Claravox Centennial Theremin - Post Your Thoughts Here

The three melodious sound samples were played by Grégoire Blanc. Can't distinguish that timbre from the E-Pro.

Grégoire Blanc replied on FB: "Indeed, it is really really close."

It sounds as if quite a few, and perhaps a majority of panel controls are encoders rather than potentiometers, which raises the possibility of storing and loading setups via midi or usb.  I'm thinking that the midi functionality is going to be limited to this with real-time control of some parameters also a possibility.  But I have doubts whether there would be any pitch/volume midi data that would allow the theremin to bypass the internal sound generators and be used as a controller for anything like SWAM instruments, for example.  I think it still does have CV outputs (?) for pitch and volume control of external analog synths.

Somewhere on the website (btw you can really get into recursive loops if you click on the "more information" links) or possibly in some other news release I saw that software will be included with the Claravox.  Hopefully this will allow preset management and should also give access to parameters not available via the panel knobs.

We are right about the pitch preview - there isn't any, which is a big mistake in my opinion.  Fortunately there is a pre-VCA output ("Tuner") that will provide the raw signal to process externally. Cue the aftermarket add-ons.  I hope that this oversight (or worse, intentional elimination) isn't a sign of more to come. 

"We are right about the pitch preview - there isn't any, which is a big mistake in my opinion.  Fortunately there is a pre-VCA output ("Tuner") that will provide the raw signal to process externally. Cue the aftermarket add-ons.  I hope that this oversight (or worse, intentional elimination) isn't a sign of more to come."  - pitts8rh

That's too bad.  Would Bluetooth be a good option for this?  Might cut down on cords...

So what's the deadline for pre-ordering (which is the deadline for ordering it at all?) and what's the ETA?

Well, I found a 20% discount code for Prymaxe.  It is BOO20.  It didnt work when I tried to order but a friendly customer service  rep helped my via chat and I got the theremin and the stand for $1,399.00.

I now have two of these ordered from two different vendors in case the pre-order system screws something up.  I figure I will be able to sell one down the road to someone who missed out.  I didn't get the Pro when it was on sale and I have regretted that decision since then.

Even if the prices don't skyrocket like the Pro I'm sure I'll get my investment back.

Now, before anyone decides to roast me for flipping gear, that's my main source of income right now with festivals off-line.  I haven't made a single dollar this year from my main job.  We are only now setting up some drive-in tours but my services are not needed for that.

Besides, I always price my gear at below market value - enough to make a little profit while still giving the buyer something to smile about.

My understanding is that these will ship in December so the pre-order period will probably end sometime in November.

Isn't it a little odd that it will have pitch and volume CV-outs but seems to have no gate/trigger-out?

I think most people that will use the Claravox with their modular or semi-modular probably have something to extract gate and/or trigger from the audio or CV outs (such as a Planar2 or a DistingMk4)

Not only that, but many modules and synths that use CV can be set up to find a trigger on a rising or falling signal, and as there are separate CVs for each antenna, you can use one as a trigger or gate and the other as your pitch or LFO or mod matrix source. 

I halfway think that the whole Claravox anniversary thing is at least partially a way for Moog to gauge the market for another upscale theremin or perhaps update of the Etherwave. Because you are right! Why NOT have gate, trigger, loop, reverb, envelope, chorus, harmony and PITCH PREVIEW? It should be easy.

On my Theremax, I use a threshold gate to send the audio to my headphones at a lower volume than it sends to the main output, and that's how I do pitch preview, so I'm not fussed about it. I mainly want that Etherwave Pro tone. 

"I mainly want that Etherwave Pro tone."  - Flounderguts

Can you point us to any examples of the specific tone(s) you desire?

I think its ugly, I don't like the hessian fabric finish, how are you going to clean it?

To me it sounds like a 'souped up' Theremini in a 'posh box' - with a bit of traditional hetereodyne added for good measure.

If Moog wanted to make a Clara Rockmore centennial theremin, why not make it look more like the RCA! 

"If Moog wanted to make a Clara Rockmore centennial theremin, why not make it look more like the RCA!" -Lee Harries

It could be because something like that would be quite expensive to build and ship, and probably well over 95% of the cost would go into a cabinet to house electronics that easily fit in a shoebox. Even fewer people would want to pay a couple thousand for the woodwork of an RCA knock-off that houses maybe $100 worth of electronics with room left to serve as a writing desk.

I agree the Claravox doesn't have the greatest aesthetics, with the short pitch arm and the questionable application of fabric panels.   But if the fabric is indeed like speaker grille cloth it may have some treatment to make it more durable.  It just isn't that easy to come up with a low-production enclosure solution that is beautiful and producible at a cost commensurate with what's inside.

I see a market for an aftermarket product.  Some kind of cover for the face.  Maybe clear plastic or even washable cloth that can protect the original cloth.