United States · Est. 1981
Fishman
Creators of Fluence technology. Active pickups with printed coils that eliminate hum entirely while preserving the organic character of passive pickups.
About the brand
Fishman was founded in 1981 in Andover, Massachusetts, primarily as a manufacturer of piezoelectric pickups for acoustic guitars. The Fluence division, launched in 2015, represented a technological revolution: instead of copper wire wound around a magnet, Fluence pickups use printed circuit coils deposited on a PCB substrate.
The result is perfect consistency between units — impossible with hand-winding — and zero 60-cycle hum. The technology also allows storing two different voices in each pickup, accessible with a push-pull pot. The Fluence Modern Humbucker covers both the vintage PAF sound and modern high-gain attack in a single pickup.
The Fluence Classic Humbucker does the same with vintage-style sounds. The Fluence Single Width recreates single-coil tones with zero hum. Professional players who do extended solo touring find the reliability of PCB construction particularly valuable.
Key facts
- Fluence: printed circuit coils that eliminate hum entirely
- Two voices per pickup in a single instrument without changing pickups
- Perfect consistency between units thanks to PCB manufacturing
- Founded in 1981 as an acoustic guitar pickup manufacturer
Iconic pickups
Fluence Modern
Printed coil humbucker with two voices: modern high-gain active and classic PAF-style. No hum and no variation between units. Favourite for modern metal and prog.
Fluence Classic
Humbucker with two vintage voices: 1950s PAF and higher-output PAF. Preserves the organic vintage character without hum or inconsistency.
Fluence Single Width
Hum-free printed coil single-coil. Preserves the attack and clarity of a single-coil while eliminating the 60-cycle noise problem.
Fluence Open Core
Open-coil humbucker with open pole design that produces a more airy, defined tone than the conventional closed design.
Notable musicians
- Tosin Abasi · Fluence Modern 8-cuerda
- Aaron Marshall · Fluence Modern
- Nita Strauss · Fluence Classic
- Misha Mansoor · Fluence Modern