I’m relatively new to the whistle community. I am a bagpiper by trade and play with a Celtic band. I have began using a whistle in a couple of tunes and quickly found that it is very difficult (at least for me)to get enough volume into a microphone to play with the band. I find myself over blowing because it’s hard to hear myself playing. Is there a better way than playing into a mic?
I recently saw the Chieftains in concert and saw that Paddy Maloney gets a TON of volume out of his setup (whatever that may be).
Does anyone have any suggestions on how to amp a whistle correctly?
I think it helps to play a whistle that is loud and responds to hard blowing such as the Susatos.If you prefer a more traditional sound such as a generation,try E flat or F whistles.Maybe your band needs to quiet down a little when you pick up the whistle .I also feel a good quality dynamic microphone such as the shure beta series is still the best option ,adjusting the volume level where needed via the mixing board or a microphone pre amp wihin easy access to where you are sitting. Hope this helps. Mike
I’ve seen a picture of Brian Finnegan at http://www.madfortrad.com where he is playing a whistle with a normal vocal mic. The pic is in the tinwhistle section under “tutorials”. It shows the mic mounted rather high, with the head pointed downward, straight at the fipple. I haven’t tried this arrangement yet but I think it should give quite good volume.
[ This Message was edited by: Eldarion on 2001-08-29 06:18 ]
I have used a clip-on mic (used a little velcro strap to hold it on the whistle), and it worked well. I also stood in front of the bass player’s monitor so I could hear myself.
Thanks for your tips.
I just purchased a Susato whistle, maybe the whistle will help, I haven’t tried it with the band yet. I usually play with the configuration you mentioned, mic up high & pointed at the fipple, we also use a monitor system to hear. The band does come down a bit, I guess they’ll have to come down a wee bit more!
Thanks again!
Bob
[ This Message was edited by: rhowardjr on 2001-08-29 10:16 ]
On 2001-08-29 00:35, rhowardjr wrote:
I find myself over blowing because it’s hard to hear myself playing.
Sounds like you could do with a monitor, or a better monitor mix if you have a monitor already. Keep in mind that what you hear on stage and what the audience hears can be very different things!
I just played my first official gig with a local band here in Salt Lake called ‘Idlewild’. We were outside, and there was a croud of roughly 500 people. There was no seating as such, so everyone sort of arranged themselves in a large semi-circle and left an open area in front of the stage for dancing.
There were seven of us on stage, and we each had at least one mic. I was playing bodhrán and whistle. The drum was pretty easy. They just put a kick (bass) drum mic right into the back of it. The whistle was a little more tricky.
I don’t remember what type of mic it was, other than the fact that the sound guy picked an ‘instrument’ mic as opposed to a ‘vocal’ mic at first…then switched back to a vocal. I THINK it may have been a Sure SM57 or 58.
I tried playing off the mic a bit early on, but it didn’t cary. As we got into it, I leaned into the mic a bit more, and it seemed to pick it up just fine.
I don’t know if this helps you at all, but I know I learned from that evening.
I also just saw ‘The Young Dubliners’ here in Salt Lake on Sunday, and their whistle player got right in close to his mic too. maybe half an inch to an inch away. That’s about where I was last Friday too.
Ah, the old “I can’t hear myself play!” problem. I’m there!
I play with my church’s worship band and we use a gooseneck mic, with the head aimed at the fipple (as described in other posts). But we still haven’t solved the problem that the whistle is often drowned out.
I recently saw a video (“Gael Force”) which featured, among other artists and groups, the Afro Celt Sound System (cool!). The whistler used a wireless head mic (like your current pop stars use in concerts), with the mic resting right at the fipple. Advantage: he could never stray from the mic!
3)A short wide bore(preferably cylindrical and sometimes a slight expanding bore)
4)A tempered(hardened)metalic body that reflects sonic vibrations
5)A narrow windway to increase wind-sheet velocity directed against the labium ramp.
6)A thin body thickness with undercut playing holes to reduce energy consuming turbulence.
7)Cutaway “ears” or sides on the voicing window,like the expanding sides of a megaphone.
There are many more examples,but these examples are the most common.
A homemade “amplifier” can be made with aluminum cut from a soda can. I would be shaped like the bucket of a wheel barrow with the bottom cut out for the voicing window and the labium ramp. Dolmetsch stated that this improved loudness just like a megaphone and the focused energy would be easier for a microphone to pick up.Just a thought.
I have been playing whistles and amplifying them for a lot of years. I won’t say that my way is the best, but here is what I do. I have a dynamic Audio Technika that has an on/off switch (important)which travels into two effects boxes, both made by Roland. The first is a Boss BASS EQ. I use this to knock up the low frequencies of the low whistles and the very low notes on even the high ones. Anything above 1,000 hz is passed and unaffected. Also, this box has a preamp to deal with underpowered mixers. Then, this box is hooked to a Boss Digital Delay/Reverb. This is excellent because if I need to speak or sing into the mic, then I can cancel the reverb by simply stepping on the pedal. (Since human voice is mostly above 1,000 hz, I do not bother with cancelling the Bass EQ.) Then, the signal goes to the mixer or amp head with all EQ and reverb obviously run flat. I cannot say who I learned this from, but I can tell you that this person is often mentioned as one of the great whistle players on this message board.
Thanks for the amplification tips, Bob. I have them filed for future reference. But:
I cannot say who I learned this from, but I can tell you that this person is often mentioned as one of the great whistle players on this message board.
You do love a mystery, don’t you? Now, does his name begin with K by any chance? Or was he recently transferred to a prison on the Isle of Wight?
Mike