I recently got a Burke DBSBT Session wide bore. It’s dated Jan 2008 and has the longer mouth piece and longer tuning slide. As usual, it was a pleasure to deal with Mike. Three days from ordering and it was at my door.
Close attention to detail is evident in his whistles; beautiful fit and finish and great precision; the brass has a near mirror polish.
It really is a wide bore. I don’t have calipers for proper measurement, but the bore is wider than my Reyburn and Overton. This one has plenty of volume. I also noticed that the tone holes are larger than my other high Ds.
Overall, the DBSBT has a strong, very musical tone. Often you hear how Burkes are pure in tone. Not so here, at least in the lower octave. You begin with a very solid and stable bell note that doesn’t easily flip up an octave. There is a subtle complexity; a smoky velvet tone that lends interest to the low notes.
The upper octave is smooth and effortless. There’s a bit of chiff to keep things interesting and a wonderful sweetness; especially if you hang on a note. The high B simply soars without the least bit of harshness. It reminds me of Tibetan bells.
I’ve played it for a week now and have begun to appreciate what a great whistle this is. Truly a pleasure to play. Note transitions can be lightning fast with little effort. It has a very nice feel. The tone holes are lightly chamfered and smooth.
As you would expect, the DBSBT is spot on in tune and has good intonation. Obviously, this is a professional level whistle at what I consider a mid level price. I paid $170 and figure it’s a steal.
While this is a session whistle with the volume to be heard in a crowd; the qulality of sound is not ear shattering. My wife doesn’t object to my noodling around and the dog doesn’t howl.
This would also be a great first whistle for those new to whistling as there are no hurdles to jump to produce a good tone and it’s very easy to finger accurately.
Just a few thoughts on my new Burke. Thanks for reading. Cheers, Cyril.