I got a Generation high F for my daughter but she’s not interested in it so I’ve been playing it. I checked it with a tuner today and almost every note is 40 cents off. So bad that my tuner often thinks it’s a different note than I’m playing. I tried it with two tuners and I get the same result, and I can hear it when comparing with my keyboard.
I also play native american flute and it’s very much in tune so I really think this Generation Irish Whistle is out of tune.
I am posting about this because I was wanting to buy a couple more for myself. I was wanting to get a High D so that I can play along with songs & videos. I was also wanting to get a lower key. My Native American Flute is in the key of Gminor so I was hoping to get a low G whistle. I have read that’s a good key (second to D) and that it’s easier to play than the Low D (which would be my ultimate goal). Having the NAF & whistle in G would be helpful. However they’re expensive. So if someone can recommend one. I’m planning on getting the cheapest Dixon made of plastic. It’s about 34 pounds in the UK (I’m in France, I think I’ll have to order from the UK).
So that brings me back to Generation. A Generation Bb is only 5 pounds. So I was debating is it really worth the extra money to get the G? Now with this tuning problem I think it would be worth the extra money to get the Dixon. It seems these Generations are like kid’s toys.
One more question: Do I need to use piper’s grip for a Low G? I’m 6’2" (1.88m) and I guess my hands are medium to large. I ask because I’m not sure if the piper’s grip will be a problem since I play other instruments that would use the fingertips (NAF, saxophone, & wind controller). That’s another reason I was considering the Bb, to avoid piper’s grip. If it’s really no big deal then I’ll stop worrying about it. On the NAF I have to half cover some holes so I always use my finger tips but on the irish whistle I’ve noticed I don’t always use the exact fingertips even on the tiny F.
I think one gets what they pay for some I’m just looking for some confirmation before making my purchase. Thanks.
Every note is off, you say? Are they all sharp, by any chance? It may be that all you have to do is loosen the head and pull it out slightly. It should come loose with a bit of warm water.
I never checked it with a tuner before, but my Generation F is sharp the same way you describe. Pulling the head out about 1/4" brought it basically into tune. I don’t really play the F (let alone the high G!)
As to the difference between Bb and G, a G is a fair bit lower. Whether it’s worth it to you depends on how much you want to play in keys you can play on a G whistle vs. how much you want to play keys you can play on a Bb.
For fingering, I’m about 5’-8 and I don’t have any trouble using fingertips to cover my G whistle, though being a piper, I use a piper’s grip whenever possible.
I’ve owned a handful of Generation Bb’s, some more spectacular than others but all good whistles. This is one of my favorites to play and one of the best in the Generation catalog, IMO. I’m 5’10" and play the Bb fine without pipers grip so you should fare well enough there.
As far as the low Gs go, you won’t find that for the price of a Generation. The cheapest would be the Dixons or Susatos. The Susato low G has one of the most disproportionate and therefore most uncomfortable finger stretches I’ve ever had. I haven’t played a Dixon before.
The Gen F is a tricky beast. I doubt if many people play the F or the G seriously, whereas the lower keys are much more playable. Getting a whistle in D would be a much better place to start. The Gen Bb is a nice whistle too. I have two, one is ok, and one is lovely. I prefer nickel over the brass version.
There are cheaper ways to get a low G whistle, either make your own, or look up Guido’s whistles online.
Thanks to everyone for all the comments. Guido has a very interesting site. I was surprised that his whistles are about the same price as a Dixon polymer. I’m not sure which would be better but I’m tempted to buy the PVC one just to see how it sounds and to support the guy for sharing all his info.
For the key of G, Dixon has a polymer for 30 pounds and a metal body for 60 pounds (twice the price). Is the metal body worth it? The PVC is 28 euros for comparison (slightly less than Dixon polymer).
I am thinking maybe I will skip the generations and get a Dixon D and a Dixon G. (The only reason I considered Bb was just to have a cheap one from Generation. My wife forbids me from playing the F while she’s around). I write my own songs so I really want my instruments to be in tune. And then maybe I will try to build my own just for fun.
You say you want to play along with your Gmin NAF, then would it not be better to look at the Dixon low F rather than the G? (Or both get the WHOA started early).
I actually don’t want to play them together at the same time (for the same song). And the more I think about it, the more getting a different key than G would make sense so I can have some variety. I just came up with the G idea because I thought it was close to a low D and that I could avoid learning the piper’s grip. Maybe I should just go for the Low D and learn the piper’s grip. It’d save me from having to buy too many whistles (buy G now and Low D later).
Jerry is a forum member. You might send him a private message to ask.
I went to a week long whistle workshop, and the only whistle the instructor played the whole week was a Jerry Freeman Mellow Dog. I got one, and I think it’s great. The tone is really nice, and it plays easier than my other whistles.
Good news! I tested my Generation High F again with a tuner and determined that all notes were sharp (over 40 cents). So I put it in hot water and then pulled off the mouthpiece. I then put it back on and adjusted it until it was in tune. Now all the notes are in tune. My breath pressure / embouchure is probably the reason it’s not perfect but it’s very close. There is a slight crack in the mouthpiece now where it attaches but it doesn’t seem to have an effect.
So I’m very happy to have an in-tune generation High F now!
But I’m still looking for D and either a low G or D. Might throw in a Bb generation while I’m at it since it’s cheap.
I’m very curious to try a Guido low G as it’s very affordable and I like buying flutes directly from the maker.
Oh, and if that crack gets worse, don’t despair. Just wrap (and glue) some paper round it and paint it. One of my very best whistles has that - very amateurish - repair done to it. Looks bloody awful, but sounds great! [I used airfix metallic gold paint. Yeah, I know …]
I recently bought a low G. I had the opportunity to try some others at the same time, and for me, the low D was really challenging (I’ve tried some others in the past too).
I think I could get used to it, but it would take a lot of work. The G, on the other hand, I could play right away. And for me, a main factor was that the G makes more keys available. A low D sounds good, but it’s still in D.
The one I got is not in the price range of what you’re looking at, but it’s really nice (the photo doesn’t do it justice): http://www.carbony.com/Whistles.htm
Congrats on your new whistle purchase. I read about them on their webpage and they seem pretty nice.
You confirm my thoughts on the low G vs. D. I really want something I can play right away. I have a lot of work with piano lessons and such so I want the whistle to be fun time.
Thanks. I had been thinking about buying it for over a year before I actually did. Rob, the maker, sets up a vendor tent at some of the Scottish Games where I play bagpipes, so I have had the opportunity to try them out and think about it. I kept thinking that I would make a G whistle for myself, but that seems to be more thinking about than doing. I’d rather have the time for practice I guess.
I’m looking forward to recording something with it. Rob plays in a band that has a few cds, so I’m expecting it to record well. It has a nice mellow tone.
The Gen F is a tricky beast. I doubt if many people play the F or the G seriously…
Mary Bergin recorded with an F Gen just fine. I’ve used the same to play along and learn tunes from her album without a problem as well. It’s actually quite a nice little whistle.
The G on the other hand, I can’t play to well without my fingers hitting each other and keeping me from covering the holes.
Thanks to the popularity of low F whistle as an alternate key, and F flutes among certain fans here, sessions here occasionally feature F sets of tunes, just for fun. And the Gen F works perfectly well in that setting.
The range of the F overlaps the D by all but the lowest 2 notes. Were it not for the incompatibility of the comfy keys on each - F/Bb vs. D/G - a casual listener might not be able to distinguish the two when recorded. And with a thinner bore, the F whistle is actually a tad quieter than the D. The upper harmonic content may make it seem more shrill toward the top end, but that’s mitigated if blown correctly, IMO. And the overall compression of hole spacing is only around 1.5 cm compared to D, so only the thickest of fingers ought to have trouble.
