Helloo and a Question...

Hello all,

Well, it was supposed to be a Christmas present but I couldn't wait... haha

So here I am, hello everyone and my new theremin is a Moog Etherwave Std.

I know that it takes a couple of minutes to warm up but occasionally the sound sort of "glitches". Is this supposed to happen?

I don't know how to describe it but for example, say I'm holding middle C it then spasms from the lowest registers right up to supersonic very quickly then settles back on to C. Sort of the sound you get when you hit the tonearm of the record player and it skips right across the vinyl off the platter (in this case the sound is like it skids off and right back).

It keeps doing this every couple of seconds for the first 5 minutes or so, then it seems stable. I thought this may just be circuits warming up, but today the glitchy sounds appeared even though the unit had been on for a couple of hours.

Unit is grounded, nothing near it. No handphone or other metallic objects on me. No other electrical items on the same power loop. I had read up and made sure of all this.

So, I guess it's the question everyone asks, "Is this normal?".

Welcome to Theremin World.

Er, no. Not normal. :-(

Mine does that when I switch it on, but only once, and only for a second. (Pitch zips down from ultrasonic and bounces around a bit.) So it could be as simple as a loose connection somewhere. Check the mains plug, and if that's clear open up the etherwave and look for a wire flapping around in the breeze.

You do understand that Santa is punishing you for opening your presents too soon, don't you.

Thanks for the welcome, and if Santa doesn't bring me any other presents besides the Theremin, it'd still be well worth it opening it up early! It's such a fantastic instrument.

I had a great time freaking out everyone with the classic woooeeeoooooo but that wore off soon enough. Now I'm picking out some tunes which amazingly people seem to recognize.

I opened her up, I don't see any loose wiring anywhere though, everything seems in place. The soldering is really well done, shiny and clean. I wonder if the Moog boards are all made in the USA instead of being farmed out over to China like most electronics.

So anyways, after putting the cabinet back together I turned it on and again the "glitchy" sounds started off and on for about 5 minutes. Then they were gone and for the past hour all seems fine.

As long as they appear only when cold started, I suppose I can live with that. But I dread the thought that the glitches may happen at anytime like before.

Yup, the Moog boards are made in Asheville, NC. I've watched the elves soldering away in person. I would definitely call them up and describe the problem. They can either hel pyou troubleshoot it over the phone or help you with a return, repair, or replacement. Sorry this happened with your first theremin!