Two weeks ago I picked up an 8 string guitar that came with Fishman Fluence Modern pickups. Probably going to return it - the store has a liberal no-questions-asked return policy. But I'm going through various last-ditch efforts to understand the instrument before getting an RMA, and thought I'd see what y'all think about the Fluence Moderns. There's a bit of discussion in the archives here, lots of discussion elsewhere.
Honestly I'm at a loss as to what to do with these pickups. They're really pretty weird. Regular mode has more mids than I've ever heard in any guitar sound - even turning my amp mids all the way down there's still loads of mids in the sound. Very snarly and nasal. Passive mode is a bit more balanced, they breathe a bit more and the mids come down to a point where the tone is pleasant. But I'm really not experiencing the hype - amazing clarity and note separation under high gain or above-and-beyond responsiveness. They are clearer under high gain than say my 57 Classics but not moreso than my 85/15 or Strat pickups or Tele pickups or Squier WRHBs or PAF Pro or even the no-name generic HB in my Chinese 7 string. And they're HOT. Like, hotter than anything I've ever played. High gain settings plus guitar volume up makes for a driven sound that's really pretty unpleasant. Guitar volume down helps the sound breathe but nothing I do in my amp or pedals gives me good chunk sound. Folks on other sites heap praise on these pickups for metal playing - maybe they shine at stage volumes? Maybe I'm not an active/hot pickup guy? Maybe I haven't explored the coil splitting/voices/gain switches or pickup height enough? Honestly if the instrument was more comfortable maybe I'd tweak it more but I'd hate to accidently void its returnability.
Honestly I'm at a loss as to what to do with these pickups. They're really pretty weird. Regular mode has more mids than I've ever heard in any guitar sound - even turning my amp mids all the way down there's still loads of mids in the sound. Very snarly and nasal. Passive mode is a bit more balanced, they breathe a bit more and the mids come down to a point where the tone is pleasant. But I'm really not experiencing the hype - amazing clarity and note separation under high gain or above-and-beyond responsiveness. They are clearer under high gain than say my 57 Classics but not moreso than my 85/15 or Strat pickups or Tele pickups or Squier WRHBs or PAF Pro or even the no-name generic HB in my Chinese 7 string. And they're HOT. Like, hotter than anything I've ever played. High gain settings plus guitar volume up makes for a driven sound that's really pretty unpleasant. Guitar volume down helps the sound breathe but nothing I do in my amp or pedals gives me good chunk sound. Folks on other sites heap praise on these pickups for metal playing - maybe they shine at stage volumes? Maybe I'm not an active/hot pickup guy? Maybe I haven't explored the coil splitting/voices/gain switches or pickup height enough? Honestly if the instrument was more comfortable maybe I'd tweak it more but I'd hate to accidently void its returnability.
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