Hello Fipplers,
I’ve recently taken the plunge and began playing in sessions. The thing is, the whistles I have just aren’t loud enough for me to even hear myself play. I’m looking for a good and loud session whistle that also sounds nice and round (if that makes sense).
I was thinking of an Abell because of the reviews on the site and they look so darn good.
Suggestions?
I’m not sure I’ve ever heard a whistle that can be heard over other musicians as well as a Susato.
Otherwise, I think Copelands probably have the best volume.
Others will have other ideas and many will be correct.
Behold below.
Susatos are loud.
But is loud what you really want? ‘Quieter’ whistles still cut through and can be heard by the audience, and I’ve heard others say that a loud whistle can upset other musicianers. You could also consider the broad-brimmed hat trick, which allows you to hear yourself playing over the general din?
I say Su-sar-toe, d’you say Su-say-toe?
Thanks Dale.
The other whistle I was thinking of was a Copeland. One of the guys I play with has a brass low D Copeland. Lovely thing.
The Copelands have metal heads right? I have an Overton D. The darn thing clogs frequently and demands a lot of “push”. Are the Copelands similar?
Robh
Don’t forget about Water Weasels… an excellent choice for loud sessions!
I have both a Copeland and an Overton low d. The Copeland is louder and less prone to clogging. It’s windway is not as restricted. It also has a delrin fipple plug and a curved windway.
Although the Overton does clog, I have found that warming up is the trick to eliminating that. A trick I have used is to get a small heating pad and keeping the whistle wrapped up in that prior to playing. It is like playing with a warm blanket that has just come out of the dryer! 
There are other anti-clogging tricks out there (soapy water, dryer sheets etc.) but I have not tried them on this whistle because warming it works so well.
One advantage that my Overton has over the Copeland is a slightly shorter reach on the lower holes. They do have different sounds though.
Hope this helps.
Ah, all excellent advice!
From hats to warming blankets. I will try all of the above until I can afford a Copeland.
Darn Canadian dollar!
Robh
The Susato has the strongest, most solid tone of any whistle I know. Too bad it’s plastic. 
wistfully I wish “Mike Susato” would find a way to make the Susato whistles at least look like metal… or wood… or something.
I agree.
I have a black Susato in A. Way easier to stomach than the skin coloured ones. Well, maybe it’s my skin colour I have trouble stomaching.
Robh
I second Gary’s suggestion of a Water Weasel. Glenn always has some lying around, and if you have specific sound requirements, he can probably pick one out for you. They look even plastickier than Susatos, but once your colleagues hear it, they’ll quite remarking on its appearance.
Alba SE, or Silkstone alloy, or Sweetheart old model.
Water Weasel is a better whistle, IMHO, but any of these 3 will outblow it any time. As will a Susato (so i’m not acused of being an anti-Susite again).
I agree with the Alba and Sweet if you’re talking about the upper register, but those are so unbalanced between the bottom and top of the range (the Alba also unfocussed at the bottom end) that I wouldn’t recommend them for playing with others.
(I saw a group in which the whistle player was playing an Oak. This is a whistle with a reputation for being quiet, but it was miked. However, it is also unbalanced between the octaves, and we coule only hear her in the upper register. I love my Oak BTW, and have a certain fondness for my Alba SE [that’s the composite, right?] and old Sweet, just don’t think they’re the best whistles to play in a group setting.)
The Silkstone is a good point – I should’ve mentioned it; I’ve recently re-discovered my alloy D+, a damn fine whistle. I had remembered it having a boring sound, but either I’ve become a better player or acquired a different taste, because it’s got a nice chiffy sound and is a joy to play.
I’ve found that my high D Sweetheart professional is louder than my Susato, and much louder than my silver Copeland too.
Beth
And btw, I say Sus-ahhh-to, oh…let’s call the whole thing off…
But the Water Weasel D certainly is loud enough for your average session.
jess may back this up..or not , i dont know..i have a Boisvert, which i believe is modeled after an O’riordan concert(as in performance) whistle… the thing is ..LOUD..but the tone is very cloying..also..wood..which makes it nice to look at. Like I said jut a thought..( and yes i agree susatos are loud pure and utterly in tune)
My Sweet old style (which i bought from Cranberry) has the strongerst bottom octave of all my whistles.
The 'Stone is the whistle i usually play in loud sessions, since the Sweet is not tunable.
Right now i fell in love with the O’Briain Improved Feadog, and it’s the only whistle i’m playing, sessions or not. It’s not as loud as the 'Stone, but it has a nice pronounced “pop” that helps me hear what i’m playing in the middle of the noise.
g
Yes. And it’s a lovely whistle too.
Hey Robh,
I hear you about the Canadian $$$…
I’ve been playing a soprano Overton for a couple of years now and I find it just a wicked whistle for sessions, a nice warm tone with tons of volume through both octaves. Now I admit that it does require a bit of getting used to, and definately more attention than most other whistles, but if you get it figured out you won’t want to trade off for anything.
I’ve played Copelands, Burkes, Silkstones, yadda, yadda, yadda, before and would still choose my Overton any day of the week. The clogging is a pain to be sure but I find that dipping the windway into a mixture of water and dish detergent before a session and letting it dry can usually get me through a few hours without clogging the windway. Keeping it tucked under my leg at a session is another trick for keeping it warm (warm whistle definately = less clogging).
It’s kind of funny, I’ve been playing flute just about constantly for the last 6 months, hardly touched a whistle. Saturday past I was playing at a session and having a bad day on the flute so I picked up my Sindt to play it for a bit and it just got completely lost in the din of the pub. (Sindt’s are not bad whistles I suppose but I’m not particularly fond now that I’ve got one.) So anyway, I picked up my Overton and started playing along… it was like somebody had turned the power switch on or plugged in the amp or something. It wasn’t that it was cutting through the noise so much as “moving” through it, Overtons just have this great soft tone that comes out with plenty of volume that can carry like nothing else.
I can’t stand when people get so obsessed with the “that whistle is too loud so you shouldn’t play it” mentality. There’s a time and a place and I can guarantee that those same people have never played a session with a couple of pipers, a couple of boxes, and a pub full of eagre folklore undergrads looking to get in touch with their “culture” by making so much noise the music gets drowned out.
Anyway, that’s my 2 cents on Overtons… the soprano ones anyway. Lots of people hate 'em for just the reasons you mentioned but I personally think they’re worth the work.
All the best,
Wes
Ah, the joys of handmade whistles!