Last week I had a going away party for our doctor at work and naturally everyone was interested in my theremin. One of my co-workers upon seeing me play said "I'll be right back....I have something for you to see!" Thirty minutes later he showed up with a Moog Melodia in it's original box! As the story goes his grandfather put it together and it was in his basement for many years. Since neither of his grandparents are alive no one remembers if it ever worked.
I bought a 4 - AA battery box at Radio Shack, and connected the red positive wire to the switch and the black to the other ground terminal in the original battery holder. Along with that I bought an RCA to 1/4" audio cable to hook to my amplifier. There is a slight "pop" from the speaker when I turn it on but no other sound.
The case is in almost perfect condition with no scratches and the original finish is nearly perfect......the antenna and volume plate is in perfect condition also. I believe the main problem is that the theremin was in a damp enviroment in the basement so there is some corrosion on the inside of the metal circuit box and the wires and soldier on the transistors. However the volume and pitch tuner knobs seem to be in excellent condition. I used tuner cleaner on them along with the on/off switch.
Possible problems I see:
(1) The theremin never worked from the time it was built. (Which explains no one remembering it.)
(2) The dampness ruined the components and/or some connections.
(3) The 4 AA batteries are not enough to power this model.
Aside from the above, could I have overlooked something simple?
Is the theremin even worth rebuilding....or would it make a better wall ornament for the music room?
Thanks for your thoughts!