Inxepensive low E, F# whistles (any dimensions and samples?)

[Lulu]

Hello

I looking for inexpensive low whistles in E and F# preferably non-wide bore. As far as I now there are ony Susato and Dixon (only E) .
Do you know any other brand/maker who make no high-end ones?

I also wonder about measurements (diameter) of Susato's low E and F# I suppose it will be the same as in Susato's low D because of the "L bore size", so have you any information about the low D's diameter?

Of course I want to hear any inexpensive whistle in one of those keys. I only heard Goldie's and Alba's low E and I know - that key is amazing... Not so trad and "with boomy botom" like D and not flutelike like F. Where can I find any sound sample?

Regards from Poland
The one who love rare and odd keys
Adam

P.S. I just remebered myself that I looked for the best (corresponding to idea in my mind) key for my own tune... I droped all strings in my guitar of quatertone and I found perfect key for my slide is (i don't know how to call this note) quatertone between E and F. Now I'm wonder which maker could make me whistle in this (realy odd) key
Adam

[Mikethebook]

Have you checked out Guido Gonzato's whistles at http://www.ggwhistles.com/models.html. He does an E but may be open to making you whatever you want.

[Cayden]

Adam,
PM sent.

Cayden

[Peter Duggan]

Not exactly 'inexpensive' but, for stunning whistles in this pitch range at 'mid-range' prices, I'd suggest you look at Hans Bracker (also an active member here), who offers two bore sizes for each (18mm or 20mm for the F# and 20mm or 22.3mm for the E) and could make you a combo 20mm bore set for £170 (£130 + £40 for the extra body). On which note, I got Hans to make me an E with the 20mm bore after being unconvinced by wider-bore models from others I'd tried in the past, am currently testing a very nice high D for him and also have orders in for an 18mm bore G, F body (probably for the E head) and maybe a low D/Eb combo as well.

[Feadoggie]

I looking for inexpensive low whistles in E and F# preferably non-wide bore. .....

I just remebered myself that I looked for the best (corresponding to idea in my mind) key for my own tune... I droped all strings in my guitar of quatertone and I found perfect key for my slide is (i don't know how to call this note) quatertone between E and F. Now I'm wonder which maker could make me whistle in this (realy odd) key
Adam

You want inexpensive but you also want a maker to make you a custom pitch/scale whistle. I don't think that will work out. You can have inexpensive and you can have custom. It's highly unlikely you can find custom and inexpensive together. So either give up on the custom scale idea or be prepared to pay for a custom instrument. Or....

Do as Mikethebook almost suggested, make your own. It's not rocket science, just acoustic physics. Calculate the frequencies of the perfect custom scale you want using a tone hole calculator like Daniel Bingamon's TWCalc. Use Dr Gonzato's construction methods and modify his design for a low E whistle to fit your custom scale. It might take a couple iterations to get just what you want but it's the quickest, cheapest way to get what you are looking for. And you'll have learned an invaluable skill - or maybe not.

I have in the past found myself making whistles in an unusual pitch or scale for the very same reasons - usually to match a recording where most everything but the whistle is already completed. I am sure it will happen again. So learn to make the whistle and you'll be ready for anything down the road.

Feadoggie

[Tommy]

Hello

I looking for inexpensive low whistles in E
Of course I want to hear any inexpensive whistle in one of those keys. I only heard Goldie's and Alba's low E and I know - that key is amazing... Not so trad and "with boomy botom" like D and not flutelike like F. Where can I find any sound sample?

Adam

P.S. I just remebered myself that I looked for the best (corresponding to idea in my mind) key for my own tune... I droped all strings in my guitar of quatertone and I found perfect key for my slide is (i don't know how to call this note) quatertone between E and F. Now I'm wonder which maker could make me whistle in this (realy odd) key
Adam

Hi Adam, here is a link http://praisewhistlers.org/forum/viewto ... =25&t=5971 to a sound clip of one low E made by Tommy Dion on October 7, 2010.

I am not sure i understand (your PS) the quarter tone down between E and F? If the tuning slide is long enough on a low E whistle to go down a quarter tone would that work?

[Lulu]

Thanks guys for the answers

Peter Duggan - I know Hans Bracker's whistles and... I love the tone but his whistles isn't good balanced and their price, to high for me. I play low whistles from 2,5 year but I describe myself as beginne,r so I know that purchase high-end whistles now I quite reckless because I don't know what I expect from whistle... But thank for your suggestion.
Have you any your own recordings of the low E one?

Feadoggie - Yes, you are right. I cannot expect too much from inexpensive instrument and theirs makers
If I will have some tools and place for making some bodies to existing heads I would try... Maybe sometime.

Tommy - I hear Tommy Dion's low E sample and in my opinion this ins't good whistle because of ther shrilling upper notes, and poor tone. I realy don't want this whistle from him. Or maybe its only poor microphone in the camera, I don't know.

There are E and F notes and interval between those notes is halftone. The smallest interval known in the western, classical, modern etc. music. But quatertones exist between every two notes who are halftone apart from each other.
So, every key has own characteristic and tone, timbre and I looking for this tone, tone of the whistle between low E and F. Tuning slide ins't solution. Necessity is to make body where every single note is in tune to each other but quatertone higher respect to E or quatertone lower respect to F. I know, quite weird, but I'm the man who looking for rare keys since I realize that unexpected key can make composition extraordinary.

And I'm still waiting for the one who know diameter Susato low D

[Peter Duggan]

Peter Duggan - I know Hans Bracker's whistles and... I love the tone but his whistles isn't good balanced

No idea what you mean by that when IMHO (and I don't recommend these things lightly!) they're as well balanced as any.

Have you any your own recordings of the low E one?

Not yet because I'm going back to Hans for a second body (because we're still evaluating low whistle hole offsets for my awkward left hand). But I can tell you now that it's a superb instrument!

Tommy - I hear Tommy Dion's low E sample and in my opinion this ins't good whistle because of ther shrilling upper notes, and poor tone. I realy don't want this whistle from him.

You know you're addressing the maker there, don't you?

[MTGuru]

So, every key has own characteristic and tone, timbre ... unexpected key can make composition extraordinary.

Hmmm ... That's pretty vague, in the context of detuning Equal Tempered instruments such as guitar or Susato whistles.

In any case ... Susato whistles (and, I'm sure, others) can be pulled out by a quarter tone at the top open fingering. I just confirmed this on my Susato (mezzo) G. Naturally, things get progressively, relatively sharp as you go down. So you insert a little ball of putty, wax etc. in the bell end to choke the bottom notes down a bit. Then putty the tone holes as needed to bring the rest of the intonation in line, and/or adjust your breath accordingly. That's probably your best bet for a detuned whistle without a custom-made or home-made creation.

[Tommy]

Hello
I looking for
Adam
P.S. I just remebered myself that I looked for the best (corresponding to idea in my mind) key for my own tune... I droped all strings in my guitar of quatertone and I found perfect key for my slide is (i don't know how to call this note) quatertone between E and F. Now I'm wonder which maker could make me whistle in this (realy odd) key
Adam

Hmmmm..... perhaps if whistle makers could hear your guitar sound clip of the key you have dropped to with your guitar for your own tune they could match the key your trying to play in between E and F or B and C Assuming your strings are not over stretched.

[Angel Shadowsong]

In any case ... Susato whistles (and, I'm sure, others) can be pulled out by a quarter tone at the top open fingering. I just confirmed this on my Susato (mezzo) G. Naturally, things get progressively, relatively sharp as you go down. So you insert a little ball of putty, wax etc. in the bell end to choke the bottom notes down a bit. Then putty the tone holes as needed to bring the rest of the intonation in line, and/or adjust your breath accordingly. That's probably your best bet for a detuned whistle without a custom-made or home-made creation.

Cool I want to try this MT Tweak.

In all the fairness, their S-Series are easy to control. But I have a complain on their Midbore and large bore.

The mezzo midbore A I have, has a flipping High F-Sharp. When you go to the high F-Sharp it shifts to low F-sharp unless you tongue it. I tweaked it by dulling the blade at an angle with an emery board.
The other holes T3 & T2 and the flattened 7th are flatter by 15-20cents on my expected breath control.I can sharpen it by blowing extra hard and making a bull-frog cheeks, but it is not practical.

Lucky enough it was flat and not sharp thus enlarging the hole set the key intonation right.

The Large series have a different issue with me. I have first a Kildare D with 2 keys (T3 and B3) and upon experimentation and tuner, the key flattens the tone by 10-15 cents on my expected breath control.

Also the B3 hole when open (E note) is 20-30cents sharp on expected breath control. What I have done is I partially covered the B3 hole to my Susato Low D with a putty tack but since it has a key it sticks to the key. Adding a black tape is an option.

I purchased a second hand Dublin low D which is tunable and it is much in tune compare to the Kildare.
The difference is the B2 hole is much larger and the B3 hole is smaller.

The other complain is the Bottom 2 whole which is hard to cover. But nevertheless you can also use a CPVC and make your own body for a Dublin L-head.


What I did is I brought my Susato on the Hardware/plumbing section and find which bore size fits.

I found one and it fits right through without adding a tape.

I drilled hole using Guido Gonzato's measurement. Extra careful on the hole size, following the actual millimeter made it sharp so use a small hole first making the tone flat then enlarge slowly to make it sharper.

I made an E and F on CPVC body and a Dublin L-head.

Regards,

[MTGuru]

Interesting details, Angel.

I droped all strings in my guitar of quatertone and I found perfect key for my slide is ... quatertone between E and F.

Hmmmm..... perhaps if whistle makers could hear your guitar sound clip of the key you have dropped to with your guitar for your own tune they could match the key your trying to play in between E and F or B and C Assuming your strings are not over stretched.

Yes, and you know ... I missed the part about the slide before. Does this mean a bottleneck slide? If so, then it sounds now like the OP may be talking about lowering the string tension more for the feel, rather than achieving some mystical quarter tone resonance. In which case, a lighter gauge string set or lower saddle might achieve the same result without detuning, with less expense, and without a special whistle.

But maybe that doesn't make sense either. If you're detuning all the strings, then where does E or F come into it? Unless you're using an open E tuning, which is a high tuning compared to standard tuning. And then a quarter tone between E and F involves tuning up, not down. So there's still too much that's just not clear (well, to me anyway).

[Lulu]

It was misunderstanding here MTGuru...

Slide - I mean kind of tune, like Road to Lisdoonvarna for example. I wrote my own tune which is slide and I looked for the perfect key for it. Played it on my low F - was nearly perfect, but I taught that I have to try other keys. On the guitar I played in F and again sounds nice but that wasn't that what I had in my mind. So I played lower in D, Eb and E and any of those keys not fit well. So i tune my strings quatertone lover. I played in I found that my composition sounds perfect for me in the key of quater tone below F (or quatertone above E). I hope I clarify

[MTGuru]

Slide - I mean kind of tune, like Road to Lisdoonvarna for example ...I hope I clarify

Ah, thank you, Adam. Now I understand that!