20 Best Elk Diaphragm Call For Beginners (2023 Updated)

This call is defintely wide, but once you get it fitted into your mouth you get great sound from it. I personally went from this to the mini version because it fit my mouth better. Still rating this 5 stars because if it fits then you are set.

I’ve tried several brands and calls but this reed has taken my top spot. Super clear with plenty of volume. Sounds so crisp, realistic, makes me sound almost professional. Plus pink is just plain tuff and easy to find when dropped.

This is the perfect starter combo! The All-Star 2. 0 is super quick to learn & the Temptress is even easier! use the Bully Bull Extreme to amplify the sound! It will take some practice to master, but its a quick learn! Happy Hunting!.

Got this tube as a Christmas present last year and finally got to use it this fall. Closed the deal opening day and called in another for a friend the next day. This tube has great volume and sound. It really gets out there without being over the top.

I used a smaller tube before this one and will never go back. The sound difference is not only very noticeable to me, but the elk as well.

Bought this last week for an elk hunt I was helping with this weekend. The double reed call with the tube was friggin dynamite! I had 5 or so bulls responding to me at the same time. I kept them bugling long enough for my buddy’s son to get in there and kill a nice bull with a muzzleloader.

Well worth the cost!.

First, I must say that, I’m a serious predator hunter and have a couple other electronic calls, but none add up to the Primos Alpha Dog. The Alpha Dog is light weight and very portable, (stows in a backpack without taking up too much space), the remote is bright and easy to see without optical help due to my ailing eyes, is also very easy to use and understand, which has 5 Expert Hunt Set Calls, that do work.

As a matter of fact, I used these calls today, even though I wasn’t successful in harvesting a coyote, I had responses from several different packs at the same time during my hunt, they just out smarted me today, but the called did it’s job.

The volume of the speakers is outstanding, without distortion and easy to adjust in which ever direction you desire. Honestly, the only negative thing I have to say, is that the remote and the caller have their own power buttons, which means, when you place the call in your desired position, don’t forget to turn it on, then when you return to your set-up position, you must turn on the remote, but it works perfectly.

One last word of advise, the battery compartment on the call, was not very well thought out, where it takes 8 AA Batteries, in which case the compartment that the batteries fit into, is not very secure within the batterycompartment space.

I solved this problem, by simply putting some jumbo sized cotton balls in the excess space, which secures the batteries in place, not allowing them to flop around within the excess space, ultimately keeping the batteries from losing their connection.

Another word of advice, regardless of which call you choose, use Alkaline Batteries, may be more expensive, but you won’t regret it, because they last three times longer than the normal batteries, so they do pay off in the long run!!! Great Call.

First day I used this in a remote field in WV, I called in a pack of 20 coyotes at one time. Only having 10 rounds of ammo, I knew I could wait them out if I was patient and allowed them to make the first mistake.

I didn’t want to end up being their dinner. The first opening was when 2 of them stood one in front of the other out at around 150yrs and I pulled off a “shoot through”. They both dropped at the same time.

Three came over to check out what had just happened and I did it again. Down to 8 rounds with 4 on the ground. A quick peck at the distress rabbit and sure enough, 2 more lined up. Pow, 6 down and 7 rounds left and 14 looking for me as I think they might have scented me.

As they cold trailed back and forth up the steep slope, I couldn’t believe my eyes as two began to cross one in front of the other and Pow, 6 rounds left and 8 on the ground. I sounded off with the choking chicken which brought that pack to a halt and Pow, 2 more down with 5 rounds left.

At 50yrds I stood up and the pack decided they had enough and split. Couldn’t believe my luck that day that I was able to whittle that pack down to half their number by staying cool headed and only using 5 rounds.

One of my all time best investments.

I find the Primos Alpha Dog light and easy to carry. Sounds are very good and loud. I have harvested several Coyotes, a bunch of Crows and called in a Bobcat, several hawks and an owl. Cons: Range is not as good as advertised and is about 100 yards.

I have put an external antenna on it that helps. Also mounted on a tripod increases range as tall grass will reduce the range. Downloading sounds can be a bit complicated but there is plenty of information online.

Also the instruction booklet is not very clear but information is available online. Overall, a nice compact unit in my opinion.

This thing is awesome. I have a partial in my mouth for a fake tooth and it makes using diaphragm calls impossible. This is probably the easiest reed call I’ve ever used and it sounds amazing. Especially given the ability to change the pitch and tone a little bit.

Can’t wait to use it this fall!.

This call produces very soft cow elk calls. Has the ability to change pitch and tone changes without skipping a beat or any inconsistencies. This call is exactly what is needed to close the gap on those stubborn rutting bulls.

Is a great addition to any elk hunters calls IMHO.

This is a great call to learn on if you’ve never used open reed type calls before. Super easy to use. I’d say this call has a mid-range volume and tone so you can go up or down with it fairly easily.

The two holes on the top of the call allow you to cover them up to change the pitch of the call slightly. Soft rubberized end give it a soft tone. I keep this call in my pack all elk season.

So we were at our second stand of the day with this bad boy hunting for Coyotes. We had seen some sheep farmers and so talked to them and they said they heard some probably two small hills over, about 2 ish miles walk.

So we walked all the way around and start calling. Did the rabbit for a while and the coyote calls for a hot second. After about 40 mins, my brother and I here some foot prints behind us and some low huffing.

I work for the US Forest Service and have heard my fair share of huffing from animals and my first thought was that there was a bear behind us. Well our hearts kinda dropped as we heard is give a loud deep grunt.

So I slowly set down my. 223 and took off my. 44 mag from my side holster, slowly turned around, to see walking directly in-between my brother and I, straight towards our current coyote howls from this machine, a GIANT, easily 250+ lbs white sheep dog.

He ran straight over to the call, really confused why there were no coyotes, and then came and sat next to me under the juniper tree I was under. So. Moral of the story, have called in a coyote yet, most likely cause it’s not the best of times to do so right now, April, but man does this call work.

We were easily 2 miles away, and though this box doesn’t make the loudest noises, if you can get the echo off hill walls, you are set. Sounds are hyper realistic and anything and everything will come.

5/5 in my book and I am looking forward to finding some coyotes soon with it.

Bought the icotec gc320 unit a little over a month ago and so far its worked great! Have used the call at least a dozen times and called in and shot 6 coyotes so far. Seems to be very durable and compact, fits nicely into my backpack.

The decoy works great and keeps the coyotes attention on it. The sound is clear and is more then loud enough to call anything in within a mile on a calm day. The one thing that I’m not a fan of and I’ve read this a lot is the fact that the remote is super sensitive.

It’s happened a few times where I’ve set up the call and I’m walking back to where I’m gonna sit and some how bumped the remote and the call starts going off before I’m ready! Other then that the call works great.

Says right on the box BATTERIES NOT INCLUDED so be sure to pick up batteries before u get home with it!.

I have used this call to hunt yotes for about a month. It is very nice to be able to switch between long range and short range calls with just a mouth piece. Plus the ability to range across age, animal, pitch, distress to howls can be very important to do without relying on batteries.

I’m an avid coyote caller, and call collector with over 60 different mouth calls and a few dozen howlers, and the Primos Lil’dog is one of my preferred calls when I’m howling in coyotes. I bought the Lil’ Dog and the Hot Dog at the same time, and with these 2 calls #3 heads#, I can pitch any coyote vocal I want, at any range.

There are a LOT of Howlers out there that CLAIM that they can run distress sounds, but ultimately, most calls that are a “master of all are a master of none”. Usually if they make good howls, they make poor distress, or if they make good distress sounds, then their howls are poor.

The Lil’ Dog is the exception. If you can play an open reed distress call at all, then you can make the Lil’ Dog sound really good as a distress call, and it’s howls, as mentioned, are as good as anything on the market.

It is easy to use and makes very realistic sounds. I have used several different howlers and this is my favorite. I usually use it in combination with a distress call. I’ve used it to aid me in calling in about 50 coyotes this year.

I got this call before the start of the duck opener and boy am I glad I did! Amazing call with amazing sound and looks absolutely beautiful. Has great low to medium volume to work ducks in the timber or to finish them off.

A perfect call to add to your lanyard. Just a overall great call and great customer service from Echo.

I bought it a few months ago for this upcoming season it sounds awesome to be honest and it looks amazing! The only thing I would say I did not like was the ring. it was just slightly loose other than that I cant wait to call some ducks in with this awesome call.

Good call. ok bottom end but when i look to buy calls from ECHO im expecting whining, Cajun squealing, pure duck. Defininelty go straight cocobolo or acrylic. spend the extra $. you will be happy you did later and will def.

find calling easier and more fun (you get what you pay for). and don’t be intimidated by the single reed if you are a beginner. if you learn to blow a single reed. doubles are a piece of cake. and on a single you can practically mimic every sound a duck makes(with a good call).

which in most double reeds you cannot. Hope this helps before buying. and if you are going to buy this call. its not a bad purchase. But def. go straight cocobolo!.

I’ve been looking for a call that I can make different noises with to sound realistic and this one has been the best one so far. Called in 5 bull elk this fall with it and was talking to a cow elk while a bull was 50 yards away in the dark for 20 minutes.

The variability of sounds you can make with it cause it to sound realistic to the elk.

Had a very tough elk season. The two encounters I had with elk, it was the Baby Hoochie Mama that got their attention. I had jumped some cows. Initially used the original Hoochie Mama to calm them down, but wasn’t until I used the Baby that they turned and started coming back in.

After being winded, I proceeded to keep using the Baby Hoochie mama through the trees and had a decent 6×6 come into the call. Also worked effectively with Hoochie mama to get a big herd bull to respond.

I use a lot of Primos calls for elk but this one is my least favorite for the simple fact that everyone has one and they all sound the same. Elk have voices, just as people do, keep that in mind. The first couple times I used it when it was released a few years ago, I thought it was great.

I think as the season wears on, elk grow accustomed to the sound because it never changes. I suggest, if you do purchase one, using it minimally or in conjunction with other calls. Pick up a couple different Primos mouth calls and practice as much as possible before the season starts to learn how to change the tones and pitches.

Watch videos of elk and really pay attention to the cow calls. They’re all different and each cow has her own “voice”.

I am a total diaphragm novice and this reed is very easy to use! I will say that it’s a little harder to bugle because I’m a person where I like to put pressure on the reed when bugling, but the reed is a very soft latex and requires the slightest of pressure to use.

I’ll get used to it eventually, but if it matters to you, it might be a good thing for you. Overall, great call. I think it’s my favorite from Elk101 so far!.

This is my first diaphragm elk call, and I only bought at the strong recommendation of a friend. Great tone, and really easy to learn to use. I have a high palette in my mouth, and this call fit perfectly.

I’m looking for to buying another as a spare, or an additional call from Bugling Bull company. P. S. The Rockie Jacobsen video on YouTube is a great help for new callers.

I love this call! I have been using this call for many years. I have tried dozens of calls from all different makers and just keep coming back to the Raging Bull. This call does it all from awesome cow calls to just about any bull sound.

If you want a herd bull grunt,chuckle or bugle this is the call!.

Seemed like a great convenient product, pulled out of the package and the stone fell out of the handle. Looks like the glue/epoxy they use did not bond to the handle inlay. I’ve seen reviews for this exact problem elsewhere.

Cabela’s was great handling the issue and I ordered the Woodhaven stone to replace this.

Bought this a few weeks ago to put in my vest, and for the size, price, and quality this is an incredible tool that every turkey hunter should have. The glass stone is great, and the scratch surface is really good quality as well.

Have used many times (probably more than needed) and the conditioning items have not broken or become worn down. The striker tip side is a must have for me because I use pot calls mainly. With hunting, it is impossible to find stuff like this that have everything you need in one, but this is one of those products that have everything in one.

For sure recommend this and will buy again if needed.

I was concerned whether this would be a wasted purchase and end up in a tote of unused turkey gear. Nope, pretty slick little tool. It has pretty much all you need in a small packable device. I recommend it if you use multiple pot calls and box calls.

Amazing call, batteries lasted all day in 10 degree Temps. Last stand, had a fox come running, I shot and missed, he buckled then continued for the call even after the shot. The sound quality is amazing.

One of the best made calls Ive used. Its very clear at all volume levels And has a great assortment of calls. Not to mention the different fox features and the diversity it adds to the call. I have absolutely no complaints and will recommend fox pro.

I live in lower Alabama and I duck hunt public land about 90% of the time. Where I am from, we unfortunately don’t have the pleasure of hunting the thousands of greenheads, and other migrating species of duck that the hunters in the main flyways hunt.

Heck, i am a 22 year old college student and I’ve been a die hard duck hunter as long as I can remember, and with all my years of duck hunting, I can honestly say that I only see a few small groups of mallards each year while hunting (most years we don’t see any at all).

Duck hunting is a totally different ball game down here in LA, so pretty much 95% of the time, we are shooting nothing but woodies. With this being said, my duck hunting strategy and knowledge is pretty much all catered to nothing but killing wood ducks.

The reason I am saying all this information about myself, is so y’all reading this will have a good sense of my hunting habits and believe my credibility when reviewing this product. (I would not want to buy a product based off good reviews people who have little experience with other products make.

) I’m sorry and I mean no disrespect, but I wouldnt listen to someone who hunts only flooded timber and rice fields for mallards tell me how to kill wood ducks when they might have only killed one passing wood duck in there lifetime.

Any ways to the product. I have had many, many wood duck calls in my life and none of them come close to the DC wood duck call. Just about all the other wood duck calls I have had or seen, have some sort of a pinched reed system which funnels your blowing air in order make that high squeal sound.

These types of calls are very easy to blow, but you are kinda limited on the different types of pitches you are able to achieve when trying to make different woodie calls (sitting hen, sitting drake, yelp, flutter etc.

) The duck commander call on the other hand, has a reed system that I have yet to find on another call. The reed is able to “break” (shown in the video of Jase using the call I think) and the user is able to manipulate the air flow to make VERY realistic wood duck sounds.

There is a huge difference in the sound quality of the DC wood duck call than In any other call I have found. I make a big deal about sound quality and the ability to manipulate that reed because I have had calls in the past where I thought I was sounding like a wood duck sitting on the water and had group after group after group (we have a load of wood ducks in Alabama) fly by and not even think twice about coming in and we would usually go home with a few ducks.

None some days. I thought the problem was my decoys, my camouflage, my placement pretty much everything. But one day I went and bought this here DC call. Hardest call I have ever tried to blow at first.

I was so use to blowing all those other wood duck calls I could not figure out how in the world ole Phil and Jase were making that call sound the way it did. Well after about a week of practice with the call I got to where I was pretty good I thought.

Next morning went to my little honey hole on the river and broke out the call, 3 man limit of woodies (9 ducks might not sound like much, but where I’m from if you go on the river and kill a 3 man limit of wood ducks you have done something).

THEY. ATE. THAT. CALL. UP!! For someone who was not there, it would be easy to say that the call wasn’t the only reason we limited out. Well coming from the person who was there, that call is 100% the reason we got our limit.

You could see a group flying 3-400 yards away, hit that little sitting call with that flutter noise and boom, they would swoop right on in to our decoys. EVERYTIME. People who dont kill many wood ducks or know about wood duck habits would probably think “ok? so you got some ducks to come to your decoys big deal”.

The thing is, I go to that same hole a decent amount a year and they never did that before, but they do almost every time now. Anyway, Coming from someone who spends his whole life November-February every year, searching for the allusive wood duck, this call is an absolute game changer.

If the majority of your hunting is wood ducks, then I would say this call is a must for every hunt (ONCE YOU HAVE MASTERED HOW TO BLOW IT!!). But, if you’re hunting mainly mallards or other species and want an easy blowing call just in case you see a group of woodies whistle by, then I would not recommend this call unless you take the time to figure out how to blow it.

If you don’t practice and try and blow the DC call like you blow pinched reed high squeeling wood duck calls, you will not sound anything like a wood duck but instead sound like a complete idiot who has no idea how to blow a call.

P. S For those of you like me, who hunt majority wood ducks and would like to see your trips end with more ducks in the boat. Buy or make you a jerk rig and attach you about 5 or 6 wood duck decoys to it and position it out in your spread.

When you start seeing those early morning flyers, hit that DC woodie call flutter and hen sitting call and start jerking the mess out of that jerk line. They seem to not be able to resist it. It makes it look like they are chasing each other on the water which is pretty much all those stupid woodies do when they are on the water not flying or eating and the added realistic sound of the DC call seals the deal! Hope this helps!.

At first, it sounded like it’s supposed to. I could make the wood duck noises as presented on the DC videos. However, I have it sitting at my desk, and during “backpressure” practice the insert and barrel easily separated, with the reed and plastic “cork” wedge falling to the floor.

Now, I cannot reassemble it to get anywhere near close enough to the original sound (and I’ve tried orienting the reed in every direction). Note: there is not a cork stopper holding the reed against the tone board – just a piece of angled plastic with a slight cant, that “wedges” the reed over the hole as you push the insert back in the barrel.

It’s very delicate to balance and reassemble, and I’ll probably never accomplish the right sound again. I’ve resigned myself to having paid for a call that didn’t even get off the bench to play in the game.

There are a lot of wood ducks along the river around here, so now I’m done fooling around with the least expensive call out there. It’s time to take buying a duck call seriously.

The shipping was amazing and fast but when I got the call itself, it had chips all over it and was bent really bad. I told them and they sent me a new one but the new one was the same way. I just figured it might be how they manufacture them but other than the small defects great job and sounds good.

The cherry box is going to produce a higher pitched call than the walnut Real Hen. I really like that the Real Hen features a one piece cherry trough style box with a matched Brazilian cherry lid. This call sends out the most realistic two tone raspy yelps.

You will find that it is great for clucks, cutts, and cackles. Even my kids are able to pick this call up and produce remarkable sounds on their first attempt. This call will cost more but you are buying a truly custom call that is not like the other mass produced, foreign made, products on the market.

This call will last you for years to come.

Don’t purchase this call until you have compared it to other calls. This call does produce realistic sounds but so do lots of other calls that have been proven in the field. Each turkey sounds a little different from the next so just because this call is named the “real hen” doesn’t mean it’s any more ”real” sounding than some other calls.

I own two of these calls simply because I found them on sale. I would encourage you to look at some Primos and Lynch calls that Cabela’s carry’s and if the WoodHaven call is what you settle on then you will know for yourself that you have gone through an elimination process and should be completely satisfied with your purchase.

I picked up a demo and thought it was one of the most consistent and best sounding calls I had used. If that ever happens to you then buy THAT call. The one I ordered is a good call but the demo was an outstanding call.

Tipical throughout the industry. I am not rating the value or quality, just the consistency, or lack of. There are a lot of calls for half the price or less with the same consistency and a good one would sound as good or better than mine.

Buy the one you try!.