Claravox Centennial Theremin - Post Your Thoughts Here

"Production has begun" can mean a lot of things, but it sounds better than "production will begin in (fill in the blank)" heard previously.

I guess I haven't been as annoyed by the delay as some, but it seems that Moog could have handled this much better, and I wouldn't blame a lot of people for being irate. I'll never understand why they chose to not put out a candid statement as to the cause of the delay.  If it really is a supply chain problem they could have elaborated on that.  Is it due to the AKM fire? Other issues with China?  Is it a specific component or many?

I think a frank explanation would go over a lot better than the boilerplate excuses given thus far.  Moog has a large customer base that would understand the issues and probably cut them more slack over delays.  It's not like Moog has a liability issue that they're trying to hide or something embarrassing (unless they do....).

Personally I'm not too concerned over the delay, but that doesn't mean that anger at Moog's messaging, or lack of it, isn't justified.  I'm more incensed by the design geniuses that decided to leave pitch preview out of the Claravox.  But I should stop beating that dead horse in public .

. . . I'll never understand why they chose to not put out a candid statement as to the cause of the delay.  If it really is a supply chain problem they could have elaborated on that.  Is it due to the AKM fire? Other issues with China?  Is it a specific component or many?

I responded to Moog after I received the last message (at this point, I have no intention of purchasing any Moog products again as this has left a very sour taste in my mouth) and received a bit more information:

“. . .This situation has been difficult all around for both the company as well as the customers who have been anxiously awaiting this instrument. We have run into problem after problem with the stages of making this instrument a reality, and while that is not an excuse, it is the reality of the situation. “

While they have been apologetic, it remains unclear what the problems (plural) have been.

Meanwhile, as a theremin newbie, I’ve been trying to learn to play and that’s difficult to do without a good (and consistent) instrument. I first got a Burns 3, which I have never been fond of. Next, I’ve been trying to play on a Theremini but I’ve quickly found the limitations of that (I’ve mentioned before that it’s sluggish, even when adjusting various settings) - it’s fine for sound effects and playing around but it simply doesn’t cut it for my purposes (I’m a classically trained musician). I then built an Open Theremin V3, which feels a lot more responsive than the Theremini, although I suspect that the Claravox will be significantly better. I consider the Open Theremin V3 to be my “main instrument,” and is also the most fun of the three to play, but it can be quirky and has its limitations too. Learning to play the theremin is difficult enough without having to continually relearn on a different instrument - especially for a beginner.

"Learning to play the theremin is difficult enough without having to continually relearn on a different instrument - especially for a beginner." -ContraDude

Now I understand your frustration.  It's probably not helpful at this point, but would you consider (or have you considered) picking up a used Etherwave?  If it seems overly indulgent to have one with the Claravox presumably right around the corner*, consider that it is a solid instrument and it never hurts to have two decent theremins around.  Having to jump back and forth and adapt to slightly different instruments can seem awkward at first but mixing it up from time to time does tend to change how you use both pitch recognition and muscle memory to hit the notes.  Just a suggestion.

 Next, I’ve been trying to play on a Theremini but I’ve quickly found the limitations of that (I’ve mentioned before that it’s sluggish, even when adjusting various settings) - it’s fine for sound effects and playing around but it simply doesn’t cut it for my purposes (I’m a classically trained musician). I then built an Open Theremin V3, which feels a lot more responsive than the Theremini, although I suspect that the Claravox will be significantly better. I consider the Open Theremin V3 to be my “main instrument,” and is also the most fun of the three to play, but it can be quirky and has its limitations too. Learning to play the theremin is difficult enough without having to continually relearn on a different instrument - especially for a beginner.

You may be interested to know that Kip Rosser has started with new theremin tutorials on his YT channel, specifically for the Theremini, with tips how to use it as a real instrument and not only as sound effects toy. The first exensively goes into all the finesses of doing the calibration procedure for optimum playability. Actually the Theremini is really not as bad as many have made it out to be (possibly without really taking the time to bond with it, and if you are not really able to become one with the instrument, the results are likely to dissappoint, especially if you do believe the 'anti-hype' it becomes a kind of placebo/nocebo effect. As I told before, after my playing abilities have grown playing the Etherwave, I was kinda surprised that the Theremini is actually quite playable, as long as the callibration is done properly, response time is set to Fast, and the built-in effects don't eat up too much processing power. That said you're right to initially learn and practice with the instrument that feels best, after the brains/nervous system have (re)wired themselves it becomes more easy to adapt more or less instantly to the idiosyncracities of other theremins.

I understand your frustration.  It's probably not helpful at this point, but would you consider (or have you considered) picking up a used Etherwave?  If it seems overly indulgent to have one with the Claravox presumably right around the corner*, consider that it is a solid instrument and it never hurts to have two decent theremins around.  Having to jump back and forth and adapt to slightly different instruments can seem awkward at first but mixing it up from time to time does tend to change how you use both pitch recognition and muscle memory to hit the notes.  Just a suggestion.

Hi pitts8rth,

Actually, I started seriously considering an Etherwave a while ago, when it became evident that Moog wasn't being more forth coming about the Claravox; I kept telling myself to be patient as delivery of Claravox wasn't in the too distant future. When I say another post (I believe earlier in this thread) that a dealer had told someone else that delivery might not be until late July or August (perhaps longer), that was it for me - August is still three months from now. You're right, at this point with the Claravox allegedly in production and my own budgetary issues, I'm just going to have to wait it out. My concern is with developing good technique. As I mentioned, I'm a classical musician - a bassoonist - the bassoon is, arguably, one of the most challenging orchestral instrument. One of the many reasons (and there are many) being that the instrument lacks standardization - everywhere instrument is different. It can take weeks or longer for a good player to get accustomed to a different instrument as not only do the physical characteristics differ (often greatly) - key height, key shape, key placement, even the number and type of keys, but fingerings must be changed (and there are multiple alternate fingerings for many/most notes on the instrument) and technique altered to match the individual instrument. The theremin is even "worse" (at least for me, although I've played the bassoon for decades) in that there are so many variables that must be accounted for. I prefer to start students out before they've even put their instruments together, in order to give them a solid base upon which to build and to prevent the development of bad habits - I've been particularly concerned with that.

Anyway, THANKS for the suggestion! It's much appreciated! 

. . . You may be interested to know that Kip Rosser has started with new theremin tutorials on his YT channel, specifically for the Theremini, with tips how to use it as a real instrument and not only as sound effects toy. The first exensively goes into all the finesses of doing the calibration procedure for optimum playability. . .

Hi DreadVox,

I'll take a look - I've seen many of his videos. I participated in a Zoom workshop with Dorit Chrysler a while ago and that was very helpful - I've got things set up to respond as quickly as possible and don't use sound effects when I'm playing it. Even so, I find things sluggish, particularly the left hand. I also take lessons (when I can) with Lydia Kavina (she's amazing) and also attend her weekly Zoom workshops. I have found that there are things I can't do on the Theremini, that are relatively quite easy on the Open Theremin V3. Examples are "fast" notes (grace notes) and using the left hand for shorter "articulations" such as trying to play staccato. 

Thanks much for your suggestions! I'll check them out and will take a look at Kip Rossiter's Theremini materials.

LIMITED EDITION....
Could we "project" here and all contact our dealers and ask them how many orders they have on the books?

I'm with Sweetwater and at last count there were at least 350 orders.

If we get the info and add up the numbers, we will have some idea of how limited this instrument really is....

Like Contradude, one of the reasons I ordered the Claravox was because it seemed somewhat exclusive, a valueable instrument that may make gains over time.

At this point, very tired of Moog. I feel like they led us on.....seductive marketing, elusive information to begin with, the promise of an amazing instrument etc.

I too, looked at the etherwave plus as an option, ha! Can't even change my mind and order that now.

I'm very excited to have an order out for a quality theremin with advanced capabilities at a reasonable price, compared to what is currently available. And I needed it to be  left handed. This isn't an investment to me. Rather it's the only way I could afford something on the level of an etherwave pro. I can see how those buying the Claravox as an investment wouldn't want many made. 

 I am watching this thread each week, hoping for some news about production. Someone from Moog told me today that there would be a new update on the status of production by this Friday.  I hope we find out something soon. 

Yet another no-update update - not much there but I'll pass it along in case it helps set expectations:

I apologize for not emailing last week, we had anticipated sending out a public statement, but had to push it back. However, I promised I would email so I’m providing you with the following information.

First, I would like to thank you for your patience with us during this time, as we work diligently to bring Claravox Centennial to life. We understand that our customers are anxiously awaiting this instrument, and the delays we are experiencing have caused and continues to be a source of frustration.

Here in the Moog Factory, we have just begun pilot production of Claravox Centennial. In this initial stage of production, we evaluate our production processes as we ramp up towards building more and more each day, ultimately culminating in the shipping release of the instrument. While we know we need to be urgent in delivering on our commitments, any additional time taken to ensure the build quality and final instrument is as the design intended will benefit you. As our manufacturing validation process continues, we have not yet begun shipping, and once pilot production is complete and we are ready to ship, we will update our website and the community.

I know this process has been exasperating not only for our customers but also for us as we want to provide people with a beautiful and timeless instrument. I hope you can bear with us for a bit longer and thank you for your patience.

It's easy to be critical, but it's like they're running a kickstarter over there.

I need to copy / paste that text to my thread and keep any interested folks on indefinite hold in purgatory / limbo during this time as we work diligently to bring the D-Lev to life.

Just as a preface, no update on the Claravox here, but I thought this info on other theremins might be useful or informative.

To Contra (and anyone else interested), I want to vouch wholeheartedly for the Subscope Voicematic 120 as an amazingly capable theremin. I upgraded from an Etherwave Plus (with the ESPE01 module installed), and I was thrilled to have this instrument. It feels so smooth to play, has an amazing timbre and wonderful timbral changes over the pitch and dynamic range, and a plethora of settings. In fact, there are two timbral adjustment knobs, both of which have a far wider range of timbres than either on the Etherwave Plus, and a "Voice" switch to change between voicings entirely, allowing for two 'modes' to explore timbres in. On top of that, the 2nd harmonic option changes the voicing yet again, offering 4 switch combinations with timbres to explore. Beyond that, the velocity feature responds to the speed of hand movements over the volume loop, which is both fun and useful; the white noise feature can be tremendously fun to explore in music; and the pitch preview requires no pre-amp and the range at which it activates is customizable. Which reminds me, the external tuning is much easier on this theremin too compared to the Etherwave Plus, particularly in combination with the telescopic antenna.

My only complaints are the slightly less responsive volume loop, which has a very small delay (really only causes me an issue when attempting to play fast tuplets), and the internal tuning coils can be a pain to work with, as they don't turn easily. It also runs the risk of going out of tune in transport, though this happened more at first than recently. Otherwise, if you're looking for an instrument with a pleasing classical or electrical sound - and especially one with both - this is a phenomenal choice as far as I'm concerned. It'll certainly be a partner instrument to my Claravox Centennial when it arrives. Plus, one of its possible timbres is that stereotypical, deep, spacey "OooOOooOoo" sort of sound that most people associate with the theremin. Always a fun party trick after a performance, as well as for letting new people try it out.

Hope this was useful for anyone looking for options! (: