mic for whistle?

[tanstaafl49]

I play mostly fiddle and accordion in an Irish pub band, and want to add a whistle to my armoury without too much additional equipment. I had hoped just to be able to play it down the vocal mic, but while that seems fine for sax and flute, the whistle just isn't loud enough and gets lost in the mix. I've got a strap on condenser mic but again that means I have to lug the power supply and, in fact, an additional small mixer for the cable. Is there any mic out there which doesn't need powering and will work on the whistle?

[benhall.1]

Welcome tanstaafl49!

Apologies in advance for this - it might seem like too obvious a thing to say ... Which part of the whistle are you pointing at the mike? The mike should be pretty much level with the window of the whistle. Some people try to play the end of the whistle into the mike (the far end, that is) and that is never going to work. I've never had a problem with vocal or normal instrument mikes picking up whistle provided you just position it with the window to the mike.

[Flogging Jason]

I'm a singer and whistle player and I only use one mic when I perform. I've got a strong projecting voice but I never have trouble switching to whistle(though admittedly I'm only performing in a duo). Anyway, here's my 2 cents: Provided you are indeed aiming the right part of the whistle at the mic I would recommend getting a boost pedal of some sort. Its the type of thing guitarists use for leads in rock bands. They run on 9V batteries and would only require one extra mic cable and possibly two impedance matching transformers(one XLR female to 1/4" male and one XLR male to 1/4" male).

[tanstaafl49]

I was pointing the right bit at the mic - I play flute as well so am used to the odd bits of instruments that extrude the noise... I had thought of trying a boost pedal. The exciting bit is when you try singing with it and forget to switch it off though...

[JoFo]

There are some battery-powered condenser mics out there. AKG C1000S for instance. It also has an on/off switch which might come in handy.

I believe the Sure Beta58 is quite high gain for a dynamic mic.

Another option might be to get a loud whistle. For instance Chieftain Mezzo High D or a Chieftain Custom (wood /aluminium).
I can hear myself quite well in a band situation when using one of these.
This is, of course, assuming you're playing a high D.

/John

[Flogging Jason]

I'm in agreement with JoFo there. I happen to play a Reyburn Session D....it's a fairly loud whistle...cuts like a knife when i want it to.

Another possible solution(if possible without feedback) is to set your existing mic to be a little hotter and adjusting to using your voice and louder instruments a couple inches further from the mic than normal. That way you can get right on the mic with your quieter whistle and hopefully still get the same volume.

[farmerjones]

I've been using a SM57 at shows with my whistle. My main instrument is trombone, but the whistle usually comes through fine. Sometimes the sound guy needs to turn me up a bit, and then back down when I switch back. Its a very directional mic though, so you need to putthe windows right on the mic and right in front of it.

[clark]

I use a Boss reverb unit when I play whistle (into a mic I share with my flute). Just tap the button with my foot and the signal is boosted a bit while the reverb blunts most tendency to whistle shrillness. Be conservative with the settings. You are going for a pleasant depth and thickness without being too obviously "reverby." Another in my band occasionally plays whistle into my vocal mic. Like Flogging Jason suggests, we just set the Beta 58 a bit hotter and I back away a little when I sing.