Do both at the same time! I find that when I'm drilling exercises for an hour to get better at that technique, it gets pretty boring, so I usually put on a TV show or RUclips vid or anything that can save my mind from the monotony. Keep roughly a 70/30 percent attention split, to your practicing and watching videos, respectively. Perhaps it could make your practice sessions a bit less efficient if you waver too much from that attention split, so be wary of that, but it certainly will make practicing more enjoyable and therefore you'll do it more often. This is a 21 minute video... if you practiced *while* watching it, you certainly could get whatever you're working on a bit cleaner, faster, or both in that time span.
Rob: "ah yes I can feel the magnets, the ground from which the minerals were mined, the earth it speaks to me, it is clearly [x]" Lee and every normal person on the planet: "Yep that's a pickup"
Rob’s playing while blindfolded is impressive, but even more impressive is his ability to put his glasses on while playing at 10:44. This has to be some kind of witchcraft.
@@flyingmanforfun I think it makes perfect sense to compare passives against actives and the passives chosen in this test are a good choice. HOWEVER, what doesn't make sense is the active pickups they chose and the fact they didn't at least explore the other voices of the Fishman's especially considering they tried the SD's with the piezo. From multiple videos now these guys don't seem to be aware of the EMG TW line which is the most fitting direct comparison to Fluence pickups. And the Open Core Classic's would have been the best choice against those other two. And both of those are available in the same line of LTD guitars so there really is no good reason for the test to have been performed this way. It really makes me shake my head when the Captain comments about the tone of the Fishmans and doesn't seem to realise if you switch to the other voice they sound different and interestingly based on comments in this video he would have preferred the second tone. If they ran this test with the right guitars the result would have been a lot more difficult for them to pick a favourite but probably still just as easy for Rob to pick which one is which based on obvious traits of each pickup. For me it's easy, I have all of them and I personally prefer passives because I like the noise and that's also why I like singles more than humbuckers. But for guys who prefer noiseless pickups, pickups that are more evenly matched in voice would see people leaning towards the actives. BTW I think Fishman are massively overrated. I have 2 different sets and both are disappointing.
I have to agree on this. I actually prefer my Blackouts to the EMG’s I have. 2 totally different guitars tho so might be partly to do with that. All objective of course
@@Masterfighterx Well everyone has different opinions on what tone they like and dislike. If we all liked the same thing and played the same thing it would suck. I will tell you that the fishmens did not sound as good as I thought they would be with the price. They are the pickups that cost like $700 for a Tele set or is that another brand?
In a lot of ways the pickups you choose need to be played in their own ways to get the most out of them. If you choose a capable pickup you will learn to get the best tones out of them, they were all awesome.
@@eddyguizonde401 I've got a Gibson Explorer 83 (The one without the pickguard and the controls in a triangle shape) with a JB and a Mexican Strat with a Super Dist (both in the bridge) . Love 'em both!
@@thefriendlyfinger69 I wish I could find more! I missed one a few months back and have google alert set now! I watch for them. I missed a really rare matched set once...special order, as there was never a neck version...that sold for only $300 for the pair! They should be $1000 a piece as they are almost unavailable they are so rare...but nobody has a clue what they are...and I hope I can buy a few more before anyone does...just like the used USA Hamers (what mine is in) that are the best guitars around...at any price...! Good luck...I hope I beat you to them though...LOL!
You're totally right about the EMG clean tone, I've always liked it a lot. It's different from either a single coil or regular humbucker sound and does something really neat.
@@abheceshabemuskk3531 It has it's unique place, I do agree it's a lot less character than say a Lollar Jazzmaster or an SD hot rail. I've found that it's useful for exactly that ambient clean somewhat bell like plucked guitar into a nice hall verb, especially when you're in an EMI noisy place. It also seems to sound better with heavier gauge strings, I run 12s and tune to C with my EMGs. Ends up with a unique sound I don't have from other pickups.
Dave Gilmour and Steve Lukather used EMGs for a long time. I think a lot of people don't get the most out of EMGs simply because they don't fit the frequency boost controls. Put SAs in a Strat, with the EXG and SPC and you get every Strat you'd need and no noise.
I have a strat with the exg and spc... but the difference is i have the emg x pickups with a 85 in the bridge as you can see from my picture. The guitar does everything i need it to do.
@@Mytube6138 you're implying Fishman, but I just think of Seymour Duncan's Duality set. Similar concept, and I absolutely love mine! Best active pickups I've played
A cool blindfold video would be preamps or pedals modelled after a real amp, versus the original amp of the same model/brand. For example Victory preamp pedals (Kraken, Sheriff, ...), Friedmann BE, Revv (G3, G4), Diezel ...
I've never really liked Fishmans. They sound too much like a hot rodded single coil for my taste. I can see where others enjoy that sound as it cuts through a mix tremendously well, but it's just not for me.
That’s what came in my new guitar and I love em however Chap mentioned something I haven’t been able to put into words yet, the neck pup in high gain has a slight whammy pedal half cranked kinda feel especially playing leads on single string bends.
SDs and Bare Knuckles for me. I feel like Dimarzios are too smooth tbh, it doesn't have the grain that Duncans or BKPs have imo. Fishmans and EMGs are cool too but don't have that organic sound imo.
I bet if you gave Lee a Fluence CLASSIC, wired for 2 voicing and coil tapping (which doesn't come stock and requires soldering wire to two points behind the pickups) and explained the pickups to him properly... he'd be very impressed at the sounds and versatility... Even without coil tapping which requires some custom work, they're still great.
I've had a bunch of different EMGs, and I'm of the same opinion as Rob: very nice cleans, sort of a full and sparkling tone! They also do high gain tones well, depending on what you're after. What they're terrible at, however, is crunch. Even though I'm a metal player, I really need that crunchy goodness, so I've always wound up replacing the different EMGs I've tried. I've got two 8-strings loaded with Seymour Duncan Blackouts, and they, on the other hand, do crunch tones surprisingly well - very different voicing from most EMGs.
The crunch thing is why I love the Fishman voicing options. I have Willie Adler's signature set in my Washburn and I love having the more modern active sound for cleans and super upper-midsy, modern high gain stuff, with the passive voice for crunch tones and more 80s/90s style thick, low-mid focused high gain. Really would like to give the Blackouts a try, as well. They seem really under-represented in terms of how many people have used them, yet I've never heard from somebody who tried and didn't like them, especially on 8 strings.
@@SuffyANX Indeed, the voicing options are really a strong selling point for the Fishmans. Looking forward to trying them out as soon as possible. The Blackouts are definitely worth a shot, at least in my opinion. Their voicing is closer to something I'd associate with passive pickups, but with higher output. Though, I have to say, I'm more fond of the 8-string version than the 6-string.
I love my EMG 81 and 85 set in my Gibson V into my Mesa Flux Drive into my Mesa Triple Rectifier.. It works for me and I wouldn't change them out for anything.
It would be interesting to do an EMG vs Fluence Modern vs SD Blackout. This was cool for the variety, but a strict metal pickup comparison would be perfect.
So it’s December and I’ve recently started watching a great many of the Anderson videos. Of all the great comparative info and review info you’ve all provided, I’d like to thank Rob Chapman for the “Alien Weaponry” tip. I’m hooked.
UTTERLY EXTREMLY INTERESTING!!!! I guess this would be one of your most watched video!! Thanks! This comes right when I hesitate between the 3 pups!!!!
If during the video you couldn't remember: Red is the Fishman Fluence, Black is the EMG, blue is the Seymour Duncan (2:26). But then again, Chapman knows.
I agree with Chapman. EMGs cleans are really cool, at least for my ears. I have both fluence and EMG and I have to say that its EMGs for me. For some reason I can't stand the neck pickup on the fluence and the distortion always sounds that it has some sort of wah. They are both great tho but EMGs (for me) are still better than fluence.
I'm guessing you have the Moderns? I have the Keith Merrow set and a classic Open Core Bridge paired with a Fluence Active Single in the neck position. I also prefer EMG's over the Fluence pickups and I think the Fluence pickups are overrated and disappointing. But I prefer passives over actives and I prefer singles overall.
@@theauthenticsteve Hey man! I have the Classic set. Yeah I also think they are a bit overrated. They are good pickups, yes. But not the overall revolutionary sound that everyone talks about.
@@theauthenticsteve 100% agreed. Fluence aren't bad. But they aren't overwhelmingly superior like some people make them out to be. For me 10/10 I'd take EMG 81 over any FLuence.
I have one of the EC-1000 piezo's (LH and see through black instead of blue) and the combination of the 59, the JB, and the piezo gives so many one options. It's one of my favorite guitars and probably the best sounding option in its price range. This was a great video too.
I played jackson juggernaut loaded with the bareknuckle pickups of the same name and it was awesome. The bridge had just enough output and that s.o.b. was tight as a duck's ass. Also played an ibanez with aftermaths in it and didn't care much for the bridge but the neck had that smooth high gain sound that i love for leads high up on the neck. Only bareknucks I've played ao far but I'm looking forward to trying the nailbomb and warpig.
Are the blackhawks the actives? I just can't say enough about juggernauts bridge p/u. It's like the perfect compromise between my bill and becky l500xl which is very tight and articulate but kind of weak and overly bright and my duncan jb which is way too hot to be tight.
Blackhawks are blade passives. They got the second most appealing eq besides the ceramic Nailbombs, to me. I got a 6505 mh and its mid heavy so i want a tad of mid scoop. I just hope they're hot enough to be modern metal...
CAN'T WAIT TO PICK UP ONE OF THESE. JUST PLAYED YESTERDAY, STILL FEELS LIKE TODAY AND JUST ABSOLUTELY FELL IN LOVE WITH THIS GUITAR, WITH SEYMOUR DUNCAN'S.
@@kitoyobeni1 it's exactly what I expect Rob to listen to.. it's not my bag and I'm not surprised because I haven't liked anything rob has ever mentioned
EMGs rock, man. Been playing them for years now and it still amazes me how awesome they sound when I hear them. That there are *still* people saying sh*t like "active pickups are sterile and blah blah blah" gives a good hint on why rock is kinda dead. Don't be so conservative, rock fans!
Those Duncans are great sounding for blues/rock. I love that guitar too! But the Fishmans, even though they can be a little grainy depending on what you are playing, have a certain clarity to them.
Yeah, to me the Fishman's had the widest dynamic range & frequency spread, clean & dirty. The Duncan's were nice too, but those Fishman's are special. I'm building an HSH Strat pickguard w/2 open core fluence classics & an SS in the middle next month. Just got a new lightweight Paulownia body which work really well w/actives because of the added resonance. I'm really excited.
Best tone overall was still the Seymour Duncans by far. The jb sounded organic and clear and really drove the amp well. And the 59 is by far the greatest neck pickup
i have lace sensor pickups on a strat and just bought LTD MH-1000 with EMGs. the EMGs are clearly high gain metal. the neck pick up on clean with reverb is amazing. the Seymour doesn't have the clarity and gain of the other two. it seems that guys that don't like metal gain and sound go for low power Seymours and people that love the heaviest sounds and clarity go for EMGs
three glorious guitars right there. Got me two EC-1000's (One with EMG and One with Duncans) love them both. Maybe I need to add one more with Fluence.
I have an LTD equipped with the Seymour Duncans and I love it. The LTD Eclipse are some very well made LP's. Better than some of the stuff Gibson put on the shelves to be sure. Also past videos have shown that Rob definetly knows his JB humbucker and EMGs so he'll ace this one as all he has to do is eliminate the one he is less familiar with.
I agree. Absolutely love LTD Eclipses. Easily my favorite guitars. I have the 40th Anniversary Eclipse running EMG's and the Benjamin Burnley signature baritone Eclipse running the Seymour Duncan JB/59's and piezo. Both are amazing guitars. I really want the Fishman Eclipse and an Evertune.
I have one too it's absolutely incredible. Seriously, I've had it over a year and a half and I'm still getting sounds I've never heard before. Honestly, it's a seriously special guitar and I don't care what people say about where it's made it sounds incredible
Prior to this video, every other single comparison I've heard, the Fluence were always my favorites. In this one however, the Seymour Duncans BLEW me away. When you went through them again, I too heard that "nasal" sound. But THEN, you switched players, and I liked the Fluence better!
The Duncans win for tone, harmonics and presence! Now I definitely know that I am going to get a Duncan JB/Duncan 59 set for my Epi 335 and my Epi SG 400. I have seen a lot of shootouts in the past 4 days. This video definitely helped me make up my mind! Sweet licks Captain!
I recently got a Shecter with a Fluence in the bridge and I agree, it is quite bright. It has a lot of high end, so much so that I turn down the treble on my amp, and keep the tone knob almost completely rolled off. It is pretty compressed and loves gain, but it sings. Also, the Fluence sounds great clean! They should have tested the clean tones a bit more.
Just saw this and thought I'd chip in, they actually come with something optional called a HF tilt, as a lot of people discovered this issue that the high end was too bright. This rolls off the high end a little and removes this issue, it's just two extra wires to solder in, easy mod to remove that issue for you! Hope that helps :)
@@xanderhamilton7081 Really? I did not know that. I actually wish the guitar came with a manual because they literally don't explain any of the features
If you like the Passive with the Piezo pickup you HAVE to try the John Petrucci JP guitars they almost all have CrunchaLab and Piezo pickups and literally play themselves
Personally like the EMGs best. Fattest, ballsiest sound. Duncans sound like 80's hair metal. Fishman's, oddly enough, have the most "Gibson" sound, reminiscent of Pete Townsend . They all sound great. The Captain's getting more METAL everyday! LOVE IT!!!
People hate EMG's mostly due to a vestigial perception. One of them is they think that since actives have a pre-amp, they somehow sound bad? Not sure where that logic comes from... Another is because when EMG's first came out, they were most notably used by a lot of bands that used a lot of gain, so many people think they can *only* be used for that... Again, I don't know where the logic comes from there.
Zakk Wylde has a killer tone, even without all his chorus they sound killer. They also do sound different in every guitar contrary to popular belief...
I think for me, active pickups don't sound as subjectively organic and saggy on solo guitar as passives do. In a mix, I think they sound great! (Funnily enough, I much prefer active basses, I always feel like they have more balls and bite to them)
I definitely think they can sound good, even great, but can also sound awful. I think they are just overused, and I think they work on some guitars, but I honestly just don’t like the sound of them. I’m not one of those guys that say all emg’s suck, because they don’t, I just don’t like the frequency range on the one’s I’ve heard.
For some reason im an closet EMG guy, the fluence had a nice solo sound on the bridge but weird clean sound, the SD is nasty in the midrange and messy with lots of string noise not my cup of tea
I love these videos! Would it be possible to do a PCB vs hand-wired amp blindfold challenge? I'm not entirely sure how it would work, but I'm sure greater minds than myself could throw something together.
"Who'd have two of them?" Is Lee just talking about his two children or hinting that Rob's wife is pregnant with their second. If the latter is true then congratulations Mr & Mrs. Chappers! x
The JB/59 set is one of my most favorite set, the Distortion/59 set is my favorite set for classical metal (basically pre-2000), altho I've been introduced to the Custom Custom/59 as an excellent well rounded pairing.
If you make an ML-2 Pro Piezo in Lunar I will sell a kidney and buy 20, I hope the next vote is for a piezo model. Edit: If you could possibly have the neck through split the top (sort of like the Scallon sig, but not painted) in some future model I think that'd look insane too :)
I'd also love to see this happening! Just before reading your comment, I posted a comment myself NOT wanting to sell a kidney. Imagine a 1000£-ish JP-alternative 😍
Music Man are great but I'm looking for a satin LP style guitar, ideally with a bookmatched flamed maple top and multiscale, and the ML2 pro is the closest I've seen to that.
It’s very subjective with a test like this saying which pickups are “best”. However, it’s it speaks volumes about a product when a player like Tosin Abasi was mere days away from releasing a signature pickup with Duncan, but ended up scraping that, and switching over to fishman. Or ever Keith Marrow who not only played Duncan, but worked for the company, opted to switch to fishman after playing their pickups
the fishmans are definitely easier to listen to than EMG's, but that cocked wah sound you picked out is IMPOSSIBLE to get rid of. i've recorded guitars with them and the EQ work i had to do in the 600hz range was frightening.
Thanks for the fantastic demo, after the "half cocked wah" comment in regards to Fishman I couldn't un-hear it either. Fishman and Duncan both sounded very quacky to me. Combined with Fishman's very low battery life I think they are a pass for me. Another set of EMG's inbound shortly. Cheers and thanks!
Recently at a wedding near Guildford and forced my wonderful, lovely other to let me pay an in person visit! Fantastic to see it in real life AND a special THANK YOU to the dudes in the keyboard department that let my hungover lady sit with her eyes closed amongst the serene ivory while I ran around like an over-excited school boy.
Rob...if you like that piezo+magnetic tone, see if you can get your hands on an Ibanez SA420X. It does that same kind of thing and a bit more. I LOVE mine!! They're pretty hard to find, though.
Obviously, the one loaded with the EMGs is darker. Anyone can see that even if they were deaf! Seriously, I prefer the Duncan's, but I'm 72 yrs old. Alien Weaponry sings in Maori!? Thanks Rob! My grandson plays #9 and is a huge fan of the All Blacks. I'm texting him now. He will love them.
I got excited seeing my fav neck humbucker the EMG-60 vs the Fluence and SD But, no clean neck comparison? That's a waste Hoping to find a passive replacement for it one day, so I can pair it with the Nagzul
If I spent as much time practicing as I do watching these videos......
Do both at the same time!
I find that when I'm drilling exercises for an hour to get better at that technique, it gets pretty boring, so I usually put on a TV show or RUclips vid or anything that can save my mind from the monotony.
Keep roughly a 70/30 percent attention split, to your practicing and watching videos, respectively. Perhaps it could make your practice sessions a bit less efficient if you waver too much from that attention split, so be wary of that, but it certainly will make practicing more enjoyable and therefore you'll do it more often.
This is a 21 minute video... if you practiced *while* watching it, you certainly could get whatever you're working on a bit cleaner, faster, or both in that time span.
Ha! Was JUST thinking that!
Hahahaha. So true.
Yeah, totally do both :) ... works great ... mostly e-minor improvisation to jam along :D
Spanish tickle haha indeed
Blindfold Challenges never get old. I'd def like to see one with Rob vs. Rabea.
That would be great!
absolutely!
...in a blind pizza eating challenge...
Rob v Rab
I think rabs got a bit more speed and power in his playing and can switch styles pretty well so my money would be on the rab
Rob: "ah yes I can feel the magnets, the ground from which the minerals were mined, the earth it speaks to me, it is clearly [x]"
Lee and every normal person on the planet: "Yep that's a pickup"
Ah yes, the terroir of the magnets, yes. =)
Rob’s playing while blindfolded is impressive, but even more impressive is his ability to put his glasses on while playing at 10:44. This has to be some kind of witchcraft.
😂😂😂 I just noticed that
True alpha males don't need pickups. My arms are so strong I can get natural air distortion just from strumming.
Or strings
Remember your anger management training Hink Hall.
James Hetfield is that you?
Mr. Hank Hill. I'm a huge fan.
Your so many with your narrow urethra
Should've done the Duncan Blackouts as to compare the 'big 3' active pickups
Mark ? Agree, made no sense to put a passive set in there..
@@flyingmanforfun Blackouts sounds like shit, that's why they didn't, probably didn't have any either..
@@flyingmanforfun I think it makes perfect sense to compare passives against actives and the passives chosen in this test are a good choice. HOWEVER, what doesn't make sense is the active pickups they chose and the fact they didn't at least explore the other voices of the Fishman's especially considering they tried the SD's with the piezo. From multiple videos now these guys don't seem to be aware of the EMG TW line which is the most fitting direct comparison to Fluence pickups. And the Open Core Classic's would have been the best choice against those other two. And both of those are available in the same line of LTD guitars so there really is no good reason for the test to have been performed this way. It really makes me shake my head when the Captain comments about the tone of the Fishmans and doesn't seem to realise if you switch to the other voice they sound different and interestingly based on comments in this video he would have preferred the second tone. If they ran this test with the right guitars the result would have been a lot more difficult for them to pick a favourite but probably still just as easy for Rob to pick which one is which based on obvious traits of each pickup. For me it's easy, I have all of them and I personally prefer passives because I like the noise and that's also why I like singles more than humbuckers. But for guys who prefer noiseless pickups, pickups that are more evenly matched in voice would see people leaning towards the actives. BTW I think Fishman are massively overrated. I have 2 different sets and both are disappointing.
I have to agree on this. I actually prefer my Blackouts to the EMG’s I have. 2 totally different guitars tho so might be partly to do with that. All objective of course
@@Masterfighterx Well everyone has different opinions on what tone they like and dislike. If we all liked the same thing and played the same thing it would suck. I will tell you that the fishmens did not sound as good as I thought they would be with the price. They are the pickups that cost like $700 for a Tele set or is that another brand?
Tea break at work in Englandshire enjoying a blindfold challenge.
mmm yes. Quite.
What this video taught me is that I really enjoy the sound of the super kracken
Should have tried the second "passive" voice on the Fishmans (pull tone knob)!
I bought the exact Fluence Deluxe used in this video from Andertons in store a few days ago , last one in stock 😊
In a lot of ways the pickups you choose need to be played in their own ways to get the most out of them. If you choose a capable pickup you will learn to get the best tones out of them, they were all awesome.
DiMarzio vs Seymour Duncan; Super Distortion vs JB, Chopper vs Hot Rails
one sounds vintage and fat, the other sounds fat and vintage. i prefer the super distortion myself, but the jb does wonders.
DiMarzio Multibucker vs anything...doesn't matter, the Multibucker will always win!
@@eddyguizonde401 I've got a Gibson Explorer 83 (The one without the pickguard and the controls in a triangle shape) with a JB and a Mexican Strat with a Super Dist (both in the bridge) .
Love 'em both!
@@TheDogPa do you have one for sale by any chance :-P ??
@@thefriendlyfinger69 I wish I could find more! I missed one a few months back and have google alert set now! I watch for them. I missed a really rare matched set once...special order, as there was never a neck version...that sold for only $300 for the pair! They should be $1000 a piece as they are almost unavailable they are so rare...but nobody has a clue what they are...and I hope I can buy a few more before anyone does...just like the used USA Hamers (what mine is in) that are the best guitars around...at any price...! Good luck...I hope I beat you to them though...LOL!
You're totally right about the EMG clean tone, I've always liked it a lot. It's different from either a single coil or regular humbucker sound and does something really neat.
I hate emg clean, maybe only for a ultra compressed plastic tone for an ambient tone full of FX only, when you dont need any dynamics and character.
@@abheceshabemuskk3531 It has it's unique place, I do agree it's a lot less character than say a Lollar Jazzmaster or an SD hot rail. I've found that it's useful for exactly that ambient clean somewhat bell like plucked guitar into a nice hall verb, especially when you're in an EMI noisy place. It also seems to sound better with heavier gauge strings, I run 12s and tune to C with my EMGs. Ends up with a unique sound I don't have from other pickups.
Dave Gilmour and Steve Lukather used EMGs for a long time. I think a lot of people don't get the most out of EMGs simply because they don't fit the frequency boost controls. Put SAs in a Strat, with the EXG and SPC and you get every Strat you'd need and no noise.
...Also Jerry Garcia used EMG too and probably some generic smooth jazzers, lol, they're not just for metal
I’d rather go with lace holy grail.
And Mark Knofler
Don't forget Prince!
I have a strat with the exg and spc... but the difference is i have the emg x pickups with a 85 in the bridge as you can see from my picture. The guitar does everything i need it to do.
Lee’s playing has improved tremendously over the years. I wonder if he even realizes or if he listened to old videos if he could tell the difference.
The best was clearly the Duncan’s with the piezo. Sounded great!
I agree, everything sounded great about it, but the chunka chunk was messy and I'm sure especially when you add bass guitar and rest of band
@@Hmmm7512 EMGs on the other hand were made for chugging...
If only there were a pickup that perfectly mixed what people like about active and passive pickups without the downsides....
@@Mytube6138 you're implying Fishman, but I just think of Seymour Duncan's Duality set. Similar concept, and I absolutely love mine! Best active pickups I've played
@@Mytube6138 Dimarzio d activator
A cool blindfold video would be preamps or pedals modelled after a real amp, versus the original amp of the same model/brand. For example Victory preamp pedals (Kraken, Sheriff, ...), Friedmann BE, Revv (G3, G4), Diezel ...
Don't forget the Mooer Micro Preamps as well!
@@Mr.Goldbar I guess these need their own episode ;)
Love all these sounds, stunning performance chaps!!
I've never really liked Fishmans. They sound too much like a hot rodded single coil for my taste. I can see where others enjoy that sound as it cuts through a mix tremendously well, but it's just not for me.
More like see less duncan.....because blindfold
nice
i can't see what you did there
[incoherent wailing]
*wheeze*
So bad 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Yet so good...
The Fishman Fluence Classic Pickups now have 3 Voicings - Singlecoil (humfree), PAF & Hot Rodded Humbucker Tone.
You can switch between them ..
Hans Meiser I want to buy fishman fluence modern humburcker pick Up .. what do you say Can you suggest me
That’s what came in my new guitar and I love em however Chap mentioned something I haven’t been able to put into words yet, the neck pup in high gain has a slight whammy pedal half cranked kinda feel especially playing leads on single string bends.
I like all of the pups. They all have their place. In the Riff spectrum.
Seymour Duncan's every time, they just sound organic. Shit, just watched a bit more, and he said organic sounding!
SDs and Bare Knuckles for me. I feel like Dimarzios are too smooth tbh, it doesn't have the grain that Duncans or BKPs have imo. Fishmans and EMGs are cool too but don't have that organic sound imo.
Cow tone?🤔🤷♂️
I agree. I like Seymour duncan also
I have the EC1000 with EMG's and I love it but Im dying to try the EC1000 with Fishmans.
I bet if you gave Lee a Fluence CLASSIC, wired for 2 voicing and coil tapping (which doesn't come stock and requires soldering wire to two points behind the pickups) and explained the pickups to him properly... he'd be very impressed at the sounds and versatility...
Even without coil tapping which requires some custom work, they're still great.
Lads... You didn't even test the "passive" mode of the fishmans! The core selling point of the things!
I've had a bunch of different EMGs, and I'm of the same opinion as Rob: very nice cleans, sort of a full and sparkling tone! They also do high gain tones well, depending on what you're after. What they're terrible at, however, is crunch. Even though I'm a metal player, I really need that crunchy goodness, so I've always wound up replacing the different EMGs I've tried. I've got two 8-strings loaded with Seymour Duncan Blackouts, and they, on the other hand, do crunch tones surprisingly well - very different voicing from most EMGs.
The crunch thing is why I love the Fishman voicing options. I have Willie Adler's signature set in my Washburn and I love having the more modern active sound for cleans and super upper-midsy, modern high gain stuff, with the passive voice for crunch tones and more 80s/90s style thick, low-mid focused high gain.
Really would like to give the Blackouts a try, as well. They seem really under-represented in terms of how many people have used them, yet I've never heard from somebody who tried and didn't like them, especially on 8 strings.
EradicatedVoid who does a crunch on an 8 string lmao
@@matthewtucker1699 Tell that to Tosin Abasi and Javier Reyes.
@@SuffyANX Indeed, the voicing options are really a strong selling point for the Fishmans. Looking forward to trying them out as soon as possible.
The Blackouts are definitely worth a shot, at least in my opinion. Their voicing is closer to something I'd associate with passive pickups, but with higher output. Though, I have to say, I'm more fond of the 8-string version than the 6-string.
I love my EMG 81 and 85 set in my Gibson V into my Mesa Flux Drive into my Mesa Triple Rectifier.. It works for me and I wouldn't change them out for anything.
It would be interesting to do an EMG vs Fluence Modern vs SD Blackout. This was cool for the variety, but a strict metal pickup comparison would be perfect.
So it’s December and I’ve recently started watching a great many of the Anderson videos. Of all the great comparative info and review info you’ve all provided, I’d like to thank Rob Chapman for the “Alien Weaponry” tip.
I’m hooked.
It's amazing how different the guitars sound from when Lee plays them compared to when Rob is playing them! And the Seymour Duncan's sound the best!
Fluence are the worst of the 3 and the most expensive by 2-300 dollars. The industry overuses Fluence without merit.
Chappers played great and it's amazing to see how well he knows the sound of the pickups! awesome review guys
Kia ora, Rob from New Zealand! Cheers for the Alien Weaponry plug! They are indeed choice as!
UTTERLY EXTREMLY INTERESTING!!!!
I guess this would be one of your most watched video!!
Thanks!
This comes right when I hesitate between the 3 pups!!!!
Rob "I like an emg clean tone,the do q cool thing"
Lee "I'm happy for you, Next guitar!"
If during the video you couldn't remember: Red is the Fishman Fluence, Black is the EMG, blue is the Seymour Duncan (2:26). But then again, Chapman knows.
I agree with Chapman. EMGs cleans are really cool, at least for my ears. I have both fluence and EMG and I have to say that its EMGs for me. For some reason I can't stand the neck pickup on the fluence and the distortion always sounds that it has some sort of wah. They are both great tho but EMGs (for me) are still better than fluence.
I'm guessing you have the Moderns? I have the Keith Merrow set and a classic Open Core Bridge paired with a Fluence Active Single in the neck position. I also prefer EMG's over the Fluence pickups and I think the Fluence pickups are overrated and disappointing. But I prefer passives over actives and I prefer singles overall.
@@theauthenticsteve Hey man! I have the Classic set. Yeah I also think they are a bit overrated. They are good pickups, yes. But not the overall revolutionary sound that everyone talks about.
@@theauthenticsteve 100% agreed. Fluence aren't bad. But they aren't overwhelmingly superior like some people make them out to be. For me 10/10 I'd take EMG 81 over any FLuence.
I run an EMG T set at 18v. Amazing cleans! Doesn't sound like an old black guard Tele, but it does sound good.
I have one of the EC-1000 piezo's (LH and see through black instead of blue) and the combination of the 59, the JB, and the piezo gives so many one options. It's one of my favorite guitars and probably the best sounding option in its price range. This was a great video too.
Haha I picked the middle one, and Lee got it right
me too kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk
Same
Same here.
Same
Same
8:57 Those two D notes and my brain immediately says, sweet home alabama
Same
or Bad Moon Rising 😂
Same 🤣
What about bareknuckle pickups? Seems to be the new trend along with fluence with all the new models coming out with them.
I played jackson juggernaut loaded with the bareknuckle pickups of the same name and it was awesome. The bridge had just enough output and that s.o.b. was tight as a duck's ass. Also played an ibanez with aftermaths in it and didn't care much for the bridge but the neck had that smooth high gain sound that i love for leads high up on the neck. Only bareknucks I've played ao far but I'm looking forward to trying the nailbomb and warpig.
D Culver I kinda want the Nailbombs or Blackhawks
Are the blackhawks the actives? I just can't say enough about juggernauts bridge p/u. It's like the perfect compromise between my bill and becky l500xl which is very tight and articulate but kind of weak and overly bright and my duncan jb which is way too hot to be tight.
Blackhawks are blade passives. They got the second most appealing eq besides the ceramic Nailbombs, to me. I got a 6505 mh and its mid heavy so i want a tad of mid scoop. I just hope they're hot enough to be modern metal...
CAN'T WAIT TO PICK UP ONE OF THESE. JUST PLAYED YESTERDAY, STILL FEELS LIKE TODAY AND JUST ABSOLUTELY FELL IN LOVE WITH THIS GUITAR, WITH SEYMOUR DUNCAN'S.
Rob, thanks for the heads up about Alien Weaponry, they're awesome.
I don't get the hype from what I heard. Sounded like a Kiwi Soulfly.
They have cool videos
@@kitoyobeni1 it's exactly what I expect Rob to listen to.. it's not my bag and I'm not surprised because I haven't liked anything rob has ever mentioned
EMGs rock, man. Been playing them for years now and it still amazes me how awesome they sound when I hear them. That there are *still* people saying sh*t like "active pickups are sterile and blah blah blah" gives a good hint on why rock is kinda dead. Don't be so conservative, rock fans!
I play thru Duncan JB s. Can u recommend EMGs I may like ?
“Seymour Duncan’s are for...dads” 😂🤣😂
I'm twice dad :-)))). You're probably right!!! My second choice are the EMG's
When you're old enough to play Duncans you'll finally be off the nipple.
Jeff McWhirter good god 😂 you are right
Sometimes it's respectful to just recognise what an ace guitarist Mr Chapman is - killer chops throughout this video!
Never heard of Greg Koch before, but clearly I've been missing out. He's amazing.
He really is awesome! Very inspiring.
Those Duncans are great sounding for blues/rock. I love that guitar too! But the Fishmans, even though they can be a little grainy depending on what you are playing, have a certain clarity to them.
Yeah, to me the Fishman's had the widest dynamic range & frequency spread, clean & dirty. The Duncan's were nice too, but those Fishman's are special. I'm building an HSH Strat pickguard w/2 open core fluence classics & an SS in the middle next month. Just got a new lightweight Paulownia body which work really well w/actives because of the added resonance. I'm really excited.
Best tone overall was still the Seymour Duncans by far. The jb sounded organic and clear and really drove the amp well. And the 59 is by far the greatest neck pickup
i have lace sensor pickups on a strat and just bought LTD MH-1000 with EMGs. the EMGs are clearly high gain metal. the neck pick up on clean with reverb is amazing. the Seymour doesn't have the clarity and gain of the other two. it seems that guys that don't like metal gain and sound go for low power Seymours and people that love the heaviest sounds and clarity go for EMGs
When you can play like this guy, does it really matter what kind of pickups you're using??? ;)
three glorious guitars right there. Got me two EC-1000's (One with EMG and One with Duncans) love them both. Maybe I need to add one more with Fluence.
Same...same.... and same.
Gonna get that evertune along with the fluence model (one of these days)
8:16 for some reason the way Lee says "More gain than a set of EMGs?!" cracked me up
Would be interested in hearing a Lace pickup, and a few smaller builders.
I have an LTD equipped with the Seymour Duncans and I love it. The LTD Eclipse are some very well made LP's. Better than some of the stuff Gibson put on the shelves to be sure.
Also past videos have shown that Rob definetly knows his JB humbucker and EMGs so he'll ace this one as all he has to do is eliminate the one he is less familiar with.
Yeah, I've got the Tiger Eye finished EC-1000 in the video with the Fishman Moderns and I love it!
I agree. Absolutely love LTD Eclipses. Easily my favorite guitars. I have the 40th Anniversary Eclipse running EMG's and the Benjamin Burnley signature baritone Eclipse running the Seymour Duncan JB/59's and piezo. Both are amazing guitars. I really want the Fishman Eclipse and an Evertune.
I have one too it's absolutely incredible. Seriously, I've had it over a year and a half and I'm still getting sounds I've never heard before. Honestly, it's a seriously special guitar and I don't care what people say about where it's made it sounds incredible
15:06 “You know I love a clean tone.” Then immediately shreds like M Effing godzilla.
My favorite EMGs are 57/66. But I would love a set of Fishman on one of my guitars.
Prior to this video, every other single comparison I've heard, the Fluence were always my favorites. In this one however, the Seymour Duncans BLEW me away. When you went through them again, I too heard that "nasal" sound. But THEN, you switched players, and I liked the Fluence better!
The Duncans win for tone, harmonics and presence! Now I definitely know that I am going to get a Duncan JB/Duncan 59 set for my Epi 335 and my Epi SG 400. I have seen a lot of shootouts in the past 4 days. This video definitely helped me make up my mind! Sweet licks Captain!
Good combo
Jesus this man just flawlessly tapped with a blindfold on
That's what I was thinking, too!
Dude is crazy!
Rob Chapman can also walk on water ..probably😎
I recently got a Shecter with a Fluence in the bridge and I agree, it is quite bright. It has a lot of high end, so much so that I turn down the treble on my amp, and keep the tone knob almost completely rolled off. It is pretty compressed and loves gain, but it sings. Also, the Fluence sounds great clean! They should have tested the clean tones a bit more.
Just saw this and thought I'd chip in, they actually come with something optional called a HF tilt, as a lot of people discovered this issue that the high end was too bright. This rolls off the high end a little and removes this issue, it's just two extra wires to solder in, easy mod to remove that issue for you! Hope that helps :)
@@xanderhamilton7081 Really? I did not know that. I actually wish the guitar came with a manual because they literally don't explain any of the features
My preferences:
1) Seymour Duncan
2) EMG
3) Fishman
If you like the Passive with the Piezo pickup you HAVE to try the John Petrucci JP guitars they almost all have CrunchaLab and Piezo pickups and literally play themselves
The JP15 has to be arguably the best electric guitar ever made!
He totally chose the one I was thinking of in my mind. Unbelievable.
Kia kaha Rob! Surprised you heard of our local metal band from Northland here in New Zealand. Kia Ora!
i love how you can see immediately how "at home" Chappers was as soon as he lit up those Duncans.
Definitely going with the fluence after this video. Wow they sound huge. Perfect for what I’m doing at the moment.
Personally like the EMGs best. Fattest, ballsiest sound. Duncans sound like 80's hair metal. Fishman's, oddly enough, have the most "Gibson" sound, reminiscent of Pete Townsend . They all sound great. The Captain's getting more METAL everyday! LOVE IT!!!
I own one of these with the Duncans but I really like what that emg loaded on sounds like
The EMGs absolutely slaughtered the competition through Lee's rig. Fluence pickups are a fad, EMGs are forever.
imagine having an opinion
I would love to see you guys compare the single coil and classic Humbucker fluence models
How can you “demo” the Fluences and only show one of the voicings? Pull on the tone pot next time!
He wasn't allowed to touch the pots, so while he was blindfolded he couldnt.
@@arjunchaparala1014 They should have done it after the blindfold. The awesome thing about fishman is the voicings and versatility.
some Killer playing from Rob there!
Don't get why some people hate EMG's. I like the sound. One of my Fav. Zack Wylde use them...
People hate EMG's mostly due to a vestigial perception.
One of them is they think that since actives have a pre-amp, they somehow sound bad? Not sure where that logic comes from...
Another is because when EMG's first came out, they were most notably used by a lot of bands that used a lot of gain, so many people think they can *only* be used for that... Again, I don't know where the logic comes from there.
Zakk Wylde has a killer tone, even without all his chorus they sound killer. They also do sound different in every guitar contrary to popular belief...
I think for me, active pickups don't sound as subjectively organic and saggy on solo guitar as passives do. In a mix, I think they sound great! (Funnily enough, I much prefer active basses, I always feel like they have more balls and bite to them)
I definitely think they can sound good, even great, but can also sound awful. I think they are just overused, and I think they work on some guitars, but I honestly just don’t like the sound of them. I’m not one of those guys that say all emg’s suck, because they don’t, I just don’t like the frequency range on the one’s I’ve heard.
They all sound fantastic
For some reason im an closet EMG guy, the fluence had a nice solo sound on the bridge but weird clean sound, the SD is nasty in the midrange and messy with lots of string noise not my cup of tea
I love these videos! Would it be possible to do a PCB vs hand-wired amp blindfold challenge? I'm not entirely sure how it would work, but I'm sure greater minds than myself could throw something together.
"Who'd have two of them?" Is Lee just talking about his two children or hinting that Rob's wife is pregnant with their second. If the latter is true then congratulations Mr & Mrs. Chappers! x
The JB/59 set is one of my most favorite set, the Distortion/59 set is my favorite set for classical metal (basically pre-2000), altho I've been introduced to the Custom Custom/59 as an excellent well rounded pairing.
Rob is such great player and awesome to watch. I wish I had a 1/4 of his talent
Loved the playing in this video Sir Chappers
If you make an ML-2 Pro Piezo in Lunar I will sell a kidney and buy 20, I hope the next vote is for a piezo model.
Edit: If you could possibly have the neck through split the top (sort of like the Scallon sig, but not painted) in some future model I think that'd look insane too :)
I'd also love to see this happening! Just before reading your comment, I posted a comment myself NOT wanting to sell a kidney. Imagine a 1000£-ish JP-alternative 😍
Music Man are great but I'm looking for a satin LP style guitar, ideally with a bookmatched flamed maple top and multiscale, and the ML2 pro is the closest I've seen to that.
I dig those Fishman pickups. I've got got the Greg Koch gristle set in my Tele and they sound awesome!
It’s very subjective with a test like this saying which pickups are “best”. However, it’s it speaks volumes about a product when a player like Tosin Abasi was mere days away from releasing a signature pickup with Duncan, but ended up scraping that, and switching over to fishman. Or ever Keith Marrow who not only played Duncan, but worked for the company, opted to switch to fishman after playing their pickups
the fishmans are definitely easier to listen to than EMG's, but that cocked wah sound you picked out is IMPOSSIBLE to get rid of. i've recorded guitars with them and the EQ work i had to do in the 600hz range was frightening.
I wonder if Rob can tell what I had for lunch just be hearing the sound of my farts.
Cannot believe how hot the Fishmann's sounded. Are they dual voiced like Greg's Tele pickups?
i think all fishmans are dual voiced
The Fluences sound even more compressed than EMGs.
Thanks for the fantastic demo, after the "half cocked wah" comment in regards to Fishman I couldn't un-hear it either. Fishman and Duncan both sounded very quacky to me. Combined with Fishman's very low battery life I think they are a pass for me. Another set of EMG's inbound shortly. Cheers and thanks!
If only the Seymour Duncans were Blackouts. Then the comparison would be just active pickups. But, I guess not everything can be perfect.
Recently at a wedding near Guildford and forced my wonderful, lovely other to let me pay an in person visit! Fantastic to see it in real life AND a special THANK YOU to the dudes in the keyboard department that let my hungover lady sit with her eyes closed amongst the serene ivory while I ran around like an over-excited school boy.
The EMGs sound like death metal, the Duncans like rock, and the others, just kinda muddy.
I play thrash, death and black metal and despise EMGs. Just sound fake and empty. Soulless. I use mostly passive pickups.
@@woolgum I actually love the 57/66 set but they still don't have that feel passives have imo.
Rob...if you like that piezo+magnetic tone, see if you can get your hands on an Ibanez SA420X. It does that same kind of thing and a bit more. I LOVE mine!! They're pretty hard to find, though.
You cant go wrong to any of them.
Obviously, the one loaded with the EMGs is darker. Anyone can see that even if they were deaf! Seriously, I prefer the Duncan's, but I'm 72 yrs old. Alien Weaponry sings in Maori!? Thanks Rob! My grandson plays #9 and is a huge fan of the All Blacks. I'm texting him now. He will love them.
I definitely prefer the EMG clean tones.
I got excited seeing my fav neck humbucker the EMG-60 vs the Fluence and SD
But, no clean neck comparison?
That's a waste
Hoping to find a passive replacement for it one day, so I can pair it with the Nagzul
The Fluences had me until I heard the Seymours with that Piezo.
They all sound great in different ways. What a great time to be playing guitar.
I preferred the Seymour Duncans the most. The Fluence pickups sounded the most processed to me.
Right? Everyone going gaga over them but I dont get it. I liked the EMG best though.