Hey guys,
I am getting an Overton (Goldie) Low D this week and would like some advice. I have heard that these babies can at times be hard to handle, so if anyone has any tips I would LOVE to hear them. I have already been told that they need to be warmed up first or they will clog. Anyone know why this is? Thanks a bunch! 
Hey
Well,as one who is playing ColinĀ“s Overton whistles I can surely say sth about them.
I play them in various keys yet (actually D,A and E (last two borrowed from colin) and I have two versions of the high D (soft and hard blower) so I know the playing characteristics yet.
You need to play her warm or to warm her up with hands or sth warm ,thats mainly reasoned in the material the whistle is made of ,aluminium needs to warm up abit ,if not youĀ“ll have clogging problems soon after you started.
depending on which type of overton whistle you have( hard,middle or a soft blown one) you need to get a feeling for the exact breathing,it can need a while ,but if you discovered how to do it best ,a overton is a musical gun with a well quality sound. I personally needed some advices from colin cause i bought a 2nd hand overton so I asked him for help on the whistle problems i had,but a lil repair later the whistle sound became very well( if she wouldnt look so vintage sheĀ“d be perfect,but sheĀ“s very auld and was intensive playde so its really normally).
And like on many instruments ,you need to get a feeling for the fingering ,evry whistle feels different ,in my view its different if you play a song ona susato or ona overton or clarke ,evryone has its own characteristic of fingering.
if you have more questions maybe some others have more suggestions ,and maybe colin is writing some words if he reads this here.
Greetings,Julian
For what it is worth:
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Donāt be afraid to blow into this whistle. If you wish to be gentle with a Burke, Hoover, or an OāRiordan, that is fineā¦but not your Overton Low D. Finesse is not the issue, hereā¦
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Your whistle will have a different fingering for the highest E, than other low D whistles. It will not work well using: XXOXXO. I donāt have my low D handy, but I think that what works is: XXOOXO. I could be wrongā¦
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Your low D will take a bit longer to warm up because of the thickness of the aluminum. The old Jet-Dry trick works wonders. My low D Overton does not clog.
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Treasure the sound of the low end. Nothing sounds quite like it.
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Try a Burke Viper sometime. Buy one. It is very different from the Overton. Having both is a plethora of richesā¦
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Talk to Bloomfield. When it comes to Overton, he knows his stuffā¦
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Colin and Brigitte are wonderful people. Ask them anything. They will take the time to answer youā¦
Best to you.
Byll
Why does a metal (or any whistle for that matter) clog? It is a matter of physics.
Get a glass of cold water and put it on the table. Give it a good breath. Try saying āhahā in a long and very drawn out way on the side of the glass. Do you see the water forming there? This is the same action that causes precipitation.
The same thing happens in the cold windway of our whistles. Our hot, moist breath hits the cold metal and condenses. Since the windway on most whistles is very short the water droplettes bridge the gap and cause the air stream to break up, and clog. Anything that can help prevent this bridging (soap water or jet-dry) will reduce the clogging.
Please tell me more. How do they differ? Do you have any sound clips?
Thanks for all the great tips guys! I am really starting to get excited. It should get here at the end of this week!!! 
I favor (and keep for myself) two low Dās. A Reyburn for the sublime, haunting, and rich voice - and an Overton for the raw power potential, and flexibility.
The Overton Low D is an awesome whistle. For bringing out what I see as itās individual best characteristics (power and flexibility), I have three suggestions.
My first suggestion is to start walking - and if you smoke, stop smoking. Iām being both funny and serious. Youāll need some strong healthy lungs to get the most out of your Overton. Youāll be able to play it with decent lungs - but youāll get the best out of the whistle with depth, and strength in your breath.
Next, stick the fipple end under your arm (outside your clothes silly), or inside your jacket, or hold it tight in your hands if you have warm hands before you play it. That will help ensure itās better in tune if itās not tunable, and will hold itās tune while you play if it is tunable. It will also greatly reduce the condensation you will get as compared to blowing it until itās warm.
Last - experiment with the flexibility. Just sit down and mess with it in all the notes.
- First Octave - blow the bell note (low D) for example real lightly and increase the air volume until it breaks into the next octave. Start well grounded in the first octave and you will be able to push more air through, increasing the volume and slightly sharpening the note quite a bit more than you will expect.
- Use your tongue to crack out a note in the second octave. Then back off of it - it will get quieter and hang in the second octave longer than you will expect. Then really push it - youāll get tone and volume up near flute-like.
I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoy mine - itās great fun!
Ostekjeks: I wish I had sound clips available, but I do not. The Viper and the Overton low Ds are very different in a lot of ways. The Overton possesses the signature ācosmic drainpipeā sound in the low end that I have found nowhere else. That low end is very solidā¦and can be clearly felt in the playerās handsā¦a very cool sensationā¦The whistle can be tailored to your playing style by Colin, personally. And there really is a difference between the types that Colin createsā¦I am convinced that Colin totally understands his art/craft, and is able to create exactly what a player wants, with very little tip-of-the-hat to serendipityā¦The Overton has a very complex sound that extends over its entire range. There are lots of odd harmonics present. If a player does not like chiff, he will not like the upper range of the Overton low D. And yet, there is not too much chiffā¦
The Burke has a much more pure tone, but is not chiff-free by any sense of the imagination. It sounds like a whistle, not a fluteā¦It has a full-bodied low end. The breath requirements are much like the easier-blowing Overton variation, in Mikeās present Viper incarnation. As with all Burkes, the Viper plays effortlessly over the full 2+ octaves. Of all the low Ds it has been my privilege to try, no instrument plays more easily and intuitively than the Viper.
Favorite? Nope. I personally would not choose to be without either of these instruments. While different, they both possess some qualities I find truly important. Both are absolutely dependable. I hate āsurprisesā when in front of an audience. I get no surprises from instruments built by Colin Goldie and Mike Burke. Both of these instruments are coherent over their entire range. In other words they each sound like ONE instrument, over both octaves. While they are different in so many ways, their playing characteristics and lack of anomalies are similar enough that going back and forth between them in short order, is not difficultā¦
Both of these instruments are built by individuals who are intelligent perfectionists and who are passionate about their craft. We all are fortunate enough to have a lot of whistle smiths out there, with similar characteristics. For after all, I have only seen one individual - The Undisputed - get wealthy enough through whistledom to purchase a Lear Jet. (Heh Heh)ā¦
Be well.
Byll
A whistle that sounds like the same whistle in both octaves is one of the reasons I have an Overton. It is nice to know that someone else heard this also.
Thank you very much for you reply, Byll. Currently, I only own a Kerry Songbird low D, and Iām darn happy with it. Still, Iād like to try another low D sometime, but because of the price, I canāt just buy anything. I know my Songbird is very breathy. The high D burke DAN I have is pure, pure, and absolutely lovely. My Alba low F has that very special, indescribable, fluty sound, but itās also lovely. If I buy another low D, it has to be different from my Songbird, evidently, but Iām not sure what I want. It has to be pure/sweet-sounding, but not necessarily as pure as a Burke. Thatāsā¦all I can say. Iād like to experiment, try one I like, but still not spending all my money on looking.
If I bought either a Burke or an Overton, which do you think Iād like the most? Give me your best shot; I just want to hear what you have to say. I canāt buy anything right now anyway.
Thereās too many great whistles to choose from in this world!
Byll: Well said. You spoke to the individual character of each of those whistles very well. I owned a Burke Low D Aluminum Pro Viper - your comments are right on.
Ostekjeks: If your most important criteria is āIt has to be pure/sweet-soundingā then you will want the Burke. The Burke sounds like a whistle, where the Overton can be āflutyā as you say. The Burke low whistle has a pure tone similar to the Soprano whistles, but there are more complexity and harmonics in the low whistle compared to the high whistle.
Ostekjeks: As I read your request for a suggestion, vis-a-vis your criteria, between the Burke Viper and the Overton, I was formulating a quick answer while I read the next message from Daniel.
For me, Daniel nailed it. His thoughts are the same as mine. I think you would be pleased with either. However, your criteria at this point dictate the Burke should be your choice. Daniel said it well when he said that the Burke Viper has a much more complex character than Mikeās high whistles.
The Viper retains the Burke sound, but the extra odd harmonics add some interesting flavor to the mix.
Good luck in your future choice.
Byll
The moisture in your breath will condensate on cold metal, but not (as much) on warm metal.
As for playing them: Blow hard.
Holy cow!
Youāre cranky today Bloomfield. He asked a reasonable question. Why would you call him a āBlowhard?ā 
But seriouslyā¦
Your info you linked to from Blow Hard is great stuff Bloomfield. Great for high backpressure whistles in general, and invaluable for Overtons.