Do you mean the head of the DX204? What looks like a brass ring on the head is in fact part of the body which has a black plastic ring on top. The head is the same as on the “trad” models. The only difference I found so far is between the DX001 one-piece plastic model and the head of the trad or DX204 as the geometry of the head differs between those two – different ramp and the size of the “window” is also different.
And these are the different models I have (an alto A is still on its way) next to each other ( I should have taken a pic from the top, too):
From left to right:
DX204, nickel trad, DX001, alto G alloy, alto G trad, one-piece plastic low D, brass trad low D.
Yeah, the thing is, if there is indeed some defect in one or two of them, along with other whistles that are fine for what they are but I just don’t happen to like, I don’t want to be foisting the problem one(so off on other people.
And I don’t contact the manufacturer or seller for an exchange because it’s hardly worth the postage for me to send the other one back.
It would be a different story if they had a guarantee like the guy at MyWhistleAndFlute.com
Why do some have a plastic ring at the top of the body?
It looks like the middle whistle in your photo has a fat socket at the bottom for the tube to go into, while the others are straight-sided. On some the tube is narrower than the head, on some the head and tube appear to be the same diameter. I guess I still don’t understand the construction of the various types.
My Dixons are a mix like those in the photo, the Trad has a ‘normal’ head that fits over the tube & can be used to tune it, (I have an ‘A’ & a ‘G’, both brass), the one that I have with straight sides is a tunable aluminium with a tuning slide & plastic head, (mine is a ‘C’), the one that bulks out, is another aluminium tunable, (mine is an ‘A’), the head fits outside the tube, is extra long, & is used to tune it.
Yes, there is a lot of variation in the construction. The tunable alloy alto G has the “socket” in which you fit the tube and the tube itself has two o-rings. But I ordered an alto A which has the same construction as the DX204 “heavy brass” which means a metal tuning slide over which the head fits. The trad alto G has a “normal” head like the trad in D. The heads of the DX204 and the trad model are interchangeable. Tony Dixon also donwsized their line-up. The alto A is no longer offered AFAIK. But they still sell the spare head.
If there is another player around you it might be interesting to hear someone else playing it. It could be the one off bad one in the bunch. If that were the case I am sure Dixon would make it right. If it is something more subjective like, I don’t like it much, it might just be fun to hear. But if you really don’t like it I am sure you could contact the retailer or Dixon himself.
I was just thinking this exact thing. It’s good to have additional input to see if it plays the same for other players. There is a good chance that the whistle is fine but just not for you.
I found that you are happy with whistles of plastic body but are unhappy with whistles of metal body.
I wonder that the problem is at the interface between your fingers and the metal body.
Changing status of your skin with lotion would resolve your problem.
You know, that’s a good point. Not so much the lotion thing, but that the plastic body whistles I have do seem to sound and perform better for me.
And I’ve played the metal body whistles like a slow child, making very sure of my fingering positions and so forth, and I still get the same result. And it’s not because I have the hand texture of a brick mason, because I definitely don’t.
But I have not given up. I still intend to get a Freeman Backbird and an O’Briain and eventually a Killarney.
And if those don’t work out then I guess I may ending up being Susato’s next best customer and somebody’s going to get a heck of a deal on a bundle of some otherwise well-thought-of metal whistles.
Turns out my favorite whistles are an Oz Vambrace delrin, Parks and Susato. All plastic beasties. I’ve a couple metal ones that I like, but not as much as I like my plastic.
Thinking about it… My favorite flutes are Shannon and Tipple for D. My favorite F is a Billy Miller.
Seems I tend to the plastic/delrin/ABS/PVC side as well.
Yeah, I noticed it, but yet I didn’t. or didn’t think much about it. I guess that’s what they mean by not seeing the forest for the trees.
Speaking of Tipple type flutes, I’m getting a PVC low D one from that guy at My Whistle in Flutes, *Mark Foster, he apparently started from plans he got off Doug Tipple’s site and went from there and expand it out to other types of flutes and whistles at about half the price. Kind of interesting if you look at his website and YouTube channel.
But anyway, how do you find that Tipple flute for playability? I just really don’t have the choice right now for anything better because of the price and Mark is going to do one in a wood grain finish (again you can see examples of that on his site or YouTube) that even if I end up not being able to play it very well it’ll look really cool on my wall
but eventually if I develop even a modicum of skill on it I will go for something better and I was really looking at that Shannon.
fun fact: I actually actually asked Mark Foster why he just didn’t call his products “Foster’s”.I mean Foster’s Whistles and Flutes sounds good enough to me. If you have Becker and Anderson and Tipple and Cooperman and so forth, why not take credit for your craftsmanship? Besides I think people remember something better if you tell him it’s a Foster’s versus it’s a My Whistle and Flute.
Anyway…he’s just stand-up and humble guy, as reflected in the guarantee that he has on his products, and he just thought that would be too pretentious and he came up with the clever name of My Whistle and Flute, MWF, because his full name is Mark Wesley Foster.
I think that’s rather clever, but unfortunately it’s kind of like one of those personalized license plates that other people don’t get. So what’s the point.
Anyway, I think a Craftsman should take credit for his work, and I think it just points to the kind of humble guy that he Is that he didn’t want to put himself out there like that.
Totally not MY personality, if I had anything that I could market that I thought people would pay more than 2 cents for.
I absolutely love the Tipple flute. I’ve had one in my bag for around 15 years or so. Perfect for travel and hiking. Great sound. You can find lots of vids on YouTube of Doug’s flutes. Worth twice what he charges.
