Best maintained inexpensive whistle standards?

[fatmac]

When I caught the whistle bug, I wasn't sure which key to buy, so I bought all of them, from Bb to high G (Generations), this gave me a better idea of where to put my money when I upgraded, (for me, it turns out the key of A is just that bit better than Bb).

OK, so I spent a couple of quid on all those cheap whistles, (an evening out?), but better that than make an expensive mistake, by buying a good quality one that didn't suit me.

(And I can still have some fun playing those high ones now & again.)

[MichaelRS]

I sometimes have gotten pushback on this but I still think it's worth considering.

A lot of people here are like me: learning the whistle mostly in isolation. There is no community of whistle players that I easily draw on. Sessions I've observed don't welcome beginners. So if I buy a ten dollar whistle, It's hard for me to tell if it's a "bad " whistle, or if it's my fault. That's just frustrating. It makes it less fun to play.

In my experience, same as about everybody else, the inexpensive plastic headed whistles can vary a great deal. I noticed this right away, when I was starting out: two whistles of the same brand would play differently. I thought about it: I could keep buying ten dollar whistles until I found one I liked, which is certainly a viable solution, or I could instead buy one whistle for the price of 5-10 inexpensive whistles that someone who knew how to play had paid attention to. For me this was totally worth it. I liked the Killarney whistle right away: they just made practice more fun and less frustrating. They say, on their website, that "These instruments are distinguished from the inexpensive whistles in that each whistle is individually manufactured and “voiced” by a skilled person rather than made in a factory." We all know to be skeptical of hype, but I have found this to be true. The Killarney whistles (i have two) are very consistent in sound and both show signs of having been mucked about by someone who knew how to, for example, slightly adjust the finger holes for better intonation.

I've found the same to be true with "tweaked" whistles. I have a freeman and a Cillian O'Briain. Both were better from the git, as they say, than the less expensive whistles I picked up here and there.

You might end up finding an inexpensive whistles that sounds great-. And the hunt is fun. At this point, I can sound ok on any whistles. I'd just offer the suggestion that you minimize frustration and maximize the value of practice time if you get a whistle that's had a bit more care and attention applied to it.

Oh I agree completely. That's why I have a Freeman mellow dog and a Chris Wall whistle coming and I'm saving for a Killarney.

But I was just curious since I hear all the time about how some current whistle manufacturers has the degraded over the years.

And that's the current big rumor/bash about the generation High D. (/ou know, you supposedly have to play 20 of them to find one, maybe, that sounds okay) then again there's another guy on here who still swears by them and says he's never come across the big number of crappy ones that others would have you believe.

So this is just more of a exercise in...I don't know if you would call it fun, but I'll use the word, to see what kind of consensus, if any, is out there.

[Thomaston]

I see it's open season on Generation whistles again.

On different forums and boards so many of the comments are just second hand anecdotes, received wisdom and repeated gossip, none of which match up with my own experience with Generation whistles.

Yes, someone somewhere has had a "bad Generation" I'm sure (just as with any other manufactured goods), but you know what they say about swallows and summers.

Is every single cheap plastic headed whistle that comes off every manufacturers production line going to be utterly flawless. No, obviously not. But, I do not see any great over-riding problem with the quality of Genration whistles. I've owned and played many of them over the years and each and every one of them has been perfectly fine, and none of them were specially chosen. I've never noticed any of the dozens and dozens,hundreds probably, that I've seen in shops and on festival stalls to have these egregious faults that are so often deplored in such confident tones.

So, yes, I'd recommend a Generation whistle to any beginner. They are a perfectly good and sensible choice and do not routinely require any "fixing." Learn to play the thing before buying so unquestioningly into what I consider as overblown myth-making about this particular brand of whistle.

That’s great that you’ve had good luck with them. But while I’m working with a small sample size, my experience is not second-hand or anecdotal. The 4 or 5 Gens I’ve bought over the years were all crap that needed work. In one instance I even needed to completely replace the blade with a bit of guitar pick plastic (that actually turned into a brilliant whistle). Maybe they just send the crappy ones to America?
Regardless, if I were a teacher I wouldn’t be able to recommend them with a clear conscience.

[Mr.Gumby]

(/ou know, you supposedly have to play 20 of them to find one, maybe, that sounds okay)

Once again, the rule is you will have to root around for an exceptional one. To find a serviceable one, try a few and take the one you like best. It's a misconception you will have to go through a box to find a playable one at all.

A relative beginner is fairly safe just trying the few, when given the opportunity, to see what suits.

[MichaelRS]

I see it's open season on Generation whistles again.

On different forums and boards so many of the comments are just second hand anecdotes, received wisdom and repeated gossip, none of which match up with my own experience with Generation whistles.

Yes, someone somewhere has had a "bad Generation" I'm sure (just as with any other manufactured goods), but you know what they say about swallows and summers.

Is every single cheap plastic headed whistle that comes off every manufacturers production line going to be utterly flawless. No, obviously not. But, I do not see any great over-riding problem with the quality of Genration whistles. I've owned and played many of them over the years and each and every one of them has been perfectly fine, and none of them were specially chosen. I've never noticed any of the dozens and dozens,hundreds probably, that I've seen in shops and on festival stalls to have these egregious faults that are so often deplored in such confident tones.

So, yes, I'd recommend a Generation whistle to any beginner. They are a perfectly good and sensible choice and do not routinely require any "fixing." Learn to play the thing before buying so unquestioningly into what I consider as overblown myth-making about this particular brand of whistle.

That’s great that you’ve had good luck with them. But while I’m working with a small sample size, my experience is not second-hand or anecdotal. The 4 or 5 Gens I’ve bought over the years were all crap that needed work. In one instance I even needed to completely replace the blade with a bit of guitar pick plastic (that actually turned into a brilliant whistle). Maybe they just send the crappy ones to America?
Regardless, if I were a teacher I wouldn’t be able to recommend them with a clear conscious.

"Maybe they just send the crappy ones to America"

Revenge for that whole Revolution thing?

[ecadre]

Well, here's the difference between us, I've never "hunted" for a whistle in my life.

Of the whistles I've bought, I've simply gone into a shop or to a festival stall, bought the whistle that I wanted to play and then played it.

[ecadre]

(/ou know, you supposedly have to play 20 of them to find one, maybe, that sounds okay)

Once again, the rule is you will have to root around for an exceptional one. To find a serviceable one, try a few and take the one you like best. It's a misconception you will have to go through a box to find a playable one at all.

A relative beginner is fairly safe just trying the few, when given the opportunity, to see what suits.

I'd go along with that. It's a nice thought that there are some exceptional instruments hiding in the mass of everyday serviceable instruments.

Then again, I'm not entirely sure what an exceptional Generation might look or sound like. Is it one that accidentally has a particularly pure tone, a different octave break, more/less chiff? I'm not picking an argument here (really!), because what is meant is not clear at all ... almost by definition.

The other side of the coin is that the everyday serviceable instrument is actually what I've grown to like and it is more than adequate for playing the music I obsess far more about than the search for an "exceptional instrument."

[PB+J]

(/ou know, you supposedly have to play 20 of them to find one, maybe, that sounds okay)

Once again, the rule is you will have to root around for an exceptional one. To find a serviceable one, try a few and take the one you like best. It's a misconception you will have to go through a box to find a playable one at all.

A relative beginner is fairly safe just trying the few, when given the opportunity, to see what suits.

I'd go along with that. It's a nice thought that there are some exceptional instruments hiding in the mass of everyday serviceable instruments.

Then again, I'm not entirely sure what an exceptional Generation might look or sound like. Is it one that accidentally has a particularly pure tone, a different octave break, more/less chiff? I'm not picking an argument here (really!), because what is meant is not clear at all ... almost by definition.

The other side of the coin is that the everyday serviceable instrument is actually what I've grown to like and it is more than adequate for playing the music I obsess far more about than the search for an "exceptional instrument."

So after reading the thread on Eb whistles I decided to pick up a generation ins Eb. Arrived last night.

The head is so loose on the tube that it will fall off if I tilt it towards the ground. It was only held on with glue, but the glue bond broke, leaving a ridge of glue residue I'll have to remove. I'll need to put some sort of tape on the tube to make it usable.

That's poor quality control

[fatmac]

My Eb nickel came like that, but my Eb brass didn't, nor any of my numerous other Gens - so may just be 'one offs'.

[swizzlestick]

Teflon plumbing tape -- the kind used for sealing threads -- will do a good job of tightening the head without leaving a residue. Don't get the head too tight, it can crack and require additional repair. (Personal experience.)

[PB+J]

Teflon plumbing tape -- the kind used for sealing threads -- will do a good job of tightening the head without leaving a residue. Don't get the head too tight, it can crack and require additional repair. (Personal experience.)

Yeah tried that--it won't stay put. Cleaned the tube with acetone and then appleid the tape after it dried--the head pushes the tape out of position

[MichaelRS]

Teflon plumbing tape -- the kind used for sealing threads -- will do a good job of tightening the head without leaving a residue. Don't get the head too tight, it can crack and require additional repair. (Personal experience.)

Yeah tried that--it won't stay put. Cleaned the tube with acetone and then appleid the tape after it dried--the head pushes the tape out of position

Send it back for an exchange, or not worth the postage?

[Mr.Gumby]

the head pushes the tape out of position

There can't be a lot of space then. Rub a bit of candle wax on the tube, that should probably do it. Or a mix of beeswax and vaseline.