Ok. Now I know that MKII 'dogs have a tendency to be touchy when you play them; mine has this peculiar habit of performing multi phonics on the high D, G-B. My question is, are there any easy tweaks I can do to eliminate those multi-phonics on those notes without ruining the whistle? Something an inexperienced whistle engineer can do without making it all go up in flames?
Also, is it doing this because the blade is too sharp or too dull?
Thanks all!
In my experience, those multi-phonics upper register glitches tend to be among the most resistant to tweaking.
Feadogs aren’t that expensive. I would be inclined to get a MKIII Feadog and not try to tweak the MKII.
On the other hand, that MKII tube is probably a very good tube. The ones I’ve encountered are just as well in tune as the MKIII tubes, which are known to be the best in tune of all the Generation type whistles. If you have a Generation or other head that will fit it, you may be able to create a Frankenwhistle that’s better than either was before.
A potentially good head for that tube would be a Waltons Little Black D head. I’ve been told that Thom Larson at thewhistleshop.com sells them separately for $3.50. I would get a Little Black D head for that tube. They tend to be among the best of the cheap, Generation type heads. By combining that good tube with a good head, you might end up with a much better whistle than you could buy ready made for that price range.
Best wishes,
Jerry
Hi Isilwen(elvish name?)
Jerry has a good idea in a “frankenwhistle” but if you wanna play around, I suggest a partial wax/putty fill of the paraboloid reflector cavity beneath the windway.
The Generation or Feadog headjoint has a halfwave parabolic reflector under the windway that acts like its cousin the Flute or even a common flashlight. Because of “warping” in the cool-down process of plastic injection, this “reflector” becomes unfocused, just like a fluteplug can become unfocused.
When the reflected sound is out of sync with the oscillations at the embouchure it causes high frequency squeaks. Partial,but not complete, filling can correct this reflector’s focus in most cases.
Thanks for the tips. (Thomas, yes that is an Elvish name. Quenyan dialect, to be exact; stands for Moon-maiden or Moon-daughter 
)
So, if the chances of my tweaking it to make it better are slim (as they seem to be), any suggestions for a good el cheapo?? (I’m thinking Walton’s Mello, but am as of yet undecided.)
Yahoo! The local music store stocks MK III’s. However, they’re only in black…
Anyone know of a place where I can get one that is in the classic brass w/ green top?
Yahoo! The local music store stocks MK III’s. However, they’re only in black…
Anyone know of a place where I can get one that is in the classic brass w/ green top?
I think brassy-gold colors and green is one of the ugliest combination of colors. Unfortunately, a lot of makers make whistles like that. Why green? Ugh. (Ok, I’m done rambling).
Isilwen,
I recently purchased a Feadog that had the same problems you mentioned, and was basically unplayable upon receipt. Tried various fipples…3 LBWs, 2 tweaked Gens and a Clare (which usually works on anything), but didn’t help. I eneded up filling the original Feadog fipple cavity, and adding a piece of guitar pick to the underside of the fipple blade, using a thin coating of sticky tack. The Feadog is now a wonderful sounding whistle…pure with good balance and a really sweet and clear 2nd octave. Plays nicely, requiring very little air but still demands some breath control in the 1st octave. This tweak lowers the overall volume a bit but it’s still nearly as loud as my Sindt.
With that same order, I got a Walton’s Mellow D brass and was pleasantly surprised. It’s one of the best cheapies I’ve played. Very good volume and plays fairly well without any tweaks, but filling the fipple cavity helps the overall balance and reduces some breathiness. It doesn’t really need the guitar pick tweak but I did it anyway just to clean up the high end a bit and sweeten it. The Mellow D isn’t touchy at all and can be pushed pretty hard when needed in the 2nd octave without breaking up or affecting tonal quality. Did a gig the other night with my bluegrass band and decided to try the Mellow D. I ended up using it all night instead of the Sindt or Burke AlPro Ds and received lots of compliments on the sound. Really nice inexpensive whistle with a deeper, richer sound than a Sindt or Burke AlPro. The only real negative I’ve found is a slightly sharp low D, which is typical of many cheap whistles but it can be underblown to compensate. Very nice whistle for the money. Can’t go wrong for $6.
Good luck…
Denny
Jerry, I don’t like my Feadóg’s head, so I’m going to send it to you to keep. I’m keeping the body at the chance I ever get a suitable head I like for it. I should have just sent it with the Meg I sent the other day but…I’m stupid.
Very good, thanks. I’m thinking about ordering one from Melody’s, however I’m not sure if the Walton’s they stock are the Mellos or the Irish whistles…
I wouldn’t mind getting a C as well, but I really like my Clarke orig C (most beautiful one I’ve heard yet), so I don’t think I’ll be getting one of those. One reason why I inquired about the Walton’s was because my teacher has a whistle that I suspect to be a Waltons/Soodlums (same mouthpiece design and all), and I played it once and fell in love with it.
It’s not hard to correct the sharpness of the low D on Waltons Mellow D and other whistles. Someone else suggested sticking a ball of sticky tac inside the end of the tube.
I haven’t tried that, but I’ve had success by simply lengthening the tube using aluminum foil tape (sold at hardware/home center stores). I cut some tape about 3/4 inch wide and wrapped it around enough times to make it stiff enough to hold up. I extended the length of the tube a little less than 1/4 inch and that fixed it. It looks interesting, plays very nicely.
Best wishes,
Jerry
Krylon now makes paints that “stick” to plastic,PVC,ABS etc. so you can paint your plastic fipple or entire plastic whistle any color you want(including silver,copper and gold). Just be careful you don’t build up too much on the labium edge.
It’s the Irish connection. Waltons, Feadog, Clare, Doolin, they all use green heads on brass bodies. On most of them the brass dulls down very quickly.