Etherwave Standard Module Installation

@BernieK That sounds like it was a bit of a nightmare to say the least. I had a problem with one installation, and wouldn't you know it, a film crew was documenting that. I got done, and no sound. After examining the installation, I discovered, I had the legs of the module in the wrong set of holes. I had to back out, and of course, one of the legs decided to be the one that got solder all the way through to both sides of the board. When I applied a little too much pressure to pull up on the module, while heating the solder hole, I discovered that there was a copper ring in the holes of the board because along with the module came a couple of those rings. I had to reinstall the rings, resolder them, and for the holes that had filled in with solder, I had to use a micro drill bit to open up the holes with. Got it working, and tuned. Scary moment indeed.

@BernieK That sounds like it was a bit of a nightmare to say the least. I had a problem with one installation, and wouldn't you know it, a film crew was documenting that. I got done, and no sound. After examining the installation, I discovered, I had the legs of the module in the wrong set of holes. I had to back out, and of course, one of the legs decided to be the one that got solder all the way through to both sides of the board. When I applied a little too much pressure to pull up on the module, while heating the solder hole, I discovered that there was a copper ring in the holes of the board because along with the module came a couple of those rings. I had to reinstall the rings, resolder them, and for the holes that had filled in with solder, I had to use a micro drill bit to open up the holes with. Got it working, and tuned. Scary moment indeed.

Hi Thomas,

It was a pretty disheartening experience, after voiding the warranty on a new Etherwave, to end up with no sound. At least it's back to where it was, and now I don't feel so bad knowing that someone with your vast experience can encounter similar problems to what we lesser folks might come up against :-)

It seems that there are a lot of differences in the circuitry from one generation of Etherwaves to another. I noticed several differences in my two Etherwaves, one of which will be going to my stepdaughter for her birthday next month (please see my "Reverb for Etherwave" post if you're so inclined to answer a couple of burning questions).

Cheers,

Bernie

@BernieK Hi, I've just posted a response to your questions on the other thread. Yeh, I've come to be extremely careful about lookig for architectural differences between revisions within the same model. I'm sorry to hear the warenty was voided in the process. mine were quite well out of their warenty period. I'm glad you were able to restore the troublesome instrument to working order. Hopefully, Thierry, or Wilco will have a work around for you regarding that particular revision.

 Thomas G.    I had to back out, and of course, one of the legs decided to be the one that got solder all the way through to both sides of the board.

ChrisC.    Ah yes, the perfect solder joint always occurs when it isn't right elsewhere!

Thomas G.    When I applied a little too much pressure to pull up on the module, while heating the solder hole, I discovered that there was a copper ring in the holes of the board because along with the module came a couple of those rings. I had to reinstall the rings, resolder them, and for the holes that had filled in with solder, I had to use a micro drill bit to open up the holes with. Got it working, and tuned.

ChrisC.    Been there on circuit boards too when the 'copper ring' of the PCB lifts away with the component leg having broken/lifted off. Hands up who haven't soldered wire flyleads to jump a problem 'gap' on a pcb land of some sort? Sounds like you did a good job Thomas but you must know that as soon as you are being watched (or worse have a film crew in place) it can never work as it did in practice or 1 trillion times before. The 'gremlins' are waitin' & watchin' for their moment of fame you see !!!!!

Glad you got back to the starting position anyway BernieK. Not the result you wanted, but better than the one that was facing you!!!!

Thanks Thomas and Chris,

I now have two working Etherwaves...one with the mod and one without. My stepdaughter will get the un-modded one; she won't know the difference :-)

Cheers,

Bernie

@BernieK LOL! :) Oh yeh she will! LOL... Well, eventually, anyway. Good man. You made the right decision. Enjoy that nice module. :)

BernieK

I can hear her now; "Daddy; why is yours able to play so much deeper notes than mine"?

It's because these theremins are male and I gave you a young one.............. and yours hasn't reached puberty yet so its voice hasn't dropped like my older Etherwave!

Well whatever; Thomas is right. She's gonna find out!!!!

ChrisC wrote: I have just fitted the new ESPE01 Mk II module. Wow, what a difference! So why didn't RM do this to the EW originally it made me wonder?

There are many things that the late Bob Moog didn't do with his theremins that he should have done, and an equal number of things that he did, that should NOT have been done. Why is this? It is because Bob was an engineer and not a working musician. Here's an example.

One of the most glaring design flaws, IMNSHO, can be readily seen in the Etherwave Pro. It is a great looking instrument, and it has been manufactured with a beautiful birdseye maple front, but there is a problem which would be very clear to a working thereminist. The front panel is curved in such a way that many of the controls are invisible to the player when standing in the classic playing position in front of the instrument. 

It is necessary to bend over in order to make adjustments to the lower rows of controls because they point slightly downward toward the floor, but there is yet another unpleasant surprise for those who are obliged to work under several ranks of 1000 watt Kliegls. The positions of those stylish gleaming chrome buttons and knobs are impossible to read under stage lighting because the chrome surfaces reflect so much light it masks the position of the black, hair-thin indicator lines. Beautiful design - totally impractical.

That's just the beginning! There is a whole litany of other problems I won't bore you with (and they are not confined to the E'Pro). I mention all this only to emphasize the gulf between theremin builders and theremin players. The problem boils down to the mistaken belief on the part of designers and engineers that they already know what is needed and how to provide it. 

The situation is further complicated by the fact that theremin makers tend to go ballistic when anyone suggests that they consult a professional, **accomplished**, working thereminist BEFORE going ahead and building their instruments. When they do ask for suggestions (which some, to their credit, have done) they are flooded with enthusiastic recommendations from people who play at the beginner level themselves, and have little or no experience with what is really involved.

What you end up with is a situation in which the blind seem to be leading the blind.

Most technical people are absolutely convinced they already know what is needed, but they don't. Most of them play a bit themselves, and they believe this gives them an insight into what the virtuoso requires. They couldn't be more wrong. What they end up doing is building an instrument to their own specifications, which are essentially those of a hobbyist.

In her GIFT TAPE interviews, Clara Rockmore goes into considerable detail about the importance of her personal collaboration with Lev Termen when he was building her custom theremin in the 1930's, and she emphasizes Lev's own belief that he could not have done it without her. 

 I thought this unit has sensible control positioning Coalport. What do YOU think?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/THEREMIN-with-PITCH-and-VOLUME-antennas-Analog-theramin-/300849016999?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT&nma=true&si=eG%252BkBb%252Fdycs7P7Jw9Py01mPA428%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

BernieK

I can hear her now; "Daddy; why is yours able to play so much deeper notes than mine"?

It's because these theremins are male and I gave you a young one.............. and yours hasn't reached puberty yet so its voice hasn't dropped like my older Etherwave!

Well whatever; Thomas is right. She's gonna find out!!!!

ChrisC

I plan on limiting the number of octaves before I give it to her. She's even less skillful than I am and I want to make it easier on her so she'll want to play. And since she's away at school, it will be several months before she's home, so she won't find out until then :-)

BTW, that Theremin on eBay that you linked to sounds pretty good.

BernieK
BTW, that Theremin on eBay that you linked to sounds pretty good.

Well, having had some email conversation with Thomas about it (that wasn't a one off unit; I have mailed the designer/builder & they are available new at that price) then lets just say I'm tempted!!!!!!!