pulling out old cheap whistles

michael_coleman · Post by **michael_coleman** » Sat Jul 24, 2004 1:24 pm

Do you guys ever get so caught up with your expensive high end whistles and then pick up an old generation or even a sweetone and think "They sell that whistle for under $10??!! Thats crazy talk!"

I have fallen in love with my old Bb and D generations again and although each note isn't exactly dead on as far as tuning I think the tone is really unbeatable and has that traditional feel I have a hard time finding in other whistles.

My $.02...

PhilO · Post by **PhilO** » Sat Jul 24, 2004 1:45 pm

I did exactly that some time ago (and may even have posted about it) and fell in love again with my Clarkes, Gen Bflats, Walton Mellow and Golden Tones, and one Feadog (and one other that was horrible).

Philo

brewerpaul · Post by **brewerpaul** » Sat Jul 24, 2004 2:31 pm

Yeah-- I don't think there's another instrument on the planet that can make so much terrific music for practically no cost at all.
As a maker, I'd love to tell everyone they simply MUST have an expensive whistle in order to sound good, but that is just not the case

Just don't tell too many people, OK?

jonharl · Post by **jonharl** » Sat Jul 24, 2004 2:49 pm

It seems to me the great whistle players play the cheapies and the novices play the expensive whistles. But that's just appearance. What is evident is the cost of the whistle doesn't dictate skill and novices get caught up in buying whistles. I'm guility at least.

Redwolf · Post by **Redwolf** » Sat Jul 24, 2004 9:58 pm

jonharl wrote:It seems to me the great whistle players play the cheapies and the novices play the expensive whistles. But that's just appearance. What is evident is the cost of the whistle doesn't dictate skill and novices get caught up in buying whistles. I'm guility at least.

Oh, I dunno. Will Millar plays a Copeland, and I believe Joanie Madden plays a Burke.

Redwolf

jonharl · Post by **jonharl** » Sat Jul 24, 2004 10:49 pm

jonharl wrote: But that's just appearance.

Redwolf I know alot of pros play expensive whistles. It does appear that a good many pros play cheapies. But that's not the point is it. It's what a pro can do with a cheapie as well as an expensive whistle. They focus on playing and not necessarily the whistle. Although in the end they choose a whistle that suits them.

Redwolf · Post by **Redwolf** » Sat Jul 24, 2004 11:10 pm

jonharl wrote:
jonharl wrote: But that's just appearance.
Redwolf I know alot of pros play expensive whistles. It does appear that a good many pros play cheapies. But that's not the point is it. It's what a pro can do with a cheapie as well as an expensive whistle. They focus on playing and not necessarily the whistle. Although in the end they choose a whistle that suits them.

Ah, I see what you're saying. True.

Redwolf

toughknot · Post by **toughknot** » Sun Jul 25, 2004 2:18 am

I pull them out every day as that is all I own aside from my Shaw Low D which I REALLY like.I also have a Walton d which sounded nice until I went too far in tweaking, although it isnt far from original condition so is still playable .I also recently killed a Clarke d.I have a Generation high f which is a surprisingly very good whistle( wanted a d or eb but the local music store had one whistle, the f )After all the talk about the Alba"s I've read on the boards I'm saving for a Q1.

amar · Post by **amar** » Sun Jul 25, 2004 2:23 am

get a Q1, good move, such a sweet sound.
you play a Shaw LowD

must got quite a lung capacity!

toughknot · Post by **toughknot** » Sun Jul 25, 2004 2:47 am

Actually I'm a smoker. I've learned to use my diaphragm as an airbag kind of like on a bag pipe.That and I tweaked it to reduce the air requirement a little (squashed the wind way and adjusted the blade).I've also noticed that after about 10 mins. of playing its warmed up and can be played fairly quietly without the great air requirement.Maybe the Shaw is being over blown by many due to its rep and is meant to be played more quietly.It does require some air pressure to keep the upper octave clear but not as much after its warmed up.These are of course the observations af a rookie and I have not played any other makes of low d except one I made.I also cannot play very fast.I guess if I ever do get fast the air requirements may make it necessary to try another whistle.

starman · Post by **starman** » Mon Jul 26, 2004 1:31 pm

So what are they playing?

Mike

KDMARTINKY · Post by **KDMARTINKY** » Mon Jul 26, 2004 3:02 pm

One of my most reliable, inexpensive whistles I continue to play to this day is my Waltons LBW. It hits every note/octive without delay. I tweaked it when I first got it and its been through everything, even me forgetting it was in my back pocket one day when I heard the light weight tin "crunch". I took a piece of dierod and straightened it out and it never sounded better.

Best part about it that it cost me $3.00.

RonKiley · Post by **RonKiley** » Mon Jul 26, 2004 3:04 pm

I have experienced the discovery of great whistles in my pile of cheapies many times as I got good enough to play them. However, the Q1 has the sound I really like. Not everyone feels the same way. Plus Stacey is a great person to do business with. The same is true of Mack Hoover. He made a beautiful Whitecap/Oak for me. I have a Walton's Mellow D that as I said on another thread is nearly perfect. It is completely untweaked but I did not just take any of them out of the bin. I looked over them very carefully for one that I thought would play well. I also have a couple of Gen Cs that are beautiful as well as a Feadog and others.

I would love to have a Bussman but not because I think it plays 20 times better but because it is a work of art. The Birdseye maple was beautiful.

Ron