Tommy wrote:Hmmmmm..... I use to recommend a spousal credit card, however, some did not understand the humor Yes, a phone card will work.
You know, Tommy, I intend to live to see 30 one day. So I won't use a "spousal credit card" to tweak my whistle...
Wait!
Come to think about it, how about "threatening to use it for tweaking my whistle if not being allowed to buy a Parks Everywhistle or Sush with it"?
Hmmmm.... some like to use a guitar pick also. But when I priced them they were not very cheap. There is a lot of free plastic out there in differant thicknesses. As Squidgirle mentioned the beauty of this is using stick tac so it can be changed. Change thickness, length, shape of the edge.....
uh...... I would leave the spousal credit card for humor.
I recently picked up an O'Brien Stowaway which has a lovely, sweet, and pretty quiet voice. It has a lower overall volume and the second octave is surprisingly non-aggressive. It's the only D whistle I own that I can play while my wife reads in the next room and never hear a complaint. It's also the only one I can play a second octave B on without the dog barking.
I'm asking you because you're an educated sort of swine. John LeCarre
I know this is an old thread, but really enjoying the golden advice herein. I popped a paper clip in my brand new Dixon trad D and instantly had a whistle I could play during last night's blackout in my neighbourhood. All my neighbours had disappeared and there was candle light in only my flat. Not a single boot was hurled.
hans wrote:Re 1) Try experimenting with a very small blob of bluetack or poster putty or whatever it is called in your region. Make a little ball of it ca 2-3mm thick and stick it on top of the sound edge. That will dampen the sound and also remove high harmonics. I used it with success on Susato whistles, which are quite loud and a bit shrill for my taste. Experiment with the size and shape of the blob, and how much you need to flatten it etc.
Re 2) Go for a whistle with a relative small sound window, and a thinner tube. I have no specific recommendations, as I prefer more powerful whistles.
Cheers,
~Hans
Thanks Hans for such a simple fix. I saw the post and just had to give it a try because I had some poster putty left over from tweaking a generation whistle. I tried it on a Merlin whistle I have and it worked like a charm. There could be a baby sleeping in the next room and not been awakened by the soft lower sound by following your advice. Great way to learn a new tune and then take the putty off to play once learned. Your awesome.
Thanks,
Scottie
A narrow bore whistle with a small voicing and small toneholes will provide the "best results" for a quiet whistle with the greatst range. You will have to compromise on timbre. These whistles will sound "reedy" instead of "flutey". Conical bores will help, but they will cost you range/reduced registers. Some high-end whistles also use a restricted "throat" to improve backpressure at the voicing leading to reduced breath requirements.
"The difference between Genius and stupidity, is that Genius has its limits" (Albert Einstein) thomashastay@yahoo.com
Tikva wrote:Basically I can play first octave and the first three notes of second octave at very low volume, all notes higher than that seem to be crotesquely loud in comparison. No matter how much I practice.
Try pinching the topmost hole like you'd pinch the thumbhole on a recorder. Just roll your top finger back a bit until it is no longer covering the hole completely. You'll have to practice a bit to get it right and in tune (like five minutes) but it makes for much quieter playing in the highest register.
In the land of the iron sausage
The torture never stops.
Yes, a phone card will work.
So I won't use a "spousal credit card" to tweak my whistle... 
