Dixon Alto G Problems

[tinman]

I just received a new plastic Dixon alto G and it's very weak and breaks up, with the low G and A almost unplayable. I have a Dixon low F and it seems to be fine. I'm not a great player but I routinely play other whistles without problem. Does anyone have any ideas about what might be causing this? Thanks!

[RonKiley]

I have one here beside my desk. I just played a tune and there was none of the trouble you describe.

[AvienMael]

Best to contact the seller, or Tony Dixon directly with this. But first, try washing it out thoroughly with warm water and mild detergent, drying it, and see if there is any improvement. Could just be some bit of lint or whatever causing a partial obstruction in it somewhere.

[tinman]

I tried cleaning it but it didn't help. I was hoping maybe someone had run in to a similar problem and there was a simple fix so I wouldn't have to send it back to the seller. I wasn't insinuating that all Dixon alto G's had this problem; I assume this was just a fluke. I guess I'll return it.

Thanks.

[Feadoggie]

Does anyone have any ideas about what might be causing this?

Dixon does have the occasional quality issue. I've witnessed it first hand. Of the dozen plastic Dixons I've owned only one was an outright stinker though. My low G was a very nice whistle. Returning the whistle may be a good solution. Before you do that though, you may just want to make sure that you are sealing the holes completely. Sometimes a new whistle may require a little adjustment of the grip and/or breath control. Are you using a piper's grip or covering the holes with a more standard grip? You are playing a low F so I am sure you have no issues with stretch but you may still want to check your finger position with the low G. Play long notes starting from the top of the first octave going down to the A and G.

If you have already been through that exercise then talk to Dixon or the retailer through which you purchased the whistle. Hope it works out well for you.

Feadoggie

[tinman]

Does anyone have any ideas about what might be causing this?

Dixon does have the occasional quality issue. I've witnessed it first hand. Of the dozen plastic Dixons I've owned only one was an outright stinker though. My low G was a very nice whistle. Returning the whistle may be a good solution. Before you do that though, you may just want to make sure that you are sealing the holes completely. Sometimes a new whistle may require a little adjustment of the grip and/or breath control. Are you using a piper's grip or covering the holes with a more standard grip? You are playing a low F so I am sure you have no issues with stretch but you may still want to check your finger position with the low G. Play long notes starting from the top of the first octave going down to the A and G.

If you have already been through that exercise then talk to Dixon or the retailer through which you purchased the whistle. Hope it works out well for you.

Feadoggie

Thanks, for the suggestions. I play a Low D most of the time so I was using the piper's grip. I also tried using the standard grip but it didn't help. I just went back and checked everything I could think of and nothing seems to help. I guess it's back to waiting for postman.

Tinman

[tinman]

I thought I should update this thread. After contacting the seller I decided to give the whistle another try and was able to get it to play ok. It's still a challenge to play but I'm hoping the work will improve my technique. I had a bit of trouble when first trying a low D but this is more difficult. I thought playing whistle was supposed to be easy.