.
In V2, it's kinda like a fat mid-output ceramic passive blade pickup. It's kinda generic. It's not bad, but it's not my favorite.

The Modern Alnico in V1 is kinda like in-between an EMG 85 and 57. It's brighter, clearer, and less compressed than an 85, but slightly smoother than a 57.
In V2, it's again like a hot and smooth yet clear and articulate Alnico-sounding passive pickup. It's my favorite neck pickup that they offer, but, much like an 85, it works in the bridge position as well.

The Classic Bridge in V1 is kinda like a brighter, clearer, more hi-fi Duncan '59B. It's definitely got a PAF vibe, but it's got the usual Fluence feel and detail. It's more hi-fi than a standard wound PAF.
In V2, it's kinda like a tighter, more detailed JB. It's surprisingly high-output. I love it as well. I like it even more than the either Modern, even for metal.

The Classic Neck in V1 is, again, sorta like a Fluence-ized Duncan '59N. Again, it's more hi-fi than a traditional wound pickup. Honestly, it's my least favorite Fluence I've tried, but, TBH, I don't like PAF-types in the neck, even in the passive realm.
In V2 it's really weird. I've read it's meant to sound like a hollow-body, but I've also read it's meant to be a Wide-Range. It sounds... weird. Distorted, it's really fat and round, and kinda dark. Clean, it has a weird shimmer that isn't as prominent distorted. It's not very high-output either, so I don't find it matches well with V2 on the Classic Bridge.

The Will Adler Bridge in V1 is allegedly based on a Duncan Distortion. It's sorta like that, just not as hot, and again, with the typical Fluence tonality: Clearer, airier, more hi-fi, and tighter. It's the brightest and most grindy, snarly, and attacky of the Fluences I've tried. It's my favorite.
V2 is kinda like V1 on the Modern Ceramic, but I don't have the Moderns anymore to A/B them. It definitely has the EMG 81 vibe, though: It's tight, squishy, and hotter than V1. Definitely very usable.

The Will Adler Neck is just the Classic Neck with a distressed gold cover. Meh.

All of them have the signature Fluence clarity and note-separation.

[Bogner]

Great info! Thank you for that. I am on the Metal side for sure.

[JB_From_Hell]

Rex Rocker, how low have you tuned anything with the Classics? Kicking around Fluences for my RG 7 string, want a different flavor from the Abasis or Moderns.

[Rex_Rocker]

Rex Rocker, how low have you tuned anything with the Classics? Kicking around Fluences for my RG 7 string, want a different flavor from the Abasis or Moderns.

They're in my usual Drop C tuning with D'Ad 11-56's. I'm pretty sure they'll handle lower tunings no problem. Voice 1 is VERY tight as far as passives go, and Voice 2 is as tight as the active voicing on the Moderns (which is IMO tighter than even the EMG 81).

[Rex_Rocker]

Just checked. It doesn't seem like they offer the Will Adlers for 7 strings.