Cheap Whistle with Clearest Tone?

[Mockingbird]

Newbie, here. Forgive what is likely a common question. I've searched the forum a bit, but don't have time for much searching.

My $5 Clarke whistle plays pretty well on the lower end, but the moment it gets wet, the notes above high G are gone unless I blow really, really hard. I'm having a hard time concentrating on hitting notes, AND giving it all I've got in terms of air pressure!

Is there a low-end whistle (I'm thinking $25 and under) that gives a nice, clear (less breathy) tone all the way through? I need to minimize frustration right now. I saw Walton mentioned on one thread for a good inexpensive whistle. Would that be what I'm looking for?

[Denny]

go fish

Freeman Whistle soundclips ...

[technowhistle]

Lots of people like the Dixon Trad. Me, not so much, but I'm weird...

+1 for freeman whistles

[Joatamon]

Jerry Freeman's Blackbird has a very sweet, pure tone. They're $36.50 through the Irish Flute Store or directly through Jerry via ebay.

[Denny]

or directly from Jerry via PM

[Mockingbird]

I really liked the tone of the whistles in MTGuru's clips. Are they all tweaked? I was especially drawn to the Flowers of Edinburgh clip (well, it's one of my favorite tunes).

Do you think the Blackbird is too much whistle for somebody like me? That's exactly how I want the whistle to sound--pure and clear on the higher notes as well, and not breathy. I hate that it sounds like I'm butchering the tune when I'm really not...or at least not *that* badly.

[squidgirl]

Getting my Freeman Blackbird was like finding the whistle I'd been looking for from the beginning. I love a whistle that's very sweet and clear in the high end. It takes some breath control to hit the low notes, which is the usual downside of whistles with a sweet high end. You can vary the tone quite a bit depending on the skills you have at modulating how you send air through it. So it rewards practice.

The Blackbird is kind of opposite to the Clarke Original. The Clarke takes a lot of air in general, and I still can't get sweet, clear high notes out of one (but I'm wimpy middle-aged lady). To play my Clarke at all, I need to at least do the airway-squashing tweak. Sweet breathy sound, but not my favorite whistle to play.

There are many whistles in between these two extremes. For example I'd give another recommendation for the Dixon Trad. It's right around your price range, and is a reliable whistle with a traditional sound. Less sweet and clear on the high end, but it has a good sound.

[edited to remedy mental confusion of writer]

[swizzlestick]

Since you mentioned a $5 price, I would assume that you have a Clarke Meg (with a plastic top) -- about the most inexpensive whistle around. Megs have a breathy open sound but are usually easy players if you don't over blow them. For some reason, the original Clarke design is usually more expensive. These are all metal except for the wooden fipple block inside. If you have this original design, then your problems are understandable. The windway is usually way too big and most people end up squashing it down to gain some control. Even with this modification, I never liked the upper register.

If you have the original, I bet you will like almost any other whistle better. For a really sweet high register, I would consider Blackbirds and Hoover Whitecaps, but they are a bit above the price you mentioned. Jerry Freeman has dropped the prices on his modified Generation D whistles to around $28. Gens would have a more complex sound than a Blackbird, but will be much less breathy than either Clarke whistle. I don't have one, but at that price and with Jerry's renowned craftsmanship, I don't see how you can go wrong.

[Mockingbird]

Well from one wimpy middle-aged lady to another--heh!--I have to to give it all I've got to defeat where the whistle wants to go on those upper notes, and it just doesn't take to cuts on those notes. Sounds like a chickadee being throttled. I'm currently playing a "Mel Bay by Clarke" whistle (the red-painted one with a black plastic mouthpiece, which I discovered by toddler-accident can be removed--certainly aids in cleaning). I bought several of them, as five of my children were learning a bit of music theory on them this year as part of their schooling. My two-year-old has dented a couple and literally bent one in half! I've taken to hiding what remains of them in my "practice room" in the basement, so I can switch them out when they get soggy. I discovered they get soggy very quickly.

Fortunately, the minor dents don't seem to make a difference in how they play...

Hubby's discussing a Blackbird as a possible anniversary gift. I'm thinking, do I really have to wait that long? (Couple of months.)

He just doesn't know what's good for him. Must be true love, buying a beginner a high-pitched musical instrument.

Do I stick with a D whistle, you think? I like the sound of the C whistle too.

[emmdee]

Jerry Freeman all the way...

A lot will depend on what you like yourself, but a tweaked redtop Generation is basically idiot proof and a great all rounder for the money. I tried a greentop Mellowdog, but didn't like the intonation. I bought a redtop Generation instead. To give you an idea of how much I like my redtop C, let me tell you that I now use it for gigs instead of a Burke brass C I had been using for years.
m.d.

[MTGuru]

I really liked the tone of the whistles in MTGuru's clips. Are they all tweaked? I was especially drawn to the Flowers of Edinburgh clip (well, it's one of my favorite tunes).

The Blackbird clips are all the Freeman Blackbird. Serial #0 in fact, if it actually had a serial number.

The GG clips are Guido Gonzato's PVC whistles, made by Guido.

And the WhistleThis clips are mostly the Burke DASBT, except for one Susato E.

[StevieJ]

Great to see that when you ask for recommendations about a cheap whistle people are recommending one that costs a mere $36 or so. A few years ago you'd have had people insisting that you needed to spend $150 on something. Is this a tribute to Jerry's fine work, or to the increasing maturity of the board?

If you want something nicer sounding than a Clarke however you don't need to spend that much, at least not until your anniversary arrives. I won't recommend my favourites to you, plain old Generations, because IMO you need to be able to go to a store and find one that has promise, and be prepared to modify it sometimes. But I have on my desk a $6.95 Waltons D (the price label still on it) picked up at an Irish gift store in the Catskills that is a perfectly fine whistle just as it is.

Also, don't forget that the player is a big part of how the whistle sounds is. I've had the experience of a student complaining bitterly about the sound of a cheap whistle that I thought, when I tried it, was just about perfect. Mind you I'm not saying you shouldn't move on from the Clarke. I heartily dislike the sound of their plastic-headed models.

[crookedtune]

A few years ago you'd have had people insisting that you needed to spend $150 on something.

No, that never happened here. You won't be able to point me to such a thread.

(+1 for Freeman, by the way).

[Denny]

Great to see that when you ask for recommendations about a cheap whistle people are recommending one that costs a mere $36 or so. A few years ago you'd have had people insisting that you needed to spend $150 on something. Is this a tribute to Jerry's fine work, or to the increasing maturity of the board?

I thought it was me bein' a post whore

[Mason]

Do I stick with a D whistle, you think? I like the sound of the C whistle too.

...while we are on the subject of Jerry, let me throw in a plug for the D/C Mellow Dog set. That way you won't have to choose