-Cleaning out books under the bed, my long-missing Susato standard bore D whistle appeared, returning, apparently, from a long, literate vacation, caught flagrante delicto with “Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations”. Familiar, indeed! 
-Fashionable Susato-bashing aside, I like it immensely, including its upper octave. Its little sibling VSB can’t match its tone or undisputed authority. Welcome back, Sus!
I thought VSB were generally regarded as superior to the regular bored Susatos?
I like my Susato Bb a lot, but there’s just something not quite right about it that I can’t put my finger on.
It sometimes takes a while to appreciate a Susato. I’ve had mine (standard bore Dublin D) for three years now, but only recently have I really come to enjoy playing it. It is the PERFECT whistle for Morris…assertive enough to be heard over the bells and strong enough to play even on a windy, foggy day in Northern California without clogging or losing its bottom notes. It’s gutsy rather than sweet, and it takes some assertive playing on the top notes, but I’m really growing fond of it.
Redwolf
Depends on whom you talk to and what you’re looking for in a whistle. If you’re looking for an inexpensive whistle with a big sound, the SB can’t be beat.
Cranberry-
-The standard bore Susato D has a fuller sound, thick where VSB sound is thin, and a less pure/more mellow tone, kind of sweet and woody sounding. Louder, but more rounded & less piercing than VSB. The standard bore is like a retired supermodel, freed from dictates of cruel fashion to eat Krispy Kremes, & gettting bigger, more mellow and sweet after a life of denial.
-The distinction could be thought of like the scene in “Singing In The Rain” in which a silent movie actress with a thin voice tries to convert to talkies:
Vocal Coach: … “…I caahhn’t stahhnd him” - -SB
Actress: “…I kint stind’im”- -VSB
Cranberry, the SB does have a better tone (quite good, in fact, in the hands of an accomplished player).
What I like most about the VSB is its playability. The tone is not unpleasant, just a little reedy and thin, virtually free of chiff and breathiness. For me, it has a response very similar to that of a Burke D, i.e., excellent! I don’t agonize over the fact that it sounds like a seriously malnourished SB.
-Indeed. I have both as well. Sometimes the VSB’s responsiveness and thinner tone serve better, and sometimes the
SB’s fuller sound serves. The VSB is a good car whistle-not too loud to play inside one, at least if the whistler is the only occupant. -SB does well in urban canyons as its sound carries well through urban noise. The SB seems slightly slower to respond than the VSB, due perhaps to larger bore. Both are good values, and tuned well.