Fishman Fluence Single Width and Fluence Classic Humbucker

100 Guitarist June 2015
FRET-KING CORONA 60 & 70 FLUENCE EQUIPPED £1,699 EACH
ElEctrics
active pickup with a barge pole.
Of course, many players will –
certainly those of a more metal
persuasion – and Fishman is
catering for those players with
the Modern Humbucking set
and just-released seven-string
sets. Then there are some of us
who actually like active pickups,
such as EMGs, for their
response, balance and quiet
operation, not to mention their
low impedance.
However, with their
potentially three different
voices, the Fluences are unique,
along with their solid cores that
allow incredible consistency
from pickup to pickup –
something Trevor Wilkinson
has observed while building
these and other Fret-King
Fluence-equipped guitars.
It’s that consistency, and the
other attributes of the active
pickup, that make these units
very valid for the recording
guitarist, or indeed any player
who wants to expand the
voices on their guitars beyond
the usual coil-splits or rarer
coil-taps. Of course, the very
inconsistency of a passive
pickup is what appeals to many
of us. Some good vintage PAFs
exhibit a slight bell-like
microphony that some like.
Others don’t. Some makers
purposely unbalance the coil
windings of their humbuckers.
On it goes…
It’ll be very interesting to
watch the progress of these
pickups. In the meantime,
check out our Longterm Test
section from the next issue
onwards to see how we get on
with them in the real world.
Fret-King Green
Label Corona 60
& 70 Fluence
PRICE: Both £1,699 (inc case)
ORIGIN: Assembled in UK
TYPE: Double-cutaway, solidbody
six-string electric
BODY: American alder
NECK: Canadian hard rock maple,
bolt-on
SCALE LENGTH: 648mm
NUT/WIDTH: Wilkaloid/60: 41.6mm;
70: 41.5mm
FINGERBOARD: Rosewood, cream
dots, 254mm (10-inch) radius
FRETS: 22, medium jumbo
HARDWARE: 60: Chrome-plated
Wilkinson WVC SB vintage-style
vibrato. 70: Chrome-plated Wilkinson
WVPC SB vintage-style vibrato. Both
use rear-wheel locking tuners
STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 54mm
ELECTRICS: 60: 3x Fishman Fluence
Single Width, 5-way lever pickup
selector switch, master volume neck/
middle tone, bridge tone w/ pull-push
switch to engage Voice 2;
70: 2x Fishman Fluence Classic
Humbucker, 3-way lever pickup
selector switch, master volume and
master tone w/ pull-push switch to
engage Voice 2
WEIGHT (KG/LB): 60: 3.5/7.7;
70: 3.78/8.3
RANGE OPTIONS: See website
LEFT-HANDERS: No
FINISHES: 60: Laguna Blue with
white s/plate; 70: Classic Burst with
tortoiseshell s/plate (as reviewed).
Numerous other finishes are available
JHS
01132 865381
www.fret-king.com
GUITARIST RATING
Build quality
Playability
Sound
Value for money
Guitarist says: Classy versions
of a classic recipe that, with
Fluence’s unique attributes,
make both first-class choices
Fishman Fluence
Single Width
PRICE: £115 individually; £235 for 3
TYPE: Multi-voice, active single-coil-
sized humbucker
COVER COLOURS: White or black
VOICE 1: Vintage single coil
RES PEAK FREQUENCY: 4kHz
VOICE 2: Hot Texas single-coil
RES PEAK FREQUENCY: 3kHz
MAGNETS: Alnico IV rods
POLE SPACING: 52.2mm
OUTPUT IMPEDANCE: 2k ohms
POWER: 9V block or rechargeable
battery pack (£109)
BATTERY LIFE: 200 hours
OPTIONS: None
www.fishman.com
GUITARIST RATING
Build quality
Features
Sound
Value for money
Guitarist says: One of the most
innovative pickup concepts in
decades, Fluence isn’t cheap, but
it is unique. Time for a change?
Fishman Fluence
Classic Humbucker
PRICE: From £149; from £279 for two
TYPE: Multi-voice, active
full-size humbucker
COVER COLOURS: Nickel; black and
gold (both £159 each; £289 for 2)
VOICE 1: Bridge and neck:
Vintage PAF
RES PEAK FREQUENCY: 2.25k
(bridge); 2.6k (neck)
VOICE 2: Classic Hot rod (bridge);
Clear, airy chime (neck)
RES PEAK FREQUENCY: 1.6kHz
(bridge); 4.5kHz & 350Hz (neck)
MAGNETS: Alnico V bar magnet with
pole pieces
POLE SPACING: 52.6mm (bridge);
49mm (neck)
OUTPUT IMPEDANCE: 2k ohms
POWER: 9V block or rechargeable
battery pack (£109)
BATTERY LIFE: 277 hours (bridge);
200 hours (neck)
OPTIONS: See website
With their potentially three diff erent
voices, the Fluences are unique,
along with their solid cores
The Corona 60 is fi tted with
Single Width pickups, but
they are hum cancelling
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VIDEO DEMO
GIT394.rev_fret.indd 100 16/04/2015 14:22