I checked Susato’s site. A high D in their Kildare series is over $50…but only by $4. Their high D in the Oriole series is well under the OP’s target price, at $32.50.
The first Feadog whistles are consistently good in my experience. The heads are not glued, making for easy tuning. Also, they can be found new-in-box for $5 USD. The Susato Oriole is a good one if you prefer the more modern, loud, “fatter” sound.
Where? I’d love to find one!
Since the above was written, I’ve acquired a Walton’s Little Black D. With the Little Black D, I noticed a difference: its aluminum body, to my ears, produces a brighter sound. As for my preference for the Feadóg, it is primarily–if not exclusively–due to aesthetics; I find its slim and sleek mouthpiece more appealing than the chunky ribbed ones on the Walton’s.
I got a dixon trad d the other day and overall I like it. So my vote goes to that. Compared to my Generation Bb, Feadog C, and Clarke sweat tone D, I like it more. I chose it over an oak or any others because it had more consistent amazon reviews so I was hoping I’d get something thats made consistently because it cost a bit more than the other budget options. Where your super budget ones can be good but they can also be my feadog (really off tuning).
Unlike my feadog pulling the mouthpiece out to tune it doesnt make it loose. Also unlike my feadog its tuning is actually good, minus like 1 hold thats slightly off. But I dub that fine. The dixon still has that good whistle tone similar to the feadog.
I like my generation Bb and was considering getting a generation D but I feel like the performance can fluctuate on those a lot because a lot of the reviews are bad. So I was worried I could get a dud with bad tuning. And It might have a mouthpiece similar to the feadog where once I get the glue off it wouldnt be tight.
I hate my clarke sweat tone, too small, sounds too much like a toy to me. But the tuning seems decent and its cheap so wouldnt be a bad beginner whistle.
My fav is my Tillbury C but that doesnt count because it cost like $105 shipped. Its not 4x as good as the dixon but it does have some slight benefits, as expected from paying way more. The tuning is perfect. Tuning slide instead of moving a mouthpiece. Really low air req and a bit quieter (I like both of these, but there are just preference things).
I’m apparently now in the market for a new whistle and get to make this decision all over again. I was happy with the Walton I broke, so I’m inclined to just get another one. But I admit there are a lot of whistles I’ve been curious about. Really I wish I could just play a bunch and pick which I like best (without having to actually buy a bunch and then try to sell on what I’m not into). There are some I’m curious about because I’ve never really heard them (Youtube can be hit-or-miss for a lot of reasons)… some I suspect I’d like but I’m not sure if I’d like them more than the Walton and would have to play to find out… etc.
The angst and anguish, lol.
This is what other keys are for, it gives you an excuse to buy more. Although you could still just buy the same brand haha.
But I wont judge because I usually over research things I’m looking to buy to the point that I decide not to get anything.
a lot of the reviews are bad
You do have to wonder, and weigh, who are giving the reviews and if they can play at all.
It’s pretty common for beginners to buy a cheap whistle and then complain the whistle is no good because they can’t play it. Some of the finest music I have heard was played on cheap whistles.
My old original Feadogs I got around 1980 don’t have this loose head problem.
Don’t know what a toy sounds like but I’ve always felt the “Sweatone” had an overall dullish tone.But an ok beginners whistle,I’ve given some away to beginners.
[quote=
Don’t know what a toy sounds like but I’ve always felt the “Sweatone” had an overall dullish tone.But an ok beginners whistle,I’ve given some away to beginners.[/quote]
I have a number of Sweetone whistles I used with my kids. They were good beginning whistles and get stashed around the house for days when a tune wants to jump out of my head in the garage, basement, car or attic.
I have heard them played very well in a number of noisy sessions.
They seem to have better control and less of a squeak in the hands of a newbie than some of the other beginner’s whistles. I’m not sure, dull could be the right word. But I think they are on the quiet side.
IMO most of the concept of “upgrading” from a cheap whistle is mostly due to this phenomenon. The vast majority of very good to excellent players that I’ve come across have played whistles from a fairly restricted number of makers/brands, only a couple of which get past $100 (notably Sindts, which seem to be the standard for a lot of Comhaltas types). Many play “cheap” whistles to great effect. On the other hand, a lot of beginners think that a more expensive whistle will make them a better player.
That’s not to say that some more expensive whistles don’t sound lovely, or don’t fit someone’s personal preferences better, or aren’t worth buying. It’s just that the sound of the whistle has a lot more to do with who’s playing it than a lot of people believe.
That’s not to say that some more expensive whistles don’t sound lovely, or don’t fit someone’s personal preferences better, or aren’t worth buying. It’s just that the sound of the whistle has a lot more to do with who’s playing it than a lot of people believe.
True, a nice whistle makes you feel better about your playing…& as in my own case, once I’d got the hang of whistle playing, my cheap whistles began to sound much better. 
That’s precisely the reason I don’t endeavor to write detailed reviews. I know I’m far from being a decent player. Should I write anything that seems like a review, take it with a few grains of salt…a full shaker or grinder is probably better.
Asa novice who recently upgraded to an expensive whistle from cheap I have a few thoughts.
The cheap whistle usually isnt the problem but it does go a long way knowing your whistle isnt the problem. Then you can learn proper technique knowing you arent trying to compensate for an out of tune whistle. Where a lot of features are just preference, high end whistles do just seem to have better tuning. Obviously some more than others.
And in my case the general playability does just feel straight better. But some of that could just be preference.
I will say that my 100$ whistle (tilbury) is definitely not 10x better than a $10 is generation or other good budget one. But at least in my experience more expensive does feel better, even if just minimally for the fine details that one can easily live without. But obviously if someone doesnt like the things like the low air requirement for them it wont be better so the players wants are still a big factor.
Yes, I know, opening a can of worms… anyone have a favorite cheap high-C? I do like my Clarke Original C, but wouldn’t mind something that takes a bit less air, has a bit more volume, and frankly there are a couple notes on the Clarke that I’m always having to blow into tune and it would be nice not to have to do that.
I used to have a Freeman Mellow Dog C, but gave it to a friend since I favored the Clarke.
How is the Generation C considered? I assume as hit-or-miss as the Ds are? Obviously this is not exactly a time when I could try several to try to find a good one (not that it was ever really a possibility-- unlikely a shop would have a boxful {if they had any in stock at all rather than having to order it in}, and unlikely they’d want to let me put my mouth over a bunch of whistles I was not going to buy).
I liked mine, FWIW. It was a brass red-top. It got the usual Blu-Tac tweak, and this one needed a bit of electrical tape to flatten the E hole (the F# hole on a D whistle), plus the neck cracked when I loosened the head to make it tuneable, but I fixed that with waxless dental floss binding, and cyanoacrylic to hold it all in place. It was fated from the beginning to be a gnarly-looking SOB, but after tweaks and repair the tone and intonation were great throughout; I never had any misgivings about it, and performed on it plenty.
“What’s wrong with your whistle?” “Nothing, as you can hear.” “No, I mean all the stuff on it.” “Oh, that. This whistle’s a veteran, son. Street cred.”
You can reduce the air requirement of your Clarke original quite a bit by flattening the tin plane above the windway, and making it parallel to the windway.
I’ve been very happy with mine; happy enough that I’ve never found another better.
Generation (brass & nickel) & Dixon (aluminium) high C are good whistles, I find the Clarkes OK tone wise, but not so keen on the taper & rear seam.
I’ve heard that’s a pretty fiddly tweak… I wouldn’t be confident to try it!
Yeah, I’m not big on the tapered bore (or tiny holes). But it does have a pretty sound.
I’ll maybe go for the Generation, then. I’ve got a Gen B-flat (actually two as I inherited my mom’s and can’t decide which one I like better) and an E-flat that I think I “rescued” from a junk shop or something for cheap, and I think I’ve only had occasion to use it once, not even enough to know how well I like it…
For sure one thing that high-end whistles tend to have over the Generations is better tuning.
For myself, every other aspect is superior in good Generations than it is with expensive whistles.
These aspects include tone quality, response, nimbleness of action, air efficiency, and volume balance between the octaves.
The trick is finding a Generation with good octaves. Usually Generations have a flat 2nd octave, but not always.
Once you have a good-playing Generation with good octave tuning yes the scale can be a tad off. Generally G will be a hair sharp and/or F# will be a hair flat. You’ll see people playing Generations with a bit of tape over the top edge of Hole 4, to bring the pitch of G down a bit. And/or the owner might have carved the upper edge of Hole 5 a bit to bring up the pitch of F#.
These fixes take a couple minutes, and what you then have is a whistle that, possibly, no whistle at any price will equal.
I certainly haven’t played all the whistle makes out there! New makers appear every day. Of the ones I’ve tried, a large number of makers over the last 40+ years, no high whistle has equaled my old Generation C.
If an expensive whistle has a low octave as nice, the high octave will be stiff and/or harsh. If an expensive whistle has a 2nd octave as nice, the low octave will be weaker. The one exception I know of is a friend’s old Copeland High D. It has even better octave balance, even sweeter easier high notes, even fatter low notes. But the very best of the old Copelands are hard to come by.
You can end up with a pack of mongrels like this. They’re not gleaming and pretty. But no A, Bb, or C whistles I’ve ever played at any price have been as good as the A, Bb, and C you see here.
They sound like this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-fQhvleWq8&t=29s
I’m not big on whistle tweaks myself, but flattening the windway on a Clarke original is very easy and not very fiddly in my opinion. It’s right out there in the open on the top of the whistle so it’s easy to see and easy to work on.