Kip Rosser's "Complete Theremin:" Issues & Answers - Etherwave Volume Calibration Point, and a Bonus
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 16 ก.ย. 2024
- Moog's new Etherwave allows you immediate access to three calibrations point inside the theremin itself. In this tutorial* we'll look at the adjustments you can make to further enhance and expand your options for the volume antenna.
Please Note This Obligatory Disclaimer:
The user manual states very clearly that if you damage the theremin while altering the factory settings that you will void their warranty. If you choose to make the modifications covered in this tutorial, you do so at your own risk.
I'm providing this information (based upon the fact that I have been making these modifications for many years) because some thereminists may want to adopt various techniques I developed that allow for more extreme note articulation as well as enhanced ability to play rapid sequences of notes.
And as a bonus, we'll also take a quick look at how to improve the stability of your new Etherwave when attaching it to a mic stand. The following video tutorials feature exercises that will help you develop the ability to play at the "threshold:"
Lesson 43
• Kip Rosser's "Complete...
Lesson 54
• Kip Rosser's "Complete...
Ready for One-On-One Instruction? For your personal tutorial with individualized attention, book a session at: www.thereminlessons.com
And finally, this video features a lot of playing at the threshold:
• Theremin: Blackbird
*There is an audio anomaly in this video tutorial that throws the synchronization between audio and video off for approximately 30 seconds. The segment is clearly titled when it appears.
![If you can't hear this then you're not an audiophile [See description for link to followup video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/48PxwspDvrE/mqdefault.jpg)
Thank you for your content, Kip! Very well explained, and so useful to all Etherwave users! Greetings from Lima Peru!
Dear Veronik: Thank you very much for your comment. And I enjoy your videos, too. Seeing you play the Bjork, John Lennon, Blondie, 4 nonblondes, Sting and more is wonderful. The new Etherwave has a lot more features to work with than our older Etherwaves. I've always been curious about the Open Theremin and what it sounds like, so I enjoy and appreciate being able to see you play it.
@@dnteuxurois oh thank you for your nice comment! so cool, I 'll be working on new videos playing the Open Theremin, promise! so we all can all learn and take profit of its enormous musical possibilities!
@@magicaescueladetheremin I look forward to seeing the new video. I'm working on one using the Claravox, but it while be a while before it's ready.
Well done, Kip!!
Thanks, Helen.
感谢, 很有用的tips
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@@dnteuxurois thanks, very useful tips
@@xuzhangning Hi: I'm very glad that this tutorial was helpful.
PLEASE! talk to me about adjusting the pitch range. I upgraded to this theremin hoping i would be able to control the distance between notes. I understand not to mess with it unless i am confident, and that i risk damaging it.... I am not confident and i am desperate for advice!!! Love your music and your jazzy style.
Hello, Kathryn: Thanks for your comments and I’m glad you enjoy the music. When we look at adjusting the pitch range and the ability to control the distance between notes, we're looking at two different things, yet, although they’re two different things they can impact one another.
Adjusting the pitch range can mean extending the theremin’s range from 4.5 octaves to as much as 6. This involves altering both the fixed and variable frequency oscillators in a very gradual way. Written words are inadequate - it would be like trying to learn to swim from a written description without pictures. All the mechanics can be perfectly described from breathing to arm and legs movements, etc., but they’d be totally devoid of what’s really required: the physical act of all attendant mind/body sensations and feedback while in the water. I’m working on a tutorial about extending the range, and I’ll post it when it’s ready - at some point in July.
Meanwhile, you wrote: “hoping i would be able to control the distance between notes.” At its most elemental level this can be achieved to some extent, however, there are limitations. It is impossible to adjust your control space such that the pitch linearity results in every pitch being the same distance apart. When you see a visual representation of sound waves, either in a diagram or on an oscilloscope, the distance between the crests and troughs of each wave in the lower frequencies is greater than the distance between the crests and troughs of each wave in the higher frequencies. The theremin reflects precisely that - you may have 1/2 an inch from one lower frequency pitch to another, and as your fingers get closer to the pitch rod, that distance shrinks to the point where you may have only a millimeter or two between very high pitches. Every theremin I’ve ever played, including original RCA theremins, behaves this way.
There is a module that’s available for older Standard Etherwaves call the ESPE01 ETHERWAVE STANDARD PITCH EXTENSION. Here’s what it does:
“The Etherwave Standard Pitch Extension module greatly enhances the linearity of the Etherwave Standard and Etherwave PLUS theremins. The pitch field will be extended with up to two octaves in the bass register, while the high register remains unaffected. The timbre is also affected, making the sound smoother.”
You can read more about it here:
www.ethermagic.eu/espe01_module
That being said, I’m unaware if it is compatible with the new Etherwave, or, if a specific module will be created for the new Etherwave. I had one installed on a Standard Etherwave and it works as advertised, and the pitches are more spaced out, but they still decrease in proximity to one another the higher you go.
You may already know this, and already experimented with this, but what you can do, just by optimizing the size of your control space, is gain a little more spacing between pitches. As you know, when you set zero beat (no sound), you are also setting the size of the control space. If you hold your hand 12 inches from the pitch rod and calibrate it so that zero beat is 12 inches from the pitch rod, you’ll find that it’s pretty difficult to play anything because the pitches are so close together that you’re using micro-movements of your fingers.
My personal preference is to set zero beat 18 inches from the pitch rod. I have full range, and the pitches, though non-linear, are spaced out very well, certainly well enough for me to control them. Once you find the control space size that’s most comfortable for you, your pitches distances will, within general parameters, be fairly consistent. From there, each time you practice, your mind and body get used to these distances to the extent that intuiting where the pitches are is relegated to your unconscious in precisely the same way you expertly locate the pitches on your violin as well as on which string each one resides. Your body and mind “know” and you play with greater ease. To accelerate your progress with intuiting pitches on the theremin, here are two exercises that are very effective:
Pitch “Placement"
th-cam.com/video/d6TTdpeptTU/w-d-xo.html
(in the demo at the beginning you’ll notice I’m jumping from octave to octave and still coming in, on pitch)
Volume Hand Pitch Memory
th-cam.com/video/uoFj-JsNZYc/w-d-xo.html
(This actually trains your volume hand as well as creates continuous flow in your pitch hand)
I hope this helps.
ok, I am a seasoned theremin player; i know my body and tuning. It's instinctual. I used to play on older etherwave, but just upgraded to the newer model for midi capabilities. It won't tune. I know exactly how to tune it, or at least the older one. I had a process, it was consistently stable on the previous model. However the newer theremin, it isn't working. It is going back and forth, I cannot find zero beat except for at ONE position pretty far to the left on the tuning knob. Which is very chaotic (not linear, and too large. But it does stop eventually.) anything else, i move away from it and it starts ascending in pitch, which is the opposite. I let it acclimate and it doesn't change much. Is it damaged during shipping or something? This is not normal i don't think? Unless the newer model is different? help plz do I have to do internal tuning? I do know how, have done it before on the older model. No clue if the adjustment L6 & L5 even exist on this one haha. It seems the linearity is also kind of wonky. Help plz thanks is the pitch knob reversed or something.
Hi, Monica: The problem sounds like a strange one. My new Etherwave behaves almost exactly like my older one, including setting zero beat. The fact that you've got to set the pitch knob very far to the left indicates the necessity of making an internal adjustment. The good news there, as you know, is that you can gain access to the calibration points right through the top of the theremin by removing the plastic insert; if yours is to tightly attached, here’s a tutorial about taking it off initially, and then altering the way it fits to make it easier to remove:
th-cam.com/video/YWbLIeuoRoQ/w-d-xo.html
Okay - you’ve got the plastic insert off. Turn the theremin on and put the pitch knob in the midnight position. The theremin’s going to make noise.
Use the little tool that came with your theremin; place it down carefully into the center hole (fixed pitch oscillator). Be very gentle and you’ll be able to feel it “catch” when you’ve got it into the tunable coil. If you have trouble, use a flashlight to get a peek down there and acquire a visual reference point for where the tool needs to fit.
Use your left hand to manipulate the tool. Place your right hand at the precise distance you want for your control space (with me, it’s 18 inches from the pitch antenna). When you turn the tool in the coil, turn it very gently and very slightly. I believe you’ll want to turn it clockwise. The main thing is that as you turn it, you want to hear the pitch getting lower. Keep your right hand positioned and keep turning the tool slowly until there’s no sound - zero beat. You’ve just calibrated the theremin.
I hope this works for you. If you still experience the same problem, feel free to contact me again.
Kip, How would you rate the dynamics of the volume on the new Etherwave compared to the old EWS?
Hi: I'm unsure what you're specifically referring to, so, I'll address the volume loop and what types of things can be achieved with it. Compared to the older Etherwave Standard there is definitely a measure of more control over the loop's response - first, because the volume adjustment knob appears to have more range when impacting the loop's response. Secondly, given the fact that you now have instant access (as opposed to having to open the theremin up) to more refined calibration by directly tweaking the coil that controls response (as described on page 27 of the user manual). Overall, I'd rate the new Etherwave as superior when it comes to volume control, thereby lending more potential for power and/or subtlety when it comes to dynamics while playing a song.
My Etherwave has no removable plate on the top, but that's okay. I don't have the Moog tool to do any adjustments anyway. :-)
Hi, Paul: If I'm correct, you own one of the older Etherwaves. On the last Etherwave "Issues and Answers" video, I included a link that shows you how to do the same calibration on the older models:
Lesson 42 th-cam.com/video/q2x-Q0Ghg7s/w-d-xo.html
For an initial explanation, watch from 0:00 to 4:03
For the Etherwave Standard instructions, start watching at 13:54
Instructions are then continued in PART 2:
Lesson 43 th-cam.com/video/Wt_JLuE15t8/w-d-xo.html
As for the tool, I've seen people charging rip-off prices - as much as 12 bucks for them! But here, they're less than 3 dollars:
www.coilcraft.com/en-us/tuningtools/
@@dnteuxurois yes I have an oldie and I love it. Thank you for those tips!
Something tells me that shipping the tool via DHL isn't going to happen. From the US to the Netherlands it costs €23.10. For a $2.99 tool. Ehm.
@@PaulKater Ridiculous. however, you may be able to find one there in the Netherlands now that you know (sort of) what it's called. Maybe there's a Netherlands branch of Amazon it can be ordered from? I checked here, but they only come is sets (the one on the far right in the picture is the one):
www.amazon.com/Philmore-Universal-Color-Alignment-Trimmer/dp/B019ZT5OOS/ref=sr_1_1?crid=30T5RI0GSQK9I&keywords=inductor+tuning+tool&qid=1653338338&sprefix=i%2Caps%2C279&sr=8-1
There must be one you can find locally.