New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

The Ultimate On-Line Whistle Community. If you find one more ultimater, let us know.
Post Reply
User avatar
TxWhistler
Posts: 226
Joined: Tue May 26, 2020 9:15 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I have recently retired and have always wanted to learn to play a musical instrument. I'm leaning to play the whistle and now the flute.
Location: Tyler, Texas

New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by TxWhistler »

I recently found and bought a Feadog Mk1 and Mk2.5 on eBay.
I’m very, very impressed with the Mk1. Wow. It is so nice to play. Lovely tone, easy to get into the 3rd octave. No squeaking, squelching, or shrillness at all. I had been thinking of searching for a high priced high D whistle before getting this one. It’s so nice I’m not even looking anymore for a custom made high d. I would have gladly paid $100 or more for a custom made whistle that sounds like this Mk1 that I got for $7.50 plus $4 shipping.

Now the other Feadog, the Mk 2.5, it’s not so great. It seems to be just your average large production whistle. I’ve already had to try to help out the upper octave (a, b, C#) with the poster putty tweak. It helped but it just isn’t as nice sounding nor as easy to play as the Mk1.

Why did Feadog change their Mk1 design. From my small sample of 1 and the stories I have read on this forum about how good the Mk1 is (was) I don’t understand why they changed it. Or why they haven’t admitted that their changes didn’t improve things and go back to the Mk1 design.


Image Image Image
User avatar
Mr.Gumby
Posts: 6606
Joined: Mon Jun 07, 2010 11:31 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Location: the Back of Beyond

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by Mr.Gumby »

They have been trying to gain volume. The first model, while playing nicely, feels somewhat restricted in tone, which is something you masy or may not like. The voicing of subsequent models gradually opens up the tone and along the way compromises will have to be made and some of the balance between the octaves will suffer.

It's a development you can see in Generations and other whistles as well. A demand for louder whistles to 'hold their own' or 'cut through' (as some people put it on these forums) increasingly larger sessions. The old players took up the flute when they wanted volume, modern players seem to want to stretch the whislte beyond its naturtal habitat and if you do that, there are sacrifices to be made. Think of it as an arms race of increasing volume.
My brain hurts

Image
Dan A.
Posts: 453
Joined: Thu Nov 30, 2017 8:19 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I can only hope that my proficiency with the whistle is steadily improving. A few of my whistles get a workout on an almost daily basis. And I'm almost certainly afflicted with WhOAD.
Location: Detroit Metro

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by Dan A. »

Mr.Gumby wrote:Modern players seem to want to stretch the whistle beyond its natural habitat...
I could be considered a "modern" player, but I buck that trend. Since I don't play at sessions (yet), a quieter whistle is actually desirable to me. Perhaps a Feadóg MK I would be right up my alley?
User avatar
Mr.Gumby
Posts: 6606
Joined: Mon Jun 07, 2010 11:31 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Location: the Back of Beyond

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by Mr.Gumby »

Dan A. wrote: a quieter whistle is actually desirable to me. Perhaps a Feadóg MK I would be right up my alley?
They can be on the dull and lifeless side, tonally, some of them.

But they are easy to pick up : here's two currently on ebay, a regular brass and a rare nickel one, and a Connemara marble fish thrown in for good measure. All for £12.50 but mind the cost of postage.
My brain hurts

Image
User avatar
TxWhistler
Posts: 226
Joined: Tue May 26, 2020 9:15 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I have recently retired and have always wanted to learn to play a musical instrument. I'm leaning to play the whistle and now the flute.
Location: Tyler, Texas

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by TxWhistler »

Mr.Gumby wrote:They have been trying to gain volume. ........ Think of it as an arms race of increasing volume.
Thanks Mr. Gumby. That makes sense. My Mk1 is quieter than my Feadog Pro.

Since I'm not playing in sessions it meets my needs quite nicely.
PB+J
Posts: 1306
Joined: Sun Mar 25, 2018 5:40 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I'm a historian and the author of "The Beat Cop:Chicago's Chief O'Neill and the Creation of Irish Music," published by the University of Chicago in 2022. I live in Arlington VA and play the flute sincerely but not well

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by PB+J »

Mr.Gumby wrote:They have been trying to gain volume. The first model, while playing nicely, feels somewhat restricted in tone, which is something you masy or may not like. The voicing of subsequent models gradually opens up the tone and along the way compromises will have to be made and some of the balance between the octaves will suffer.

It's a development you can see in Generations and other whistles as well. A demand for louder whistles to 'hold their own' or 'cut through' (as some people put it on these forums) increasingly larger sessions. The old players took up the flute when they wanted volume, modern players seem to want to stretch the whislte beyond its naturtal habitat and if you do that, there are sacrifices to be made. Think of it as an arms race of increasing volume.

This. Musicians often use the phrase "cut through the mix" as if the rest of the band was weedy undergrowth they had to hack out.

I have a Mark 1 and really like it, but it's noticeably quieter than other whistles. Quieter, and sweeter sounding. i have an old Generation from the 70s and it's also quieter and "Sweeter" than the modern ones.


In my experience one of the big differences between good musicians and not so good musicians is good musicians can get the effect they want at almost any volume, but your average Joe can only play with the pedal floored. At least that's true for me--on the flute, i have a hard time playing quietly and tend to be at full roar all the time. I'm working on it.

Also back when there were sessions and I went to them I would sometimes not be able to hear myself, but dealing with that problem by getting louder is a mugs game because everyone else just gets louder, as Mr.Gumby said an arms race. I've found that as I get better at an instrument I hear myself better, probably because there's a closer relationship between what I want to play and what I actually play
User avatar
pancelticpiper
Posts: 5298
Joined: Mon Jul 10, 2006 7:25 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: Playing Scottish and Irish music in California for 45 years.
These days many discussions are migrating to Facebook but I prefer the online chat forum format.
Location: WV to the OC

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by pancelticpiper »

I love the sound of my old Feadog MK1. It's freeblowing and sweet and pure, yet the tone has a certain complexity to it.

That was the major difference when I compared that Feadog to the Sindt D I had, the Sindt was a bit louder and the tone was a hair more bland than the Feadog's.

I did play a Jerry Freeman modified Feadog that was fantastic, it was very, very close to my vintage one. I should have bought that! Because I don't think he made many of those.

Here's my earliest and best-playing Feadog on the left, in the middle is a later one when they used a brighter green plastic, on the right is a yet later one.

Image

Image
Richard Cook
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
User avatar
Mr.Gumby
Posts: 6606
Joined: Mon Jun 07, 2010 11:31 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Location: the Back of Beyond

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by Mr.Gumby »

Here are (some of) mine, two Is, although it appears the heads are shaped slightly differently, two IIs, brass and nickel, and a 2.5, which is the least succesful of that gathering. Forgot to include the nickel/blue III, somehow.

Image
My brain hurts

Image
User avatar
TxWhistler
Posts: 226
Joined: Tue May 26, 2020 9:15 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I have recently retired and have always wanted to learn to play a musical instrument. I'm leaning to play the whistle and now the flute.
Location: Tyler, Texas

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by TxWhistler »

Mr Gumby,

What did you think of your MkII's?

Are the III's what they are producing now days?

Thanks!
Dan A.
Posts: 453
Joined: Thu Nov 30, 2017 8:19 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I can only hope that my proficiency with the whistle is steadily improving. A few of my whistles get a workout on an almost daily basis. And I'm almost certainly afflicted with WhOAD.
Location: Detroit Metro

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by Dan A. »

Mr.Gumby wrote:All for £12.50 but mind the cost of postage.
My cost would be ~$44.25 US...and that's exclusive of any cut the state of Michigan might want. Never mind how long they might be caught up in red tape! I'll keep them in mind, though; I'd like to obtain a nickel whistle, and the marble fish is kind of neat.
TxWhistler wrote:Are the III's what they are producing now days?
I'm not sure, but I have a Feadóg I bought in 2017. I've been very happy with it.
Alaskamike
Posts: 94
Joined: Fri Nov 15, 2019 3:31 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I just bought a Clarke Sweetone and I’m interested in learning how to play it. My goal is to be able to play the whistle without my family complaining too much.

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by Alaskamike »

Mr.Gumby wrote:Here are (some of) mine, two Is, although it appears the heads are shaped slightly differently, two IIs, brass and nickel, and a 2.5, which is the least succesful of that gathering. Forgot to include the nickel/blue III, somehow.
Mr. Gumby -
Was your 2.5 a dud, or was the design just not as good as the others?

Mike
User avatar
TxWhistler
Posts: 226
Joined: Tue May 26, 2020 9:15 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I have recently retired and have always wanted to learn to play a musical instrument. I'm leaning to play the whistle and now the flute.
Location: Tyler, Texas

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by TxWhistler »

Dan A. wrote:
Mr.Gumby wrote:All for £12.50 but mind the cost of postage.
My cost would be ~$44.25 US...and that's exclusive of any cut the state of Michigan might want. Never mind how long they might be caught up in red tape! I'll keep them in mind, though; I'd like to obtain a nickel whistle, and the marble fish is kind of neat.
Dan,

Did you get those 2 MkI's that Mr. Gumby provided a link (both a brass and a nickel)? I waited a day for anyone on here to buy them and went back to the site to get them if they were still available but they were already sold.

Curious as to how they turned out if someone on this forum bought them.
User avatar
Mr.Gumby
Posts: 6606
Joined: Mon Jun 07, 2010 11:31 am
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Location: the Back of Beyond

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by Mr.Gumby »

Was your 2.5 a dud, or was the design just not as good as the others?
I don't think was a very succesful design. It doesn't seem to have been around very long, it's much rarer than the other incarnations.
My brain hurts

Image
Alaskamike
Posts: 94
Joined: Fri Nov 15, 2019 3:31 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I just bought a Clarke Sweetone and I’m interested in learning how to play it. My goal is to be able to play the whistle without my family complaining too much.

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by Alaskamike »

Thanks, I saw one on eBay but I'll pass.
Dan A.
Posts: 453
Joined: Thu Nov 30, 2017 8:19 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I can only hope that my proficiency with the whistle is steadily improving. A few of my whistles get a workout on an almost daily basis. And I'm almost certainly afflicted with WhOAD.
Location: Detroit Metro

Re: New to me Feadog Mk1 and Mk 2.5

Post by Dan A. »

TxWhistler wrote:Dan, did you get those 2 MkI's that Mr. Gumby provided a link (both a brass and a nickel)?
Sadly, no.
Post Reply