(I am not implying that Davey took Pat’s design…it is different, but many of the critical dimensions are similar enough that they play the same and the craftsmanship is about the same.)
It doesn’t look like David uses a delrin mouthpiece design like Pat does. Have you noted any clogging to speak of? I do like the look of the brass mouth piece tips too.
For a price of $150-$210 on average these willl be hard to beat. Looks like his wait is under one month as well - a very appealing feature!
Thanks for supplying an alternative for the unobtainable. I respect your opinion. I have thought about Davey as a possible next big whistle purchase. You had told me in chat that I needed a broke-in Abell.
How would you compare an ideal D Abell with the Boisvert?
An ideal Abell is my favorite, though a good Copeland is great, too. O’Riordans don’t have quite as much focus or character as an ideal Abell. And the craftsmanship is really superb on Abells (and Copelands).
I’d comment about Abells that there are some pure sounding ones out there, but most, I believe, are breathy sounding. That’s very different from the O’Riordan pure sound. Ask yourself what you’re looking for. I know Weekender has tried both, so no surprises for you. Dang it, Blackhawk, if you could make the gathering, we’d have all the suspects in one place at one time. sigh.
Tony
Yes, most Abells are kind of breathy. I don’t like those. But I have played quite a few pure ones. Pure Abells have more character than O’Riordans, which are always pure. They cost $350 and are rare…if you order one, you never know what you’re going to get. Mine has a lovely tone. Chris Laughlin had one with a lovely tone. He sold it to Loren who sold it to someone else, I think. I had another one with a great tone and I sold it (that was dumb) when I was thinning out my collection. They do exist.
So the Boisverts have less breathiness from what you have tried? That’s important to me. I do like the pure sound more…
I have become more and more aware of a style of whistle that has a fair amount of hiss to them, though I am sure they are much less refined than what you guys are describing in the certain Abells. i don’t understand why people like that.. I mean, a tiny bit of it is sorta atmospheric and reminds me of Irish flutes but given a choice of using breath to make sweet tone or divert to air, it seems obvious…
I had an Abell set – Bb and A.
They’re reputed to be breathy. This was one was yet played beautifully and easily.
Then I discovered if I played holding it closer to my chest (with my head upright), it could be much less breathy. Same with a sort of “flautist” embouchure, bringing back the lower lip.
Intrigued, I tried to play it upside down, i.e. with the window facing down, and it wasn’t breathy at all, while losing very little sound volume. Has probably to do with the way the mouth or palate forms the airstream with this asymetrical windway entrance.
Double-personality whistle: breathy when straight, pure when upside-down (uh-oh, Amar won’t miss this opportunity…).
I regretfully sold it, though, because I really disliked the pointy wedge shape of its mouthpiece. It looks sleek and “designer” awright, but it just feels bad to me.
This embouchure experience I tell because I felt convinced that someone with the nerve to file down the pointy part of the silver “sleeve” on its head, so the embouchure sharp thing would come flush with the lower part (delrin) would probably correct most of the breathiness. Some day, I may try and order such a modification from Abell’s.
Else, play it upside down–just try it once in earnest…
Interesting! Boisverts are more pure than most Abells, but not as focused and sweet as MY Abell. Boisvert whistles are louder than Abells now (his early ones weren’t). Boisvert whistles play and feel EXACTLY like O’Riordans.
Sigh. Yes, I wish I could be there. I’d have brought my two Boisvert cocobolo Ds, and by then I might even have the new blackwood D/C he’s making for me right now. Sigh.
You were talking about Copeland whistles. What’s the main difference between a brass and nickel one? I used to have a brass I wasnt crazy about (hey, the whistle you got for 2 Sindts!) but I tried a few nickels over the years and always liked them. Is it only coincidence? I have found my quiet session whistle (tweaked O’Briain), mid-noisy session whistle (Burke dan) but I’m still looking for an undestructible noisy session beast.
Yes, it is a coincidence. I have found, with the MANY Copelands I have played, that material doesn’t really enter into how it plays. Of course, I don’t like the smelll of brass. But I have a brass Copeland A that is really nice. Some Copelands are passable and some are phenomenal. The good thing about them is you can always have them revoiced for free. It is much easier to revoice a metal whistle than a wooden one!
Speaking of soundlign like an O’Riordan, I’ve been meaning to ask you: how does the Lon Dubh stand up?
One of the clips on whistle and drum sound a lot like an O’Riordan to me, but one of them doesn’t…I don’t want to be saving my pennies for one if a Greenwood (which I also covet) is in the same class.
I know you own both..any insight would be much appreciated!
As for the Lon Dubh, it sounds nothing like an O’Riordan. It is sweet and woody, quieter than an O’R, not hissy, but not as boldly pure. It is lightweight and a total copy (except for its only difference - window size) of the design of a whistle by Jon Swayne. The Lon Dubh is much quieter and easier to play than the Swayne (because of the window size). But an O’Riordan is pure and almost simple, as opposed to complex. Just like a Boisvert. It’s a great whistle, but it doesn’t have the tonal character (or craftsmanship) of the Lon Dubh. It really depends on what you are looking for.
Abells, Copelands, Lon Dubhs…they have IMPECCABLE craftsmanship…you won’t see glue, solder or flaws. O’Riordans and Boisverts are not like that. They are much cheaper than the aforementioned ones.
This thread wasn’t supposed to be one where I put everything in order of how much I like it. I just wanted everyone to know that a Boisvert whistle is just like an O’Riordan, which is the holy grail of whistles to a lot of people, because Joanie plays them. Joanie also has reverb on her microphones, so she gets a more complex tone than we, in our living rooms, do with only our whistles.
All these whistles we’ve talked about are really good.