Are all reviewers fit to review?
I know i wouldn’t be. 
The question is can the reviewer REALLY play well enough to review 
Hmmmm…is this a can of worms?
Any whistle player regardless of skill will have opinions regarding various whistles in his/her collection. These opinions are certainly worthy of being shared.
Formal reviews are quite different and the more experienced the player, the more reliable the review???
I posted my own opinions of my collection of whistles a few months ago and got some criticism even though I did not use the word “review” in the thread header and I was very explicit that my skills were those of a beginner.
All opinions regarding whistles should be acceptable for this forum as long as the poster is explicit in his/her levels of experience so that readers can judge for themselves the appropriateness of the opinion. For example, my beginner-player opinions about my whistle collection may (or may not) be useful for another beginner, but would likely be useless for a seasoned performer.
However, I think it would be prudent only for very experienced whistle players to use the word “review” in their threads. Of course, judgement of experience is itself subjective, but I think that most players are able to determine for themselves whether they feel sufficiently experienced to write “reviews.”
NOTE: All of the above constitutes my opinions as a beginning whistle player and readers can ignore, dismiss, or agree as they think fit.
Charlie
Even a review from the most experienced of players is not worth much to you unless you share both that person’s taste in whistles and their skillset.
This community that Dale built has musicians of all levels from brand new beginner all the way to those who have played for many years.
Be glad, that in this community, anyone at any level can speak their mind; that is a real strength of this community, and one of the things that helps it to thrive.
Just always be cautious of putting too much faith in what you read here (or anywhere), no matter who posts it.
The only real way to know if you like a particular whistle is to try it yourself.
–James
The competence of the reviewer is definitely a consideration, but the state of mind of the reader and their competence as a player are just as likely to affect purchase satisfaction.
Good reviews help offset purchase risk but it’s been pointed out several times that the only way to completely avoid buying a dud is to play it.
The reason i posted this thread is that i’ve just got back from an international seminar involving my work. These gatherings are a great way to meet and discuss problems, and successes at an international level. However, we meet but only once a year, so i suggested a forum similar to chiff & fipple which would enable us to continue our discussions all year, and would be a great way of learning and swapping our experiences.
The feedback i got, was that it would be a dangerous thing to allow members to advise where they are not qualified to do so.
My argument was that a forum enabled us to continue dialogs which would otherwise only happen once a year, everyones input would have to be read with a pinch of salt, and it’s you yourself who interprets the next persons opinion.
I think Chiff & fipple does this perfectly, and like Charlie says it’s important to say" in my humble opinion," and i think most people do state this, but not all.
I think a review is only valid with a sound file from the actual person reviewing the whistle. That way one can hear the level of the person playing and then get a clear idea of where the review is coming from.
It wouldn’t bother me if a beginner gave a review as long as there was a sound file to demonstrate the level of ability with which the whistle is being assessed. At least this way someone of similar ability can get an idea of what to expect.
All levels are valid as long as the level is defined clearly.
The issue of sound clips was hashed out at length in the Flute Forum a while ago, and I don’t think we want to repeat that debate here. Some commenters offer ample clues to their ability and background, and some offer few. Readers should judge review comments (or any comments) in the context of the information available, and caveat lector.
Dale’s recent remark about reviews is relevant here:
I’d also encourage people to post occasional clips in Clips & Snips, signature lines, or elsewhere (including review posts), as simply a natural part of the overall process of participating in the forum.
Yes freedom of speech is a great thing.
I just think it’s the decent thing, that the writer remind us that it is only in “their humble opinion.” Writing a negative or positive review for a whistle influences everyone to some degree, even if it is to be taken with a pinch of salt.
Without all these humble opinions this forum wouldn’t be as good as what it is, and i enjoy being a part of it, I was only concerned for the poor/happy maker who gets a negative/positive review which may result in his/her sales.
Posting snips & clips etc, is of course to be encouraged 
loved your GG clips MT Guru, I’m all for this. 
I reckon that reviews are like statistics. You need lots of them from a broad range of tastes/skills etc to be really useful. I personally like seeing lots of different responses then filtering them to my own tastes. Sometimes you can see a trend emerge.
The strengths and weaknesses of the concept of online whistle reviews reflect the strengths and weaknesses of the Web itself:
Weakness: “What the hell?!? Anybody can post…”
Strength: “Damn right! Anybody can post!”
It’s just built in.
–James
I think a review from anyone can be useful if the person is thoughtful and forthright. Thoughtful in describing the thing being reviewed, as in, “I find the sound a little raspy,” “I find the sound very pure,” “I find it difficult to get to the top of the second octave,” etc. Forthright as in, “I’ve been playing the whistle for 10 years, mostly ITM,” “I started playing the whistle six months ago, mostly praise music,” “I just like noodling around on the whistle, all kinds of music,” etc.
Thing is, most people who might be basing purchases on reviews here are beginners, so a review from a really accomplished musician might not be what they’re after. They might benefit more from people at their levels. OTOH, they might really be serious and benefit from reviews of the better players.
In the end, as has been said, it’s up to the reader to determine whether the review is relevant or not.
My review of this thread thus far
PAX
pastorkeith
Hi Whistlers,
I like what James said about strengths and weaknesses in an open forum…Anybody can post. And I like MT’s encouragement to post clips. I’m a retired guy who loves to have fun with whistles and enjoys being a member of C&F and reading all the topic comments. I’m too old to be embarrassed by my whistle playing. Posting my beginner’s clip here is: for fun and feeling like I’m a part of the C&F community.
Yep, play what you can and when you can and play some more. 