I’ve been looking at getting a slightly better budget whistle than the clarke/feadog types I’ve been playing.
The new Dixon brass high d and the susato all-plastic whistles are around the same price £15-£18, and I was wondering how they compare?
I’ve read the big thread on the Dixon and also seen stuff here on the susato but was wondering if anyone could offer any insight as to how they compare with each other?
Additionally, i notice that Hobgoblin also stock a all-plastic Dixon at £18 which is tunable.
To what extent is the Dixon one-piece trad brass actually tunable- I’d assume not very, yet several websites are claiming it is.
How do the Dixon Brass trad and two-piece all-plastic model compare in tone?
Currently I’m favouring the Dixon trad as it looks nice and I’ve seen good comments on it here, but i’m wondering if I need to be adding to my colection of non-tunable whistles
sorry, for some reason the link goes to the main page rather than the whistle page- clicking on ‘Flageolets & Whistles’ in the ‘woodwind’ section takes you to the right page.
Another question- looking on ‘bigwhistle.co.uk’ which lists the weights of the whistles, i see that the Dixon trad brass weighs 100g, whereas the typical weight of brass whistles (eg generation) is about a third of that.
Is the Dixon trad considerably more ‘substantial’ than other whistles and, is this a good thing?
Consider another of Tony’s products, costs more but foolproof, so it is perfect for me.
DX202. Solid brass, heavieeeee. More expensive. He also provided a piccolo head and it really kicks arse in our Morris band.
I own both , black abs with tunable brass slide and Dixon trad tunable , they’re both nice whistles !
They both tunable , one with the brass slide and the other is tuned by the black abs head , works fine to me , like most the other tunable whistles !
But if I should decide wich one , I would suggest the Dixon Trad , nice sound , easy player and less sensitive than the black abs .
These two babies are very different from each other. Dixon Trad: very light (100g? huh?), very easy to play, average volume, little backpressure, sweet sound with a bit of chiff. Susato: sturdy construction, unusual tone (some people say, recorder-ish), very loud, less easy to play at first, higher backpressure. Perfect for outdoors playing.
Both have their own character, and I like them a lot.
The Dixon Polymer you mentioned is the sweetest sounding whistle I’ve ever met. No chiff, quiet (too much, some complain), easy blower, easy to play. It used to be my favourite whistle.
It’s actually tuneable, but you can only make it go flatter. Pushed all in, it plays perfectly in tune, according to my Korg tuner.
I suggest you buy a Dixon Trad and a Susato. You’ll find the right time to play them.
Dixon also makes a whistle with a heavy, “substantial” brass tube. Sorry, but I can not remember the name. I haven’t seen it in person, but the photos look a lot like a Trad. I recently played a Trad and it’s not significantly different in size or weight from a Generation or other cheap whistle. (Try the listings on Whistle and Drum for a comparison. I think they have all the Dixon D whistles.)
I have just about decided that the Trad is the best cheap beginner whistle around. I like the Susato too, but it would have been too much for me at first.
Guidus has it right about the character of these two whistles. I like both, but they are about as different as two D whistles can get.
Now if you are taking about my favorite in this general price range, I would point to a Hoover. But that’s off topic.
I have a Dixon plastic with the brass slide - very nice, albeit not in any notable way. I have some Susatos, all of which are very nice as well and never presented any playability problems (as far as I can recall). They are not my favorites or everyday whistles, but are just fine.
I’m a bit curious about your assessment of Susatos and level of experience with them and other whistles. I think it a bit harsh and gratuitous to refer to an entire line of whistles as “garbage.” I have lots of experience playing many, many types of whistles over the years (as an amateur only), do not consider myself to be “really good”, yet can play Susatos as effortlessly as any other whistles.
I think we should apply the same level of courtesy, balance and specificity when describing mass produced whistles as we apply to custom makers. I think everyone thinks twice about what they say about the custom maker but not about the mass producer.
On the other hand, if something truly is “garbage” and some sort of scam is being perpetuated we should always call it out for what it is. All the more need to not use that term loosely. Susatos are not garbage; they are quality, consistent whistles, not to everyone’s taste, but obviously used by a goodly number of both amateur and professional players over many years now.
I think, perhaps, your point is that apparently for some beginner players it may be more difficult to play some models of Susato than other whistles; I myself started a thread a while back about Kevin Crawford wailing on a Susato in a video on the Kerry site.
Although Susatos are not hand or custom made, they are designed, put together and sold by people who are part of this community.
After reading Philo’s post, I would like to add that I know someone who is very happy with a Susato as their first whistle.
In my case, I was a bit timid when starting out and would not have been comfortable pushing a Susato the way it needs to be played. Not that it’s that hard to play, but I was not willing to make such loud mistakes.
Now if you were asking for the best inexpensive outdoor whistle, I bet you would see a lot of votes for a Susato.
I take it back, it was quite rude of me to say that. I actually do have a fair amount of experience on Susato whistles, I just can’t stand the recorderish sound they produce when I play them. I love other whistles that some would consider recorderish like Sweethearts for instance, I just find Susatos abrasive to my taste.
Let me re-phrase myself and say that my playing of Susato whistles is garbage, not the entire line of whistles.
So the Dixon isn’t actually any heavier than the standard cheaper whistles?
I guess the webiste has got the weight wrong as the entry for the Dixon trad reads-
and the description is-
I have seen the more expensive brass dixon whistle, it’s listed on the same site but the weight given for that is 160g?!
Regardless of the weight though, I’ve seen enough positive feedback both on this thread and elsewhere, to make me really want to buy the Dixon.
It’s tempting to get one of the others as well (the susato as an ‘outdoor’ whistle sounds appealing), but, I was planning to get several cheaper ones at the same time- a ‘c’ Walton, Eb Generation etc, just to get a bigger range, plus, if I can locate one, I’d like to get another Clare two-piece cos it’s convenient to carry as well as sounding good: so cash will be short
I’m thinking of going through to the Leeds ‘Hobgoblin’ branch as they have all the above in stock (excepting the 2 piece clare) and I’ll be able to compare the Dixon with alternatives before buying.
Plus, they have in stock the Dixon 3-piece Polymer D flute, which, though well out of my price range at £170 is, assuming it sounds as nice as I expect it to, is something I aspire to in the future so I’d like to have a quick blow on it.
One last question- concerning volume, obviously the Dixon trad isn’t as loud as the Susato, but, how does it compare to, say, a generation?
I see the ‘Syn C/D’ (one head with both a ‘c’ body and a ‘d’ body) are on a special offer of £40.99 on bigwhistle.co.uk.
Way above what I was wanting to pay, but I’ve heard really good things about the syn from searching threads here, it’s a nice looking whistle and, having an extra c body is a good bonus.
Can anyone offer a comparison from their experience of the syn vs. the Dixon trad- obviously the Syn is 2/3 times the price, is it worth it?
And, if I was to go to the price of a Syn, are there are other whistles from UK suppliers that I should be considering?
I play both and generally prefer the Dixon for the things that I do. In fact I started out on the Dixon. I was able to pick up a new Water Weasle (“Thin Weasle”) just before Mr. Shultz Sr. passed away and I’ll tell you what, I really enjoy that whistle; it is sweet and so easy to play. I’m not in the same class as many of those who have commented, I’m a hacker, but very sincere. I paid $70.00 for the Thin Weasle and worth every cent of it. I have no idea how much they would cost now that he is deceased, perhaps the value has increased–I don’t know. However, if you can find one and it is in good shape, I would suggest that you purchase it.
SYN is a wider bore whistle - that means it’s more mellow sounding, and in the case of the SYN, louder. I like to use mine for tunes that have a prominent place for a whistle and benefit from the additional expressive dynamic - specially the C.
To my way of thinking, once you get past the Gens, megs, Oaks and such, you are looking at the next level - Dixons etc low-cost nicer whistles. Past there you are looking at workhorses and show-ponies - i.e. specific whistles to suit a range of needs.
I’d strongly recommend going to a good stockist to try a few and/or get to a few sessions and hear them being played. You could go solely on the recommendations here - but be prepared to be surprised one way or another. The good news is that many decent stockists allow a refund or exchange if you’re not happy with the result.
With all that, at the end of the day, you will probably still find plenty of use for your old Feadog or Clarke - whistling seems to be about 90% whistler, 10% whistle.
I have both. You can’t really say one VS the other. They are two different instruments. The Dixon Trad is a gentle, more quiet whistle. The Susato is the best price for a whistle that plays in tune and is LOUD!!
The dixon is better for solo playing but won’t cut it in a session. i can barely hear mine over one guitar player!! (granted, this guy plays like a caveman)
Last Weekend I made it down to Hobgoblin and got £30 worth of whistles
I tried the Dixon trad, liked it and bought it. It’s currently the most ‘high-end’ whistle of my collection.
First impressions was that, over two octaves (and possibly the third as well, for those who venture into that region ) the tone was even and easy, with none of the squeaks that cheaper whistles seen to have.
To be honest though, I haven’t played it extensively as I’ve got very distracted by the Generation Bb I got at the same time- I’ve been teaching myself the ‘pipers grip’ on it, in preperation for a possible low D purchase.
Whilst at Hobgoblin, i also tried a few flutes, focusing on the Dixon 3-pc conical-bored polymer. My initial impression was that it didn’t strike me as particularly better, in terms of tone and second octave tuning, than my current home made single piece polymer.
Most likely this is something that would change with a lot more time spent practicing/developing on it; but it was interesting to note that, from just the one blow, that superiority was not immediately evident- I guess I’d been thinking that the conical bore would immediately lead to better tuning in the second octave.
