Chiff and Fipple Forums

I bought a brand new Chieftain high D whistle from AMZN in 2017. Have been playing it on/off but I noticed that when I hit the note where only the top 3 holes are covered, the key is slightly off. I can tune my guitar by ear so I'm quite normal in differentiating sound frequencies.

What should I do to correct this? This was already there when I first got the whistle but I guess I beginning to get annoyed with it.

Think I'd contact Phil Hardy at Kerry Whistles and see what he thinks, he may suggest sending it back to him for adjustment.

Blower wrote:Think I'd contact Phil Hardy at Kerry Whistles and see what he thinks, he may suggest sending it back to him for adjustment.

Yup, I agree. I sent him a mail and waiting for his reply. Isn't he based in the UK? The shipping from the States to the UK will probably costs 1/2 of the price of the whistle.
Oh well, let's see what he says.

In the meantime, I ordered a Burke Eb whistle.

Is the note flat or sharp? If it's flat, the hole below can be enlarged. If it's sharp, there is not much you can do but to exchange the whistle or cover the hole partially with tape but that does't seem like an ideal solution on a new instrument.

Sedi wrote:Is the note flat or sharp? If it's flat, the hole below can be enlarged. If it's sharp, there is not much you can do but to exchange the whistle or cover the hole partially with tape but that does't seem like an ideal solution on a new instrument.

Hmmm, this is interesting. I cannot reproduce the issue at will. I just tried it and it sounded true.
What could be causing an intermittent tuning issue: temperature?

If you don't already, try warming your whistle if it's cold before playing, just a few breaths through it, covering the fipple hole may help.

arthury wrote:Hmmm, this is interesting. I cannot reproduce the issue at will. I just tried it and it sounded true.
What could be causing an intermittent tuning issue: temperature?

Breath pressure is the most obvious contributor. Try playing that note softly, then harder until it almost breaks into the next register. I'd be surprised if you can't get a range of at least 50 cents for XXXOOO.

Now switch between XXXXOO and XXXOOO, blowing a little harder on the higher note. How does the tuning of those notes compare? Now switch between XXXOOO and XXOOOO, again blowing a little harder on the higher note. How does the tuning of those notes compare?

Ditto to needing to test out the whistle to determine if it's flat or sharp being experienced, and of course then trying to be sure the whistle is warmed up, clean and the air pressure being used is appropriate.
If you've already found you can't consistently produce the tuning problem, I doubt the problem is in the manufacture or design of the whistle, but it's up to you to test that enough to know for sure what's happening. Has something been inconsistent in how it's prepped/warmed up, or how it's played for air pressure/loudness? That's a topic that comes up when people adjust from one whistle to the next, as they can be very different in response. I've also seen a lot of YouTube videos show notes going far lower in the tuning as people relax the air pressure at the end of a musical phrase. Something to watch out for! Whatever, give your best description to Mr. Hardy, he'll have the definitive response to guide you.

I used a Q-tip to clean the window, lip and underneath and I was not able to reproduce the issue anymore.
Thanks for all the help.

It was a problem with many Generation whistles that the note you mention, the 4th of the scale

xxx ooo

would be sharper than the rest of the instrument.

In the old days I would see good players playing Generations with tape on that hole.

Back around 1980 I bought a great-playing Generation C that had that issue and I played it for years with tape on that hole.

One day I decided "no more tape" and I carved out all the other holes, and chopped the bottom, to bring the entire scale into tune with that one sharp note. I've had a perfectly tuned C whistle ever since.