Hi I’m looking for personal opinions on susato C and B natural whistles . Cormac breatnach and Kevin Crawford make them sound excellent , especially Breatnach’s tracks on the whistle and guitar CD . I’ve tried a C susato from the 1990’s and it was beautiful , the high D ones are very shrill and unpleasant . I play a set of Goldies but there’s something about the sweet tone off the C and B that makes me want to buy a few . If anyone who has these whistles in these keys (made recently) and could give me some opinions that would be great !
Only if you play them that way 
, and the O-ring tweak helps tame the upper register. The S-bore C is a favorite of mine, and the B will be similarly sweet because of the relative length-to-bore.
Yes, Crawford and Breathnach have made much good music with Susatos.
I play/own (and have owned) several of the C and two of the B natural Kildare whistles with the S-Series bore. I’ve also owned Kildare whistles in E, Eb, D, Bb and A in the same bore. Susato no longer offer the E, Bb or A - they pushed the boundaries of the S- Series bore too far in my experience. I’ve owned most all of what Susato has made over the years. I generally like what they make, for what they are.
The C whistle is the best of the bunch, IMO. It is a good strong, dynamic whistle, IMO. The B natural is pretty close to the C in performance and dynamics.
The Susato Kildare S-Series whistles enjoy a love/hate reputation with players. I like them, even the S-series D. Some do not care for the plastic. To each their own. The material is quite durable, good in most environments and doesn’t go “clang, bing, bong” if it hits the floor.
Some do not like the head, particularly the beak. If you rest the beak on your lip it will make no matter. If you are one of those that likes to have the beak between the lips, or beyond, you may not get on well with the Susato.
Some say the Kildares sound like recorders. I do not agree with that. I have close to fifty recorders here. None of those sound like the Susato whistles. They do have a crisp, rather pure sound with more fundamental than some whistles. You can nick the blade is you want more complexity but not all nicks result in a pleasing tone. I have nicked a Kildare C with good results.
In my experience to get the most out of the Kildares you have to embrace what they offer and play them as they need to be played. They like to have a lot of air going through them. They are fairly free blowing. You do not have to blow hard (on the C or B models) but you have to keep the air flow going. I actually do not find the C or B air hogs either, more average compared to the many, many whistles out there these days. But if you are accustomed to Gen C’s and Bb’s or the narrow windway Overtons, you will need a little time to get used to the Susato a bit. Given good airflow they respond nicely. Play with the air pressure and you’ll find the dynamic range can vary a good bit. Some players will enjoy that.
I also have the Susato Oriole which is the most recent addition to the Susato line. The Oriole is priced lower than the Kildares. They are very similar to the Kildare in sound and playing characteristics. The C is a good whistle, IMO. Susato do not offer a B natural body for the Oriole head at this time though. However the Oriole head is a good fit for 1/2" CPVC CTS plumbing pipe, the ivory colored stuff. So you can make your own tube if you like.
Hope that helps.
Feadoggie
I’m just a lurker in this conversation, but thank you! This is very useful information.
I can vouch for the C and B natural S-series. Excellent response and tuning, and fun to play. They don’t have any metallic quality to them though, so in that sense they’re not going to sound like “traditional” whistles.
I actually prefer my 1990s one-piece D (one of my long-standing favourites of any make or key) to its C companion (where the Oriole C is probably as good or better). Can’t comment on the two-piece Kildares because I haven’t got any, but would rate the four Orioles in descending order of size with the Bb the best of the bunch. But no doubt at all that my earlier one-piece (Dublin?) D is easily the pick of my Susatos… a robust, well-travelled, crisply accurate and (while not ‘quiet’) IMHO not-at-all-raucous whistle of such utter dependability that I’m constantly astounded by all the Susato -S- series high D hate on here!
So what does your Carbony high D sound like, then? Unmetallically untraditional?
That was my main issue with the Susato S Bore high D I had briefly (a mere two weeks) it made my upper lip sore in fact.
Is the mouthpiece any smaller on the Oriole?
I agree an excellent post, I wish I’d been able to read this before I abandoned my Susato so quickly 
Oddly enough, there are some metallic qualities in all the Carbony whistles I have, especially on the attack of the highest and lowest few notes. I ordered one with the intention of returning it, just for a look, but I was so pleased by the sound I kept it. For solo playing I like the Eb FrankenKillarney (FrankenLarney?) I made best, because it really is that “pure drop” sound. For session playing though, I like the respectful volume and ease of tuning for my Carbony. I’m really turning into a fanboy now over those whistles, but they scratch an itch for me no whistle has reliably done.
No, not really. The mouthpiece on the Oriole is essentially the same size as those of the Kildare although the construction is a bit different.
The Susato has a short beak relative to those on many other whistles. That, in combination with the less-than-flimsy diameter of the outer mouthpiece, makes for what some feel is a beak that is too large around, or at least uncomfortable.
I have had no issues with the thickness of the Susato mouthpiece until I get down to the large bore models. It seems they just scaled up their high whistle designs and there really is too much bulk to those low whistle heads. But, on the other hand, they end up being darned bullet proof and can withstand a beating (can probably dish out a good beating too). As has been said, the edge of the blade is the only part of the Susato that needs to be protected. The rest of the whistle can take care of itself in most any environment.
I do not find a need to insert the beak of a whistle into my mouth. It is enough to rest the beak on the lower lip and just kiss the end of the windway. That works well for me on the Susatos. Others may have a different preference though.
Feadoggie
Thank you.
The Susato B whistle is one of my favourites that they make. I wish they still offered a Bb and A body for the S-series, as I want to try them out. The key of A might be pushing it, but, judging by how the B plays, I can’t imagine the Bb being bad.
I consider B to be the most ideal length-to-bore ratio for their S-series whistles, as far as giving the playing qualities that I like. For Susatos, I generally think that the lowest key (currently) offered in each series is the best key in that series. I like the playing characteristics of killarneys, gens, Dixon trad, sindt, etc., so the higher keys in each susato series don’t play to my liking, their sound (and playability) is too chunky for me. I think they are stretching it even with having the Eb on the S-series. I had no idea they used to have the E on there as well! But as far as the OP question goes, yes, I think the B is a nice whistle and worth giving a try.
I’ve commented this on a number of susato threads, but I think it might be worth repeating- People often say the susato D whistle are “shrill”, but it’s worth keeping in mind that they make both a “small bore” series and a “very small bore” series D whistle. The very small series D is a nice whistle, and nothing like the S-series. Not shrill, and actually very sweet and magical up top, and a lightning fast response, along with a better tone throughout. I think the VSB D whistle is great, and a good pocket whistle.
May I ask, how much smaller is the bore of the VSB and does it match the volume of the S bore?
I too have owned most sizes of Susato (even Ab, Gb, and Low C).
One of the best-playing was a narrow-bore A. It probably had about the narrowest bore-to-length ratios of any Susato (well maybe except for the Low C) and it was a fantastic player! Very sweet, not the shouting thin plasticky Susatos one sometimes hears. The tuning was great.
I still have a couple of the old one-piece Susatos with the wood block, all machined from PVC stock, from around 1980. These play IMHO far better than the more recent injection-moulded ones. Each was made by hand one at a time.
I like the Susatos I’ve played.
Generally I buy them any time the come up for sale on the used board.
They usually become my car or work whistle, love the ruggedness.
It’s a good bit narrower. It is quieter than the S-series, but still la good bit louder than a typical gen or similar.
Thank you. After reading a number of ‘Pro Susato’ comments recently I’m starting to think I was hasty in abandoning mine so quickly. I’m considering trying again but after reading your comments (and Feadoggie’s about mouthpiece placement) I may go for the VSB this time.
Thank you. After reading a number of ‘Pro Susato’ comments recently I’m starting to think I was hasty in abandoning mine so quickly. I’m considering trying again but after reading your comments (and Feadoggie’s about mouthpiece placement) I may go for the VSB this time.[/quote]
No problem! It’s actually got a bit more of a playful chirp to it and a different character altogether than the S-series, so it’s best to look at it as a completely different thing than the regular susato D’s. I have an E body for it as well, and it is equally nice.
I like that description 
I too have a couple of non-tunable 1980’s D Susatos with cedar plugs. They had glued on thumb rests which I removed, as they were in the wrong position for me. I much prefer them to the newer models. I wish he would make them again.