The biggest flute bang, for the lowest price...

[Akiba]

I am really digging my Billy Miller bamboo D as well, though I've made some minor adjustments to the embouchure hole and the end of the flute to make the low D less flat. It plays great from low D to second octave G. It's major drawback for me right now is the second octave A and B are quite flat (Tipple's flute with the wedge definitely wins there).

I found the Billy Miller flute, also, an excellent transition flute from silver Boehm flute to wood/simple system flute. I tried the Tipple flute but found it was very uncomfortable for me and hard to play due to the 1)small embouchure hole; and 2) the very wide diameter/width of the flute on top of the large hole sizes and spacing made the flute too big of jump for me coming from the silver flute. Billy's flute is thinner in width, hole sizes and spacing and bit smaller (though comparing it to the others mentioned lately it's still pretty large and wide), embouchure hole larger.

[Cork]

...Sweetheart is a good bang for the buck as well, but they are not very consistent, you'd have to pick on out of a pile.

I've experienced reasonably good consistency, and more, with Sweetheart flutes, and currently I have several of them, but maybe I've just been lucky.

Then again, I don't hold them to a high, concert standard. I simply like them for what they can do, and so far, so good.

[roj]

What is the biggest flute bang for the lowest price?

If you're a new player, I think this is the wrong question to ask. I think the question should be, "what is the biggest flute bang for the cash that you can spare?".

[Doc Jones]

Flutes that score well on the Bang-for-the-buck-o-meter for less than $300:

Tipple - Fabulous price great tone tone, tunable, cylindrical*

Hammy Practice Flute - great price and tone, fingers very like other Irish flutes, not tunable, cylindrical but narrower so you really don't notice.

Billy Miller bamboo great price and tone, not tunable, cylindrical*

Olwell Bamboo now costing upwards of $200, great tone, not tunable cylindrical*

Dixon** Conical 3 piece - good price for a conical, delrin, sort-of-tunable flute

Burns Folk flute - Great price for a wooden conical mostly tunable flute with amazing sound.

*cylindrical flutes tend toward larger holes farther apart.
** probably have to get a used one to stay under $300

Doc

[Cork]

What is the biggest flute bang for the lowest price?

If you're a new player, I think this is the wrong question to ask. I think the question should be, "what is the biggest flute bang for the cash that you can spare?".

Suppose a new player had, say, a large fortune to invest. Perhaps then it simply comes down to just who makes the best flute, bar none. However, assuming that a person looking for a first flute might not be willing to invest a large fortune...

[Cork]

Flutes that score well on the Bang-for-the-buck-o-meter for less than $300:

Tipple - Fabulous price great tone tone, tunable, cylindrical*

Hammy Practice Flute - great price and tone, fingers very like other Irish flutes, not tunable, cylindrical but narrower so you really don't notice.

Billy Miller bamboo great price and tone, not tunable, cylindrical*

Olwell Bamboo now costing upwards of $200, great tone, not tunable cylindrical*

Dixon** Conical 3 piece - good price for a conical, delrin, sort-of-tunable flute

Burns Folk flute - Great price for a wooden conical mostly tunable flute with amazing sound.

*cylindrical flutes tend toward larger holes farther apart.
** probably have to get a used one to stay under $300

Doc

Thanks, Doc!

[cocusflute]

Sorry - but the reason to buy a flute is because you like the way it sounds. People buying low-end flutes probably haven't played many high-end flutes and have no way of making a comparison based on dollar value even if they had. Most beginning players haven't an embouchure sufficiently developed to get the most out of an expensive flute. I certainly couldn't get out of a Strad the sound that it's capable of producing.
I know of no accomplished player who would prefer a free Tipple to a higher priced wooden flute - even though "bang for the buck" would be maximized with a free flute.
I mean no insult to Doug Tipple, for whom I have a lot of respect and who does offer good value for the money. But dollars shouldn't enter the equation. You hear with your ears and you play with your mouth - not with your wallet.
If all you can afford is a Tipple, then by all means buy one. But don't buy one based on some assumed dollar value.

[crookedtune]

This was the original question: "For performance versus price, can anybody top that?"

The majority of posters referenced the Tipple as the leader within those critieria, and none said it was the best flute out there. Which part do you not agree with?

[cocusflute]

Maybe you should tell me what you mean by "performance." Something more than just a sound, yes?

A free flute would offer the best performance for the money, right?

Would a free Tipple offer better performance than a better flute for which you paid?

Can you quantify a Tipple as being a better value at $100 than a Burns at $300 or a Copley at $525?

The Tipple doesn't offer better performance than either of these. But can you say that the Burns is 3x better, or the Copley is 5x better?

Is this a good way to evaluate flutes? Like Toyotas? Give me a break.

[Doc Jones]

Sorry - but the reason to buy a flute is because you like the way it sounds. People buying low-end flutes probably haven't played many high-end flutes and have no way of making a comparison based on dollar value even if they had. Most beginning players haven't an embouchure sufficiently developed to get the most out of an expensive flute. I certainly couldn't get out of a Strad the sound that it's capable of producing.
I know of no accomplished player who would prefer a free Tipple to a higher priced wooden flute - even though "bang for the buck" would be maximized with a free flute.
I mean no insult to Doug Tipple, for whom I have a lot of respect and who does offer good value for the money. But dollars shouldn't enter the equation. You hear with your ears and you play with your mouth - not with your wallet.
If all you can afford is a Tipple, then by all means buy one. But don't buy one based on some assumed dollar value.

True.

My comments were meant for those wanting to experience the flute without breaking the bank but still getting a very playable instrument.

None of the flutes I mentioned are in competition with $1000+ instruments.

Once a person has made a commitment to the flute I would certainly encourage them to upgrade.

The flutes I listed are instruments that are inexpensive but still play well if you blow into them correctly. That's what a beginner "testing the waters" of flutedom needs.

If a novice wants to give it a whirl with a Wilkes right from the get go and can afford it, more power to them. He could likely sell it for more than he paid so what's the harm?

Take home messages for new flute buyers:

1. Get the very best flute you can afford under the guidance of someone that knows what they're talking about. If it doesn't work out you can likely sell it with little or no financial loss.

2. If you're budget is limited, or you want a good-playing flute for venues that are less-safe for an expensive instrument, Get one of the many nice instruments mentioned so far in this thread.



Doc

[crookedtune]

So you're really saying the original question was invalid. OK by me, break is granted.

[cocusflute]

"So you're really saying the original question was invalid."

I think so. I haven't quite worked it out. If you were to ask whether it was "worth it" to have a Bb key on a flute that was already stretching your budget and meant a month's rent, I'd admit the validity of that question.

As Doc intimates, if you're a serious musician then you're prepared to make sacrifices for your art. Then it isn't a question of "value" but becomes one of of "utility." I.e., what is the best flute for you, period. Then you go about finding the money for that flute.

Many serious classical musicians go into a deep hole to get a suitable instrument. Granted, they make more money than many of us. But I'd rather drive a ratty car and play a great flute than drive a BMW and compromise on my instrument. An incremental improvement in a flute can seem like a really big deal.

[Hunter]

As a beginning player who is looking for his first flute I have to say I've found this thread very, very informative. Certainly it can be said that one should obtain the best instrument that one can afford, but from the standpoint of a greenhorn like me who has no exposure to flutes, manufacturers, etc, it's nice to be able to hear the opinions of musicians who DO have the experience of playing flutes of different manufacturers and materials.

It is BECAUSE the general population doesn't have access to information like this that cheap Pakistani flutes (like the one I almost bought) lure so many people away from a quality instrument and, as a result, discourage people from playing.

Buying a flute when one has never played before and wants to try something new (after hearing the beautiful music that can be made with something that, when looked at it through the eyes of someone with no exposure to the flute, appears to be someone simply breathing into a stick with holes in it) is a daunting, frightening experience...and at the price many of these instruments sell for...a very expensive indulgence. Hearing the opinions in this thread is, again, very helpful and informative.

I'm looking forward to learning more from all of you. Thank you for opening this discussion!

Hunter

[crookedtune]

Thanks, Hunter. The affirmation feels good. We can bicker and nitpick sometimes, but I agree there's a ton of good info here. It helped me greatly when I jumped into fluting more seriously a year ago.

[sbfluter]

About the Tipple again.

I was a plastic scoffer. A PVC flute has to be a novelty item or something like that.

A Tipple was offered for sale here with a video clip of it being played. I was amazed that the Tipple sounded so good, and to me sounded better than the other, fancier plastic flute he was selling. I scoff no more.

I also have a Folk Flute. It sounds different but not better or worse than the Tipple. It's lovely to look at, smells wonderful, much easier to finger and play fast. One ought to be able to say it's way better than the Tipple, but it really isn't. Not because the Folk Flute isn't good, but because the Tipple isn't bad.

I can impress people with the Folk Flute because it is so beautiful. I can impress people with the Tipple because they can't get over such nice music coming from a plastic pipe.

When I play both of my flutes I make the same mistakes and play just as well or poorly. Sometimes I can make one of them louder, sometimes I can make the other. Sometimes one of them sounds more beautiful, sometimes the other. The Tipple with the small embouchure makes me play the Folk Flute much better than I did before.

Best of all, and most important thing I learned from the video that sold me the Tipple flute was -- get ready for this -- the music and the wow factor come from the abilities of the musician, not so much the flute. So, if you want any of the above flutes you really can't go wrong. But the only way those flutes will ever sound good is if you yourself get good at it. You are going to have to practice every day no matter what flute you get.

Bang for the buck is good, but now that we've got a good list, you have to add your goals into the matrix for the final selection.