Old Temecula

I have looked over Christopher's theremin site at
http://www.oldtemecula.com
and I congratulate him for having such a strong interest in the theremin, and for his experiments.

I was curious if anyone here has tried his new antenna?
http://www.oldtemecula.com/theremin/observations.htm

It is a pretty bold claim he makes...three octaves with a linear spacing between them. Again, I was just curious if anyone had tried it. It would be a great achievement.

I used to have a theremin...but now am
Thereminless

I wonder how 'linear' the spacing is. After all, on the product information for the Etherwave, it claims to have a system that corrects for pitch irregularities. It does this much better than my previous cheap theremin, but I wouldn't call it linear. Tell us if this is true when/if you try it.

“It is a pretty bold claim he makes...three octaves with a linear spacing between them. Again, I was just curious if anyone had tried it. It would be a great achievement”

Thank you T

An idea has little value unless others can duplicate it. To date I know of no one that has attempted to validate my mentors claim. This method is “completely” hands free and linear. It allows you to cover more distance with accurate control, your forearm horizontal rather than the standard vertical position towards the antenna.

http://www.oldtemecula.com/theremin/ultimate2b/sound-wave/piano-key4.mp3
(290k)

Christopher

It looks like Max was able to get a reasonably linear 4 inches (10 cm) per octave hand/pitch relationship:

www.thereminworld.com/silicon_chip_theremin_modifications.html

Christopher, how does one get plans for your antenna, and would it work with most theremins?

Also, have you tried your "ultermen" processor with other instruments besides the theremin? I would guess it would do wild things to an electric guitar.


I used to have a theremin, but now I am..

Thereminless

Gahh! That sound is hideous! You may be able to hit each note with relative certainty, but you are whole cents flat. A theremin that crushed the spaces between notes (so that the in-tune section of each note was larger)- that would be impressive.

"Christopher, how does one get plans for your antenna, and would it work with most theremins?"

Don't expect an answer. Unfortunately Christopher makes wild claims all the time. When questioned, he then talks in circles, never answering your question, but instead constantly posting links to his website. His answers are clear as mud, as is his website.

I think Christopher has some neat ideas, and has created an interesting-sounding device. I just wish he would give a straightforward answer once in awhile.

I tried to ask him questions and found him utterly unhelpful. Thank goodness I found this website.

I went back and re-read his website. I think that Christopher reserves certain information for those who have built his basic theremin circuit. I was wondering if anyone here has built his 'RS Theremin' and has seen this antenna design.

I appreciated reading his theories about hand capacitance vs. radiation resistance. Whether he is correct or not, I am not enough of a radio theorist to know (LBJ was President when I studied radio theory, and probably didn't understand it all that well even back then), but it was interesting to read about nonetheless.


I used to have a theremin, but now I am

Thereminless

Why not try the "silicon chip" theremin?

I'm working on it right now - it is a great kit with a nice sound, and is only $35. Check out Maxies mods here on this site, he outlines how to achieve a very good linearity with this kit.

I've thought of getting a Silicon Chip theremin, and doing Max's mods on it.

I've also thought of getting a Chuck Collins theremin kit, and using Christopher's optical volume device. The nice thing about a pitch-only theremin, is that it is easy to insert a pitch preview between the theremin and volume control device.

Golly, I didn't mean to invoke bad comments about Christopher, I was only curious if anyone had tried/seen his antenna.


Thereminless