Yay, the board works. No matter how much you test, there’s always that feeling in the back of your head going “What if no-one can register? What if no-one can POST!?”
I’ve got an interesting problem – anti-WhOA. I’ve really no interest in accumulating large numbers of whistles, especially high-end ones. Instead, I want a small, reliable, and replaceable stable of decent whistles.
Expensive whistles look like an easy route to whistle Nirvana – if I get, say, a Burke Session Pro and like it, then chances are if it gets damaged or stolen I’ll like the next Burke Session Pro. Finding the one I like isn’t exactly an easy task, though.
Besides, I have my ideal whistle. It’s a Feadog given to me when my father went to Ireland in 1989, before they ruined the design. I wish I had a dozen of them; as it is, I usually carry around a Sweetone – my other old-reliable, except not exactly the tone I’m after – so that the Feadog doesn’t get damaged.
So I figure the secret to whistle Nirvana goes like this – find an inexpensive whistle you like, and then stock up (possibly giving the few in the bunch that don’t play as well to whistle newbies who won’t yet know the difference).
I’m also going to try Neil O’Grady’s Clare/Generationish whistle and Cillian Ò Briain’s tweaks – which are no longer only modified Feadogs but are tweaked Generation fipples on Feadog shafts – to see if inexpensive whistles with a bit of pro TLC are what I’m after.
Anyone else trying to acheive or already beyond anti-WhOA nirvana? Any tips for someone on the path?
I also have an old Feadog that I got in Ireland in 1982 that came with a leather case that was my best cheap whistle until my recent head transplant experience (plus it brings back memories of my only trip to Ireland evry time I play it).
I’m with you on this one Rich. After a year of two or trying and searching, I’ve given up on the idea of finding an expensive whistle that offers significant advantages over my favourite cheapies, Generations. It does feel Zen, to have travelled the expensive road and realize you have been chasing a mirage!
Of course, there’s the quality-control issue. So here’s my policy: if I see Generations on sale anywhere where I can easily try them, I usually do, and if I find a good one (especially a D), I always buy it. Degluing and tuning is often all that is needed. Or a little cleaning-up, blade-shaving and maybe cavity-filling, and I have a very fine whistle.
If all of this freaks you out, then a tweaked cheapie such as one by Cillian O Briain or Thom Larson (Clarke D) is a good compromise.
For my purposes (playing Irish traditional) my Generations sound and play as well as a Sindt or Burke. Actually, if you want my heretical but honest opinion, they sound significantly better. My favourite Generation of all is a B-flat. One of the world’s best-kept secrets, IMO.
The only thing a Generation cannot provide that I sometimes need is a little more volume. But this is only for playing in very noisy environments, the kind I don’t really like to play in. I have a Water Weasel on long-term loan from Azalin (he has my Sindt as collateral) and in these circumstances that does the trick fine.
StevieJ-when you see a Generation on sale, and try it out, what do you do and what kinds of things do you listen for? Do you play scales or certain tunes? How do you know what can be fixed with a little tweaking and what is beyond tweaking.
I’ve bought a couple of excellent whistles and a couple of lemons and I’m curious about the weeding process.
StevieJ-when you see a Generation on sale, and try it out, what do you do and what kinds of things do you listen for? Do you play scales or certain tunes? How do you know what can be fixed with a little tweaking and what is beyond tweaking.
Well, I’m no Stevie…but I may be able to shed a little light on this subject.
I’ve purchased probably about ten generation whistles over the last year or so, and just about all of them sounded ‘fair’ at first. I wasn’t able to try them in the store, but I was able to look into the windways and check out the blade and all that before buying.
Now, I’m no expert in plastic molding, but it was pretty easy for me to tell which ones looked straighter and had less ‘gunk’ in the airways than others.
These are the ones I bought and tweaked at home. Several of these were indeed bad even after tweaking. Some were playable, but just didn’t quite have that special something you hear in great whistle tone.
All except for one…
I stumbled accross one of the nickel D’s that after I thought I’d ruined it by slightly melting the mouthpiece, and cracking it trying to get it off the tube, which sounds AWESOME!
Don’t know what happened to it in all that chaos, but whatever it was, I’ve not been able to duplicate it yet! But it does indeed sound wonderful! The next best whislte I’ve found has to be the Oak. Very little tweaking required, and it sounds ALMOST as good as that poor battered Generation does.
If you’d like any specific help on tweaking these two whistles, drop me an email and I’ll be happy to offer my advice.
No, I understand that Feadogs are Irish-made and Oaks are American. Actually they sound different as could be to me.
As for cheap whistle Nirvana–I’m awfully glad I didn’t stick with the first 2 or 3 cheapie whistle types I bought. All have been tweaked and all sound ok, but I would not have discovered Clare and Oak. And I would not be as happy as I am today.
Of course, since I have found some species of cheap whistles that I particularly like, my WhOA has died down and I don’t have much interest in saving up for an expensive one.
And it’s nice not to have to guard my whistles with my life!
Although I am a passionate collector of high-end whistles, I have put together an inexpensive whistle with a pure, rich tone like some of the expensive ones. I put a tweaked (cavity-filled) green feadog fipple on the Oak tube that was my very first whistle. I really like it.
Rich,
I have an O’Grady. It’s wonderful! Even my wife admitted that it sounded “not so painful” (rare praise, indeed).
But it took me a while to figure it out. If I don’t blow straight into it, it gets very whispery. But, if I user “proper whistle posture” and focus my breath, it is absolutely gorgeous.
I would be interested if anyone has seen an O’Grady and a Clare side by side. They look suspiciously like the same whistle.
StevieJ-when you see a Generation on sale, and try it out, what do you do and what kinds of things do you listen for? Do you play scales or certain tunes? How do you know what can be fixed with a little tweaking and what is beyond tweaking?
No, nothing special. I start by giving them the 5-second lemon test by whizzing up and down the scale from bottom D to high B. If one passes that test I play it a bit more – try some octave jumps, play a bit of a reel or two. If I still like it after that, I buy it.
I don’t know what can be fixed by tweaking – I’m not that much of a tweak expert. I wouldn’t buy one that didn’t sound good to start with, assuming I could tweak it into shape. It would be a good learning experience though!
Perfect whistles that got away
I once went to a biggish music store in my city to find a whistle for a beginner. While there by chance I met a friend who is a good player. After diplomatic overtures to the store staff, the two of us ran through about 30 bluetop Generation Ds. All but a handful failed the 5-second test and were immediately put to one side. The others were played for a while and we selected one absolutely perfect model (worthy of Paddy Maloney) and one close second, which I still have. The student took the perfect one, gave up playing after a short time, and left town.
I did the same trick in a little music shop in Donegal town. They had a box of old redtop Generations. Considerably more diplomacy was required on this occasion to get permission to try them. Picked a perfect one out of about 20 models. Later lent it to a friend who was interested in learning whistle. While she was at work someone rifled her bag, taking only her sandwiches and my whistle!
I much prefer the redtops, BTW. I find the nickel bodies of the bluetops are slippery, while the brass bodies soon develop a lovely worn patina.
I much prefer the redtops, BTW. I find the nickel bodies of the bluetops are slippery, while the brass bodies soon develop a lovely worn patina.
Agreed! I’m really not a Generation fan so much as a Generation-style fan, but there’s something about a well-worn whistle that makes you want to pick it up and play it. That might be part of the reason I’m thinking I’m not a big fancy-whistle fan, and part of the reason that I find Water Weasels interesting among the “expensive” whistles.
I agree with Stevie..a good Generation is hard to beat at any price! And it really does pay to try them out. I have had good luck with most of the Generations available in my town (Winnipeg, Canada) but awful luck with any Waltons,(including the Little Black Whistles) I have yet to find any kind of Waltons that I like!..they sound stuffy, don’t play well at all, far inferior to the majority of Generations. Maybe they send a different kind of Generation to Canada than to the US…???
Hello Guys!
Glad that our third board is up so quickly, and I must say its faster and has better interface than the previous board!
My favourite and most played whistle is a Generation D. I love it for playability - octave transitions and breath requirements/resistance, as well as tone - what I think sounds perfect for Irish music, whether for airs or dance tunes. I use it for performances and practice, and I think Generations are divine to play and pales in no way to expensive whistles.
Sadly I haven’t attained full satori from WhOA yet, having placed some orders for Overtons recently… dang!
Anti-WHOA works for soprano whistle players, but is it possible to find enlightenment with a cheap LOW whistle? My experience with low whistles is that you get what you pay for. Is this anti-anti-WHOA?
My favorite inexpensive is the Dixon. I prefer the tunable, but the non-tunable is nice too. Tony also makes a number of good low whistles that are inexpensive and still pretty good.
Breathy sound, moderate volume (compared to a susato), easy fingering, moderate air requirements through a fipple that has never clogged on me. Being PVC they are pretty durable; I’ve put one in my back pocket, sat on it, and it survived with out any damage.
Now that The Whistle Shop carries them I expect you’ll hear even more about them.
If your looking for an inexpensive Low-D to try, the Dixon is the one great whistle for the price. Of course it’s not an Overton but it is a good whistle.
I told Thom at the Whistle Shop that I loved the sound and feel of the Susato and he recommended that I try a Dixon. Since getting the Dixon, I’ve put all my other whistles in the shelf. In fact, I was planning on ordering a second as a spare.
I don’t think it qualifies as a “cheap” whistle, but very inexpensive and well worth the money.
Dixon vs. Metal? Completely different. I would say that the Dixon almost has a wood-like mellow tone. The whistle itself is PVC but the fipple is made of a hardwood.
If you’re going for the traditional “Tin whistle” sound, it’s definitely the wrong whistle. But for a wooden flute-like sound, it’s a very good compromise between quality and price.
How’s the sound of the Dixon compare to a metal whistle?
It is a little more flute like than some metal whistles. It sounds a lot like the Burke Narrow Bore Composite. Think of the Burke with a little more breathyness. by breathyness I mean overtones that sound a little like someone in the background quitely going Chhhhhhh or tsh or sh but just a little. Kinda a Chiff without the if.
If metal whistles have a more bell like or brighter sound than wood or PVC; then, the Dixon has more bell or brightness than the Susato. Less than my Burk NBC-D. The sound is not as loud as my tunable (aluminum) chieftain but the tone is simular.
All in all the tone of any whistle, seems to me, a very subjective dimension and varies with the method of the player.
My favourite cheapie is my Clarke Original D. It’s easy to play and not loud, so I love to use it when learning new tunes, or when the kids are sleeping or when I’m out in the woods with my dog. I tried a Sweetone which played very well, but I just don’t like plastic.
No matter how much you test, there’s always that feeling in the back of your head going “What if no-one can register? What if no-one can POST!?”