Hi all,
I just recently got a Howard Low D and am having some problems. 
First, it is almost impossible to get out a high A or B. Second, everything from the high F# on sounds really flat. Third, the mouthpiece is really loose. Is it supposed to be like that?
Seems like I just don’t have any luck when it comes to Low Ds. I am really starting to get discouraged. 
Any help would be very much appreciated.
I have a Howard low D.
With regard to the mouthpiece being loose, mine came to me with some teflon tape around the top of the tube to stop the mouthpiece from moving on its own. Works well, but without the tape I do think it would be pretty loose.
The Howard does take a stiff blow; a flat upper octave and a high A and B that won’t sound makes me think you may not be blowing hard enough, or you may be blowing but not supporting the airstream with your abdomen.
However, if your mouthpiece is really really loose, check and see if it has cracked down the side. A cracked mouthpiece could certainly cause all sorts of trouble. Also check to see if the teflon tape is no longer in place.
–James
If the mouthpiece is loose enough, there would be some tuning problems. Did it come to you like that? Maybe you ought to send it back and ask for one that’s put together correctly.
Cheers.
It did come to me with some white stuff under the mouth piece, but when I went to move the mouthpiece a bit, it just tore and started coming off, so I peeled the rest of it off and threw it away. It didn’t look like tape though. The Howard I got was used. Maybe the previous owner took the tape off and tried to replace it with this white stuff?
Get some teflon (plumber’s) tape and wrap a couple of layers around the top of the tube neatly.
I am pretty sure the source of your trouble is that the mouthpiece is leaking air around the tube.
–James
Teflon tape isn’t “tape” in the sense you’re thinking of. What you’re describing sounds just like it. You can get a whole roll of it, which will last a long long long time, at Walmart or Home Depot or Lowes in the plumbing section of the store. It comes in a doughnut little roll, much like first aid tape does.
Ok guys, Thanks, I will give it a shot. 
Why would anyone manufacture a whistle that has to rely on teflon tape to keep air from leaking out of the mouthpiece? I understand that this makes the mouthpiece easy to adjust for tuning, but I’ve played plently of whistles that ar tunable and airtight. Sounds like a poorly designed whistle to me.
You’ve got a point. BTW, idealists like us should definitely stay away from the pipes - them things is all sealing wax and bailing wire.
An o-ring system would probably work well, like the tuning slide on my Susato low D. However, when I grease the Susato (it needs it every few months) then it’s too slippery and it slides sharp while I’m playing. No joint system is 100% perfect I suppose.
Well, I won’t attempt to speak for the whistle designer, but I will say that my Howard plays quite well.
In some of his writing, Dale has compared them with Overtons.
–James
Albas use teflon tape as well.
I have seen some flutes that use wrapped thread to keep things snug. Thread!! What’s up with that? For a grand, you think they’d make it right. 
For what it’s worth, I don’t like the look of teflon tape slides, but it’s worked well on the whistles I’ve seen it on.
The cork slide system on my Songbird is just smooth… No problems at all.
Ok, I tried the tape thing and yes it helps a bit, but not a whole lot. Now there’s a new problem. The C# is REALLY out of tune with everything else. This really sucks. 
Has anybody else had this problem? I think I am just going to send it back, IF I can get the person I bought it from to email me 
.
Well, everything worked out ok. I am sending it back and getting a refund. Back to square one… 
I’m sorry to hear that you gave up on the Howard. I have had mine now for about two years, and I love it… however when I first got it, I could not get those notes either… but it wasn’t the whistle… it was me.
I could do well with a high whistle, but I couldn’t get this one to play well, with a weak low bell note and squawking high G,A and B. Having read the many praises of the whistle here, and knowing that I was no expert, I kept it and worked on learning to play it. It was a good year before I could consistantly get the high notes, and even longer before I could consistently get them in tune. Now, it is the whistle I play half the time, and people are constantly coming up and want ing to know more about it because it sounds so good. (I can honestly say it is more likely the good whistle than the good player)
The Howard is a good whistle, and it requires control on the part of the player. That only comes with practice.
There is a good reason that expert musicians aren’t a dime a dozen and that we are told from infancy that ‘practice makes perfect’… (though in reality, it only makes better)… to become proficient at anything takes time, determination and… again… PRACTICE!
Next time I hope you won’t give up so soon… on the instrument or the player.
I did not return the Howard strictly for the upper register problems. The biggest reason I sent it back was because the C# on this one was REALLY 
out of tune with everything else, and no amount of breath control or moving the headjoint could get it back to something workable. If it was just a problem with the high notes, I would have kept it and kept working on it. Now, I am going to give an Overton a shot. I understand that they can be a lot to handle as well, but at least now I am up for the challenge! Thanks for the tips guys!
Perhaps the Howard you got was a lemon. It happens.
Good luck with the Overton. I’ve never had the opportunity to try one. They certainly get great reviews and it is obvious from just watching here that their makers take very good care of their customers.
Overton, another good choice. You will enjoy it.